Adieu Poland (for now)

I'm sat at my gate at Krakow airport. I should be writing an essay for university (amongst other things) but I don't feel quite ready to go back to the mundane... not right yet. Instead, I'll write this short post as I'm too tired to write coherently. It's also without photos. I didn't take many as my camera hates me and I can't transfer the ones that I did take until I get home.

So, the summer is basically over and it has been truly magical.

When I first started my first programme with Angloville, I was concerned that I might not be able to help the people I met with their English. I mean, who am I to do that? And now...? Well, I have seen over 100 children blossom in terms of their English and their confidence over this summer. I'm not saying that was my doing - far from it - but I am saying that I feel honoured to have been a part of it.

And I have met so many amazing people from coordinator, volunteer and participant alike. I'm still in awe. Thank you. I can't name everyone who's been extra awesome, there are too many of you!

So, instead I shall write a little about Krakow. Firstly, I really like the city. Warsaw was a bit claustrophobic for me with all the tall buildings but Krakow was lovely. There was also a lot to see and do there... I only scratched the surface. I was actually there with my mother a couple of days and we spent so much time just sat in cafés, people watching. It's that kind of city. Today I did my art history nerding (kindly accompanied by Brian from my Budapest and Krakow camp) and saw Leonardo da Vinci's Lady with Ermine and also Veit Stoss' St. Mary's Altar. I have a particular passion for gothic altarpieces and oh my goodness wow. Also, part is being restored so I'll have to come back to see it 😉

After that, it was off to the airport with Ginny (an awesome girl from Krakow camp who is a super trooper!) and, after a fair bit of waiting, here I am! I'm so ready to arrive...I think I will fall asleep on the plane...

I saw, you saw, we saw Warsaw

Yes, the title of this blog post is the name of a nail polish. No, I'm not wearing it right now but I did buy it last week in Budapest... logic, aye? It was written on Monday the 18th but I only just got it to post because of hotel WiFi issues so it's a bit out of date. Apparently, airports have better WiFi 😉

So, as you may have guessed, I'm now on the Warsaw leg of my adventure. Warsaw is a city that I had never really planned on visiting and I actually knew very little about it, beyond reputation, and only booked the minimum time there. Admittedly, my time there was influenced by other factors such as my wanting to spend proper time in Budapest and needing to get back to the Netherlands for Castlefest. Anyway, I didn't really know what to expect of the city.

The flight from Budapest to Warsaw was quite easy once we finally got through check-in. We were there as check-in opened and only just made it to the counter as it closed so that tells you something about the chaos. Seriously, departures at Budapest is my least favourite of all the airports I've encountered thus far.

View from the hotel window... not bad at night!

Coming into Warsaw itself we passed quite a few parks and it all felt quite green. The airport is about 15 minutes from the city so that's super convenient. The city itself? Well, the area I was staying in has an industrial feeling. There are tall tall tower blocks which, after Amsterdam and central Budapest feel quite claustrophobic. It was really overcast too and, while the city can’t be blamed for the weather, it made it all quite grey. I actually stayed on the 25th floor of the Marriott (which I would not  be able to afford elsewhere) and this afforded me quite a good view. That was something that I struggled with... everything is super cheap. I mean, from a selfish standpoint that's good but, from a realistic point it's super sad. I mean, economies are artificial constructs and yet they have such impact on people's lives.

On the Saturday I had a tour round a bit of the old town with my fellow volunteers. We had quite an eccentric tour guide so I feel I have a lot still to discover. The old town is really pretty and I could have easily spent more time there.

In the Old Town

Sunday I finally set off for the next Angloville programme and I'm there as I type. I have free time on the first day when I'm ready to go as opposed to later when I might need it but oh well 😉 This hotel has less to do than the last one but it's still nice. It's out in, basically, the middle of nowhere. Whereas last time I had sparrows for company, this time I have mosquitoes. The group is quite a bit bigger than the last programme and I'm still forgetting everyone's names but it seems like a  lovely group of people so I'm looking forward to the rest of the week!!

Adventures with English in Hungary

So, today is Thursday and that means that I’m nearly through with my first programme on the teaching thing. I’ve not really blogged - heaven knows that I’ve not really replied to messages – but I have a few minutes so, here we go.

I was really nervous when I flew out to Budapest, it being the first time I’ve travelled alone. However, once I actually got to airport, and through security it all felt better. There was some drama as the boarding procedure at Luton airport saw us all squeezed into a tiny stairwell in blazing heat. Of course, muggings here fainted. I was worried they wouldn’t let me on the plane but it was okay and I got there with no further problems. The hotel I stayed in was new to me but also on Jokai tér, my usual haunt. It was nice and I would stay there again.

On the Saturday, I went in search of a hat (and I’ve needed it!) before the city tour, provided by the company I’m volunteering with. I didn’t really need the tour but I wanted to meet some of my fellow volunteers before the thing started. Only four others from the junior programme attended the tour but it set my mind at ease. Everyone was lovely. After, Cherise and I went to Margaret Island with a lovely woman from the adult programme, Angela, and hung out, met some of her friends and meshed around with juggling. Admittedly, I mainly watched! Anyway, the nice thing is, I think that Angela may be on my Warsaw programme!

The next day was the start of the programme. Our meting point was near Hero’s square which is a fair old walk along a straight road from my hotel. You do not know the hell of doing that with a 100litre backpack, in hot weather. I am catching the metro on the way back!!! We got on the bus and I sat next to one of the Hungarian participants and chatted on the journey. It was quite easy to see that many people were nervous as their parents waved us off. Despite that, I hope that we’ve given them a good time and looked after them well!

To start with, it was a bit hard for me. I know that this is supposed to be an intensive English programme so there should be no need for Hungarian but I did feel that I needed it often to help explain, particularly at the start. I worried that I was not good enough for the job and especially because I know that, with the roles reversed, I would be blaming myself for not understanding.  My biggest fear was making the people I worked with more nervous and stressed about their English speaking. It has got easier as I have grown to know the individual characters and abilities of the participants. I’ve also been blessed to meet some amazing people and to share in their lives for a moment.

The hotel has also been a comfortable venue. It’s a sweet place and the staff are very accommodating, especially considering that they have a large group of noisy teens to cater for! The food is perhaps the only thing that I don’t like so much as it is very salty but it’s also in generous portions. I’ve been sharing a room with Cherise and a lovely, high energy girl, Sophie, who is seriously special in her ability to engage with everyone. The other volunteers and the coordinators are, at the very least, nice, and, at best, very special. I’m pretty sure I’ll be on contact with some of them for life.

And now, I’m tired, ready to have a break but also not ready for it to end. I have learned so much, changed so much… Poland has a lot to live up to!

This post was written on  a tablet so there may be some typos. Photos will come later, when I have a better internet connection 😊 

This time tomorrow...

The bag is packed, the tickets printed and I sit here waiting for my nail polish to dry so that I can go to bed. It can only mean one thing... The Big Trip is on the horizon

I'm feeling a lot of things right now. Excited. Sleepy. Nervous. And that's before I move on to the millions of thoughts whizzing around my head!

"What if no-one likes me?" 

"What if I get lost and get stuck at the airport forever?" 

"What if my credit card bounces and I can't pay for my hotel?" 

"Why is it forecast to be forty degrees next week?" 

"Why do I always leave the nail polish until the last minute?"

Okay, now being realistic, I doubt everyone I meet is going to take an instant dislike to me... I'm travelling with a map and have two alternative methods of payment. It's not the first time I've traveled and not the first time I've visited Budapest - far from it - but it is the first time I've traveled alone. I actually couldn't predict how nervous I would be about that. I mean, I know it will be fine and I am excited but seriously... eep! Talk to me tomorrow and I'll seem a bit less of a moaner because, frankly, I'll be left with nothing but excitement (I hope!)

As for the other two questions.... I don't know why it has to be so hot or how I'll manage with it but, y'know, could be worse! Gives an excuse to hold English 'classes' in the swimming pool, right? And, as for the nail polish? Well, I guess I never learn!!

I didn't want a relaxing summer anyway!!

It's all getting a little too real now! The other night I finally sat down and booked all the flights for my teaching thing in the summer.

Other than insurance they're the only part of the course that I have to fund but trust me, they were still quite the investment. But investment is the right word because, not only am I getting to learn new skills, but I'm getting to travel.

Actually, I'm going to be joined by my mother for a fair bit of this summer's travels. I managed to talk her into coming to Budapest for a few days after my placement there ends. She's wanted to revisit but various factors have meant she couldn't so this time I worked extra hard at convincing her. I also managed to talk her into coming to Castlefest again - something she enjoys but was thinking about not doing. And then she wanted to visit Krakow, where I have my final placement, so we're going to do a bit of touristing beforehand. And that's without mentioning our trip to Venice in about a month which is my belated birthday celebration.

I am super pleased that I get to travel with my mother again because it's been way too long. However, to be honest, I'm also pleased for another reason. I was absolutely terrified about traveling alone. I've traveled since before I can remember but the idea of going to a brand new place all alone and exploring solo... I don't think I'm quite ready for that yet. 

So, the long and short of it is, this summer is going to be quite the adventure!

Also, if you're wanting to meet up with me when I'm in England you should probably write to me sooner rather than later because I'm only there for a couple of weeks this time.

Who says university holidays are for relaxing? ;-)

Not for facebook

A Very, Very Happy Havanah

featuring daytime drinking, talk of deadlines, and good news!

As I type I am curled up in my fluffiest dressing gown nursing a cup of tea. Yes, I have multiple dressing gowns and I save this one, as the newest and the cuddliest, for the specialist of occasions. Okay, now I've hyped things up a bit too much but there we go, I couldn't resist.

In town today: Dania chooses to take selfies the
second I put a spoon of ice-cream in my mouth

So, over the last few months I've been trying to find a volunteer project/internship that I can work on in order to fulfill one of my graduation requirements. It's been really difficult because, ideally, it should link with my major and finding a placement that is English and relates to literature in the Netherlands is tricky. Finding a placement in the UK that will take you for just a month but full time, even harder. Volunteer work is more flexible because it doesn't have to fit in with your major but rather benefit the local and global community. The problem is, I didn't want to do something that I wasn't passionate about. I don't want to volunteer for a cause I don't agree, more likely, with or with a charity that I feel doesn't really prioritise the needs of its target group.

Anyway, you might recall me saying that I thought I had something up my sleeve in the last few posts and, I'll be quite honest with you right away, it came to nothing. The placement would have been great and would have fitted my degree perfectly. The organisation, however, was awful. Having asked me to fill in loads of different application forms (because they asked for the wrong ones to start with), spoken with me on the phone, collected references from me etc, and after weeks of waiting on a reply... they told me the role wasn't actually a real role - the website was wrong. They wanted me to go back to square one so they could "start to process my application". We're talking about two months on from when they should have started. Anyway, I gave up on that. It's not worth the stress.

A little disheartened, I trawled the internet for something else and, while I didn't really find anything promising, I did find something.

Visits to Hard Rock Café's are more
than justified in these situations.

To cut a very long story short, I applied for a teacher training program and for a scholarship too and, much to my surprise, I actually got offered it the other day. So, as of a couple of days ago, alongside my degree, I have been starting the process of language teacher training. I will also spend a lot of the summer in various observed placements in central Europe where I will teach children between the age of 12 and 19. I have to fund my own travel to the placements (so there are a few flights to book) but other than that all training and accommodation/board is funded. I'm completely overwhelmed and completely over the moon too. I feel like this is a real opportunity to get some practical qualification alongside my, lets face it, academic to the useless degree but fascinating nevertheless degree. I'm terrified but so excited.

The only person, other than my parents, who knew that I was applying for this was Dania. Each time I mentioned it to her she kept saying: "You should do this!" Even when I was in the process of applying and had no control over whether I was going to be accepted or not, she acted like it was my indecisiveness that was stopping it from being a certainty!! Her faith in me made me feel so confident and valued though <3

Naturally, Dania and I decided that we had to go out and celebrate today so, for the second time in my life it was gin cocktails for lunch. In all fairness, it was also a rather large meal and, several hours later, I am still completely full. The ice-cream on the way back was probably not so sensible either!

Anyway, I have already rambled on long enough and I have a delightful (note sarcasm) deadline for my academic writing course tonight so I should probably go and attack it! I'm actually done but that final proof read has to be thorough!