Alert: new volunteer at the library

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 Bonjour !

Hi, I am Adèle, the new volunteer working in the library. I am from France, from a small village in Brittany next to Fougères. Fougères is a very nice medieval city with one of the largest medieval fortress in Europe. I have lived there for 18 years before moving for my studies, first in Caen in Normandy and then in Lyon, the third biggest city in France. I have studied political sciences for three years there and started a master in international affairs. I am currently taking a gap year before going back to finish my studies, when I will specialise myself in development, project management and international cooperation. Apart from my studies, I am also a musician: I have played clarinet for many years, taking part to different orchestras but also choirs, as I started singing when I was 9. For me, nothing beats the feeling I get when I start playing my instrument after a long time. I just love feeling the air going through the clarinet while playing and the instrument vibrating under my fingers when I play lower notes. The same goes to singing and the feeling of using muscles I haven't used in a while when I didn't sing for some time. 

I also like to learn more about Europe and other European countries. Which is why taking part to an ESC project sounded so nice to me. I chose to volunteer in the library because I wanted to do something different from my studies (as it can be quite time consuming and stressing). When I saw the project description for the library, I immediately applied: I have always loved reading, and I have always been interested in literature and history, even though I didn't have much time to dedicate to it. Working here seemed a good opportunity to get back to those interests of mine. Being in Poland wasn't my first choice as I was for looking for a project that interested me rather than a location. However, I really wanted to discover a country in Central or Eastern Europe. Poland seemed a good choice: we do not hear that much about Poland in France, then I thought that the best way to discover the country was to go there myself to meet Poles and experience the culture myself. 

I have been in Poland for over three weeks now and I already like the country. I particularly like the food: on my first week, I had the opportunity to discover champignons and gouda pierogi which were absolutely delicious. I also got to taste different Polish soups during my on-arrival training: as a soup lover, I couldn't be happier. 

I can't wait to discover more of Poland during my year here, to visit your most famous places, taste your most famous food but also to meet some of you. I already met a few Poles, especially thanks to the Chit Chat session at Pestka, all very nice and welcoming. I hope I can get to meet more of you soon !

Don't hesitate to come say hi, at the library or during the chit chat session at Pestka (you can check the dates of the meeting on the instagram account @chitchatpomie) :)


Adèle





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