Scusa, non capisco

It’s another gloomy and rainy day and I am once again thinking about the challenges I have come across during my year here in Italy. Expected challenges such as unexpected ones. Since this is the last month of my European Voluntary Service I would like to reflect on the last eleven months of my life.

This is me

A challenge I prepared for has been the Italian language. Not that I have mastered the grammar, sayings and local dialects but now I can at least express my opinion and feelings on a basic level. Everyday communication with friends, clients, co-workers and especially strangers has gotten increasingly easier. Although I still struggle with nervousness when it’s my time to speak up. This self-consciousness is not only language related, however still limiting my contribution to any conversation. Anyway my problem with social encounters is not to be the topic of this article.

A few months ago I gave this limitation a name: language barriers. Excited to finally fully experience a term, my English class in school and me discussed about thoroughly, I often struggled with sentiments of loneliness. Furthermore, I felt being treated unfairly such as anger at my poor learning-progress. Of course I was not the only one who encountered communication problems because they did not or only poorly speak the language. However, after I tried to get rid of my worry of not being able to understand any Italian person any time soon on my own, I opened up and shared my feelings. The response was understanding and some helpful advice I would like to share today.

Here are some tips and tricks that helped me conquering the challenge of learning a new language.

Tip #1

To start communication there is no need for many words. Start to learn how to ask questions. By asking questions you overcome the fear of saying anything at all.
Begin with questions like: “What is this thing called?”, “How can I say [insert word/phrase] in [insert language]?” and “Can you please repeat?”.
Step by step you will learn more and more words that you can use in your everyday life. For example, to form new and more complex questions. Don’t be afraid to say something wrongly. Which brings me to the second advice.

Tip #2

Encourage people to correct you, when making mistakes. Especially when talking to a native. In this way you will learn the correct way of saying something. Even quicker than realizing you have been telling everyone: “I’ve just cut my hat!” instead of “I’ve just cut my hair!”.
Most of the time people won’t correct you, for whatever reason, so animate them to do so!

Tip #3

Use every source of media to get a feeling of the language. By “feeling of the language” I mean the rhythm, pronunciation, different meaning of a word depending on the context and of course new vocabulary. Your resources could be the radio, newspapers, books, movies, songs as well as YouTube.
Even only listening to natives while sitting in a café and understanding half what they say, you still see their body language and facial expression which play a crucial part in learning and using a language.

Tip #4

Relax! As far as I heard, no matter how many languages you have already learnt, the beginning of the process is always frustrating and it feels like you are not improving fast enough. Nevertheless, you can trust on determination, consistency and therefore time and yourself to overcome this language barrier.
Learning a language in this context of living abroad and being forced to communicate in [insert language] is an experience that will have a definite impact on your character and self-trust.

This is me socialising

To conclude my thoughts and advice on learning a language while living in the country it is spoken, I would like to say that despite all the bad feelings, I truly enjoy it. After a while you understand more and more and are increasingly able to express yourself. This will help you feel less trapped in not being understood by anyone. My father always says that you have truly internalized a language when you can reply to sarcasm in the given language. A general understanding of sarcasm is nonetheless required.

 

Written by 
Lina

A walk to learn

AliceNova has another center in Montefiascone where I was working in the last three months. In this center they do different activities with adults and kids with disabilities. One of the activities they realize is “attività sul territorio” where the clients have the possibility to visit several cities in the province of Viterbo.This activity gives them not only the opportunity to discover new places but to LEARN. Learn to use the bus, learn to read the road signs, learn how to behave on the streets, learn about the dangers that one can face when walking, learn to cross the road, learn more about the culture and history they live in and that surround them.

With each step and with each walk they learn a little bit more. As learning goes beyond a classroom, this activity definitely gave me the opportunity to see how important and efficient this way of learning can be.  Since some of these young adults have difficulties to remember and to be focused, this practical experience makes them put in action the things they learnt with the operators. And of course, it’s a great chance for the clients to strengthen and improve their relationship with the workers.

We have always known the benefits of walking for one’s health but who would have thought that it could bring benefits on one’s learning and social skills as well?

 

 

Written by: Inês

 

“Tirare fuori e non mettere dentro”

Mafalda, il mentore

Persone venute da lontano, persone arrivate lontano. Ungheresi, italiani, stranieri. Le loro storie scendono dolcemente, goccia a goccia. Guardate i  cerchi sull’acqua che creano! Di seguito, vi presenterò i personaggi più importanti del mio progetto di volontariato. Prima di tutto, una ragazza italiana che oltre ad essere il mentore per me e gli altri volontari, è un’ispirazione e una buona amica. In lei si trova creatività senza limiti, empatia, iniziativa, cuore e spirito.

Ci siamo conosciuti a giugno 2015 – su Internet. La sua foto la mostrava con faccia dipinta, colorata. In quanto fan delle belle arti, mi sembrava un’ “anima gemella”. Così ho deciso di scriverle un’e-mail, sconosciuta: “Secondo te il corso che organizzate andrebbe bene per me? Sono una giornalista, vorrei tornare in Italia e non ho idea di come procedere dopo la mia laurea. La mia motivazione è adeguata?” E mi ha risposto gentilmente: “Iscriviti!”

La prossima scena, gennaio 2016. Mangiavamo pizza accanto ad una fontana a Roma, questa volta incontrandoci personalmente. Parlavamo dell’impatto del corso estivo e poi è emerso che ci sarebbe potuta essere una continuazione, una collaborazione a lungo termine. Si cercavano volontari stranieri per un programma annuale coordinato dalla loro organizzazione. Di nuovo, mi ha detto: “Iscriviti!”

Passavano i mesi, e io facevo a Budapest cose simili a quelle che lei faceva in Italia. Ho coordinato programmi per giovani stranieri e ho scritto articoli. Poi ho partecipato ad un altro training a gennaio 2017. Lei era  formatrice, io ero partecipante. Ci siamo fatte l’occhiolino. Per la prima volta abbiamo parlato del programma di volontariato per cui avevo fatto domanda l’anno prima e che è stato approvato. Ho annuito quando mi hanno chiesto se sapevo chi sarebbe stato il mio mentore: “Non solo lo sarà in futuro, lei lo è già.”

È arrivata la fine di giugno 2017. Ci sedemmo sulle scale di una piazza medievale. La notte è arrivata. Qualche ora prima ero scesa dal treno. Lei mi è venuta a prendere alla stazione e mi ha accompagnata con la macchina al nostro alloggio. “Ti aiuterò a comprare la carta SIM, aprire il conto in banca, e ti mostrerò la città. Andiamo!”

Poi un salto nel tempo: prendiamo una tazza di tè da lei a dicembre 2017. Parlo della mia attuale vita da volontaria e condivido la mia ultima idea. “Voglio fare mini interviste con le persone più importanti della mia vita qui. Sarei contenta se tu fossi la prima. Puoi raccontarmi chi è Mafalda in questo momento? ”

– Una persona alla ricerca di un equilibrio – ha cominciato con una bella melodia di lingua, in italiano. – Sento di aver fatto molti percorsi importanti, ho imparato tanto, ma quest’anno é stato molto difficile. Succede in questo tipo di lavoro se non ti prendi cura di te; perdi la motivazione. E questo è un lavoro che se non stai bene con te stesso, non puoi fare. Perché se uno non si trova in una buona condizione, si può finire anche per fare potenzialmente male agli altri, perché è un lavoro in cui bisogna darsi molto, bisogna ascoltare. Proprio per uscire da questo periodo un po’ buio, ho cercato di sperimentare e portare nel mio lavoro sempre di più tutte le cose che mi fanno stare bene tutti giorni. Inoltre, quello che mi è venuto di scrivere per una breve presentazione di me, per un infopack: “I’m a compulsive doodler, impro actress and wannabe singer, that tries to support people in finding a way how to express themselves, their unicity and the things that make them be them, so their stories.” Ed é quello che mi piace del concetto di educazione: tirare fuori e non mettere dentro.

– Come puoi descrivere il tuo lavoro?

– Il mio lavoro per l’Italia non esiste nel senso che effettivamente non è riconosciuto. Quello che faccio io sono attività di formazione, facilitazione per giovani ed adulti, diversi tipi di gruppi e background. Sono specializzata in formazione per educatori, quindi principalmente lavoro o con gruppi di giovani o con gruppi di educatori, insegnanti, operatori, nel campo dell’educazione non formale. Cerco di creare degli scambi dove le persone possono imparare attraverso un rapporto alla pari, sopratutto attraverso un approccio esperienziale,  quindi molto basato sul fare, riflettere su quello che si è fatto, e scambiarsi e confrontarsi con gli altri. Principalmente lavoro sui temi della comunicazione, dello sviluppo personale, mi piace appunto portare  tutte quelle metodologie creative, artistiche che fanno parte nel mio background personale, dal teatro alla scrittura, il disegno, il canto, ultimamente tanto il gioco. Anche ho un forte background in gestione di gruppi interculturali dove la diversità è molto forte, dove le persone tra l’altro usano spesso una lingua veicolativa che spesso è l’inglese. Quindi di conseguenza, in realtà per me è anche abbastanza strano lavorare in italiano, comunque con gruppi che appartengono allo stesso gruppo linguistico, allo stesso background, perché sono abituata a molta varietà con i gruppi con cui lavoro.

– Chi è una ispirazione per te?

– Non parlerò del presidente della nostra organizzazione perché sarebbe banale, ma per me la figura del mentore si chiama Katrin. Lei è una formatrice austriaca che ho conosciuto ormai quasi 7 anni fa. L’ho sempre vista come una donna incredibilmente forte ma vulnerabile. Per me lei è stata un modello assoluto. La dolcezza e allo stesso tempo la competenza che lei porta ai gruppi, il modo in cui si apre, tiene lo spazio e ti consente di aprirti, mi sempre ha affascinata. È una donna coraggiosissima, con una grandissima intelligenza.

– Come dovrebbe essere il personaggio di mentore, secondo te, in generale?

– Idealmente è una persona che è lì per offrirti un orecchio a cui poter parlare, aiutarti a rilevare elementi della tua storia, del tuo processo e aiutarti ad unire i puntini. Ognuno sceglie che cosa vuole condividere con il proprio mentore. Magari ti aiuta nel farti le domande giuste ma ovviamente le risposte le devi trovare tu. Però è un processo di iniziazione, un processo d’autovalutazione che secondo me è molto importante sopratutto al livello di appprendimento.

Dopo la intervista, nel frattempo, siamo entrati nell’anno nuovo. Lei è a Roma, io sono a Viterbo. Siamo venute da lontano, siamo arrivate a lontano. E ancora siamo per strada.

Lilla Gősi

How to keep the fire

Lilla

 

 

 

After years of constant moving, finally, I could stop in Italy. Before, I had been changing place, country, apartment, role, profession, language. Attempting to recreate the bondless happiness of half year Erasmus in Firenze, my first definitive foreign adventure in 2012. Since then, only five years passed, but I feel like a marathon-runner, who has discovered precious pieces of her puzzle wherever she went.

I remember:

• the colourful bungalows of Whitstable, crispy seaside walks and biking, eternal green fields, white cliffs, the ample, majestic Canterbury Cathedral, my cat-ladys and all the supportive, nice people who were keeping me in line on my lonely hero’s journey, studying in England (… and last but not least, I remember the shortly deceased master chéf, RIP, Antonio Carluccio with whom I had a super short interview; his simple humbleness was a big honour and a real wow – as he said, the secret of good food and good life is using maximum 3-4 strong but likewise good ingredients);
• museuming, “flâneuring” and immersing ourselves in arts in that Parisian spring with my group of inspiring, international friends (… and of course, how could I forget our Hungarian-vegetarian-philosophical community and the first steps towards a sustainable  household? );
• trying to slow down and BUILD (numerous things, in so many areas, with the hope to improve and open up the world) in Hungary, while exploring more my motherland; commuting, hiking, volunteering, training, writing.

Since I was getting paid for working as a journalist and coordinating youth voluntary projects (asking, listening to and sharing amazing stories of amazing people), after a while, I got tired of  walking in my challenge zone and fighting. Because a lot of  times, I faced barriers difficult to overcome and tackle.

So the main reason behind my decision to apply for the EVS was to change perpectives, and share stories as a volunteer who lives, works, writes in Italy. (In most cases, about Italy, and till now, in most cases, to Hungarian readers in my weekly blog.)

Moving  worked out well for me. I am happy. And I believe, it is because you cannot feed a fire solely with fire itself. And so, if I were fire, this storyful reality would be my wood and air: the lands, the people, the work and the fact that in this EVS project I can not only collect stories, but experience, try, do and live through them! For instance, I will never forget the day when we started harvesting olives in the farm with locals. Hard to express how much I enjoyed every step. Likewise, our everyday activities make me glad: learning the language, personal and collective stories, about the past, regional history, good practices etc.

Back to track, in a nutshell, I was coming to this EVS in Italy hoping (that can seem a childish wish at first glance, but after all, that is really how it happened!) to find my heart, be able to balance, and keep the fire. Because, during this previous, intense, shifting period of my life, more or less, I had always found motivation, work, objectives, place to live, people caring about me and people about whom I cared. However, that little pulsing organ deep down, in the hustle and bustle, came too close to stop, and not to give a curious leap, not even hearing another new story again.  And for a storyteller, this is definitely not a good sign.

Till now, life proves me. My EVS project has given to me more positive things than I could ever dream about.  I am surrounded with great people who would catch me if I happen to fall. I learn something exciting and new every day. And important,  I found my heart. Or probably my heart has found me. We may never know the truth. But that is already another chapter of the story.

 

 

 

This part of my life is called Italy

Sopio

My name is Sopio, and I’m from a faraway land: Georgia. I often have to explain where my country is located and what a long-dated cultural background it has. During my lifetime I’ve experienced many exciting and interesting adventures, but to be honest, I had never imagined to be thrown to Italy at the beginning of my 25th birthday. Especially not in such a small and peaceful city like Viterbo. Where streets are named after famous composers such as Puccini, Rossini, Vivaldi and Donizetti, you see beautiful flowers hanging from each balcony, and smell the air full of coffee and happiness.

You may wonder why I decided to leave my homeland, my “comfort zone” for living one year in a country still unfamiliar and strange for me. Well, there are several reasons. First of all, since I remember, I was always attracted by the idea of the “seeker hero”. The one who is searching for the meaning of life and for the personal identity. One of the first Georgian folk tales that my mom used to read me when I was very small was about a guy who left his family to discover the universe, as well as himself. Then I remember sitting in the second floor of my old house, in a village of east Georgia, reading a lot of books about travelling, while everyone else having fun outside. 🙂 I always thought that life was something more than that I used to see in front of my eyes. Moreover, it was my “personal responsibility” to explore those little magic things around the world and inside myself. But my “odysseys” were always so inner, like I was travelling but without leaving home. So I decided, it was time to challenge myself for something real.

“I read somewhere… how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong, but to feel strong… to measure yourself at least once.” Jon Krakauer, Into the Wild

It has been already four months that I’m living and working here, in Italy as a volunteer of Alicenova, and I can say that I have discovered more than I expected. I live with 5 other volunteers from such different countries as Germany, Hungary, Ukraine, Palestine and Portugal. We all have absolutely different personalities and languages. Sometimes it’s very complicated to find the proper words to express how we feel because of the language differences. However, we know the most important “universal human language”, the language of emotions, which can be understood even without spoken words. 🙂

We have several activities as EVS volunteers such as working in the farm with people with some disabilities. All of them have different problems, mental and physical conditions. It is strange. But when I’m in that environment, I do not feel like a stranger. On the contrary, my feeling is that I am one of them. I know it is selfish, but with their help I help myself too.

By the way, I started learning Italian language. It is not exaggeration to say that I’m addicted to this process, not only because of the communication, but also for the reason that there are very few such beautiful things in the world like Italian language. I like the feeling that when you are learning a new language you have to find and create yourself from your very basic roots. Sometimes I feel very helpless, but people always smile to me and understand what I’m trying to say.

One of the most pleasant part of the project is that we also have free time for traveling around and outside Italy. During these 4 months, I’ve visited such wonderful cities as Rome, Naples, Milan and several small towns in the region of Lazio. I remember my shock and speechless state when I first visited Rome “the city of echoes, the city of illusions, and the city of yearning”. And I’m so happy that last month my greatest wish came true, I went to Sigur Ros’s, my favorite band’s concert. It is extremely difficult to put in words what I felt in the moment when I was listening to their live show.

Finally, I can say that I’m sure this will be the one year which will have a fundamental effect on creating and shaping not only my present but also my future. It’s a process of endless discoveries and gains. Some days we’re happy, some days we feel pain but the most important is that we always learn something new.

“I knew who I was this morning, but I’ve changed a few times since then.” Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

The gene of traveling

Inês

 

Deciding to go to another country, leaving your life behind can be a difficult task. But for me it was a decision that I set for myself many years ago. My name is Inês, I’m 23 years old, and I’m a volunteer in AliceNova in Italy. I took an airplane on the twenty-seventh of June from Portugal to Italy, and I stay here for one year.

If everyone’s path shows how they end up being in the place they are, mine is very simple. Since I remember, I always wanted to travel, pack one of those big bags, put on my back and go. It took me some time to get the courage or to find the right moment. The first time I went abroad was when I entered university, and I took the opportunity to do Erasmus in Finland for five months. I remember that the professor responsible told me that once you go, you will always crave for more.

This became my reality. At the beginning of 2017 I had the opportunity to do one month of volunteering in Guinea Bissau in Africa. Without thinking twice, I went for it. But those who are born with the gene of traveling, aren’t satisfied with just once or twice. And when I went somewhere, I would not want “just to visit”. I wanted to take part in something, mix myself in the culture, with the people. I wanted to learn the language, the culture, to work, not only be an observant but a piece of the machine, the place.

So, just a few months before finishing my bachelor in Social Education, I started searching for voluntary projects abroad. Once, I had already stumbled on the site of proatlantico which shows every volunteer opportunity in Europe and partner countries, but I examined every opportunity seriously and carefully only this time. And then I found it: one year in Italy where I could put in practice what I studied.

I would be lying if I didn’t tell that at first, I was a little unsure. One year is too long! I just finished university, shouldn’t I find a job? I don’t speak Italian, so how can I work? All these questions rushed in my mind, but you know, brave people aren’t the ones that have no fear, but are the ones that despite their own fears keep moving forward. With this in mind, I followed every step given by the site and enrolled.

After a few weeks I got an email, scheduling a skype meeting. I’m still not sure if I did a good job or not in this meeting, but after one week I received an email, saying that I was accepted. And so, here I am. Three months have already passed, three months living in Viterbo, sharing a house with five girls from different countries, three mounts of discovering and learning. The past three months have been an amazing experience and hopefully the nine months that are still to come will be the same or even more incredible. Before I completely finish, I leave you with a quote:

“The use of traveling is to regulate imagination with reality, and instead of thinking of how things may be, see them as they are.”

Samuel Johnson