Chiara Bianchi - VET student at Zefiro's

I did an international internship, lasting for one month, at Musikcafé After Eight, a café that also hosted activities and labs for young people. For me and my other graphic classmates, there was a multimedia lab where I learned how to use a 3D printer, laser printer, fabric printer, open-source software and DYI printing techniques. With the different software I was able to create boxes and animal cut-outs and print them with the 3D printer and the laser printer, meanwhile, with the fabric printed I created a pattern for a bag. They also taught us the “linocut” where we drew something we liked and then we used paint to print it on paper, like a stamp. The After Eight staff took us on field trips to explore Jakobstad and once we also helped them with voluntary work giving out food to people in need. We saw both the snow and the Nordic lights.

Through Zefiro we did English lessons to prepare us, since we would have to speak English there. We also did lessons on Finnish culture, and they gave us all the useful information about travelling and living abroad. Before going to Finland, you would need to know at least some English, and then what people do there, what kind of places are there to visit, what the weather is like and what is the culture like.

During my internship, I learned to use all the different printers, 3D, laser, fabric and the old typography printer. I learned various new open-source software and how to create patterns and logos to print with these different tools. On a personal level I had a lot of fun and with time I was satisfied with the new things I learned, in Italy not many people can teach you these kinds of things, so I am very happy to have learned them, I know they can come in handy in the future.

To be honest, I expected a normal trip, considering what the After Eight staff told us during an online meeting before our departure, but when the trip ended, I could have not asked for a better experience, it exceeded all my expectations: I met a lot of kind, welcoming and fun people, I felt comfortable with my travelling mates and my tutors, I had fun and I gave myself the opportunity to find out new things.

I always dreamed of traveling so I can be biased, but to students who want to participate in an international exchange, I would say to leave and take the opportunity. I think that travelling not only gives a cultural experience but also the opportunity to discover yourself and grow as a person, it takes away your limits and it allows you to discover new things. It also makes you leave your comfort zone and get a deeper knowledge of life and the world.