1. Choose a country or a region of a country that you like or in which you have an special interest. If you wish to learn French e.g. you can go to Paris, to Lyon or even to the French Guyane.
2. Be sure that you like or can handle children. Sometimes it is hard to spend the whole day with them, specially because they want to be with their parents instead of being with you. Thus, it is always recommended to show affection for children.
3. If it is possible bring some money with you. Normally Au pairs receive a weekly wage, and it is not very high. So whenever you can, it is better to bring extra money so you won't run out of it.
4. Be open-minded. You don't really know what you are going to find when you arrive. Normally an Au Pair stay is a very good experience, but it is not perfect (So it's life). It can be that your room is not very big, or you don't have all weekends free, or you help the family also with the family business, or you don't get always your wage punctually...
5. Better alone. You will get a lot out of your stay alone or together with someone. But it is true that when you are alone you are forced to build a new worl there: new friends, new activities, etc. On your back you will noticed how positive was it for you. Anyway it is perfectly understandable (specially if it is your first time abroad) that you go with a friend or to a place where you know someone.
Ich wolle etwas anders machen und ich hatte kaum Zeit, denn es war schon Ende Juni. Ich sollte überlegen, was ich tun könnte. Meine Freunden hatten schon ihren Urlaub gebucht und gekauft und ich habe mich ganz allein gefunden. Am Ende, nach intensive Überlegung hatte ich mich für eine Literaturkurs in Wien entschiende. Ich war schon vor einige Zeit in Deutschland, und ich hatte immer Österreich besichtigen wollen. Warum ein Literaturkurs? Meine Freunden ausflippten, sie verstanden mich überhaupt mich. Ich finde normaler Sprachkurse ziemlich langweilig und schwer zu folgen, besonders in Sommer. Anschienend war es für andere Leute schwer zu verstehen. Es war aber mir völlig egal.
Ich hatte die Unterkunft beim Studentenwohnheim. Da ich ziemlich spät der Kurs gebucht, hatten sie wenige schöne Unterkunft übrig und deswegen war das Platz nicht so schön oder modern...Ich hatte ein grosses Zimmer, mit Dusche und Schreibtisch, und ein extra Bett aber die Küche und das Klo war leider gemeinsam mit den anderen Studenten der Etage.
Staatsangehörigkeiten in meiner Etage: Japaner, Türken, Spanier, Amerikaner, Italiener, Griecher. In der Klasse: Französer, Engländer, Finner, Mexikaner, Israeli, Iraner, Spanier, Japaner und Französer. Schöne Atmosphäre.
Studying abroad is an option for those people interested in learning a language and to get to know a culture. There are several possibilities. In the framework of the European Union, university students are able to apply for an Erasmus programme. Sometimes third countries which don’t belong to the EU are also able to participate in the program.
It consists in spending a university year abroad. It may not be very expensive as every UE-Country offers scholarships for this program, but the scholarship rarely covers all the expenses of the students. Students, normally live in university dormitories together with the rest of the students. There is an international exchange department in every university, responsible for the follow up of each application, so it is quite easy for students to join it.
There are also a few negative points of this initiative:
1. Not all the subjects may be recognized back in the home university (though the Bologne regulations are trying to change this point). So, some subjects may be repeated once the student is back.
2. Foreign students tend to meet other foreign students too. So many times the relationship is not established with the local people but with other international students. This fact is partly positive, since young people learn a lot about other cultures, but it is also partly negative as they are not fully immersed in the country culture and language.
In the following link you will find further information about Erasmus:
Workcamps are modest projects, as they have to be carried out in a short period of time. These projects may comprise social, environmental, cultural and further fields. There is a wide range of projects to choose. Many are related to environment preservation, other are aimed to build understructures for a concrete community, some consist of giving concrete services to underprivileged people, etc.
These projects are financed partly by states, NGO’s, intercultural associations and/or other international organizations, with the aim of covering a need in a concrete place, gather people from other countries interested for any reason in the country or the project and promote intercultural awareness.
Examples: • Build a playground for children in Germany • Protect turtles eggs in Mexico • Restore some parts of a Castle in France
How to join a Workcamp?
• It depends on the country but generally the young information points of every town may have information about the different workcamp
organizations around you. The volunteer may contact first these organizations and look for the project he/she would like to carry out. After that, the volunteer has just to look for the trip to the chosen country.
Workcamp conditions
• Taking part into a Workcamp may last between 15 and 25 days.
• Workcamp volunteers are the members of a workcamp. Normally they may be young people between 18-30 years old and coming from all around the world.
• Every workcamp has workcamp leaders. They are organizers of the camp tasks and the free time, and they are also involved in the tasks of the project. They have further experience in workcamps.
• Volunteers may work around 6 hours, not including weekends and they receive in return full accommodation and board. The volunteer just has to pay the trip costs from homeland to the workcampsite and his/her own expenses during the camp. The weekend is spent on leisure activities, normally visiting and sightseeing the workcamp area.
• Accommodation and board. Accommodation is normally in a group and located in a common place like schools, tents, associations, etc. and board usually is prepared by the members of the camp so they can learn international customs and traditions.
Why a Workcamp?
• It is a mean to get to know foreign people abroad or in your own country. It is possible to meet people from all around the world.
• It is quite affordable in comparison with other options. Volunteers “work” voluntarily in return for accommodation and board.
On the following link you will find further addresses related to Workcamps within the framework of the European Union.
Es el penúltimo día del campo...Esto ya se acaba...Las casas están hechas, falta pintarlas...El proyecto está casi acabado...¡Después de tanto trabajo! Si no nos hubiera llovido los 3 primeros días, lo hubiéramos acabado, ¡qué rabia! Con lo chulo que ha quedado...Falta poner el césped y colocar las casitas.
El proyecto consistía en hacer un jardín con unas casas de madera para que jugaran los niños en un parque. Primero tuvimos que limpiar el suelo que estaba lleno de piedras semi enterradas, ahí hubo bastantes bajas...A mí me salieron unos cuantos callos...el único que sobrevivió dignamente esa fase fue el coreano, por lo visto tienen un servicio militar obligatorio de dos años y les hacen cavar, entre otras cosas... Una vez acabamos de limpiar el suelo de piedras, preparamos el suelo para plantar el césped y el recinto de cada casita. Luego montamos las casitas con láminas de madera y ahora faltaba pintarlas y plantarlas en el recinto, pero no creo que nos dé tiempo a verlo todo acabado...creo que sólo las veremos pintadas...Lo cierto es que lo hemos pasado bien, bueno los primeros días casi nos morimos de frío, y nada de alojarse en las tiendas de campaña, todos dentro de la casa en dormitorios comunes. Al tercer día ya subieron las temperaturas y ya dormimos fuera...Yo con la alergia pensaba que me iba a dar algo, pero no, ni me enteré...Lo que sí es cierto es que a pesar de las colchonetas, la espalda se resentía bastante, y encima teníamos la emoción de los topos por la noche, que causaban sensación, bueno allí cada noche era una cosa...Un día los topos, otro día una araña, otro día ronquidos...
Hicimos migas con la gente de la casa...Un chico que estaba haciendo servicios sociales y un par de hippies que ayudaban en las tareas de limpieza y mantenimiento, se unían a nuestras fiestas y la verdad es que lo pasábamos bien...Cada noche se hacía una comida de cada país, y cenábamos bastante bien...Que si tortilla y gazpacho, que si ensaladilla rusa, que si pasta a la bolognesa, que si nachos...Suerte, porque la comida del mediodía era un asquito...
Como habían subido tanto las temperaturas, lo que hacíamos era trabajar 4 horas por la mañana y la tarde libre, así habíamos ido a un lago-piscina que tienen allí, y lo habíamos pasado bien...Al cabo del tiempo ya habíamos visto como se iban formando parejitas, que si la bielorrusa y el checo, que si la ucraniana y el italiano, y ¡la última había sido la italiana y el coreano! Y eso que ambos tenían pareja...Eran la comidilla, ya se sabe en estos casos...
Habíamos visitado dos ciudades y habíamos hecho una excursión a la montaña también, una salida nocturna al lago…La gente estaba contenta. La única pena es que no íbamos a ver acabadas las casas...Y eso que al principio el campo no pintaba bien… por un lado, lo de dormir en las tiendas de campaña cuando estaba diluviando, además, se hicieron dos grupos por proximidad, los del este y los del oeste, pero ahí reaccionamos, nos sentamos, lo hablamos y todo se arregló y todo fue bastante bien, la verdad. Tuvimos problemas cuando el italiano y la ucraniana se perdieron y cuando una de las bielorrusas se hizo un corte en la cara, pero también lo pasamos muy bien con las fiestas nocturnas, jugando al duro, bailando la bomba, en fin que valorándolo de forma global, yo creo que había ido bastante bien.
Ahora quedaba pensar en la fiesta de esta noche y la vuelta a casa, ¡qué palo! dos días metida en 5 trenes, para llegar a casa…Con lo bien que lo hemos pasado…
Vor drei Tage sind wir im Seminar angekommen. Es liegt in einer Jugendherberge in Wahlbeberg, bei Köln. Ich bin eine europäische Freiwillige in Deutschland. Ich absolviere meinem Projekt in Leipzig. Ich arbeite bei einem Jugendzentrum und dort helfe ich in der verschiedenen Veranstaltungen, die organisiert werden. Sie möchten eine Entsendeorganisation von europäischen Projekte werden, und damit soll ich auch verschiedene Veranstaltungen über Möglichkeiten für Jugendliche im Ausland organisieren. Ich bin schon in Leipzig seit ein Monat und ich finde es schwer...Es ist kalt, und deswegen habe ich wenig Lust die Stadt zu besichtigen, und ausserdem kenne ich niemandem ausser der Arbeit. Ich esse in der Kantine und ich gewöhne mich nicht an die deutsche Gastronomie, und deswegen habe ich viele Kilos abgenommen.
Aber ich bin jetzt im Urlaub...Das Seminar ist nicht wie Urlaub, denn man muss sich ganz früh aufstehen und viel mitmachen. Aber alles ist interessant. Ich habe schon andere Freiwillige kennengelernt und ich fühle mich wohl. Ich teile das Zimmer mit einer Norwegerin und einer Spanierin. Die beide wohnen in Chemnitz ganz in der Nähe von Leipzig...
Wir sind 20 Leute aus verschiedene Länder zusammen. Alle absolvieren ein europäisches Projekt in Deutschland, und alle sollen etwas bekämpfen, deswegen fühlen wir uns wie eine große Familie dort. Das Seminar bedeutet für uns einen wichtigen Treffpunkt, da es uns die Möglichkeit bietet Beziehungen zu bauen.
Die Mehrheit hat irgendein Problem im Projekt. Aber so ist das Leben...
A. Eine Engländerin, bekommt kaum Geld vom Projekt. Ihr Tutor hat sie gesagt, dass im Projekt kein Geld für sie haben. Es ist wirklich peinlich, weil sie nicht genug Geld um Leben zu können hat. Sie mag viel ihr Projekt, aber wahrscheinlich wird sie vom Projekt austauschen.
N. die Norwegerin, hat eine Tutorin, die nicht über sie gesorgt hat. Sie sollte bei Ihr wohnen, und sie bietet kein eigenes Zimmer, da sie hat im Wohnzimmer geschlafen und ausserdem, sollte sie es mit einem anderen Freiwillige teilen zu haben. Endlich hat sie geschaffen in eine WG umzuziehen.
K. eine Französin, findet ihr Projekt super, sie soll verschiedene Veranstaltungen für Kindern organisieren, aber sie wohnt bei einer Familie, und sie hat wenige Intimität, und sie darf nicht ihr Freund oder jemanden bei ihr einzuladen.
Und ich momentan habe auch das gleiche Problem, ich wohne bei einem Kollege und ich fühle mich fremd also, nicht zu Hause. Sie kommen meinem Zimmer herein und das gefällt mir gar nicht. Und ausserdem, ist das Projekt nicht sehr organisiert. Anscheinend meine Tutorin, arbeitet nicht mehr dort.
Und so weiter in fast alle Fälle. Eine Ansprechpartnerin der nationalen Agentur in Deutschland wird uns bald besuchen um uns kennen zu lernen und auch um Kenntnis zu erhalten über die Schwierigkeiten, die wir in den Projekten haben.
In der Zwischenzeit kennen wir uns. Wir haben zwei Ansprechpartners dort im Seminar. Die beide sind Pädagoge und sie helfen uns in der Gruppe und in Deutschland zu integrieren. Wir machen viele verschiedene Aktivitäten zusammen: wie spielen,Theater spielen, uns verkleiden, Filme ansehen, Ausflüge machen...usw. Manchmal fühle ich mich ein bisschen wie ein kleines Kind, aber ich bin zufrieden dort zu sein.
Ich möchte nicht an das Ende des Seminars denken, der langsam herangeht. Ich werde wirklich traurig, aber gleichzeitig bin ich sicher, dass ich irgendwie diese Leute wieder sehen werde.
Normally it is necessary to contact a private au pair agency (as far as I know there is no public organization carrying out this task). The agency will provide you all you need to work abroad as an au pair: several destinations, looking for a host family at the country you decide, looking for a language course, helping with the bureaucracy, contacting you with their partners at the target country, following-up your stay abroad…etc.
Where to find an agency?
You can look for an agency on internet, or address yourself to a youth center, where you would probably find several agencies nearby.
How much does it cost?
It depends on the agency, but it is a cheap way to go abroad. You have to pay mainly for bureaucracy costs and flight or transport costs (which normally are searched and paid on your own). It is convenient to bring some money with you, just in case, as normally Au pairs receive between 50-100€ (70-134$) per week, depending on the country.
Duties of an Au-Pair:
It depends on the family. Usually families want their children to grow up in an intercultural environment and this is the main reason why they look for the help of an Au pair. Normally Au pairs take care of children and help with the housework, but you can also find Au pairs who helped with the family business, so it really depends on the family. It is important to be in touch with the host family and ask them about their expectations, in order to have a clear idea of what are you going to find. In case it doesn’t fit your expectations, you still can change from host family before leaving.
Further Information
You can find lots of agencies on internet. You will find some worldwide Au pair agencies listed below, but we are not able to suggest any, as we don’t really know them. We have listed Au-pair associations and the European Youth Website (where you will find further agencies) as well, in case you feel more confidence in such organizations when looking for an Au-pair agency.
I couldn't sleep very well, I was nervous, I didn't know, what I was going to find there.
It was my first time abroad and on my own -not really, because I was going with a classmate-, but even though I felt very nervous.
I was going to work as an Au pair during two months in Dublin. That was really exciting at the beginning, because I had to prepare everything on my own. An Au-Pair agency, a family and a flight... And from then on, and until the end of August, I would have to live with a family in another country. I would have to look after one child and help with the housework and I would get weekly 40 Irish pounds for that...I convinced myself that I would handle it.
I met M. at the airport (at least I wouldn't start my adventure all alone) and we said good bye to our families. This was also my first time on a plane. I remember that in those old days passengers got a free meal during the flight. After 2 hours we landed in Dublin airport, and as we had imagined it was raining!
We picked up our baggage, went to the exit and there we found M.'s host family holding a paper with her name on it. We greeted them, we said good bye and they left...
And I stayed there all alone wondering where my family was...
I looked all around, looking for someone starring at me or a paper with my name on it, but I didn't see anybody (!). After a while, I noticed a woman looking at me and we approached one to the other. She said she had forgotten the name of her au pair (me) but she guessed it was me (I had already sent her a photo from me!!!), and I was her Au pair, indeed.
So, we left the airport by car and on the way home she told me about the family. The family was made up essentially by two people: her and her son. I was shocked, as I didn't expect that, but I didn't dare to ask for further information. V. explained me that she had an olive store (I didn't know that either!) so she had to leave very early in the morning and come back at about 6 pm. And I should spend this time with O. She told me that in this moment O. was with his granny in Cork, and he would come back next week.
We arrived home. It was a little red terraced house. On the ground floor there was a little kitchen, a little living room, a bathroom and a little room (my room). Besides, there was a little rear courtyard and a shed. In the second floor, there were two rooms. I occupied the room of O. as, in the one below there was no bed still. I had to unpack my baggage, but I didn't have any closet to place my clothes. V. had to leave, she had to go to the store. She said she would come back in the afternoon.
So, finally at home, well, not really...The house was on the outskirts of Dublin, it was a low-class neighborhood, the streets were empty and there wasn't any store nearby. In the front side I could see an industrial area by the sea. Heavy industries, fume, chimneys and water...I started feeling homesick, and I cried asking myself why. I managed to calm down and I went for a walk, I had to call home, otherwise my parents would be mad. After one hour waking around I finally found a phone box and I called home. I didn't want to admit that my expectations weren't fulfilled, so I lied to my mum when she asked me about the house and the family. Suddenly I had to interrupt the conversation, as I realized I was crying.
I managed to calm down again and after I called M. She told me that she lived in a high-class quarter by the sea and that she had a huge room and furthermore, she would work together with another girl, so both would look after the two children of the family. That was great...I felt really bad...And I told her the truth when she asked me. She told me that maybe I should ask the agency for a change, but I didn't have any objective reason...It was only my perception and my prejudices. Maybe it was a lovely family, and maybe I was only afraid and I couldn't appreciate the reality the way it was, after all I had just arrived.
After talking with them I felt a little better. I went back home and I looked for some food (but the fridge was empty) so I waited for V., after a while I turned on the TV and I waited, and finally at 10pm I went to bed, I was too tired, and I felt sleep immediately.
