Hello, I'm Raşit Buğra Keskin and I am 24 years old, and I participated in the project from Turkey. From the moment the possibility of becoming one of the volunteers of the I am sports+ project emerged until the end of the project, all the time means a lot to me, and I would like to express these as much as possible to you.

First of all, I would like to start my words by thanking the organizations that have provided us with this opportunity. In these days when a self-centered lifestyle is becoming increasingly common, I don't think it's easy to create such beneficial and awareness-raising effects on people with a project like this, and making this possible is indeed an important achievement. Working as a volunteer group towards a common goal that is important for our societies, the people of these two beautiful European countries, which are actually not very far from each other culturally, and the mutual exchanges made have added a lot to us. I hope to convey these to you through my individual experiences.

 Right after the end of my school semester, my journey from Turkey to Bologna began. I think it's a significant personal challenge for a young individual to step out of their comfort zone and be part of such a journey, and unfortunately, such an opportunity doesn't come around very often. Living in Bologna, even for a short time... There is a very social community in this city that has developed itself extensively in many controversial societal issues experienced universally. Passing through this adventure with open-minded people to all kinds of thoughts and sharing has once again shown me how colorful life can be with the differences people bring. Here's to the beautiful days when we can understand people and leave positive impacts on their lives!

The project process gained meaning for me from the very beginning by demonstrating the positive effects of maintaining physical and mental health through the fundamental influence of sports on the body. It's a city where cycling is very common, and this excites you to become part of this group. Being able to see the streets of Bologna from a different perspective through a nighttime bike tour made me realize how common and possible this situation is in daily life, of course, made possible by the nature and urban planning of the city being arranged accordingly. Hopefully, we can be more conscious about this.

 We tend to be very distant when it comes to incorporating different sports into our lives, growing up with concerns about how successful we will be in that sport. The point actually came to a striking point for me here. Although inclined towards sports, the moment I saw the new features it added to me by participating in sports that I was not familiar with before and how fun and beneficial it was, I realized that I wanted to be involved in such sharing with people more often. The multifaceted effects of the branches included in the program (Mölkky, Capoeira, HIIT Cardio, Trekking, Swimming, Boxing, Cycling, Volleyball, Badminton) offered us a very impressive and rich content in terms of individual gains and awareness. Being a team and being in a holistic sharing with your team members is really a wonderful feeling. I am grateful to everyone who was part of this team for the beautiful memories they provided me.

 I don't want to skip mentioning the other beautiful experiences I gained during the project. Although not entirely different, experiencing a new culture and experiencing it in Italy, which has preserved its history very well, was very inspiring. Tasting the cultural and gastronomic riches of the city we lived in, participating in various events in the city, sharing your ideas and experiences with friendly people, starting to learn a new language and adapting to them, although not always easy, is a process worth every second. Wandering around Venice's unique beauties without caring about getting lost constantly, seeing the traces of European Art History live in Florence, understanding Julius Caesar in Rimini, and feeling the courage to cross my own Rubicon while touring a monastery in rainy weather were very special moments for me. These cities have survived numerous struggles and efforts have been made to ensure that their historical traces are not erased as much as possible. Preserving its culture and passing it on to future generations can be one of the most beautiful things one can do to make sense of one's existence and help it (at least it makes me feel that way for now).

Without mentioning the other beautiful experiences I gained during the project, I don't want to skip mentioning them.

Thanks to Alessandra for teaching me to make recycling a part of my life and not giving up against challenges,

Thanks to Mariangela for always being in positive communication and never giving up on being cheerful, for helping us establish very good human relationships,

Thanks to Federico for enriching my perspective on history and socio-cultural events and constantly teaching me something like a brother,

Thanks to Edoardo, Anna, Luca, and Carlo for always taking care of us, guiding us beautifully, and presenting us with details that we would never know without them,

And finally, thanks to Halil and Rosalia for their efforts and everything they have done for us to reach this day, working hard for today and tomorrow for the youth. I hope these beautiful projects become more widespread, and more people have the opportunity to experience these beautiful experiences.

Thanks for reading about my experiences!

Auguro a tutti una buona vita!

Ci rivediamo, arrivederci! (Wishing everyone a good life! See you again, goodbye!)