This EOTO is actually one of our first activities, that we both forgot to post. Howeverm on September 20, Katja and I, joined by Felix and Thijs, went to the Helvetinjarvi National Park. THis is a famous national park close to Tampere, known for its cliffs, ravines, and beautiful sceneries. It was a really nice way to talk and get to know each other, while also enjoying the Finnish nature around us.
The drive to and from was an hour, where the first hour was just us talking and getting to know ech other. This was also the first time I had met Thijs and Felix, so we had some topics to talk about. Thijs and I explained them about the Dutch political culture and current situation with the left/right wing parties, whereas Felix and Katja spoke about German politics.
We also talked about our home countries and what we miss, especially after figuring out that Thijs has connections to Curaçao, which I was pretty excited to hear.
During our hike, we spoke a lot about our cultures, while teaching each other new words. It is so normal in both The Netherlands and Germany to leave the country for vacation and for big hiking trips. However, it is way more common in The Netherlands as the country is so flat. So if you want to ski or snowboard, most families drive to Austria or Germany to stay at ski resorts.
I also teached Katja some words that internationals trip over. An example is komkommer (cucumber), and she even knew schommelen (to wip/rock) from when she visited The Netherlands. The drive back was more quiet, as we all hiked for so long and were so exhausted, but we did not forget buying snacks/food for the way back!
Overall it was a really nice day, and super fun to mix our groups together and go hiking together.
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