My Italy dream

Ciao! / Helou!

I’m Jonna from Finland and this is my ’travel with Jonna’ blog. The name means my lifetime journey. Most of this blog’s posts are in Finnish, but I feel I should write in English this time. Welcome to travel with me 😊

It was wonderful experience be many weeks in Italy 🤩 my almost 20 years dream came true: I study italian in high school and then we had a study trip to Rome and untill now this was the second time in Italy. This time I wanted to experience the real Italy, something other than a hotel holiday and tourist destinations. I wanted to experience everything because I had experienced almost nothing. And be there more than one week, at least one month. This my dream came true with helpstay.com I found  the volunteering place from there and I was five weeks in South Italy. I experienced real Italy in the little village Fornelli, near Agropoli. I was four weeks there in the October and then one week in Agropoli in the beginning of the November. I wanted to adventure in the city also. These two photos from Agropoli.

I volunteering 15 hours per week. I was able to use my good organizational skills and I demostrate that I can work independently. My tasks included for example do labels and fix grievancies for guests. I was always allowed to take a day off when I wanted. I have much time to adventure other villages and beatiful landscapes. I had lunch with me on longer walks, so eating was also an experience in beautiful landscapes. I found historic old buildings as the next photo from Orthodonico. There were church in every villages and the church bells ring many, many times a day. Once while walking a man sold for me really good local mozzarella cheese. That was most best mozzarella what I have every tasted 💕 The salesman just stopped his car to the house and sold his products. 

I never met my host in person, so the work was really independent. He provided very clear remote work instructions, including pictures and videos for completing tasks. Even though I had some technical problems, I also received very good feedback. I learned that making videos makes communicating with the host easier 😅👍 I met very friendly italians (including my host), for example I got past the queue at the shop, because I had the least shopping. I speak little italian and I benefit from it because italians speak only little english, but I needed vocabulary in food market every time that I really know what else I can buy. It was hard to remember that shops are close in the afternoon.

My volunteering benefits not included food and that was good for me because I need gluten free food. So I cook myself something Finnish and Italian mixed food 😅 I visited local cafes several times: I learnt to drink espresso and tasted very good ice cream. But only once a real restaurant in Agropoli: local meat, cheese and pistachio pizza. That was very delicious experience 😋 I get a tip so I found very good local delicacies in near Fornelli. The best peeled almonds I have ever tasted. Very good white chocolate covered figs and milk chocolate covered nuts 😍 I will save the pistachio chocolate for christmas. These all are made by M.Greco Fornelli Cilento www.m-greco.com 

Of course there were much more alternatives and people in Agropoli, but it wasn’t tourist time so I was almost alone in places of interest. And these experiences were nice and peaceful. Some food markets were open whole day otherwise on country side. I thought I can swim many times in this city because there was large beach line to the sea in the map, but no, there couldn’t swim every place. It wasn’t possible because there was the harbour or high cliff. I like swimming very much so three times in whole trip were the star moments ⭐️ I saw many, many Fiat Panda cars, of course because it is italian trademark, but it is also little and good for winding and mountainous roads. This was significant matter for me because I had light green Fiat Panda some years ago 😊

My trip was a success and I experienced many new wonderful things. To top it all off, I enjoyed very beautiful and wonderful panoramic sunsets, as well as sea and mountain views, right from the terrace in Fornelli (three last photos). I want to go to Italy again to eat ice cream and enjoy beatiful landscapes and sunsets. I am very grateful for this unique experience. I experienced a piece of real Italy 💕

More photos you can find in my instagram profile: nuorisoohjaaja_jonnakoo 😍