„Ciao, come va?“
Right now I don’t know how often I already said this sentence in the last two months since I am here in Luserna San Giovanni, working in the „Asilo Valdese“, a home for elderly people. But with the rare Italian knowledge that I started with (I started to learn it for myself two months before I arrived), I enjoyed especially those little sentences that I could answer and the way to communicate from day to day a bit more.
But where to start, when I have to write here a little blog entry? My work, my workplace, my adventures (therefore aren’t many, because of our friend Corona) and my surrounding. It is so much to tell you all about.
So, as I already said I am living here in the little city of Luserna San Giovanni in the north-west of Italy, that is a part of the „Val Pellice“ (valley) and therefore completely surrounded by mountains. Thus, every time I look out of the window I see the mountains, right now as it’s getting colder also covered with some snow. So, it is obvious that we often spend time outside, also because the apartment that I share with another voluntary isn’t that big, and just enjoy the nature. Luckily, we got for each one of us a bicycle, so even with those we can go and explore the beautiful landscape around us.
Recently I also saw on a little bike trip kiwi and kaki trees, beneath lots of regular apple and pear trees and to be honest I haven’t seen those fruits before on a tree (Have you already seen some?) and I was kindly surprised.
Beneath that beautiful nature, Luserna San Giovanni isn’t that exciting for someone who comes from a big city (Leipzig), but you can find here everything you need and also there are some restaurants and bars.
And, a big plus for the city, we have here a chocolate factory named „Caffarell“, which produces really good chocolate and where you can buy tons of chocolate and get almost lost into the shop.
The next big city for us is Torino, about 1.5 hours away, but good reachable with the train and the bus. There you can find everything what your heart wants and it is a gorgeous city with a lots of old buildings, churches and museums. So, we went there two times already, not only for the city, but also to visit other voluntaries. Those who live there let us stay at their place, which is by the way a recommendation to all of you reading this entry: visit the other voluntaries and explore their surroundings and cities/villages and you can sleep there for no money, which is a plus.
Now to the topic of work. I used to work in the physiotherapy with the elderly people, which starts to pick them up in their wheel chairs and accompany them from their rooms to the „palestra“, which is like the „gym“ for the old people. There they can do different exercises, like walking up a little stairway or bicycle (of course while sitting), but for the most of them it is just a blessing to get up from their wheelchair (over 50% of the elderlies are sitting in a wheelchair) and walk with the help of a rollator and us some steps.
Sometimes, I also participate in the afternoon in a group for the elderlies, where we are doing some games with balls or rackets with them to keep them moving.
Despite this, I have to help daily with the “pranzo”, so getting the old people ready for lunch with putting on a bib, then giving them plates with food and of course, which isn’t the greatest joy, but what is really necessary, to clean the tables after eating. Sadly, I don’t have any pictures of the work with the elderlies, because right now during those weird times I wasn’t able to take some. Luckily my placement is so modern or at least they try their best to be, they have their own Facebook page and I was allowed to take some pictures from there.
here in the garden of the “Asilo Valdese”
All in all, I completely enjoy to work in my placement and with the elderlies, all of them are so kind and heartwarming that it is really a pleasure to work with them. Even though it can be difficult sometimes, when they are grumpy or you have to motivate them to do a “workout”. It’s also a blessing for them to have some young volunteers around them, because we are able to just take time to talk or to give them a hand, which the normal workers aren’t able to do often, because they are mostly in a hurry to get things done or to make the old people clean or sleep-ready.
But I will not complain, the personnel here is so kind (at least the most ;)) and they really try to interact and communicate with us. Even if I am not able to answer in excellent or even just complete sentences. I already even learned some words from the accent here (Piemontese) and every time I use those words, I make everyone so happy, especially the old people, even if it is just one word. What I noticed here is that it doesn’t matter if you can speak a language fluently or if you just speak some words (I didn’t learn Italian at school and arrived with a rare knowledge), however when you are open and friendly to everybody they definitely return the happiness. Often you don’t know who they are and what their background is, but a smile is something that connects us through all of this. Especially the elderlies are the most joyful people; when you smile at them and when you laugh with them, even if you didn’t understand the reason why you are laughing.
Va bene, that is it already, I am done with my little blog entry. Spero che ti è piaciuto e forse ti ha incuriosito.
Allora (by the way, a word you can use almost every time): CIAO!
interreligious&multicultural world 