September 2020

Let my new life begin!

My goal on here is to be honest, as I feel like it may help some people considering volunteering or going through the same things. So, honestly, my arrival day was pretty terrifying. My mom, her boyfriend, two dear friends of mine and me left at 4 am to drive to the airport. Everything felt extremely surreal. I didn't feel the euphoria I was expecting to feel, I was more anxious and just quiet. Anyways, we took our last Goodbyes and we all cried a little, it was like in a movie. After I checked in I stopped crying, because I was so confused while trying to find my flight. The flight was okay, even though I couldn't focus on anything: not my book, not on a series and not even on music. Copenhagen greeted me with sunshine, which was a nice surprise, as it had rained all the time in Vienna. I took a Corona-test and off to Nyborg I was. I had big problems finding the train station, but the people at the airport were all very helpful. On the train I started to calm down. My host-mom picked me up and I felt incredibly weird, as this stranger was there to pick me up so I can live with her. Still, she and her husband greeted me really nicely and I felt welcome in their home.

at the airport with Joe and Jenny...

... and my mother (and her boyfriend - he took the pictures)

On the next day, I immediately started working. My boss, or mentor, was so excited to finally meet me, she made me feel better about the whole situation. Working at the office gave me a feeling of purpose, like I was really doing something here. Also, my first day at work in Genbrugskontakten was pretty nice. All of the workers there are also volunteers, so it has an incredible atmosphere in there.

putting new soil to our beautiful plants

I went on many walks just to explore the area and become familiar with my surroundings. This is the thing most people had advised me to do and it actually was a big help in the beginning, and still is. I still keep on going on walks, as it is a nice way to calm down and move my body.

on one of my walks (yes, I absolutely got lost on this one)

Nevertheless, I had a lot of fears: the fear of missing out on stuff at home, the fear of feeling lonely and the fear of regretting my decision to come to Denmark. I thought a lot about being forgotten at home or how it will be in July next year. Sometimes, the sudden urge of being in Austria overwhelmed me and I had to genuinely calm myself down. Those negative thoughts stayed with me for some time, but they faded a little every day. In addition, that surreal feeling wasn't going away easily either.

In my opinion, though, I am very lucky with the Danish language, as it sounds like a weirdly pronounced mix of English and German. From the beginning on, I could understand some things while people were talking.

Actually, I want to tell you about my first Saturday in Svendborg. It was warm and sunny, there were many buskers in the streets and the city seemed so alive. That was the first time since I have arrived that I realized my need of being on this big, scary adventure. I felt like this was the right decision and I will enjoy it. I was alone in that moment and I didn't care. I was truly magical, that whenever I'm not feeling well I think back to this day. (Also, I visited Little Local, a cafe that day, and I still go there because the people there are so nice!)

at my favourite cafe, Little Local, in Svendborg

Accordingly to these extremely good days, I had strong mood swings. I felt like I was on top of the world in one moment, and in the other I just wanted to cry. But I said to myself that I also had mood swings at home, so they just relocated and it will get better as soon as I am used to this new situation. Of course, I also had some long days at work, which seemed like they were going on forever, but those also passed.

my extremely supportive friends taking me with them on a bar-visit

My host-mom knows that I am a scout back home in Austria, so she looked for scout groups I could join near our home. As fast as I could have looked, I found myself right in the middle of a scout group in Vester Skerninge, helping out as a leader. It is, in fact, very different here from home, but still, I feel like a part of the group and it brings me incredible joy in my free time. (And I guess I can bring home some ideas for my girls)

on my way to a scout meeting with my bike

One evening I cooked dinner for my host family and me. It was so chaotic and messy. Nothing went as I had planned and I had to improvise some things. But they said they liked it and I also didn't find it too bad, so I was stressing about nothing.

One day we also visited my host parent's daughter, who lives a little further away from us. I felt quite awkward in the beginning, as I was a stranger in their house. But all of them were very very kind to me and I enjoyed myself there. So, don't be afraid of meeting different kinds of people anywhere, even if you may feel awkward about it!

Another Saturday I slept at my mentor's house. It was a very comfortable afternoon with traditional Danish food, a movie and some card games. That evening my best friend also called me from a aprty at home. It was hard hearing everyone partying and I started to miss them incredibly. I had to end the phone call and I was okay afterwards, as I knew everyone was okay but I had to get myself out of that situation.

walking my mentor's dog

Luckily my host-mom is always very supportive, as you may see. She helped me a lot with all of the formal things for my stay here, such as the residence permit. It made me feel glad to be with her.

After a quite sad and lonely day at work, my mentor hooked me up with two other volunteers staying in Aarslev. We three (and the neighbour of one of them) met in their town and just sat by a lake to talk. They made me feel like I am not alone with my thoughts and worries and that I have found some friends. They understand my situation like no other, as they are in the same.

Rosa (one of the girls in Aarslev) visiting me in Svendborg

We also celebrated my host-mom's birthday with a dinner in our house with some friends of hers. It was a cozy evening stuffed with delicious food and nice conversations. Although I felt a little lost due to my lack of Danish skills, but I managed to enjoy it.

Additionally, she took me to an exchange student meetup. The students there were mostly 15 or 16, which is very strange to me, as they were all so young and going abroad. I felt like they were nto struggling with their feelings at all and it made me wodner why I did so much. Talking to all of them showed me, that I should just acknoowledge my feelings and make the best out of whatever situation I am in. WHat'S the worst that could happen?

One particular workday will forever be in my mind. There were some young people visiting the office and Frivillighuset and my mentor asked me to join them on a tour around the house. At one point I had to introduce myself and my volunteerism. After my small speech, my mentor was speaking in highest tones about me. She told them how hard-working, brave and mature I was. Her words will forever motivate me to be the best version of myself, as I had only known her for like a month when she already spoke about me like that. It feels good to be appreciated like that.

Something that stuck with me for the whole month were weird and bad dreams. I could remember most of my dreams and they were either very awkward or very gruesome. I don't know what my brain is processing in those dreams, but it feels like something important. 

I realized that I have started to settle in when I once thought, "Oh god, I love those people so much."

Negative:

"I can't stay here for ten months!"

having hard times seeing my friends having fun without me

missing people from home came and went in waves

sometimes it was very hard to talk to people at home (it's okay to talk about it and distance yourself a little bit)

missing my comfort zone

Positive:

making an effort to come out of my comfort zone

"Feelings are temporary"

"The real friends will stay"

writing my experiences and feelings into a diary

starting to feel better and better

developing my own project at work

working in the second hand shop

showing pictures from home

nice days in Svendborg