Arrividerci Trento Blog dei volontari

And it is crazy how much everything has changed and developed in the past 11 months.
It doesn’t feel like a long vacation anymore. In the beginning everything was so new, so
exciting, and so different for me that it didn’t feel real. But by now I got used to my life here,
have my own routines and I absolutely enjoy and love it.
First of all, there is of course my volunteering project in Comenius:
I have enjoyed my experience in the elementary school a lot. With time the kids really
got to know me, and I was able to do a lot more than in the first few months. I was assisting
the teachers especially in bilingual German classes but also for all the other subjects. In total
I helped in 6 different classes, from Prima to Quinta. Also with my colleagues I built a
stronger connection and I enjoyed the work with them a lot. They have always been very
appreciative and made me feel welcome. I have learnt a lot from both, the kids and the
teachers and leaving this behind me in June was very difficult and emotional. Now that the
school year has ended, I am working in Inco for a bit more than a month. It is going to be a
completely different work routine, but I am excited to have a look behind the scenes and
especially to work with Laila.
And then besides the work I had my daily life in Trento, the city that is not really lively or full
of events but still offered me an amazing home for almost one year.
In these past 11 months I got to know my self better and looking back to the Caro that just
left high school a year ago, I realise how much I have grown personally. Living abroad, in a
shared flat and room, learning a new language and dealing with adult problems made me
more self-confident and self-aware.
One thing that I am super grateful for are the friendships that I was able to build throughout
this year. I love this random group of international people because we all are completely
different and still, we managed to create a deep connection and a lot of shared memories.
When I think about all the things that we have done together I just want to cry and laugh at
the same time. We discovered the north of Italy together and enjoyed our time to the
fullest. I will never stop appreciating the mountains in which I found myself skiing this winter
or the crazy amount of beautiful lakes around Trento that we swam in.
We lived and travelled, cried and laughed together. We shared almost everything and got to
know each other’s families and homes. I don’t want to sound dramatic, but you guys, Michel,
Jakub and Laila, will always be my first and favourite flatmates. And of course, my Bolzanis: I
love you too <3
For me, the ESC program was a great opportunity to fill my gap year. I had a real work
experience with basically no previous knowledge. I managed to enjoy the time so much
because I didn’t have too many responsibilities and met these amazing people to spend my
time with. Knowing that all of this is slowly ending right now is very hard. Not to know
exactly where and when we are able to see each other even more. But I feel ready for
moving on, taking the next step.