Our days at DRH Lindersvold

After introducing you to the place where we will be living for these three months, I want to tell you a little about our days here and our responsibilities.

Our daily routine

Morning run in the dark

The day generally starts at 8 a.m. with breakfast, unless someone decides to get up earlier to do sport, read a book or do something else. I am trying to get up early some days to go for a run, even if it means going out in the dark with a torch!

Usually, the alarm clock is set for 7.30 a.m., except on Sundays, when breakfast is replaced by brunch at 11 a.m. Of course, everyone is free to organise themselves as they wish.

Life here is very active! Every morning we dedicate ourselves to the cleaning rota, i.e. 30 minutes of cleaning common areas (excluding rooms). In rotation, we take care of bathrooms, cafeteria, rooms, corridors and other shared spaces. Every week, someone also does a more thorough cleaning of the kitchen (‘deep cleaning’).

Dishwasher with Miss Corona

Then there is the kitchen rota, which involves preparing meals and washing the dishes after lunch and dinner. During the week, at lunchtime we help Belinda, our cook, while dinner is completely handled by us. At lunch we are more numerous, because we also eat together with the students from the other schools in the complex.

These shifts rotate weekly, ensuring a fair distribution of work.

Weekly activities

During the week, we engage in different activities: courses, team building and school management. This mix allows us to be together and get to know each other better.

There is always an hour dedicated to leisure or sport, which is a personal choice. In the evenings, we get together for common activities that can be cultural, sporting or other, but always as a group. After 9.30 p.m., everyone is free to organise themselves as they wish: some go to sleep, some work, some watch a film, some play board games, some draw or crochet... in short, total freedom!

Some days of the week are dedicated to activities outside school and the city, including weekend activities. For example, in the coming weeks one core group will go to Madrid and one to Milan to visit the Italian and Spanish Humana people-to-people centre.

Sunday is more relaxing, with more free time and free evenings. On this day there are no cleaning rota.

Areas of responsibility

In the second week, we divided the tasks between various areas of responsibility. Here are the main ones:

• Maintenance (repairs)

• Kitchen (kitchen rota management, shopping and general cooking)

• Housekeeping and Hosting (housekeeping and guest reception management)

• Communication and External Relations (social media management, internal and external communication)

• Save the Planet (waste sorting and ecological initiatives)

• Cultural Life (organisation of events and evenings)

• Transport (transport management and supplies)

• Sport (sports activities and equipment management)

• Administration (budget management and common expenses)

I have chosen the Communication area, together with Joana and Nick. Our job is to share photos and updates on social media, blogs and other channels. We collect photos and collaborate with those who manage Humana People to People's social media to share content. We also create posters and posters to invite people inside and outside the school to participate in events.

In addition, I try to stay in touch with the Sports, Kitchen and Save the Planet managers, given my interest in food security, sustainability and sport. I am also one of the team drivers, and I must say that driving here at night is always a special experience (you practically can't see anything due to the lack of lights along all the roads in this area).

Sports and outdoor activities

A cool bike ride in our free time

Every week we have some spaces where we all do sports together. Some of us usually go swimming, others do joint training in the sports room and others play basketball for example. I am in the group of those who often go to the pool. As you know, I love to swim and being able to continue every now and then makes me really free and happy.

The sports area is super-equipped, with materials for lots of sports. Maybe in the future I will go into more detail with a dedicated article. For now, I use the space for exercise and yoga, as well as using the outdoor area for cycling, running or walking.

A fortnight ago, we went for a walk in the woods. It was beautiful and made me feel at home, like in the mountains: cold, but magical! From time to time we also organise other sports activities outside, such as volleyball at a nearby centre, which is always open to anyone who wants to participate.

Expense Management and Transport

Each core group has a budget of possible expenses each month, which is managed by the administrative manager. The money is used for shared purchases and for repairs or accessories useful for the whole core group or team.

As far as travel is concerned, we have 2 cars with 7 seats each. Every kilometre travelled must be recorded on a logbook in each vehicle. Personal journeys obviously have to be paid for separately by each of us. At the end of the month, the transport manager collects the money from those who used the car and gives it to the school. In the register, all details are noted: driver, reason for the trip and kilometres travelled.

This is our life here! Super intense, full of activities and opportunities to learn and grow. I look forward to telling you more in the coming weeks!

Martina (in collaboration with Karola)