I´m here since one month volunteering with Rato-Adcc, it´s my first experience like voluntary and my first experience to live alone in other country with strangers who are other volunteers.
Since one month I learned lot of things, I have meet a lot of people from different countries and I learn to speak with other guys, be less shy or be more present, because normally I stay in my corner but I´m here to work on myself and try practice my English.
This association is a beautiful experience since my childhood I dreamed of going for an experience abroad. Share my culture, meet new people, learn a new culture, see new landscapes.
Being a volunteer, helping the people who are in need, sharing an experience it´s important for me, this first month was pleasant I liked make the interventions with Rato-Adcc meet the people, share experiences, be on the field.
During this month I had a new Portuguese friends, I’m often with to listen to music, they like when I put French rappers and they like put their Portuguese or Brazilian rappers, together we speak, often in English it´s easier for me, I try to understand when they talk with me in Portuguese… but it´s again difficult for me… I can understand sometimes when they speak slowly and with easy words.
The people are so kind with me, I have integrated well by the people with association and also the people of neighborhood. I got used living in Portugal, the week I work with Rato-Adcc, after my day I go to the gym for training with a Portuguese friend, sometimes after I will see my other Portuguese friend, and the week-end I will often outside or visit Lisbon moreover the weather is good I have the sun every day, it’s good to have a ray of sunshine!
This month there is a new person and it´s Francesco 28 years old, he is Italian and his volunteering project lasts 6 months. For me he is the definition of a meet in a volunteer mission. A new meet, with a desire to help other people, live new experiences, discover what surrounds us.
Create a new relationship, share a good moment, create a lot of good memory. We share the same bedroom, we are both voluntary for Rato-Adcc, so we are often together, we make jokes, he is sometimes clumsy but it´s so funny.
Francesco helps me every day because he speak with me in English, so I practice more and when I don´t understand he explain me differently. He doesn’t hesitate to take me out, he makes me smile and sometimes we sing, we dance… Francesco gave even me a gift, he gave me flip flops is so cute.
Thank you so much for this first month, it has been enriching <3.
