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#Became more sociable and developed a brighter personality #Confidence in spoken English #The joy of living with international friends
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It was perfect for me, as I wanted to do meaningful overseas volunteer work during this break. I enjoyed being able to volunteer and live and interact with foreign friends!
A special volunteer trip spent in Lisbon, Portugal — one of the most beautiful places in the world! Heo Suyeon, gapper (22 / university student) / a one-month overseas volunteer gap year |
# Hello. I am a 22-year-old university student who spent a gap year in Lisbon.
Hello,Lisbon ''refood'' projectI am Heo Suyeon, a 22-year-old university student who participated.
I wasn''t particularly worried about staying abroad for a long time. If I had to live alone without anyone, I would have been a little worried, butIt was fine because I stayed in accommodation where local staff were present and lived with many fellow volunteers!Three meals a day—breakfast, lunch, and dinner—were all provided at the accommodation, and Portugal''s public safety is quite good, so I had no particular worries about living there for a month.
# It was the perfect program for me!
The ''refood'' program I participated in is a project centered on volunteer travel.I like traveling abroad, and it was perfect for me because I wanted to do meaningful overseas volunteering during this vacation!Reading the project description and previous gappers'' reviews, since you only volunteer about 3–4 hours a day,being able to have plenty of time for myselfalso appealed to me as an advantage. Portugal''s warm weather even in winter was also attractive.
Moreover,the experience of living with and interacting with non-Korean (foreign) friendsis something I thought you couldn''t get from a simple trip!
# I left for my gap year with two goals.
I spent my gap year with two goals in mind.
First,To rest well without any worries.When I applied for the gap year, I was very tired and exhausted because of my busy daily academic life. So this vacation, I wanted to give myself time to rest without any worries.
Second,Finding my interests and strengths.Since I was young, I''ve always had difficulty whenever I had to write down my interests or special skills. Each time I would think, ''What am I good at and what do I like?'' and I would fill in the blank with things that sounded plausible. SoThis time I went to Portugal with the goal of trying various things in a new environment to find what I like!
# The best part was being able to live with foreign friends!
The best part was living with foreign volunteer friends.Actually, unless you''re an exchange student or studying abroad, there are hardly any opportunities to live with foreigners. But through a gap year, for one month Friends from countries around the world such as the United States, France, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, GreeceI was so happy to meet them!!
By living with carefree, cheerful friends, I also received a lot of positive influence!
# I experienced a lot of positive changes after my gap year!
Since I had to use English almost every day, I think my confidence in English conversation increased a lot. By the time I returned to Korea, my reluctance to speak English with foreigners had almost disappeared.
I usually liked socializing with new people, but After taking a gap year, I became more sociable than before! Being in a new environment and meeting new friends every week led me to start conversations first and I became more outgoing than before. And after coming here, I grew to like taking photos of people I care about and like. I was able to get some answers to finding my interests, which was one of my gap year goals!
# My personal tips for preparing a volunteer trip to Portugal!
- Language
: At the accommodation we mainly used English, but when the local volunteers at the organization talked among themselves they used Portuguese. Fortunately, when speaking to me they spoke in English!
- Accommodation & Meals
: I stayed in hostel-like accommodation provided by the organization. We used 6- or 8-person rooms, so I could live with various foreign friends! The food is a bit different from Korean food. In the first week I tried everything one by one to figure out what I liked and didn''t. After that I adapted to the accommodation food and ate well!
- What to bring
: A power strip, hair dryer, slippers, and an extra blanket will make staying at the accommodation more comfortable.
My Lisbon volunteer gap year was!
Experience ★★★★★
: I was able to directly experience things I wouldn''t have otherwise, such as the yacht party with volunteer friends, living in Portugal for a month, day trips to nearby places with foreign friends, participating in the Refood volunteer program, and living with foreign friends, etc.
Learning★★★★
: I was able to experience and feel many things here, but I especially appreciated being able to observe and learn from the relaxed, positive way of life of the people of Lisbon.
Environment★★★★
: At first I had difficulty adjusting because of cultural differences with foreign friends, but as we spent time together we were able to understand each other''s cultures.
Safety ★★★★
: I think Lisbon''s public safety is generally quite good. Still, if you''re walking the streets of Lisbon alone, stick to main roads and I recommend not walking alone late at night, hehe.
Leisure★★★★
: Because I volunteered in the evenings, I had plenty of time to myself during the day. During that time I could visit places in Lisbon I wanted to see, and I was able to fully enjoy leisure activities like watching movies or reading books!
Capturing the growth journeys
of our participants.
