Estas fueron una las cosas que hizo que Miguel Sugrañez, un estudiante de Medicina de 22 años, decidiera tomar esta experiencia con nosotros y, así, sumar en una comunidad de Kenia siendo un voluntario para un cambio. Él nos comentaba que normalmente, los proyectos con AIESEC duran alrededor de unas 6 semanas, y el suyo no era una excepción. Su experiencia se inició en verano por temas académicos, aunque tenía mucha flexibilidad ya que en verdad se podría hacer en cualquier momento del año.

“El proyecto estaba dividido en dos partes: las primeras tres semanas, trabajé en una clínica semi privada, llevada por la iglesia: Saint Scholastica Uzima Milele. El trabajo consistía en ir de un sector a otro ayudando a los profesionales en lo que hiciera falta, aprender lo máximo posible de los profesionales y observar mucho, pues los voluntarios no suelen realizar tareas de la clínica que involucren a los pacientes o a su salud. Las otras tres semanas, fui voluntario médico en Mathare o Kibera, que son los barrios pobres más grandes de áfrica. Yo decidí colaborar con los niños de los colegios que trabajaban con AIESEC, negocié con los hospitales y conseguí medicinas y suplementos alimenticios para los pequeños.”, nos comentaba.

Miguel también nos remarcó que durante esas 6 semanas, se trabaja en paralelo con otros voluntarios de AIESEC pertenecientes al mismo proyecto u a otros quizá menos relacionados. “ Cuando iba a las escuelas siempre me quedaba todo el día ahí para ayudar en lo que fuera a los voluntarios de AIESEC y estar un rato compartiendo con los niños”.

Además, Miguel realizó un torneo de fútbol para recaudar dinero y trabajó como médico de primeros auxilios en el mismo. De esta forma nos hizo saber que siempre hay trabajos variados durante la experiencia de voluntariado, simplemente no es una cosa fija. “Dependiendo de vuestra voluntad, podéis tener un impacto inmenso en el país y en su gente”, agregaba.=

Finalmente, quiso añadir que ir de voluntariado no solo representa trabajo, ya que también se tiene libertad para realizar algunos viajes de turismo los fines de semana o en los espacios libres laborales. Nos hizo énfasis en que para él, un voluntariado no es una obligación, si no una responsabilidad. De esta forma, el se convirtió en un promotor para que todo aquél pueda tener la oportunidad de vivir la enorme experiencia que él tuvo, porque estas cosas se recuerdan toda la vida.

¿Tú también buscas grandes recuerdos como este?

¡No lo pienses dos veces y únete a nuestra comunidad, tú puedes ser el siguiente en causar un gran impacto!

Para mayor información, pulsa aquí: https://aiesec.org/global-volunteer

La entrada Un Liderazgo Joven se publicó primero en AIESEC in Spain.

=One of the experiences that most marked him was just arriving at what would be his home for six weeks, Salvador de Bahia: “On my first day of the project, the members of AIESEC in Salvador de Bahia accompanied me from my home to the NGO with the that was working. They told me a thousand times that I could not go with my mobile on the street since both my house and the NGO were located in the most disadvantaged and dangerous parts of the city. So, we started a 2:30-hour journey crossing Salvador -which I would have to do alone every day for six weeks- with paper and pen in hand to draw and learn the route ”, she explains”

“The next morning, after a tiring and hard day for the first few times, I woke up in plenty of time for my daily excursion. I took the first bus, waited more than 40 minutes for the second and finally got on. Confident of myself and trying not to seem lost -another advice from the members of AIESEC- the stops went by and by. ‘ Tall gray building with windows and it’s your stop‘I kept repeating myself. But suddenly, I recognized the building far away and saw that we were not heading for it. I tried to speak with my “Portuguese-Spanish” with the driver but it was impossible and I decided to get off to the next one. My first reaction was to get my mobile phone, google maps and in less than 10 minutes to be in the NGO. I got stressed out, I thought ‘why does this occur to me’ and tried to find solutions. They had told me not to do it if I didn’t want to fear for my safety. I walked a few meters lost thinking until I ended up in a store that looked like a pharmacy and I looked at my mobile secretly between  medications. Five streets and you arrive. Come on, you can . Yes, that morning I arrived at the NGO and the bus never made a mistake again. ” 

Like her, and like many other volunteers, when you venture out to experience the country, you see everything in a different way. You learn to see things as part of the experience, without stress and worry. Everything goes its way and you discover parts of yourself that you didn’t know or even existed. You learn to discover, love, break, miss, value … You learn in an environment drastically different from yours. And that, it is very very difficult to do it in your comfort zone .

If you want to learn and get out of your comfort zone, don’t hesitate to ask us how to go to Brazil or to the world by clicking here:  aiesec.org.es/global-volunteer

La entrada Mi primera experiencia en Brasil se publicó primero en AIESEC in Spain.

• Don’t miss an opportunity

Everything in the world is opportunities. Don’t miss an opportunity because you are afraid. All good things always start with fear, desire and passion. Volunteering away from home, alone or with friends, is one of the opportunities of your life. Squeeze it and live it to the fullest. Accept challenges, get better, get ahead. So you will be the best version of yourself.

• Happiness moves the world 

Wherever you are from, wherever you come from, what unites us and what we all seek is happiness. Happiness with ourselves, with ours, with what surrounds us. Live by and for happiness.

• Appreciate what and who you have by your side

One of the easiest lessons to say but hardest to feel. We are used to living like this, to having “everything”. Understanding that there are other realities, other ways of living makes you appreciate how YOU live it. Who you normally have by your side, who is new and with whom you can learn. Because as the phrase says: “The people you love become ghosts inside of you and like this you keep them alive.” -Robert Montgomery

• There are a thousand realities in the world 

In volunteering, many things surprised me. Each reality and country adapts and lives at its own pace. But at the same time, there are customs that are the same even when they are millions of kilometers apart. And that is always summed up with a basic concept: respect.

Living one of these experiences is much more than life lessons. It is people, cultures and understanding the world we live in. If you dare to live such an experience and experience a huge personal change, go to: aiesec.org.es/global-volunteer . The world is waiting for you!

La entrada 4 lecciones de vida que aprendí durante mi voluntariado se publicó primero en AIESEC in Spain.

If you have ever wondered what volunteering consists of, the first thing you should know is that it is not only a work done that does not have economic retribution. Because being a volunteer goes beyond that, it is about contributing and experiencing the impact you are making in real time. It’s about seeing with your own eyes that YES, you can make a difference in the world.

Being a Global Volunteer is an intercultural experience for young people who want to obtain personal development and leave a positive impact on the world, because no matter where you want to direct that contribution, the change and growth that you will be generating for society and for yourself will be big. 

That is why we decided to tell you a little about the experience of one of our participants who decided to contribute his bit. The whole experience begins when he arrives at his destination, an NGO in Turkey in which he fulfilled his work teaching English to refugee children aged between 10 years. Although he was in a short period of 6 weeks abroad, during that time he was able to observe and meet new realities and cultures, as well as the beauty contained in its museums, mosques and palaces. 

He told us that perhaps the fact that another language is spoken (in this case, Turkish) and that the majority of its population does not know how to speak another language, makes the issue of communication a little difficult, but at the same time it is key to real immersion in the country. It is a great opportunity for young people to travel to countries where restaurants and transportation are up to five times cheaper, as it allows you to enjoy and learn more with the other volunteers who are with you.

During his experience, he wasn’t the only one contributing. Other volunteers were also taking the role of a teacher to dedicate themselves to small groups made up of two or three students. In this way, each of them had a certain number of children under their care, and in turn they could comfortably choose the method with which they would teach the subject. Something that sounds very small, but that generated a great satisfaction for him since on different occasions his students gave him flowers and drawings, as well as lots of laughs and hugs. 

We can realize that we as young leaders can make a positive impact in the world. We know that perhaps taking this step can be very scary for many, and that being a volunteer is not easy, but overcoming challenges is what makes it valuable. 

Therefore, you can be part of those young people in the world who are choosing to carry out projects to generate positive change, where you will also have the opportunity to put much of your knowledge into practice. The world is changed by those people who share the spirit, people who step forward, get involved and decide to become a citizen who contributes positively. 

Tell us, are you ready to live your experience? 

La entrada Voluntario para un cambio se publicó primero en AIESEC in Spain.

All this diversity causes Brazil to be affected in various ways due to these changes. It is not possible to say what phenomena may occur, ranging from tornadoes, floods to destruction of plantations, with increasing temperatures or rains.

For Brazil, agriculture is extremely important and one of the main commercial activities, so when phenomena that affect this productivity occur, it directly affects the economy and the lives of millions of people. With such variations, the quality of life in the country is also affected, worsening social aspects and the development index.

We see in the material of the Brazilian news portal G1 that, “In the Amazon rainforest, which occupies almost half of the national territory, global warming should also increase the occurrence of extreme weather events in the east of the region and more floods in the west. The study evaluated the projections of 35 computer simulations for the Amazonian climate and mapped the most likely impacts of climate change in the region against a relatively pessimistic scenario in which CO2 emissions continue to grow wildly.

In addition to the Amazon region in the country there are other biomes that are also affected, such as the “Pantanal”, “Cerrado” and “Mata Atlântica”

The main impacts due to climate change in Brazil are:

– The reduction of water resources

– semi-arid vegetation will probably be replaced by typical arid region vegetation

– Probably the extinction of species.

– The decrease in groundwater

– The impact on the sea level and, consequently, on the mangroves

– Between 38 and 45% of “closed” plants are at risk of extinction and the temperature rises by 1.7 ° C

– Increased drought

– The conversion of forests into crops affects the climate by altering the regional albedo and latent heat flux, causing additional temperature rise in the summer

– The loss of biodiversity

– The increase in temperature and the decrease in water in the soil will lead to sabanization in the eastern region

There is a real need for projects that help mitigate these effects together with the awareness of the population so that they can carry out the actions that are within their reach. Climate change has a much higher proportion, but if we all do our part and help, we can prevent all these problems from spreading in a worse way.

Nillo Trindade

La entrada Brasil y el cambio climático se publicó primero en AIESEC in Spain.

~Tengo miedo de mirar por la ventana, no por lo que pueda llegar a ver, sino por lo que no pueda ver. Siento que el mundo está perdiendo su esencia día tras día, que la humanidad se desvanece lentamente, que cada segundo que pasa se lleva consigo un pilar más del mundo. Lo que queda es guerra, odio, injusticia, crisis y tristeza. Esto no es el mundo en lo que yo quero vivir.~

2017: los millennials, 2 mil años de evolución y progreso, la era de la tecnología y la revolución; el año que marca la diferencia. Sin embargo,algunos no están asustados de mirar por la ventana, porque sea cual sea el paisaje que vean, lo pintarán de otro color. Ellos son los voluntarios.

El voluntariado ha pasado de ser una moda, a convertirse en una necesidad, de un sacrificio a un trabajo soñado por muchos. Necesitamos voluntarios. En el mundo, encontramos más de mil millones de voluntarios que luchan por fijar los desperfectos de la humanidad.

Miles de ONGs han aumentado su impacto gracias a voluntarios con talento que comparten valores sociales, mientras que los movimientos juveniles también se unen a la lucha por un mundo mejor.

El poder del voluntariado se ha infravalorado durante años ¡esto se ha acabado! De esquina a esquina, desde las fuertes olas del Atlántico a la suave nieve del Polo Norte, la gente se está uniendo, luchando y trabajando para conseguir un impacto positivo en nuestra sociedad.

Me enorgullezco de formar parte de la generación que liderará el cambio y por tener la oportunidad de ser voluntario!

¿Y tu?

Un orgulloso voluntario

La entrada El poder del voluntariado se publicó primero en AIESEC in Spain.

Nothing gives you more vision of the world than traveling, and Brazil, like many countries, is perceived as the country of carnival, samba and soccer. And although many topics are based on reality, it is not until you are in the place that you realize what it really is. Two summers ago I had the opportunity to do a volunteer service thanks to AIESEC in Brazil and I demolished some of the topics that our society has formed or, on the contrary, I verified those that are true.

1. Soccer : This is a topic and a reality. Although they do not have a powerful league like any European, football is everywhere, especially when it comes to the national team. During my volunteering, many children wore the famous green-amarela (even for days in a row) and in their spare time they always wanted to play. As for the great temple, the Maracana, it left me speechless. Even completely empty during the tour we took, it is much bigger than any stadium I have seen. The dream of many Brazilians (and probably many football fans around the world).
2. Samba : This is a cliché. Samba is clearly the official and most famous music originating in Brazil, but not the only one. What sounds the most everywhere (radio, discos, shops) is another genre: sertanejo. Surely the name will not sound familiar to you, but if I say names like Michel Teló and his famous “Ai se eu te pego” everything makes sense. I even had the opportunity to attend a concert while I was there. Another well-known style is funk. But it is not what you imagine, Brazilian funk is the rhythm that sounds in the low depths, and it is usually frowned upon, as not quality music. Finally, we have the classic bossa-nova, which is not yet popular with young people, if it is for older people who want to appreciate the glories of the country.
3. Carnivals : Although my stay was during August-September and therefore not coinciding with the Carnival season, if they told me that it is only a great event in Rio, the other cities have small carnivals where not everything is so spectacular.
4. Brazilians : We all have in mind the stereotypes always related to Brazilians and Brazilians: big bodies in swimsuits or bikini bathed by the tropical sun. But those are just stereotypes. Not all of them are brown to begin with: where I lived, a former German colony, a large part of the population was blonde with blue or green eyes. Not all of them have a body 10, the food is very greasy, oily and with many seasonings, and although there are delicious dishes, they are also quite caloric.
5. Beaches : I have not had the opportunity to be in many tropical countries but the Brazilian beaches are spectacular. Especially in Florianópolis, the city where I was. The fact that it was winter was a handicap when it came to enjoying a good bath, but just being able to walk along kilometer-long and almost deserted beaches was a pleasure. In addition, many are linked to forests, which gives it an even more exotic air. I also visited Ipanema and Copacabana, mythical beaches of Rio de Jainero, but it was not the same since the city is extremely touristy and the beaches are no exception.
6. Christ the Redeemer : I don’t know whether to classify it as a topic or reality. Witnessing one of the 7 wonders of the modern world is spectacular and Christ the Redeemer is not short. The statue is truly gigantic and stands on a mound that you have to access via organized vans. The bad part is that the area that surrounds it is very small and the amount of tourists that surround it makes its enjoyment more difficult. But this is how Rio de Janeiro is, one of the cities that happened to be on my favorites list: because despite massive tourism, it has managed to preserve the magic and essence of Brazil.
7. Dangerous : Brazil is a country also known for its dangerousness. The crime rates are high and it was one of the cons that I raised at the beginning. Still, the city I was in was one of the safest in the country and I never had a bad feeling, even at night. In other cities further north it is risky, but we walk around Rio and São Pablo at night without problem. I think the key is to know what you are doing. Dangers exist all over the world, but you should never generalize or live by prejudice.
8. Distances : We live in Europe, the old and small continent. Small overall. In America they do not measure things the same as here. For them that we can travel country to country in a few hours seems fascinating. Barcelona-Paris in 2 hours? Impossible. My host family was originally from Porto Alegre, a 6 hour drive south of Florianópolis, but for them it was like going to their second home for a weekend. On the contrary, they had never left the country, they had not even visited the Iguaçú or Rio de Janeiro Falls.
9. Food : As I have said before, Brazilian food is quite greasy and, although I sometimes missed the Mediterranean diet, some dishes are delicious. The most typical that I found both in school canteens and at home with my host family was meat seasoned in some way, feijão (typical purple beans) and rice, a lot of rice. In the supermarkets they sold rice in packages of 5 or 10 kilos, I had never seen anything like it. Another typical food is the pão de queijo or cheese bread: small balls where the dough itself is made of cheese. But it doesn’t end here, there are also many sweets, especially the brigadeiro: a mass of condensed milk with chocolate that is used in chocolates, cakes and other types of sweets. There are also açaí ice creams , a tropical fruit that only grows in the Amazon and is served as we serve frozen yogurt here. But if there is something to highlight and that I miss a lot, it is the natural juices: all the flavors you can imagine, all the combinations, fruits that I didn’t even know existed. And if you are passionate about fruit like me, that is heaven on Earth.
10. Currency : “Being South America, it will be cheap.” Brazil is an emerging economy and it shows. The Brazilian real is one of the most valued currencies in the south of the continent and we notice it when crossing the border, both with Argentina and Paraguay. Although we exchanged a few reais for pesos or guaraníes respectively, in stores they also accepted reais, since they are much more valuable than their local currency. Currently it is 4 reais per euro, but when I went the conversion was 3-1, so not everything is as cheap as it seems and you have to take that into account when spending.

And finally, my personal advice: do not be influenced by the stereotypes of each country. They all have, just as you have an image formed of them. Let yourself be surprised and you are sure to get a pleasant surprise.

By Cristina Bas

>> Discover our volunteer projects in Brazil

La entrada Brasil – Derribando Tópicos Y Estereotipos (O No) se publicó primero en AIESEC in Spain.

He estado en España bastantes veces, en total he estado allí más de un año, y me encanta. ¿Por qué? Las personas, el tiempo, el ambiente y las tapas. Sí, las tapas es algo que echo mucho de menos en los bares polacos. Sin embargo, cuando he estado en España ha habido cosas que echaba de menos de Polonia, y no eran sólo mi familia y mis amigos. Así que voy a compartir contigo una lista de razones por las que deberíais elegir Polonia como destino este verano.

1. Polonia es muy bonita. Quizás pienses que lo digo sólo porque soy de aquí, pero no, de verdad. Tenemos playas, montañas, cientos de lagos en los que darte un baño durante los calurosos días de verano. Y bosques, en todos lados hay bosques muy bonitos. ¿Qué más? ¡Ciudades! Una mezcla de impresionante arquitectura antigua con edificios de estética comunista que para algunos tienen encanto. Cada ciudad está llena de lugares históricos. No os voy a dar una lista con todo lo que debéis visitar, pero buscad esto en internet: Zakopane, Wieliczka, Mazury, Kołobrzeg and Kraków y mi ciudad: Poznań.

2. La gente, sí. Los polacos somos amables si nos llegas a conocer. Hay muchísimos estereotipos sobre nosotros, sobre todo relacionados con el gobierno y los refugiados, pero somos hospitalarios y nos encanta tener invitados. Hay un antiguo dicho polaco que dice: ‘un invitado en la casa es como Dios en la casa’. Si conoces a polacos, ten por seguro que te invitarán a su casa para que conozcas a sus padres y abuelos. Los abuelos polacos son como los abuelos de todos lados. Mejor que entres en sus casas con hambre, porque te van a dar de comer como nunca antes. Les encanta la gente joven, y aunque no te entiendan una palabra, te preguntarán sobre tu familia y tu país. Suena genial, estás pensando: ‘sí, claro, todos los abuelos polacos son así y están deseando invitarme a sus casas’. No, desde luego que no, ¡pero si conoces a la gente adecuada sí que será así! Y recuerda, no seas vergonzoso y diles que eres español, especialmente por el tema fiesta…

3. Comida. Seguro que te suenan el vodka y los pierogi, pero hay mucho más que probar. Busca esto en internet: bigos, pierogi ruskie, żeberka, makowiec y algo que sólo puedes probar en Poznań: Rogale Świętomarcińskie!

4. La cultura. Si te gusta, es algo que te puede animar a venir a Polonia. Tenemos muchísimos
   museos, castillos antiguos, y un montón de lugares más que visitar. Si vas a la capital, recuerda visitar el Muzeum Powstania Warszawskiego, Zamek y Łazienki. En Cracovia, acuérdate de Wawel y haz un viaje de un día a Wieliczka y Oświęcim. Para este último lugar, el viaje no es muy cómodo, pero es un lugar que debería ser visitado por todos los que vivimos en Europa. ¿Qué más? Teatros. Son espectaculares, pero cierran en verano. A eso le ponemos solución: en verano hay muchos teatros callejeros que actúan gratis en las ciudades más grandes. ¿Conciertos y festivales? Sí, durante el verano hay muchísimos en diferentes ciudades con precios más atractivos que en España.

Como puedes ver, hay muchas razones por las que visitar Polonia este verano. Quiero mencionar una cosa más: ve de voluntariado Global Citizen, si no a Polonia, a algún otro lado, ¡pero hazlo! Es una oportunidad increíble e inolvidable para aprender de ti mismo y del mundo que te rodea. Es tu oportunidad para crecer como nunca, y para hacer amigos para toda la vida. ¡Es una oportunidad que no te puedes perder! Do zobaczenia.

Por Zofia Sidorowicz Janeczko

>> Descubre nuestros programas de voluntariado en Polonia.

La entrada ¿Por qué deberías venir a visitar mi país, Polonia? se publicó primero en AIESEC in Spain.

Any adventure excites me but international volunteering was not an idea that I had in mind from the beginning. The need arose after I joined AIESEC, much of it by chance. Being able to provide these kinds of experiences made me open my eyes. I told my parents that that same summer I could go and although at first they were not very amused, they immediately saw the benefits it could bring me.

Choosing a destination was not easy. I wanted to get away, really live a different experience, where from the culture to the climate they were strange and new to me. I was between Asia Pacific or South America, but the large number of projects available in the latter made me decide. Finally, after interviews, pros and cons, I chose my project in Brazil.

On July 25, 2014 my adventure began. It was the first time she had crossed the pond, and it was also the first time she had really traveled alone. It was a very long day of goodbyes, 3 planes, suitcases up and down and a mixture of nerves and excitement, but I arrived at my destination: Florianópolis. No, I had not heard of this small island, almost paradisiacal, in southern Brazil. Just by googling it , I was in love and determined.

At the airport, my host brother picked me up and we arrived at his house. The first culture shock was that the parents did not know a word of English, only Portuguese, but that was not an impediment to a great reception. The 6 weeks I spent with them they treated me like one more daughter, since they went from having two to four (me and my volunteer partner and home, an Austrian girl).

The first week of my volunteering was mainly training. The members of AIESEC met us every day to get to know each other, both with each other and with ourselves. They did activities and helped us focus our project, explaining all the details to us. This consisted of passing sessions to children from 5 to 14 years old in different NGOs on the island. Each week that we passed a different topic occupied us: multiculturalism, environment, human rights, ethics, citizenship …

The best thing was the treatment with the children. It was unexpected since I am not normally a person who likes to be surrounded by little ones. But this was completely different. From the first day to the last, the children proved to be truly dedicated. They were affectionate until saying enough, any detail excited them and they just wanted to learn more and more. The little ones hugged me all day and fought for me to hold their hand on the way to the dining room.The older ones, on the other hand, confessed that their classmates liked them and we listened to music together. Little by little, Portuguese stopped being an impediment and allowed me to learn it very quickly, because of its similarity to Spanish and because it was the only language they could understand. His level of English was too basic for conversation. Even so, the most surprising thing was that my Austrian friend did not speak a word of Spanish or Portuguese but that was not an impediment for her when it came to interacting. The children adored her alike and many times I had to be the translator.

By hanging out with them you realize how little they ask and how little they know. That we came from Europe expressly to be with them seemed amazing, almost impossible. Talking with them about climate change, about how different cultures interact, about the world, everything seemed great to them from that small class. During the patio hours, they taught us their national sport, soccer, while we tried to teach them traditional games from our countries. It was a unique experience that really motivated you to get up at 6:30 in the morning and spend almost two hours on the bus between waits. But at the end of the day you are in Brazil.

Volunteering teaches you to give without receiving, to show your best purely for others. Because in the end what you receive, without expecting it, is much more. I take a thousand and one drawings, kisses, hugs, laughter and hours of horse riding. I take their smiles, their illusions and their desire. Because although education has never been my passion, spending those 6 weeks there taught me more than I did.

But my experience was much more. Brazil is one of the countries that receives the most people volunteering thanks to AIESEC. During my stay, four projects were carried out in the city, with 12 to 15 volunteers each, which translates into more than 50 volunteers. People from all over the world, wanting to learn, to teach, to spend the summer of their lives. I met a lot of people that summer. We had many conversations from cultural anecdotes to political-economic situations.

I understood why some people act, their beginnings, the thoughts of different cultures. Together we would have dinners, went to the beach (even if it was winter), partied and even surfed. We also travel a lot: the Iguaçú Falls, the Argentine and Paraguayan border, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

Brazil has charm, and although if it is present, not everything is samba, soccer and carnival. Maybe in more touristy cities like the center of Rio they do use these topics, but not in Florianópolis. My city was one of the safest in the country, but even so it does not enjoy the advantages of large European cities. The bus system is slow and inefficient, English is only at the university level and yet not all students speak it and the school facilities are not the best. But what surprised me was the hospitality of the people. It may sound like a cliché too, but people directly open the doors of their house for you. Anything you need. Brazil is categorized as one of the most dangerous countries in the world, but my memory is a completely different one. Without a doubt, the best summer of my life. Thanks to this, I now have a Brazilian family and friends all over the world.

–

Cristina Bas, Barcelona

La entrada Brasileña Por 6 Semanas se publicó primero en AIESEC in Spain.

Sometimes I ask friends and acquaintances what would be the hardest aspect they would have to face if they traveled abroad and the vast majority converge on the same problem: language.

How essential it is to share the same language in order to communicate with others. However, during my experience in Poland I understood that, without knowing the same language, communication is possible. It is possible thanks to non-verbal language, because a raised little finger and thumb can be a “telephone” both in Spain and in Poland, because we can greet each other, say goodbye, laugh only with a simple gesture, because the passion for another culture awakens in us an interest in learning a minimum vocabulary in that new language and thus knowing how to say “thank you”, “please” or “sorry”.

I carried my suitcase full of fears, fears of not being able to communicate with others, but once there I let go of those barriers, finally absurd, to fill my luggage back with greater confidence in myself, with a greater cultural understanding, with confidence. that we are not as different as we think.
And that, friends, that is one of the best things that has ever happened to me.

Fernando Arnejo – AIESEC Santiago de Compostela.

La entrada Cómo entender a las personas sin saber hablar su idoma se publicó primero en AIESEC in Spain.