When I first arrived in Portugal, I could not speak Portuguese. I was in a new country, surrounded by a language I barely understood, and I had no idea how much that would change during the following months.
Little by little, Portuguese became part of my everyday life. I had to use it at work, in shops, at the supermarket and in all those small situations where you simply have to communicate. At first it was difficult, but eventually I stopped thinking so much about every sentence and just started speaking. Now I can have conversations with almost anyone in Portuguese, and I have even made friends using a language that I could not speak when I arrived. That is probably one of the things I am most proud of.
Living in Portugal also meant becoming more independent. Managing my money, planning my time, taking the metro and figuring out how long things would take were small things that became important when I had to be responsible for myself. Living with other people was not always easy either. I learned that people have very different ways of thinking and dealing with problems, and that sometimes you simply have to accept that not everything can be solved.
My experience at SPIN was not always what I expected. There were moments when I did not have many tasks, so I tried to take the initiative and find my own ways of being useful. I came up with ideas, tried to create some Spanish classes and thought about different things that could make my experience more meaningful. Not everything worked, but I learned that sometimes you have to create your own opportunities instead of waiting for someone else to do it for you.
Outside of my volunteering work, I also developed some of my personal interests. I worked with different digital tools, started new projects and taught myself how to edit videos. I also used videos and music as ways of expressing myself and tried to create a blog about my experience walking the Trilho dos Pescadores along the Costa Vicentina.
Lisbon also gave me the opportunity to meet people from many different countries. I discovered that the cultural differences between Spain and Portugal are actually quite small, although the language and some ways of communicating are different. I participated in some local activities, such as the Santos, and also took part in initiatives like Fruta Feia, which allowed me to be involved in something with a social purpose.
Throughout these months, I also became much more confident communicating with different people. I wrote emails, documents, posters, publications and reports in Portuguese, English and Spanish. I spoke in front of groups during the Arrival Training, at SPIN and at my workplace. I learned that I have to communicate differently depending on whether I am speaking with a friend, a colleague or a supervisor. I still sometimes struggle to explain exactly what I mean in Portuguese, but I am much more comfortable trying.
Looking back now, I do not think there was one big moment that changed me. It was more a collection of small things: having a conversation in Portuguese, going to the supermarket without worrying about the language, planning a journey on my own, managing my money, meeting someone from another country, or simply finding something to do when I had no task waiting for me. I do not feel like a completely different person, but I feel more independent, more confident and more capable of dealing with things on my own. At some point, Portugal stopped feeling like a place where I was temporarily staying and became a place where I had actually lived.
And now, looking back, I think that is what I will remember most: all those ordinary moments that slowly became part of my life here.
