I had the chance to take part in the Quiet Quest Erasmus+ project, held in Bansko, Bulgaria, from 25 November to 4 December 2024. Throughout the project, while discussing the effects of noise pollution on people, animals and natural life, I also had the opportunity to meet young people from different cultures and learn together.

This experience showed me that people who speak different languages do not always have to communicate only through words. Sometimes a smile, a gesture, a game played together or a shared dance can be enough to connect.

Introductions and first steps

On the first day of the project, we held various conversation activities to get to know one another better. We talked with the person in front of us about topics given by our coordinators and changed places at regular intervals to meet different participants.

We also learned the rules we needed to follow throughout the project and received information about how the days we would spend together would continue. From the first day onward, I began to feel the excitement of sharing the same environment with people from different countries.

Erasmus+ and becoming aware of noise

On the second day, we talked about the purpose of the project and the work we would carry out in the following days. We received information about Erasmus+ and Youthpass. Then we drew pictures of the spaces around us and represented these spaces with different colors according to their sound levels.

This activity helped me realize something I had not thought about much before: how much do the sounds of our environment actually affect our daily lives and mood?

Listening to the sounds of Bansko

On the third day, we went outside and walked through the streets of Bansko. We recorded the different sounds we encountered and discussed their physical and mental effects on people and animals.

Later, we listened to two different sounds, one noisy and one more peaceful. We expressed the emotions these sounds created in us through drawings. It was interesting to see that the same sound could create different emotions in different people.

Looking for solutions

On the fourth day, we classified the factors that cause noise pollution. We thought about different sources such as transportation, entertainment, technology and environmental factors. But we did not only identify the problems. We also discussed what could be done individually and collectively to reduce or eliminate them.

Then we visualized our ideas and shared the works we prepared with the other participants. These activities helped me start looking more carefully at the sources of noise around us.

Discovering Bansko

The fifth day was our free day. We took a short break from the project work and had the chance to discover Bansko and rest. Spending time with friends from different countries, experiencing the atmosphere of the city and stepping a little outside our daily routine were beautiful parts of the project.

Walking together in Bansko, talking and getting to know the place we were staying in showed that the project was not only about workshops. Sometimes discovering a city together can be one of the most natural forms of intercultural learning.

The effect of noise on our minds

On the sixth day, we worked on preparing infographics and posters. Participants were divided into groups; some groups prepared infographics, while others prepared posters. We chose to prepare a poster, and our topic was the effects of noise pollution on the human mind.

We brought our research together and tried to prepare a clear and attractive poster. Expressing what we had learned visually helped us approach the topic from a different angle.

Final touches and project presentation

On the seventh day, we received feedback on the posters we had prepared. Based on the suggestions, we completed the missing parts of our poster and made the final edits. Then we created a QR code for the work we had prepared.

In this way, we aimed to make the content we prepared within the project easier to access. Later that day, we introduced our project and our work. Realizing that we were approaching the end of the project felt a little bittersweet, but sharing what we had created was a good feeling.

What we learned and goodbyes

On the final day, we all talked about what we had learned throughout the project and what this experience had brought us. For me, one of the most important gains was getting to know different cultures more closely.

Thanks to the cultural nights, I discovered the traditions, food and music of different countries and also had the chance to introduce my own country and culture to the other participants. Making friends from different countries helped me understand their environments and cultures better.

Sometimes we had difficulties with language. However, this process taught me that speaking the same language perfectly is not the only way to communicate. I experienced that people from different cultures under the same roof can have fun together, learn together and create shared memories.

What stayed with me from Bansko

Quiet Quest was not only a project where I learned about noise pollution. Through this project, I met different cultures, made new friendships and had the chance to share my own culture.

I also understood the negative effects of noise on people and other living beings more clearly and learned what I could do individually about this issue. Most importantly, I saw that differences do not have to be barriers to communication.

When I left Bansko, I was not leaving only a project behind; I was leaving behind new people, new experiences and beautiful memories shared with different cultures.