Authors: Anđelina Mihaljević, Mia Oberan, Filip Pilić, Luka Ivanković
Leave the university habits behind
The journey to the “CV: Create Value” training course in Cordoba, Spain, began in Split, where Mia, Filip, and I embarked on an unforgettable experience. We fondly refer to it as our adventure full of surprises, realizations, and moments that will undoubtedly be etched in our memories. As 3 out of 4 members were from Croatia, we travelled with a group from Belgium, Spain, and Romania, forming a team that promised diversity and a wealth of experiences.
The accommodation in the enchanting Cerro Muriano offered us a stay in an oasis of peace, and Sanja and Sam, our guides, provided us with a haven and our first “safe place” experience. The initial impressions of our journey were, to say the least, bewildering. Starting from the moment at the airport, where the enigma continued to follow us. We’ll save airport stories for another time, and now let’s delve into the initial encounters with the week-long “CV: Create Value” training course. This course not only promised development in terms of informal education but also an incredible community that we have built together with participants from the mentioned countries. We arrived with more formal attire packed in our travel bags, prepared for lectures (the classic, university style), and everything we received upon arrival was perfect and entirely different from what we had expected. Learning unfolded through numerous delightful activities that were anything but “sit-listen-siesta.” Hehe, yes, we discovered a new way of life: when the temperature is at its peak, and the sun is relentless – “siesta, so be it.”
Anđelina Mihaljević

Discovering talents in a safe space
The sense of connection with wonderful people from different parts of the world, bringing the richness of their cultures, was inspiring. During workshops and activities, breaks became an opportunity to exchange information about different cultures and to learn languages from each other. It was wonderful to see how, throughout the project, most of us became familiar with the basics of different languages.
The hosts were extremely friendly and supportive, enabling us to make the most of the experience. Collaborators brought a wealth of knowledge through diverse workshops, contributing to enriching the experience for everyone involved. But perhaps what marked this experience the most was the atmosphere of safety that allowed each of us to relax, explore the uncharted, and discover talents we might not have known we possessed.
Thanks to the open environment, we all surpassed our limits. This resulted in maintaining contact with our newly acquired international friends even after the project’s completion. This is truly an incredible aspect of this experience – connecting people despite geographical distances and maintaining relationships, further developing friendships. This experience has prompted us to realize how important it is to create safe spaces that allow everyone to grow, learn, and develop, regardless of their origin or language.
Mia Oberan


Diversity as a source of inspiration
The diversity of our group has become a source of inspiration, opening windows to a world of diversity and enriching our understanding of other cultures. It was wonderful to see how each person is in their universe. Beautiful in its way, full of riches that shine like the stars and full of planets, a welcoming space for others to join their universe. Everyone was kind, and well-mannered and it was clear that we were all there for the same reasons.
The workshops were not just lessons, but opportunities for collaboration, creativity and sharing of ideas. They were a field where we shaped not only business visions but also personal visions, helping each other realize what we want in life.
We are grateful to Sanja, Sam, the rest of the course staff and every participant who contributed to this amazing story. This was our greeting from Spain, but not the end. Now, with a sense of gratitude, we open the door to new chapters and challenges that life brings. We are ready to continue growing, learning and building bridges with people around the world.
Filip Pilić


Meet a friend in each part of the world
I have never been a good writer or a storyteller but I will try to make this dissemination as interesting as possible. The thing that started to grow on me is travelling alone, I don’t know why but I always go through the best experiences while travelling alone. I focused on remembering every street or sign so as not to get lost, and talked to many new people so they could help me or kill some time while waiting and it always builds up an experience before the main event. To sum up, the people and city of Malaga are beautiful, it was mostly warm and sunny and even though summer has passed you always have that summer vibe when you are there. Other than people, the landscape and structures project was great as well, it was well thought out and well executed. It is never easy to motivate a group of 10+ people and make it comfortable and fun to do every activity, but they succeeded in that. Even when we had presentations or solo speeches they made the atmosphere so warm and friendly that you never felt nervousness or fear. Because of that kind of atmosphere you get to grow on each other because there is never some kind of stress or other bad feeling, just positive energy around people who wish you all the best. I don’t have to mention that I have met many wonderful people who I stayed in touch with and plan to visit one day.
Other than travelling and seeing places that you wouldn’t that easily is the best part of any Erasmus+ project, making friends in as many different places as possible. Just recently I had my friend from Latvia whom I met in another Erasmus+ project come and visit me and my home country for a few days. Have to say that it made me think how good it is to always have someone that you in each part of the world that you go to. Always have somebody to show you around, to give you some helpful firsthand information or help out if you have some kind of problem. So to sum up again, met really interesting people, many of whom I stayed in contact with. Also learned a lot about myself in that project, talking about what I want to become, and got some great insights and learned a lot through those classes. Other than that I have tried almost every type of food that they have, have to say that that is my primary goal before I start any of my trips, and Spain was worth it. I hope I will be on another trip soon and have the privilege to say that it was another wholesome experience that I will remember for the rest of my life.
Luka Ivanković
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