Arts Lab 6.0: Yasser Abbas - Month 1

The first month passed by so quickly that I can hardly believe it’s already over. I still remember my first day in Târgu Frumos—waking up in the middle of the night to a new weather, a new lifestyle, and the start of so many new experiences. During my first month, we attended a book launch at the House of Culture and visited the town center for the first time. I got to wear traditional clothing, attend my first school event, and participate in a craft festival. 

At the festival, we interviewed artisans and even danced with an elderly man. Later, we experienced a Romanian night with traditional food and drinks. We also visited the Jewish Cemetery and took our first trip to Iași, where we explored a museum, an art gallery, and the French Institute. We assisted a local artisan at his museum and a local entrepreneru at her restaurant, and later conducted workshops with kids at Moldova School. The month ended with workshops in Tătăruși and participation in the Folcloristica Festival. 

My feelings this month have been a mix of pride, love, and gratitude. I’m proud of the workshops I’ve done with kids and feel deeply connected to my friends here—we do everything together, and as I said on my birthday, it feels like having a family. I’ve felt love, teamwork, kindness, gratitude, and passion throughout this experience. I’ve also learned a lot, especially about independence. I’ve picked up new skills like cooking, washing my things, working with kids, organizing workshops, painting, playing music, sharing ideas, and learning Romanian. I’ve also gained deeper insights into Romanian culture. 

 Looking ahead, I plan to visit many theaters in Iași and across Romania, improve my Romanian language skills, expand my network, and organize my work better. I also want to travel more, work on my English, and build on what I’ve learned this month to achieve even better results in the future. 

Report by Yasser Abbas, a volunteer from Egypt and one of the 14 participants in Arts Lab 6.0, a project co-funded by the European Union through the European Solidarity Corps program.