Ten months ago, I packed my life into a suitcase and boarded a plane to Vietnam. I was excited, nervous, and honestly not completely sure what I was getting myself into. I had already lived abroad before, so moving to another country was not something completely new for me. However, this experience felt different. This time, I was not going abroad for university, an exchange programme, or a fixed academic structure. I was moving to a country on the other side of the world to volunteer, work, and create a new routine from scratch.
Looking back now, I can say with complete certainty that joining the European Solidarity Corps was one of the best decisions I have ever made.
My journey towards Vietnam actually started years before I arrived. While studying abroad in Germany, I first discovered the European Solidarity Corps. At that time, it sounded like an amazing opportunity, but also something for the future. Later, during my exchange experience in Mexico, I became much more aware of global challenges, especially environmental issues. Living in Mexico City and experiencing air pollution in my daily life made sustainability feel much more real than just something I had studied at university.
After finishing my degree, I started working in banking. It was a good opportunity and a stable path, but I quickly realised that I was looking for something different. I wanted to challenge myself, understand other cultures, and spend time doing something that felt meaningful. When I saw the opportunity to volunteer in Vietnam with CSDS, I knew it was the kind of experience I had been looking for.
Arriving in Hanoi was a moment I will never forget. Everything felt completely different from anything I had experienced before. I arrived alone, and although the other volunteers from ICJA arrived around the same time, those first moments of stepping into a completely new environment were unforgettable.
The first days were full of new experiences: a new country, a new language, new food, new routines, and a completely different way of life. One of the biggest culture shocks was definitely the weather. I arrived at the beginning of the monsoon season, and the amount of rain was something I had never experienced before. Everything felt intense: the heat, the humidity, the traffic, and the constant movement of Hanoi.
At the beginning, every time I left the house, I had that feeling of “wow, I am really doing this”. It was exciting but also overwhelming. Slowly, however, Hanoi started to become familiar. One of the first moments when I thought I could really love this place was when I started meeting people outside of the volunteering programme and discovering the city through them. Seeing Hanoi through the eyes of people who already knew and loved it made me feel connected to the city in a completely different way.
My everyday life in Vietnam quickly found its own rhythm. Usually, I would have classes in the morning, then go to the gym, have lunch, rest for a while, and continue with more classes
in the afternoon. Some evenings I had additional classes, while other days I would simply relax, explore Hanoi, or spend time in one of the many cafés around the city.
And speaking of cafés, one of the things I will miss the most about Vietnam is definitely the coffee culture. Vietnamese coffee is something special, and the fact that it is both amazing and affordable makes it even better. Coconut coffee became one of my favourites and is definitely something everyone should try when visiting Vietnam.
Although my daily routine was important, the people I shared this experience with were what truly made Vietnam unforgettable. I lived in a house with at least six other volunteers and shared a room with a volunteer from Poland. My housemates became one of the highlights of my entire experience. They were my family away from home, the people I shared everyday moments with, and the ones who made Vietnam feel like home. Especially my roommate, with whom I became inseparable, made this year much more special.
Living with people from different countries taught me so much. Every day was a cultural exchange, not only through travelling or organised activities, but through normal conversations, meals, and daily life. I learned about different languages, traditions, foods, and ways of seeing the world. It was also fascinating to realise how things that felt completely normal to me could be surprising to someone else, and vice versa.
Of course, my main role in Vietnam was volunteering, and teaching became one of the most meaningful parts of my experience. Before arriving, I imagined that environmental activities would be the main focus of the project, but I quickly discovered that most of my time would be dedicated to language teaching.
At first, I was surprised, but very soon I understood how special this part of the experience was.
Most of my classes were English classes, but I also had the opportunity to teach Spanish. As international volunteers, we were not only teaching a language. We were also sharing our cultures, our experiences, and different perspectives about the world.
The group I connected with the most were children. Before Vietnam, I was never really a “kids person”, but that completely changed during my time there. My kindergarten students became one of my favourite parts of the week. Every time I entered the classroom, they would run towards me shouting my name, excited to see me. Those small moments were incredibly emotional and made me want to come back every single day.
Another person who had a special place in my experience was my Spanish student. Watching his progress over ten months reminded me how important patience and consistency are. Sometimes the biggest changes happen slowly, and seeing someone become more confident because of something you helped them with is one of the most rewarding feelings.
Vietnam was not only about volunteering. It was also about discovering a country that constantly surprised me.
I had the opportunity to travel around northern Vietnam and visit places like Ha Giang, Sapa, and Mu Cang Chai. These places felt almost unreal. The landscapes, the mountains, and the connection with nature made me appreciate how diverse and beautiful Vietnam is.
One of the moments I will always remember was travelling to Ninh Binh. Sitting on a boat surrounded by limestone mountains, looking around and thinking about everything that had happened since I arrived, I suddenly had the feeling: “I made the right decision.” It was one of those moments when you realise that all the uncertainty at the beginning was worth it.
Of course, living abroad for ten months was not always easy. The biggest challenge came at the end of my experience, when I was preparing to leave Vietnam while also preparing for my next big step: moving to another country to start my master’s degree. After ten months away, I was leaving one home and preparing to create another one without even having the chance to fully return to my old routine first. It was exciting, but also stressful and emotional.
However, those moments also showed me how much I had grown.
When I arrived in Vietnam, I was already someone who was comfortable living abroad, but I was still full of doubts about the future. When I left, I felt much more confident and much more certain about what I wanted. Vietnam did not teach me how to be independent, but it strengthened that independence and gave me the confidence to continue building an international life.
One of the biggest things I discovered about myself was also how young I still am. I think many people in their early twenties feel like they are running out of time and that they need to have everything figured out. Living with people in their late twenties and early thirties made me realise how much time there really is and how many opportunities are still ahead.
The hardest part of leaving Vietnam is that even now, after arriving back in Spain, I still do not completely feel like that chapter is over. In some ways, it feels like a dream. Ten months of memories, friendships, and experiences suddenly became something I can only look back on. But I know that Vietnam will always be a part of my story, and I hope to return one day, even if it is just to travel and continue discovering places I did not have the chance to see.
If someone reading this is thinking about applying for an ESC project abroad, my advice is simple: do it.
It is scary. Even after living in several countries and preparing to move to my fifth country, I still feel nervous every time I start a new chapter. But that fear is always worth it. Home will always be there when you need to return, but opportunities like this do not come around every day.
If I could go back and talk to myself ten months ago, standing at the airport with a suitcase and a thousand doubts, I would simply say one thing:
Enjoy.
Enjoy the first days when everything feels new. Enjoy the friendships you do not expect to make. Enjoy the moments that feel ordinary because they will become the memories you miss the most.
Silvia Martinez