I’ve been feeling a bit anxious this week. I think this is a mixture of all the things I need to sort before leaving my home for three months, and the fact that I’m ABOUT TO MOVE TO LISBON. Living abroad is something I’ve always wanted to do, but that doesn’t make it any less frightening.
This week has been mad. On Monday, I got final confirmation of my place on the Erasmus+ programme. I had a Skype interview with the company I’ll be interning with, Monday. They’re a digital marketing agency in Lisbon who also focus on business consultancy. It sounds perfect for what I want to get out of this, and I’m looking forward to meeting them in person and getting started. I also had a Skype call with Euroyouth who sort the programme’s admin at the Lisbon end. They were really nice and put me a bit more at ease!
So with exactly two weeks to go, suddenly everything seemed real. A monstrous task of trying to sort everything out presented itself to me. But I knew that this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance. Luckily I’ve managed to tick most things off my list by now, but there are things I still need to do or keep remembering to add to the list! (Like calling my bank, so they don’t think see my card being used in Lisbon and think it’s been stolen…)
I’m also a bit nervous about the language. Everyone from my current workplace got told about my three-month sabbatical this week, and one of the girls in our office is from Lisbon. I was trying to explain to her that the office of my workplace was in “Baixa Chiado”, the main tourist bit in the centre. I remembered the name from when I visited back in 2017 but was pronouncing it obviously far too Anglicised. The poor girl had no idea what I was saying, despite trying several different ways. I typed it out on my PC and she said “ohh Baixa Chaido” in her perfect lovely Portuguese accent, sounding a million miles away from what I’d been saying.
To prepare, I downloaded the app Duolingo* which is a free language-learning tool. It’s really good; I can tell I’m picking bits up (reading, not pronunciation, obviously). But the way it tries to teach you phrases and grammar is a bit odd, and one ‘lesson’ it kept getting me to repeat “I am a man and she is a woman” which is a sentence I don’t think I’ll need while out there. My favourite phrase it’s asked me to translate to English though was “you are not a shark”. Really can’t see me needing that. Unless I strike up a conversation with a fish at the aquarium?
Sometimes I feel apprehensive about going somewhere totally alone. I’m no stranger to solo travelling – I’ve been on trips to France, Latvia and Germany on my own and loved each experience. There is something freeing about being alone, especially in a new place to explore. But these trips each lasted the maximum of a week, so the prospect of going somewhere alone for three months is a bit daunting.
However I’m told there are three other people on the same programme as me. I’m not living with them, but we’ll be able to met up, and will be sharing a flat with other international students too. Back at home I am in a gospel choir. I’ve done some digging online and found an English speaking choir in Lisbon who rehearse on Monday nights. Once I’m settled I’m hoping I feel confident enough to pop along and meet some new people there. My choir at home is doing a wedding in June, including the song with my solo, so keeping my voice in good condition isn’t the worst idea!
I also did a bit of googling about other UK people who moved to Lisbon. The cold winter evenings came up more than once, so it seems like I need to pack jumpers and maybe buy a blanket once I get there. Most homes don’t have central heating, because they don’t need it for most of the year, but it can get cold.
Probably my biggest source of nerves is leaving behind the people that I’m closest to. I am trying not to think about spending three months apart from my boyfriend because it’ll just make me sad. I know that it will be ok but that won’t make it any less hard to not have him around. He’s been amazing about the whole thing and so understanding.
I’m writing this from my hotel room in London where I’m staying for a few days for the pre-placement qualification: Principles of Social Media for Business. It’s been a really good course and I’ve learnt a lot in just a few days, plus made some nice friends with others on the programme going to either Lisbon, Seville or Dublin next month. The training is in Greenwich so I chose to get up early and hike up to the observatory, which was totally worth it for this early-morning view.
While I could go on and on about my pre-adventure feelings I better stop here before I overwhelm myself. Ultimately living in Lisbon for three months is going to be fantastic, and as a photographer it’ll be a great project. I’ve promised myself to undertake a photography project every year – originally I had “give up supermarkets for Lent” lined up but that will have to wait until 2021! And I’m obviously looking forward to interning in digital marketing – I’m still new to the field, and there is a lot to learn.
See you in a week, Lisboa.
*While the DuoLingo app was useful for a week or so before I came, it turns out it’s Brazilian Portuguese which has different pronunciations. So download with caution!
Chamo-me Hannah 