This month began with receiving a certificate from INEX Slovakia. We had to present and evaluate our workshops in front of Peto, Monika, Jarka, and, of course, the other ESC volunteers. I was the first to present, and after I finished, I mentioned that I wasn’t completely confident about some parts of my workshop. They were very supportive, though. The people listening reassured me that, on the contrary, I had successfully communicated my goals and topic. What surprised me the most was when they said I should trust myself more because I had done even better than I expected. This feedback made me feel much more comfortable, and I was really happy to hear it. After some questions and answers, Anais and Evelina presented their evaluations. When everyone had finished, Peto handed out our certificates, and we were all happy!
On the 10th of October, we celebrated the International Day of Mother Centers in collaboration with Presporkovo. In the days before, we prepared a quiz on various topics, along with a riddle, answer sheets, and an Excel file. On the day of the event, after work, we went to the restaurant across the street to set up the space and materials, and gradually, many people arrived. It was a wonderful event! The quiz was in English, but thanks to the INEX Slovakia team, even those who didn’t speak English could participate and have fun. They translated everything and helped with scoring and correcting the answers. At the end, two teams tied, so we came up with a final clue to decide the winner. Afterward, we went home.
During this month, we also received the visit of some people, from Bibby Factoring. We worked all together in the Meeting Room for doing some creative activities during the morning. All together we managed to prepare various aids for children and clients with disabilities. We cut out snowmen, snowflakes, trees, stars and so many other stuff. If you are curious, you can check the video on INEX Slovakia page.
On the weekend of the 12th and 13th of October, we went to Slatinka for a weekend workcamp. Anais had been there before, as she led a workcamp during the summer, and she explained that the place was very special to her. We met Peto and Mima in front of Nivy, as planned. When we arrived, we met two friends (Katka and Robo) and some new people. After the food was ready, we ate and then played some card games. On Saturday and Sunday, we worked on clearing a large meadow and removing fallen trees at the village entrance. I really enjoyed the experience! The weather was very cold, and the work was sometimes tiring, but we created a great atmosphere where everyone could take a break from their usual routine. My favorite part was on Saturday evening when, after working, we went to the pyramids and enjoyed a stunning view from the top of a rock. All the tiredness disappeared! It was simply amazing. After spending time there, I understood why Anais had described this place as magical.
After the workcamp, Anais and I had two days off, so we decided to visit another country. We chose Latvia since neither of us had been there before, and we saw that prices were affordable. During the flight, Anais met a girl and started talking to her. When we landed, she introduced us to her boyfriend. They are living in Latvia since many years. We asked them how to get to the city center, and they kindly booked a car and drove us to our apartment. It was so nice of them! Once we arrived, we settled in and went out to start exploring. By the end of the day, we were quite tired, so we returned to our apartment to rest. The next day, we woke up early and managed to visit all the main monuments of Riga in just one day! We had a lot of fun, and the city was incredible, especially two monuments: the Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ and the Holy Trinity Orthodox Church.
Some days later, on Sunday the 20th, I went to Brno with Mehmet and Anais for a day trip. It’s always impressive how well-connected Slovakia is to neighboring countries! Once there, we stopped at a café for coffee before exploring the city. We thought Brno felt like a mix of Prague and Bratislava. The city wasn’t very large, so after visiting all the sights, we stopped at a place for a meal. The food was so good that I’d love to return. They made baguettes (including gluten-free ones for me), and they were delicious! On the way back to Bratislava, I met a girl on the bus from Ukraine who is studying in Banská Bystrica, and we started talking. She was very sweet. Hi, Kate! If you’re reading this blog, haha. When we got home, we said goodbye to Mehmet and took the bus home, eager to get some rest after such a long day.
On the 21st, Anais and I baked cookies with some elderly residents who live near Presporkovo. It was a very touching experience. Even though we couldn’t communicate much due to the language barrier, it didn’t matter—we still had a great time together.
On the 24th, we visited the Integra Center again to celebrate Halloween with the clients. It was another lovely experience, just like the previous time, and we had a lot of fun with them. We had to paint their faces with some drawings related to Halloween. Ghost, spiders, bats, for example. After that, we danced a little in the middle of the room where we stayed for doing the activities, for making more fun their day.
When we finished, all of us started organizing the Meeting Room, where Marek, a Slovak guy, gave a talk about his experience as a guide on glaciers in Island.
I always dreamed to visit this country. After his explanation I would like to visit it more than before, because it was extremely interesting and also the pictures, he put in the presentation were amazing. There were a lot of friends during this event! Unfortunately, I will not be able to participate for the next one because I will be in Mexico…but, if you would like to know more about it, stay tuned for the November blog!
Ciao!
