About goals during volunteering period

Hi everyone, it is already 2 months i am in Lahti. Everything is still wonderful and hope will be in the future. Today i decided to speak about my goals which of them i am going to achieve during my volunteering period. First one i would like to underline is speaking English fluently. I very appreciate this skill and consider it is important in communications with foreigners, in learning process and etc. Living abroad helps me to practise my English and i try to improve it by reading, listening and speaking with other people.  One year ago i was shy to speak English, but now i notice a huge improvement and by the time i come back to Armenia it will be much better than now.

Second point I want to speak about is travelling. I have always liked travelling and since childhood I have travelled with my family all over Armenia and Artsakh. I have been several times in Georgia and Russia as well. And during my staying here have been in Helsinki, Porvoo, Isoranta, Tuusula and I am planing visit Turku, Tampere, Kokkola, Inari. Nature in Finland is wonderful, air is fresh, wether is cold that helps to be healthy. I am not sure yet that I am ready for it but in winter time I am going to swim in ice cold water. I think it is one of the indivisible parts of Finnish winter tourism. And if i have opportunity I of course will try to travel to another European country and will share my impressions with you. At least I will visit Tallin and have cruie experience.

Thanks for reading, wait for my next posts soon.

Hard and long travelling - How to get to Vrginmost from Lahti

Four bus rides and two flights.

We started from the travel centre in Lahti at 3.30 am with the bus to the airport and arrived in Vrginmost at 18.25pm. That was the hard and long part of our journey.
But with a lot of positive spirit and a good attitude we had a nice day.

       

      Happy travellers at the airport in                     Frankfurt 

The day consisted of a lot of waiting in different surroundings like airports and bus stations.

When we arrived Zagreb it felt like we had travelled back to summer time, with at least 27 degrees Celsius. So quite a change from autumnish weather in Lahti.

In Karlovac we strengthen our immune system with some tasty lemonish water. And we were looking forward for our last bus ride. The mood was still incredible super good.

Finally after 50 minutes bus ride through amazing landscapes we finally arrived to Vrginmost and lovely Maja was at the bus station greeting us with warm hugs.

After a short trip with the car we had a pit stop at our accommodations. Info about rooms, toilets, kitchen and garden were given.

At this point all of us was extremely hungry so off we went to the only local restaurant.

Finally proper food with the best company.  And yes we did eat local food.

During our time at the restaurant we were joined by the big boss of the organisation Predrag and the wonderful Anja. We also met the other volunteers during our dinner as they came by on their way back to the accommodation from Suncokret.

After a day filled with travelling and waiting we were all three ready to find our beds, go to sleep and be ready for the next day.

Meeting of Armenian and Finnish volunteers 

Last friday was full of good vibes and emotions. We had nice day in Isoranta camping area with two finnish volunteers, Oona and Krista: two bright individualities who are already in Croatia for ESC short period volunteering. 

This meeting was organised by Lahti City Youth Services, which is the sending organisation for them, and the main goal of the meeting was pre-departure training for Krista and Oona.

During this training they got some advices from trainers, they spoke about their expectanions and goals, and they have drawn U Curve (scheme which is showing how most people experience Life in a foreign country), which emotionally helps to understand where you are .

And why were Armenians there????????? 😉

The main idea of our being in Isoranta for this 

meeting-training was to share our experience and emotions with them. We talked about volunteering  from different angles.We tried to give them some ''advices'' that can be helpful. We talked about living alone in a foreign country, that it can be new, strange or shocking for them. We told them all the things that we have experienced while being in Lahti for this two months. 

And I hope that they will enjoy their time in Croatia the way we do in Finland. 

Let's wish them good luck!!!

#youthere #escvolunteers

Oona, Finland

Hi there!! I'm Oona, 19, from Finland and I'll take part in #YOUTHere! project and travel to Croatia for voluntary work. I will be working mostly with kids and youth. I'm really very extra excited about this and hope I'll face new and interesting situations there!

I graduated from high school in spring 2019 and
I'm now spending a gap year so this is a great time
to leave Finland, FINALLY! Haha

I would say I'm spontaneous and a colorful person who likes to laugh! I like theater, acting and photographing. I always try to be open for new opportunities and let life show me what comes next!

I heard about voluntary work from my friend and got instantly interested. I applied and luckily I was chosen! I haven't even been there yet but I would recommend that every one should leave for voluntary work in some point in their life.

Krista, Finland

Hi, everybody! I am Krista, a 23 year old girl from Finland. I am going to spend the next two months in Croatia doing volunteer work mainly with kids and youth. People have described me kind, calm and positive. I like crafting and DIY projects. I got a degree in childcare in 2015 and last year I got a degree in carpentry.

I excited to get to know a new culture and meet new people. I also want to improve my language skills and I think this is a very good opportunity to do that. Since I am unemployed at the moment, I feel this is the perfect time to go.

I don’t know much about Croatia so I don’t know what to expect, but I am excited for this adventure.

“Remember, you’re the one who can fill the world with sunshine.” - Snow White