Patricia
Gama
My
Erasmus experience
I was invited by my Math’s teacher, Jorge
Guerra, to take part in this project. Therefore, I was in the “team” when our
foreign partners were in Aveiro. I took part in some of the joint activities
such as the trip to OLI the company visited by the students. However, my real Erasmus experience was here
in Alsfeld.
I had never taken a flight before, so making
the check-in and entering the waiting area was exciting. In the beginning of the
journey, I was very nervous because I didn’t know what to expect about staying with
an unknown German family.
Nurja, my host student, met me at the hotel entrance;
she was so nice that I immediately felt at ease. I didn’t know how to greet her
and her family. In Portugal we generally kiss each other on the cheek, here, we
first shake hands.
She took me home and we immediately had lunch.
She explained how meals work in Germany, she told me about her daily routine
and about her family. During my first afternoon in Alsfeld she showed me her
house, she spoke about the town and about her friends and we compared
differences in the two countries. The most surprising fact was the weather; it
was so cold and I’d never seen snow before!
During my stay here what I’ve enjoyed most was
the time spent with my new friend after classes/activities. We did lots of
things, we went shopping, we went to a “Bäkerei” to have coffee and we wandered
around the town. I met many of her friends, they were all friendly and they were
always asking me if I was alright.
My favourite activities were the visit to
Merkers, the salt mine and the meeting with the refugees. Listening to their
life stories was a lesson, the media don’t let us know how much courage they
need to escape their countries and travel without any certainties. Going to the
club “Plan B” was also exciting; I enjoyed being with every foreign student,
and getting to know them better.
The only obstacle I found a little bit
difficult to overcome was the language. I am not very fluent at English, so
sometimes it was difficult to communicate. I overcame that by using Spanish and
French, and lots of times I used gestures.
Germany is quite different from my country, but
I had a great time. I wouldn’t mind doing my apprenticeship here. I would like
to come back here to meet everyone again.
Patrícia Gama, Portugal
