Charlene in Setubal, Portugal

It all started when I got the opportunity to go on Erasmus. In the beginning I was very enthousiastic about going to another country, learn how to live there and going to school.  After a while I started doubting about it. I don't know why but I suddenly felt fear of not being able to manage it on my own for so long. I also couldn't image myself, leaving everyone and everything behind. I gave up and let it go.  At the end of last year, I received a phone call from my teacher, who said that if I would change my mind of going on Erasmus, it still was possible to sign in. Than I started to think about it again and now we are here. :)  At the first day of school I was very nervous. I didn't know what to expect and how the other Erasmus people would be like, same for the teachers. I knew that it was going to be different than my school in Belgium but still, I was a little bit scared.  But once i arrived and saw the teachers and the others students, I felt really rel...

The urge to travel is getting higher and higher among the young twenties: not only do they travel more and more, they also choose to complete their studies abroad. But from where this big interest to the unknown? What impact do these experiences have on our personal development and above all; are there any disadvantages to that exploration? In addition to the pleasure trips, more and more young people choose to follow an internship or training abroad at one or another time in their student career. A trend that is welcomed by our open and freely obsessed society, but what are the pros and cons of these studies or internships abroad? First of all, Erasmus students can get to know other cultures. A human has always been a curious creature and because of the fact we can travel around the world more easily, we can let that natural exploration run more and more free. For example, we can visit other cities like Sintra, Coimbra, Evora. We can explore the history of each city and learn mor...

Wereldburger   Door het raam kijkend, Zie ik enkel de vreemde Natgeregende straten Eenzaamheid overvalt mij Jong als ik was, levensvol Lokten de avontuurlijke verten Bekroop mij het reisgevoel Als stralende jets overgevlogen Nu zijn diezelfde verten Een gevangenis voor mij Zij zijn waar ik vertoef Maar niet mijn huis Mijn thuis ligt daar Waar ik onbekend ben In de verste verte Een vreemde toerist En toch… The poem I have chosen to bring to class is this one.  The teacher of Performing arts and creative processes gave us the task to find a poem about cosmopolitism, written in our native language. This one was mine. It is about someone who feels homesick, lonely and sad at the same time. He once wanted to travel so bad to see the world but now that he finally got there, he feels prisoned and lonely. He feels  uncomfortable in other countries. But he has been ...