Marit in Málaga at the Red Cross

Friday 10 September, here we are, finally on the plane to Málaga in Spain. On to an internship to remember, a new challenge, new environment, new people, new culture.

On adventure

I went on this adventure with a classmate / friend, we are doing the social care course and are going to do an internship at Cruz Roja (The Red Cross). Cruz Roja has two reception centers in Málaga for refugees who have come here from different countries for safety and better work. Most refugees come from; the Sahara region of Africa, Morocco and Algeria and therefore do not speak Spanish and often do not speak English. Our working days are from Monday to Friday from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM, so there is still plenty of time to explore the area and to chill on the beach.

Clearing my mind

The first week I had to get used to the way of communicating, you have to do a lot with hands and feet and occasionally I use Google translate. In the morning I help with breakfast, then I can have breakfast myself. This also takes some getting used to, breakfast at 11 am, lunch at 2:30 pm and dinner at 9 pm. After my own breakfast I will do an activity with refugees, eg playing football with the boys or doing crafts with the children. Everyone appreciates it so much that you want to do something fun with them, because they are on their phones every day in the building. So it’s good to do something once in a while, so they keep moving and they can clear their heads for a while.

Positive

I’m already in the 3rd week of internship and I already know more words, so communicating is easier, I’m also getting to know the refugees better and I remember the names. Some guys have already told where they come from and how they made the journey. I can tell you scary stories. Joost and Jackie also visited us to see how we are doing on the internship, but also to see if the company is satisfied with us. Fortunately, this is positive from both parties. The weeks are flying by and I certainly don’t want to go home yet! On to more successful weeks and sunny Spanish days.

I’ve only been here three weeks, but I’m already an experience richer and I can definitely recommend this to everyone.

Hasta la vista amigos
Saludos Marit