O testemunho final da Elena (Junta de Fregusia do Lumiar)

 

It would be difficult to separate these three months of ESC volunteer from my stay in lisbon. This much- loved city has in fact hosted me for more than a year now , gifting me one of the most vivid and rich periods of my life. I came here as part of an italian civil service project, working in an organizations that supports the integration of migrants and people with addictions. I felt right away part of this dynamic and multi-faceted city, and was able to become friend with locals and people from different backgrounds.

In fact, I consider myself a very outgoing, curious person . It is very easy to maintain social relationships in this city because sometimes it seems more like a village, where you can meet familiar faces on the street or in the many social centers of the city.

Being politically very active, I immediately took part in diverse social movements alive in the city. Supporting various anti-fascist collectives and taking part in a percussions group. I was playing a big drum during the protests that often take place in the city center, supporting causes such as the liberation of Palestine , housing rights or the climate struggle. In addition to my work and later ESC volunteering, I have participated in` parallel volunteering actions in different neighborhoods, gaining a very broad human and territorial knowledge. Understanding better the multiple aspects and dynamics that compose this city.

During this past year I have managed to give continuity to some long-standing passions, such as rock climbing (the surroundings of lisbon offer many opportunities for outdoor climbing ), painting (Joining a live drawing group) and theater ( participating in an improvisation theater workshop in my neighborhood). At the same time I discovered new passions and hobbies, such as playing drums and practicing bio dance. As a lifelong lover of music and festivals, Portugal is the ideal country for discovering new artists and traditional dances. In fact, I have had the opportunity to attend countless cultural and musical events, all over the territory, enriching me immensely.

Of course, my experience would not be the same without the people who have accompanied me and been close to me. I feel very lucky and grateful for these encounters and friendships that i hope to carry with me for a long time to come. All these elements made sure that at the end of my community service I wasn't ready to leave Portugal, and was lucky enough to be accepted to participate in an ESC volunteer project with Spin organization, based in Lisbon. I was active as a volunteer for three months in an after school program in the Lumiar neighborhood. I was volunteering in two after school programs , accompanying the work of educators in classes of 30 children.

Right away I was integrated into the team, and the educators explained how to best interact with the kids. In fact, many children have special needs * mental and physical, and various types of disabilities. I must say that it was the first time for me to work with children with disabilities and at first it was not easy to understand how I could be helpful and interact with those kids. It was a challenge also because of the large number of children and the energy used to organize various activities ( sports, painting, theater..et) every day.

After a few weeks I got used to the rhythm , also thanks to the help of the other educators who always accompanied me and spurred me to organize activities. The days passed quickly as each day is different from the other and there are never empty moments. The children are from 9 to 11 years old, they are very curious and energetic and always invited me to participate in their games. The fact that I speak Portuguese definitely was a big plus, and talking to the children surely added a lot of vocabulary.

In general I belive that this volunteering has made me a more patient and proactive person . Initially i was supposed to do 8 months of volunteering, and I only did 3 months because I got a job offer that i didn't want to give up. I am very thankful that I had the chance to participate in this ESC volunteering and I would always recommend to take part in this kind of projects.

O testemunho da Elise

Here I am. Almost 9 months passed and it’s time for me to think and to do a resume of all my EVS. My association SPIN said to me, when I arrived, to take some notes during my EVS to not forget what happened, what I learned, what I experienced. Well, I didn’t do it because I didn’t take the time. But it was so incredible that now, in front of my computer, I have any difficulties to remember. It's strange to think that it’s my last month, I’m feeling so comfortable here. “Casa Anjos” is my home, Lisbon is my city, Portugal is my adoption country. I remember the first day I arrived in Lisbon, the 1st of June, the first day of Santos Populares. I had a very festive first impression of Lisbon. I just arrived, put my luggage in my new room and went out with my roommates to discover Lisbon for the first time by listening Pimba, trying Super Bock beer and eating Sardinhas no pão. This first day would describe my entire EVS: always doing something, always discovering something, always with my friends, always drinking vinho verde (Viva Gazela!!). 

My main goals when I came here were,“to discover a new culture, learn a new language”, “to be more creative”, and over all, to “learn more about the others and myself”. Well, the last one seems a bit exaggerated but yes, after 3 years the head in the studies, in the rush, I needed a break to raise the head up and to see more clearly my situation and the world. So let’s see if I ticketed all the boxes.

First let’s talk about Casa Anjos and how I learned more about the others. The first day, I arrived in this flat full of pictures and photos left by the former volunteers. It’s a flat quite old, with carpet all over the floor, a disposition a bit strange with a living room smaller than my room. I didn’t feel so comfortable the first days in this flat where, according to my roommates, there is the spirit of “Menino Morto”. Yes, dead child, the story is a bit long but this ghost seems to be the keeper of our flat. A strange flat, but the people inside are just amazing. We are a mix of so much nationalities and I learned more about other countries as Hungary, Armenia, Italy, Spain, Poland, Belgium, Macedonia, Croatia. To live with so much people allows you to have a vision of the whole world without moving from home. When I started my EVS, my goal wasn’t specially to make me “friends for life”. But as sentimental as it can be, it happened, and now I could say I have brothers and sisters of different nationalities. It’s a human experience, you grow together, you live together, you share your room. So we developed a family spirit, and even “Menino Morto” seemed to be one of us. 

  

    

Thanks to Casa Anjos and my EVS family, I discovered the world and plenty of different cultures. But I had also affinities with some local people who became my closest friends and a big support. They allowed me to discover the portuguese culture deeper than I would never imagine. The music, the food, the celebrations, the traditions, the habits, the situation of Portuguese people. I didn’t stay on the surface with a touristic image of Portugal but I learned what are also the daily preoccupations, difficulties, concerns of Portuguese people. Gourmand as I am, one of my main goal was also to try all the specialities of Portugal. I can say that it’s a goal almost achieve. Almost because of course I didn’t try the one hundred ways to cook bacalhau. But I did the list of what I ate since I arrived and, well, it’s a lot, really. For me, discover a culture goes specially through the food, and now I can say that the portuguese culinary culture is very oily, with maybe too much french fries but appart of this, really tasty. I could even say that I’ll miss my favourite portuguese dish, the “Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá”, or even the “Bola de berlim com chocolate” that we were used to eat “às quatro da manhã” in Cais do Sodre after a crazy night (reference to one of my favourite portuguese song: “Devia ir” of Wet Bed Gang).

Besides my personal life, I evolved through my job as a monitor for kids in the CAF São Vicente. I lived two different period in the children’s life: the first part was during the vacation period, the second part was during the school period. These two periods were different in their rythm, activities but also because I had two different team and tutor. It was a bit disturbing at the beginning, you know to change your habits, to meet new people while you just arrive 3 months ago and you just got used. But finally, this change was a good opportunity to share my time and to see the different organisation of two centers. In my old testimonials, I said I had some struggle with the portuguese and to learn this language would be an indispensable factor in my development at work. It was totally true. At the beginning it was difficult to understand what the kids were saying to me. After 5 months, I improved and the portuguese started to be easier. For a person who didn’t know one word of portuguese, I’m proud to say that after 9 months, I speak quite well the language of the “shhh”.

  

This EVS was also a good opportunity to develop my creativity between my work and the project I was part of at SPIN. I stopped drawing or painting at High School and I totally gave up at the university to concentrate on my studies. At work, drawing with kids or for the CAF allowed me to develop my artistic skills. I drew the entire schedule of the CAF, I helped with the decoration for Halloween, Christmas, São Martinho, São Valentim. Plus, with the other volunteers of SPIN who were part of my project “Change +”, we had to create an exposition about the Human Rights. I realized an artistical activity with kids to expose some draws at the exhibition. We did a big job to create an interesting exhibition with content. The inauguration was really nice and I’m proud to be part of a project like this!

This EVS was, for me, the occasion to think about my future, to take some time to discover what I deeply want to do after my double bachelor. Because I don’t forget why I did this gap year. It was maybe 9 months really intense in travels, experiences, parties.. but I never forgot that I had to reflex about what will be the next step of my life. During my EVS, I found the field in which I want to work and I started to apply for some masters. I’m feeling a bit confuse because almost all my friends already finished their studies and they can stay in Lisbon after their EVS. It’s something really tempting but I know I must stay focus: to do my master for maybe after, come back in this country.

  

E para acabar da melhor forma, eu vou escrever em português, para vos mostrar o quanto eu amo este idioma. Com certeza vou ter muitas saudades deste lugar, destas pessoas, desta cidade, deste país. Mas vai ser apenas um até jà, porque eu pretendo voltar ao país do bacalhau, da pimba e do vinho verde muito brevemente.

Até logo Lisboa, beijinhos grandes 

Elise 

O testemunho da Lucía: "Uma nova aventura em Lisboa"

Olá! O Meu nome é Lucía, com acento no “ Í ”. Tenho 27 anos e sou de nacionalidade espanhola. Nasci na formosa terra de Galiza, na cidade da Corunha.

Tirei a Licenciatura de Professora de Educação de Infância porque encanta-me estar com crianças, gosto de aprender e ensinar, posso confortá-los quando estão tristes e sentir que sou importante no seu caminho, posso rir e brincar como uma menina com eles... 

Portanto, a minha experiência profissional baseia-se na área de educação: babysitter, educadora em creches e escolas públicas, contadora de histórias numa biblioteca... O ano passado foi muito especial para mim porque estive a fazer um estágio, através do programa Galeuropa, num centro de acolhimento temporário para crianças em perigo chamado “Casa das Cores”, em Lisboa. Foi uma vivença tão positiva que fiquei com muita vontade de voltar a esta cidade com tanto charme.

No mês de Fevereiro, candidatei-me através da Asociación Mundus a uma vaga de Serviço de Voluntariado Europeu na Junta de Freguesia de Lumiar para o projecto  “Make a Move!”. Foi uma surpresa enorme ser a pessoa seleccionada e sinto-me muito afortunada.

O 1 de Março começou a minha aventura. A Associação Spin, a minha organização de acolhimento, recebeu-me com um maravilhoso almoço de boas-vindas onde conheci a outros voluntários. Há um pessoal muito fixe neste sítio e desde o primeiro momento senti-me como em casa.

Até agora levo três dias como voluntária no CAF de São Vicente, em Telheiras. Embora os primeiros dias são um período de adaptação, já estou a fazer muitas actividades giras. Por exemplo, fui visitar a Associação de Paralisia Cerebral de Lisboa (APCL) e participei numa dinâmica com crianças da escola que consistia numa gincana ao ar livre. Os meninos coordinavam as actividades e jogavam com as pessoas da APCL. Também fui membro dum júri num karaoke, monitor nas aulas de xadrez, basquetebol e teatro e guia no Museu Nacional de História Natural e de Ciência.

A educação não formal é uma área nova para mim, mas estou a comprovar que gosto dela. Tenho muita vontade e motivação para superar tudos os reptos que ficam nestes 9 meses de voluntariado, aprender muitas coisas e aportar a minha percepção de professora. Em resumo, espero contribuir de forma positiva neste programa e viver uma experiência inolvidável.

Lucía