“vulesse diventare nu brigante oi nennane…” with Napoletan music in my ears, the Freccia rossa rushes towards South. Suddenly – I recognise a familiar shape – Vesuvius is appearing. Then, a rapid dive into memories – walking across the dark streets of Napoli to enjoy a welcome pizza, we feel the creative-destructive vibes of Europe’s most special city. Two weeks of o’paese d’o mar’ ahead of me. Read about the impressions from a MARE lina who likes to come back:
1 – It is still possible to discover new things in a place you think you know by heart
Snorkeling by night and see the magic of bioluminescenza, swimming across Ieranto Bay to the scoglio in front of Zinzinara, enjoy the trekking path from Nerano to Massa, discovering how to play the Napoletan Tammorra – there are still plenty of things to do and to learn. It can’t ever get boring!
2 – Having only limited time somewhere provides you with a unique energy to enjoy crazingly
3 days of Ieranto in a row – vabbuo. Mozzarella every day – tta post! Coming back, you realize what you missed so much. The people! The landscapes! The food! And in moments of calming down, you think that you would always wish to live there again. But…
3 – Enjoying the entire “second home” feeling actually gives you a deeper idea about daily struggles
And it becomes hard to simply enjoy the Mediterranean when you think about he humanitarian dramas taking place in the same sea. Awareness needs to be raised, not only in ecological matters.. Life can be difficult everywhere. But with the right people, everything seems easier and solutions could be found. And it is good to know that this right people exist :)
4 – So, not only new destinations help you to change your perspective on things, but also homecoming does
Coming back to a place where you lived for a while and where you kept some friends that make you feel like a family provides you with a feeling of home coming. This second home, with all its memories, inevitably shows you how time is passing and puts you in that meditative mood of reflecting on yourself and the past years, how you changed thanks to the EVS experience and how you grew since then as well. That’s an enriching experience.
5 – Catch the MARE spirit
To see how the MARE family is growing and how “new” MARElini/e live the experience is great. To talk about 2013 as an old Ieranto veteran is funny…”a l’epoca…quando avevo la tua etá…era tutto diverso…”…seeing how little Silvia is growing…
Additionally, getting to know people from all over is always enriching. Realizing that you still don’t know any Latvian even though there are volunteers from there every year is hard. If I ever come back, I’ll speak better Napoletano and Latvian – that’s a promise!
“vulesse diventare nu brigante oi nennane…” with the voices of Nuria and Francesco in my head and the memories of them performing a Tarantella concert while being in kayak, the Frecciarossa rushes to the North. On the way back, 4 hours of delay, fun train conversations and time to reflect. New memories were added to the existing ones. Friendships were strengthened and created. My backpack is full of coffee, sugo, limoncello, books and peacefulness. I’ve left the place, once again. But thankfulness remains.
