Ahojte!
I’m Sarah, from France, and I arrived in Bratislava on February 8th. It was a loooong journey—more than 24 hours—but I wanted to take the train for the environment. Plus, I enjoy the slower pace of travel, where I can watch the landscape go by, start my travel notebook, and listen to music along the way.
Barbara came to pick me up at the train station and helped me with my luggage. She showed me to my flat, which is really nice! I also met Pedro, who will be my flatmate, colleague, and friend for the next year!
I chose to do an European Solidarity Corps with INEX because I wanted to try something new, step out of my comfort zone, meet new people, and live abroad again. Indeed, I’ve already done an Erasmus exchange in Slovenia, and I learned the hard way not to confuse Slovakia with Slovenia, because Slovaks can get really mad about it… haha!
On my first Sunday, Pedro and I, along with our two mentors, Katka and Peťo, went exploring around Bratislava and tried some typical Slovak food. It was really nice, and I felt super happy to be here.
The first week was all about adapting. I got to know the city with two city tours, met everyone at the office (and they’re all so welcoming!), and started learning about INEX and the exciting 2025 plans: workshops, summer workcamps, weekend workcamps, the Leadership Academy, and so much more! I also joined some international events and started making new friends, which feels really good after arriving alone in a new city and country.
Over the weekend, I visited the Danubiana Modern Art Museum with some international students, and it was beautiful. It’s on an island in the middle of the Danube River, which gives it a really special vibe. By the end of the week, I was starting to feel more at home in Bratislava—I even got around without using Google Maps!
Even though I miss my family, I’m feeling good here. I’ve started to establish a little routine: I wake up early to have time for sports and work on my online illustration course. After my volunteering day, I keep my evenings free for activities or chatting with my family and friends.
Then, in my second week, activities really kicked off! We helped a family center called Prešporkovo clean up a room full of toys and books. It was so nice working alongside volunteers from Spain, Singapore, Austria, and Slovakia. After that, we helped Lenka to organize a carnival “Fašiangy” at an international school in Bratislava. We dressed up in traditional Slovak costumes, ran a quiz about Slovak traditions for the kids, danced, and tried some famous Slovak donuts, called “šišky”! We also attended the Tea Meeting about Nepal and India, created badges and worked on a board with the European Maps and all the formers ESC hosted by INEX.
On Saturday, I went hiking with a friend I met here, who’s also doing an Erasmus internship. We explored Devínska Kobyla, Sandberg, and the famous Devin Castle. The castle is stunning, but it’s sadly in ruins due to Napoleon and his French army. We ended the day after 20 km of hiking and I went to sleep straight after!
Finally, the last week of my first month started with Slovak lessons with Andie! Ahoj, ahojte, dobrý deň, na zdravie, ďakujem… I hope that in a few months, I’ll be able to have small talks in Slovak! I also spent time at the office, learning about marketing strategies and social media.
I can’t wait to tell you what March will bring me!
See you,
Ahojte
