Hello! Hello!
I am writing to you from the Austrian capital, where I have been living since last September.
I went because I think there is a lot to see and learn about this world, and Vienna is definitely a good city to live and work in. Also, given the way education was done in Catalonia at that time, I thought the best option was to go out and see the world.
Thanks to Travel WorkI started doing an internship at an international school as a Spanish teacher. I taught Spanish to students between 16 and 18 years old and I guess because they saw me as young, they and I relaxed a bit and tried to make the classes more fun.
During the first three months, my idea was to find a job teaching Spanish in another school. So I went around the city handing out CVs, a very interesting way of doing tourism. I also took the opportunity to visit other cities in the country such as Salzburg or Innsbruck and nearby cities such as Budapest. One of the things I like most about Austria is that it is surrounded by many countries and public transport makes it even easier to get around.
I must say that the quality of life in Vienna and the majesty that characterizes it attracted me from the first moment to want to stay. I fought and pursued my only goal I had then: to get a job. I won't lie to you, I had some weak and pessimistic moments when I saw that time was passing and I might have to return to Catalan lands just as I had left.
But I guess everyone finds what they're looking for, and in December, just a week before Christmas, the international school where I was interning offered me a job as an Instructional Assistant with 5-year-old students. This means being in the classroom with another teacher, carrying out the scheduled activities.
I had an interview, and after a few days of waiting and nerves, it is very difficult for me to describe the moment when they told me they had hired me. Any more and I would have drowned the director because of the hug I gave her…
At the international school we only speak English, and this is perhaps a weak point of my stay in Vienna, as I don't have much opportunity to practice German. However, I do private lessons on my own and I can also talk to my flatmates, as one is from Germany, one from Switzerland and the third is Austrian. Friends tell us that our flat looks like the UN!
I also feel increasingly integrated into the city, and that means I'm doing things I'd also do in Catalonia, like going to the gym, learning music, and, above all, mingling with the locals. I find this incredibly important to understand how and why they live the way they do. I always remember this:Wherever you go, do what you see"And so I imitate what the people around me do so as not to act inappropriately. We also often meet several Catalans who live in the city and have met thanks to the Catalan Centre in Vienna.
Now I dedicate myself to learning, learning, and learning. This is what I've been doing since my contract began in January, and I'll continue doing it for another year, as I've been offered the option to stay next year. So, I'll be spending another season in Vienna, where, despite not liking winter or snow, the city and its people have convinced me enough to say yes. The attached photo is from the school during "Teacher Appreciation Day," a day when students and their families thank teachers for their work by bringing them flowers. One of the most special days I've spent at school!
Well, this is my experience: march, fight, find, enjoy and learnIt's true that I miss my family a lot, but without them I wouldn't have done what I've done and I definitely wouldn't have gotten to where I am. And of course my friends and people, who are always with me even though they are far away.
So, I encourage everyone who is reading these lines and who has even the slightest idea of going, not to hesitate, there is much to see, to learn and that… for whatever you fight for, there is a reward.
Auf wiedersehen!
