My adventure has started!

Hello everyone, I’m Alaeddine from Tunisia and I’m 26 years old. 5 years of study after the bachelor’s degree in the field of heritage naturally in Tunisia. After encountering many problems for my VISA (Yes it took time) I finally landed in Italy and it was for me the beginning of a new experience “be a volunteer of project MARE 2019”. When I arrived the 10^th of April 2019, it was a long and exhausting trip but I knew it was also totally worth it. I was so excited to make a new life, meet a new culture and join a new family but also anxious to step into the unknown. I met Domenico for the first time, he made the presentation with the others volunteers and I talk about myself to the group around my first Italian pizza. 

The day after I took the bus to go to school with my new friends volunteers, they showed me Sant’Anna Institute, the place where I’ll learned how to speak Italian. After the class, I felt comfortable with the language due to similarity with French, my second language.  

Friday after school, I met Tony from project MARE 2018 and he proposed us to go with him in a small hiking. I wasn’t expected this, he took us to the place where I will work during the summer: Baia di Ieranto. This place is amazing, wonderful this kind of beauty remind me what I want to do, preserve our seas. 

After this beautiful “passeggiata”, I participate for the first time to an Italian Cultural night … It was crazy, we played a lot of instruments (typical of this region of Italy), we danced and we had a lot of fun. We also make the dinner all together, it was new for me, with meals I’ve never taste before so I gave to them a part of my culture trough recipes of my country (couscous, tajine, etc..)

On Saturday, I did my initiation in kayaking. We ride around during 45 min more or less, it was the first time I try kayak, I was impressed with the landscape here. We go next to a waterfall it was amazing, I was more enthusiastic for what is next: working with kayak in Ieranto bay. In the afternoon, we worked at home about a presentation for the day after (Sunday morning). The goal was to show to a group of Americans students the reasons why we are doing this volunteering through theatre.

The 19th of April it was my birthday! my friends volunteers sing and give me a birthday, I was surprised, I wasn’t expected this for me and of course I was very happy. After school, we went to a kayak trip, we go inside a ancient roman fish farm, inside many caves and we stopped at a beach to take lunch. After the kayaking, we go to Naples with some volunteers, we walk around the city and I met new people. 

Recently I discovered a path with the french volunteer, Etienne and Tony from project MARE18. It was almost 1 hour of walk in nature to arrive in a wonderful place it called Bagni della Regina Giovanna. This ancient roman villa is for me the best meeting between nature and sea, some incredible colors, surrealist shades of blues and greens.

I can see my future job here

Here is our house, just 20 metres from the sea

This is the view I have from our balcony, admire this sunset

We did a picnic in Ieranto Bay

We finally arrived, I’m totally stunned! 

Bagni della Regina Giovanna, the encounter between the sea and nature

We had a lunch together with other 3 volunteers (Daniels, Lidija and Etienne) and also, with our mentor (Simona), Domenico and Umberto

Hikking through bagni della Regina Giavanna