“Pura Vida” in Portugal
“PURA VIDA“
a Youth exchange project
in Ferreira do Zezere, Portugal
10 days, 1 house, 5 countrys, 33 people, no phones.
Here is what the Praxis participants have to say about this experience:
This was my second time participating at an Erasmus+ project . First of all, I would like to thank the sending organization PRAXIS Greece for this opportunity and special thanks to Georgia for helping us with the pre-departure process. Next, a huge thank you to the hosting organization Gerar Oportunidades and also the facilitators team (Diana and Afonso). The project was so well organized with interactive, group and individual activities, inviting everyone to go out of our comfort zone, interacting with the community and reflecting on ourselves.
The activities really made us dig in our conscious, finding out what “pura vida” means to us and try to achieve it. The no phones challenge was an excellent addition and I’m trying to keep a limit to its’ use in my daily life. Also, one of my favorite parts of this project was the amount of love you can get from strangers all over the world and built amazing friendships in just 10 days.
I highly recommend such Erasmus projects to young students because they can help you transform into an open minded individual and broaden your horizons.
Gethsimani Kypertidou
What is “Pura Vida” That was the purpose of the exchange in Ferreira do Zezere, or rather defining what it is and how each of us can achieve it. But as soon as you start giving parameters to that broad definition you realize that it’s actually pretty hard. Thirty people came together from all corners of Europe, from different backgrounds, different cultures, ages etc. to find exactly that and boy what we found was amazing!
Each activity, carefully planned by our facilitators led to that. At first you don”t really see it but as you move further down the path it all becomes clearer. Generic discussions, arguments, games that seemed more for kids rather than adults, to sudden camping surprises, self-presentation and a feeling of being in therapy for the entire project all combined made for the perfect way to figure it out. An emotional and beautiful journey to self-discovery, cause in the end “Pura Vida” is something personal and I believe that this exchange hit a bullseye when it came to helping us find it out! Beautiful people just conversing with one another, surrounded by the beautiful nature of rural Portugal. You easily realize that what we really need as beings to survive is a roof over our heads, warm food in our belly and some good company, and that’s exactly what we got and I’m so thankful for it.
In conclusion, this exchange left a huge impact on me, I don’t feel the same person that left Greece for Portugal. The experiences there left a mark on me that’s gonna follow me for life and I’m so happy and thankful for it.
P.S. a massive thank you to everyone there, I’m gonna carry parts of them forever.
Argyris Vogiaris
What can i say about the last 8 days of my life… i was lucky enough to spend them at a program called Pura Vida, with people from 4 other countries, in Ferreira do Zezere in Portugal.
It was a life changing experience. I got to connect with nature in a way i never had, i learned how to compost and recycle correctly how vegetarianism helps the environment and generally how to live a more sustainable life.
I also got to make contact with people of other cultures, other habits and beliefs and even though at first seeing through their mindset was a bit difficult at the end the only thing that stayed was love for one another and the understanding that even though at first we seem different we are all the same inside.
I got to connect more with myself and find ways to improve my own wellbeing both mentally and also physically by understanding how to express my personality, my opinions and my emotions more easily but also improving my diet, and adopting generally healthy habits.But that program was not only learning. It was an opportunity to make friendships that will last, the opportunity to feel love and give love in many different ways. It was a program that contained fun, sad, confusing and generally many intense moments that proved that life is indeed a roller coaster.
We got to sleep outside in tents, we spent a day in the lake swimming, dancing and reflecting in everything we had learned so far, we got to spend time with the community of Ferreira do Zezere and Tomar and see a life i had never seen before, we found many obstacles and overcomed them all together as one and i have to say that these memories will follow me for my hole life.
The meaning of “Pura Vida” is something very personal and is different for every individual person but I’m glad to say that this program helped me find how to include in my life the concept of Pura Vida.
This program of course wouldn’t be the same without our organisators and our leaders. A big thanks to Diana and Afonso for coordinating this hole experience and making it possible.
Also, to Gerar oportunidades the Portuguese organisation that organised these whole project and to Praxis our sending organisation who where there for us from the time we were accepted to the program till the end and helped us overcome every obstacle we found on our way.
Dafni Kouroglou
Συμμετείχα στο πρόγραμμα pura vida στην Πορτογαλία. Οι δραστηριότητες ήταν εξαιρετικές, μέσα από αυτές μάθαμε τι σημαίνει pura vida και πώς μπορούμε να την αποκτήσουμε. Οι διοργανωτές ήταν εξαιρετικοί ήταν εκεί για εμάς και μας βοηθούσαν οπότε τους το ζητούσαμε. Το πρόγραμμα όπως είπα ήταν πολύ καλό παρόλα αυτά αυτό
που έκανε την εμπειρία μου μοναδική ήταν ο κόσμος που αλληλεπίδραση. Μέσα από συζητήσεις έμαθα διαφορετικούς τρόπους σκέψεις καθώς γνώρισα καλύτερα τις κουλτούρες των άλλων χωρών.
Christos Tsarchopoulos
I consider the «Pura Vida» project to be one of the best experiences of my life. The activities were amazing and creative, and it was obvious that the organisation (Afonso & Diana) put so much effort into creating an original experience that will be unforgettable to us.
The coffee-breaks and the resting time was enough to recharge our batteries and to see the city! The food was delicious and the girls who were in charge for it were lovely! It was a project full of surprises (we weren’t given the schedule so we didn’t know what to expect) with my personal favourite-trauma one: Being locked out and sleeping in tents! We dove into our feelings, we were able to distinguish what is a fictitious and what is a real need, we delved into social norms and how they frame us, we traveled to the past recalling childhood memories, we talked openly about our problems, we played, we laughed, we danced, we improvised (..a lot).
We raised awareness about disability through an incredible activity, in which together with people with disabilities and mental disorders we cleaned the city by picking up litter. Through various activities in which we were blindfolded, we understood that real communication does not need eye contact but emotional one and we screamed our insecurities out. And of course the best addition, detoxification from technology.A week without cell phones allowed us to virtually get to know each other without distractions.
Through all of this I got to know myself better and acquired various useful tools for both my everyday life and my studies.
I have participated in other projects as well, but I think that I have never created such strong and beautiful bonds with the participants from all the countries. My personal moment of happiness: I had my birthday and the organisation surprised me with a cake! Core memory for sure.
And thank you for that. My advice for all of you: Participate in E+ projects. Broaden your horizons. The memories and tools you will acquire will accompany you forever.
Εleni Palatsioni
