O testemunho No. 2 da Hanna (Spin)

Older, smarter, countless times sunburnt and happy - these words describe me and my 8 months in Portugal.

I might be a little bit late with my second testimony. It's my eight month here, in this breathtaking country, so much has happened, I have lived through so many different emotions, experiences, and honestly, I don't know where to even begin to tell you about my adventures so far, I did promise you that I would bring you with me, remember?

I would start with the wonderful projects that I had the opportunity to help manage during my summer in Spin. Usually people rest during the summer, take a vacation and lay on the beach all day long - but not me. During those few months, with the hottest summer i've experienced, we had multiple projects, a youth exchange, a training course and our own project Live It Lisbon! It might sound a lot, but as for me, I love to keep busy. It was tiring, but I took a moment to enjoy every second of it. My first time working with kids was in the youth exchange, we had youngsters come from Spain and our own neighbourhood - Bairro Padre Cruz. It was full of challenges, but it was so nice to see kids have fun, find new friends and bond. Live it Lisbon - was a different experience than the rest, it is Spins own project, inviting participants from different countries to sunny Lisbon and taking them to a trip of the summer, through Portugal, its culture and traditions, but also doing something good for the community, by helping around the neighbourhood. 

Our last project of the year, a training course, was heartwarming. It was about mental health and how to be your own best friend. It gave everyone time to think about themselves, and how kind we are against ourselves. It was my first time also being involved in the logistics of managing a project, I got to be closer with the participants, manage timetables, menus and other things you might not think about, when you see a project from afar or if you join one. Not to mention I met other estonians! Finally…

 

Everyone needs to rest, and so did I. My first trip in this beautiful country - I went to Algarve! Yupii! My eyes have never seen such beauty - from Sagres all the way to Faro. I felt like I was in a fairy tale, the old cities tell you a story of Portugal that you never might think of. Swimming in the cold ocean water makes you feel alive, calm and in peace with everything in this charming world we live in.

I would go back every summer, I just could not get enough of Algarve, and so I recommend even to you, reader, maybe even a new volunteer, to go there. You won't regret it.

I never thought that I would bond with my co-volunteers that deeply. With long volunteering comes also time to say goodbye, not yet to my project, but to volunteers, who end their own projects. Spending those precious moments together, you don't realise how much you grow fond of people. My hardest goodbyes, we will meet again soon, somewhere, we will always be in each other's hearts, but it's still hard to change people. But how it goes, when a door closes, a window opens - Autumn is a season of change, new people, new faces, and most importantly, I can give them all my knowledge, be that person, who can be a welcoming face to their new experiences and adventures!

It already feels like it's my last testimony, thankfully it's not. I have 3 months more of this adventure left, time to make my last and best memories yet. My heart breaks everytime that I think that suddenly I only have 3 months left, but I will make my peace with it, every ending has a new beginning, right)