¡Hola gente de AEGEE! (Hello AEGEE people!)
As a kid, living abroad was something I never imagined I would ever do. But just like
believing in Sinterklaas, some things change as you grow up. Because in the last six months,
I did live abroad and proved myself wrong. Something that seemed unimaginably scary in the
beginning, is now something I am looking back on with gratitude and happiness. Let me take
you back to the beginning, when it all started thanks to the inspiring experiences I had during
my time in AEGEE. Because honestly, without them I’m not sure I would have dared to take
this big leap.
During my years in AEGEE, I began to love traveling. Among others the amazing excursions
and hitchhike trips I’ve joined in these years made me realize there is so much more to see
in the world than only the place we live and grow up in. And I can hear you thinking, “Nothing
goes above Groningen!” True, but that’s why I decided to move south—to Barcelona, to be
precise.
With shaky knees and nerves on edge, I landed at the airport of Barcelona. I was going to be
picked up by a Spanish family. A family with whom I only had a video call twice and with
whom I was going to live for the next 6 months. The first thing they said to me? ‘Wow, you’re
very tall!’. It was a strange comment but it made me laugh. It broke the ice and soon after, I
got the biggest hugs from two happy little girls who run up to me.
I was the au pair of these two girls and I became a real member of their family. In the first few
months it was a challenge to adapt to their routines and lifestyle, which is completely different
from the Dutch one. The Spanish ‘mañana, mañana’ (tomorrow, tomorrow) mindset was a big
adjustment for me. From one day to the next, my whole life was completely different. In the
beginning I also hadn’t made any friends yet. So yes, there were times I really thought, ‘what
the hell am I doing here?’. But this feeling, although with ups and downs, gradually faded
away. And before I knew it, my days were filled with fun activities with the family, trips and get
togethers with new friends. As my life there began to take shape, I truly started to feel at
home.
It was the diversity of people I met that made my stay there so special. It was really
interesting to speak with people who had a completely different life than, for example, the life
in the Netherlands. Five years ago, I never would’ve imagined to become close friends with
people from literally all over the world (there were a lot of Erasmus students there). It was
funny to see that besides all the different backgrounds we had, we still created a group of
friends that connected really well.
So besides the fact that yes, it was sometimes difficult to be far from home and being waaayy
out of my comfort zone, I wouldn’t have wanted to miss it for the world. I learned a lot and got
so much inspiration from my stay, it is something I will always be grateful for. But also now
back in Groningen I can really appreciate my life here more, because I’ve been away for a
while. Living abroad in whatever way or form, is something I would recommend to everyone.
Lastly, I can’t forget to mention the power of the AEGEE community. As a friendless newbie
in Barcelona, I contacted AEGEE-Barcelona, who had an activity planned, and I asked if I
could join. This led to meeting another group of amazing people, joining their kind of SU
event where I met even more people. This eventually contributed to my summer plans to go
to Sziget in Budapest to meet with a few of them again. Besides that, it gave me the
inspiration to join a real SU this summer, which I will combine with a solo trip of a month
through Italy. That is perhaps the most important lesson I’ve learned—let the butterfly effect
work for you. Create your own opportunities and say yes to new experiences. You never
know where they might lead.
EN