14. June 2024

Amandine: how time flies!

Ahojte!

Already 2 months since I arrived in Slovakia… So, I repeat this famous sentence: how time flies! But for me, it’s a good thing, it means that I’m not bored and that I do a lot of interesting activities.

In this article, I share with you my new experiences, my missions as an ESC volunteer at INEX and my feelings!

The month of April has started quite well with a loooong Easter weekend. So, I took the opportunity to travel to another capital city, Budapest! It was so nice… I really liked the atmosphere of the city: lots of restaurants, cafes and bars very cool and not so expensive. The buildings are very pretty and just walking through the streets is a great attraction as there are so many things to see. Of course, there are also many people… which can be a bit tiring.

Back to the tranquility of Bratislava, let’s go for a little hike in the nature to breathe. The first stage was the Devinska Kobyla Hill, the highest point of Bratislava. There is a very big observation tower from which we can see Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic! The sky was cloudy but the view was still beautiful. The hike ended at the Devín Castle which is one of the oldest castles in Slovakia. It is located just next to the border between Slovakia and Austria.
I am getting to know Bratislava very well, it is always a pleasure to walk through the streets and along the Danube. The city is starting to be very animated with the nice weather that is coming (sorry French people) ☀.

About my volunteering, I went to Zvolen for 5 days of training between ESC volunteers in Slovakia. I learned a lot about the European Solidarity Corps, but above all, I have met wonderful people! I shared my hotel room with Eliška, a Czech girl, so kind and caring to people ❤. We were a group of 11 people, all in different places in Slovakia but we will definitely meet again.
Concerning INEX, I am in charge of the volunteering activities. It means, for example, that I organize and plan activities such as tea meetings. That’s what I’m doing now, in addition to preparing the workcamps that will take place this summer.

Ho and something very important happened on the 8 of April…. INEX celebrated its 30th birthday!
So proud and glad to be part of this organization for 10 months ☺.

To conclude, my Slovakian adventure is still going well… I can’t wait to see the next episodes even if I hope that the time won’t pass tooooooo quickly!

Čaute 😉

 

Some pictures from last month:

BUDAPEST

Fisherman’s Bastion

Fisherman’s Bastion

Parliament of Budapest

Parliament of Budapest inside

Kürtöskalacs (Chimney cake)

Hungarian Forint

Liberty Bridge

View from the Gellért Hill

Shoes on the Danube Bank

BRATISLAVA

Observation tower

View from the tour

Devín Castle

Bratislava Castle

Sunset on the Danube

ZVOLEN:

 

Thank you for the support