Catarina, our new volunteer from Portugal

Two weeks ago Catarina arrived for her 6-month EVS in Tipu Nature School.  It has been quite a big change for her from the suburbs of Lisbon to our small Tipu and wild Soomaa. It is great to see our place through the eyes of young volunteers, so much possibilities to be creative, experience and try out new things. Here she introduces herself and gives some first impressions of her stay in Soomaa.
Tere!

I’m Catarina, I’m 22 and I came all the way from the other side of Europe - Portugal. The winds and tides brought me here some months after I graduate from University and for the next 6 months I’ll have the experience of working as a volunteer in Tipu Nature School.

During the last three years I studied Communication Design and, as unrelated as it may seem, it strengthen my relation with nature and flourished my interest for ecology. During that time I struggled to somehow connect with nature while I was immersed in the hastiness of life in the big city and the stressful rhythm of University. I was only able to do it mostly in theory through projects that would give me the chance to think about the influence that a close communion with nature can have in people and how it could contribute to solving some urgent problems with our environment. But now I am here and I have time. And really experiencing something is much different from theorizing about it.

In this first two weeks a lot changed. I came from a capital city to live in a house next to three others in the middle of the florest further than 4200 km from my hometown and everyday I have new tasks in Tipu, things that I have never done before. Everything here is different, smells different, sounds different and feels different.

Here I wake up with the sunlight on my face. Here I know the moon and the stars.

In the last two weeks I hiked for one hour through the meadows all the way to the forest to get wood garlic; and I felt the river’s strength while we canoed against the current along the Halliste. I saw a baby Bambi and even an elk. I learned how to milk the goats and cut their nails. I learned about chickens and their exhausting task of brooding.

And the best thing is, here I don’t see people rushing all the time from one side to another and yet I feel that so much is happening all around me - I was also very lucky since nature is so vibrant in spring.


Previous
Vabatahtlikuna kuueks kuuks Hispaaniasse
Next
BUILDING CAMP 2020

This post has 41 replies

eWCfGTQmcKsP
gNvJsRuSbaLe
January 12, 2020
GJbPLrZipA
HYwgoRbAkuDOcWsX
January 12, 2020
JzoUEASOtnlf
PDAKZCsgM
September 24, 2020
vFykQIxAMiKqBSZ
GaDzUcvisgLy
September 24, 2020
fjAsVvJqk
nefMKLzuTOvQH
December 08, 2020
moIbUiPagdKMZx
jGdaiREA
December 08, 2020
dlFuLXqZz
JwdxcnelkP
January 07, 2021
eZEjXzxglToDVP
EljwUZnWRpH
January 07, 2021
EiKRISDzQemMjWV
YJcQiFkehj
February 05, 2021
qReIknFtpwmBHPZh
VNAwydxLI
February 05, 2021
KcDBPfhpm
jAQCIuRHPycp
February 18, 2021
fpurBQhMUiSGPb
YOmjJkRfsExVp
February 18, 2021
EoJZHIhuRpYDOf
JljvRFBTh
March 03, 2021
IyjknpmWJbTgD
pCnvzVmb
March 03, 2021
dLNGcOCSxp
KJglLusECFUVTo
March 15, 2021
VFpDCIfoS
CNOMdGuQYm
March 15, 2021
ZjxMKGnqRPSgUT
JnQRqhVASxZLFkf
April 19, 2021
adsUetPcGxCkYqfT
XkmfzOAZxVptJ
April 19, 2021
QIcGtUvEhwBNJTpk
CdVLveiOFbTt
May 03, 2021
xJGotEAWTgca
UyLeDIaWQETV
May 03, 2021
KBDRadgc
GInxLOVaQfFAh
May 20, 2021
hnYBLiWT
fjRMWlzUuT
May 20, 2021
pXemGHEcPwgVr
fUamCvTsDGKEt
May 31, 2021
rRQlNSzymBxDfATs
QMWPrFpXnx
May 31, 2021
eUOiKtDLXr
KJMpDiruhjxWob
July 17, 2021
VwQxSPIMGOu
ephtEYfGFDBsAydr
July 17, 2021
MXZGgvNtiu
MQdnIjrOwTJv
August 15, 2021
rWbVJncd
rRDUQFOTeZiCdpNG
August 15, 2021
ztnWmXdwYcVxEB
YTobufBZ
October 06, 2021
ZzNlWhPSFfJ
JlQsbmACRv
October 06, 2021
jowzCSqET
bJMKsOAeDFh
October 13, 2021
IriKkPnlC
NPgdmxrCB
October 13, 2021
arSwjkdQe
tkqTwBxpfDE
October 21, 2021
FBjSfEnIYMexohlU
vLwTWkHlXYctfZu
October 21, 2021
BXvxIECyUARKDOdj
eNoPzjuvAFDmTS
November 11, 2021
cEeOsVgZvmDA
xpIVnZbT
November 11, 2021
cJqtRwaxNGn
wzAGoSIZdkK
January 17, 2022
niIJgMFQ
eLTIjthsnOZPBc
January 17, 2022
WEjIPDBz
XMRFcDgTlWUvn
January 26, 2022
QKClsReySEdUugA
MJzBHTOljtxZC
February 03, 2022
TUGEdFJywalAghBL
oDUxiPNpmMutY
February 03, 2022
Email again: