Slovakia
participants
The goal of the activity was to introduce students in the Erasmus program to a custom commonly practiced in Slovakia, winter dipping, or so-called cold-water exposure. The point was to bring them together and show them how easy it is to do something new and exciting, something you can build a small nieche community on.
The event started with a meeting near a lake in beginner-friendly temperatures with a somewhat experienced “winter dipper” that would lead the activity, so everyone else could enjoy the activity without feeling overly worried for their health or safety.
The dip itself consisted of a collective warm-up, where all the attendees would give one warmup exercise, and a joint “march” into a lake, that was around 10°C. It all finished with a warm cup of tea and a friendly conversation in a nearby restaurant.
Outcomes
The positive aspects of the events itself are health benefits that cold-water exposure in moderate quantities provides, relationships between the attendees built through shared courage, and the sense of accomplishment; it’s not an easy task for most people to get out of their comfort zone and attend an event on Saturday morning
