In the Asturian dialect, there is a word that is slowly disappearing from common use. It’s the word “andecha,” which describes the traditional custom where people from rural areas gather to help their neighbors with various tasks, and then socialize over food and perhaps some beer after the work is done. It’s an exchange of kindness and assistance. Similar to the word itself, this custom is becoming less common. Most likely, the majority of my Asturian friends aren’t even familiar with the meaning of this word.
Upon applying for a volunteer project in Idrija, this word came to my mind. I will be participating in the restoration of a small mining house in a Slovenian town I had never heard of before. An unknown town nestled among hills with a long mining history and an inactive mine. This description of Idrija is strikingly similar to the description of my hometown. Mieres is rapidly becoming a ghost town. Despite the efforts and excellent work of the mayor to revitalize our town, the growth of larger cities and consequently the migration of young people to them is draining it. Even the youth in Mieres are striving to find opportunities at home, but because they cannot find them, they are forced to move to larger cities.
This aspect of similarity was the most interesting to me about this volunteer project. I assumed that Idrija, in this regard, is similar to Mieres and faces similar challenges. When I saw the description of the project, which aims to gather young people from all over Europe who will be involved in some kind of “andecha,” I was excited about the idea that someone cares about preserving life in the town. “Respect the Past & Build Bridges for the Future” is a joint project of the Youth Center Idrija and the ID20 Institute, which brought together 18 people from nine different European countries and connected them in two different activities. On one hand, the goal was to restore the bridge in front of the Idrija elementary school, and on the other hand, to carry out minor interventions to preserve the Giser house, built by Idrija miners two hundred years ago.
The planned work in the Giser house essentially involved restoring the house’s doors and creating a new kitchen during two weeks of intensive teamwork. Most team members had never worked with wood before and were not accustomed to using tools. After all, young people of our generation mostly dedicate their lives to studying or sedentary work, but in Idrija, we couldn’t simply avoid physical labor. Under the mentorship of Matevž and Matija, we transformed from individuals into a cohesive group of workers who helped each other and stuck together to find solutions and efficiently complete the tasks at hand.
This reminded me of those villagers from Asturias who help each other because they are well aware that by helping others, they are actually helping themselves. Every form of teamwork requires a touch of kindness; yet, every act of kindness is rewarded multiple times over by forming stronger bonds among individuals. Therefore, when we saw the renovated doors and when the last kitchen cabinet was installed at the end of the project, each of us felt not only proud but also grateful for the experience that brought strangers together into a small yet connected community of workers.
Even at the Youth Center Idrija, we were part of a larger community. Eighteen Europeans in their twenties shared the same hostel for twenty days, each with different manners and habits. It sounds like a recipe for chaos. And it probably would have been a not-so-pleasant main course if we hadn’t sat down and organized ourselves from the first day (I would like to highlight Alex, a volunteer from the youth center, who helped us a lot with organization and finding things in the hostel). Together, we established a system for daily group cooking and cleaning, and we managed to make it work flawlessly. In our house, no one went hungry.
So those were the main tasks of our stay: cooperation, patience, and mutual understanding. These values were the key to forming bonds that we believe will remain even after we leave Idrija. I was sincerely surprised at how close we became with the other volunteers, whom we met for the first time two weeks ago. I think this is due to sharing and openness, which is essential for such a heterogeneous group. In these twenty days, we learned about the habits and countries of the other volunteers. This was especially evident during the so-called cultural evenings. We cooked traditional dishes from our home countries and all enjoyed them together. Not only were the dishes very tasty, but they also helped us realize that in the end, our differences allowed us to get closer to each other. This is one of the most important lessons we can learn today: differences are neither dangerous nor divisive; they enrich us.
The free time we had during our stay in Idrija was a real opportunity for us to explore the surroundings. We walked through the streets of the former mining town, sought out places related to the mine, and got to know the atmosphere of such a small place. We also went on trips and hikes to Ljubljana, Bled, Croatia… Some attempts didn’t go as planned, but we improvised and used humor to get through every dilemma. Every young person in the world is in a hurry to experience as much as possible and make the most of their youth. After all, for us, it was also a vacation.
When trying to encapsulate the overarching message of our Idrija project, I would summarize it in one sentence: Cherish youth and “andecho” and blend them together into something greater. Young people are often associated with social experiences in larger cities, visits to capital cities, and grand adventures around the world. However, this project shows that young people don’t belong to any specific location or activity. It demonstrates that beautiful youth experiences can thrive anywhere, if we make the effort. It also emphasizes that smaller towns are not lifeless and that we are determined not to let them die. I hope we all begin to realize this before it’s too late.
Sergio, volunteer of the European Solidarity Corps program.
We conducted activities with the support of the European Solidarity Corps, the European Capital of Culture Nova Gorica – Gorizia 2025, and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Spatial Planning of the Republic of Slovenia.
