Meet Ilde!

I ?ll benefit from this opportunity to tell you a bit more about myself and why I am in Kraków right now.

WHY EVS?

I joined such a programme because for me it looked the easiest way to spend some time abroad, learn a foreign language and redefine in some way my future. Shortly before applying, I heard from other people that EVS is a great experience that helps you join European volunteers and try to make the world a better place in very different fields, such as unemployment, nature, education, disabilities?

MY LIFE BEFORE

In Spain I worked for some years as an English teacher. My job with teenagers and adults was fine, it was with children what I did not enjoy that much. When I found out about EVS, I decided to apply and take a break from work to do something different for a year. Considering the countries I have not visited yet, Poland looked a really nice location to develop an activity like this, and Cracow is a gigantic multicultural city with lots to offer.

DURING EVS

After the arrival, which was very warm and friendly on everybody?s part, we started assisting in the primary school and kindergarten where our project “Voice of the Voiceless” takes place, Open Future International School. The school is coordinated by Stowarzyszenie Krakowska Fabryka Talentów, where ‘A Walk Towards Art’ project is also implemented. This project allows children and teenagers from very different backgrounds to work together for a common purpose, as in the play ?Fiddler on a Roof?, performed in June 2015. Right at this moment I discovered the world of primary education and working with younger kids. In our project we are in charge of helping and entertaining children to make them more open and ready for the outside world. Since we are all international volunteers, they have to speak English to communicate with us while at the same time reinforcing the bilingual spirit of the educational centre.

Thanks to this, I started liking working with small kids and forget about my bad experience in this context back in my country. I felt really satisfied after some time with the kids, when they started considering me one more person they should listen to and were happy about me accompanying them to any trip or activity they could have.

The teachers also seem really thankful every time we are able to offer a hand or propose different activities for the kid. Right now, I remember once when we thought of playing a ?flags game? with the colour blocks in the playroom, where they had to guess which country was each flag, or when we made a homemade water depurator for them to see how with a few stones and sand, dirty water can go back to its normal colour.

CONSEQUENCES

W ith EVS, I am acquiring valuable experience in the education field, which for sure will be useful for my personal and professional future. I discovered a new country for me, Poland, full of attractive and lively cities, more international residents than I thought in the beginning and a whole group of EVS friends to be kept forever.

Personally, it is also my first time living outside home, so I can obviously consider my project as my intensive course of housekeeping, cooking, shopping and related tasks ?. The aforementioned aspects, together with a few personal values such as friendship, sharing, caring about others, and so on, make me be more sure about who I am and who I would like to be.

Thanks a lot, EVS!!!!!