# data[].attributes.body
What is a Gap Year?

A Gap Year is one entire year you can experience different cultures, meet different people, increase your knowledge about the world, taking conscientiousness of what person you are, and what you want to do for a living.

A Gap Year also has some benefits, for example:
-you can reflect on your academic decisions before going to college;
-you can know different people with their own culture, issues, and languages learning along all this process;
-you will grow in so many ways, become a better thinker and person.

# data[].attributes.body
I’m going to take a Gap Year because I think that it only brings and gives us good things.😇

First of all, I think it's important to know the world we live in. We are always closed at home or school and living inside our 📱 (phones) that we forgot to connect with nature, people, and cultures. This new connection will make us think differently and see everything with other 👀.

This experience will make me more independent. I could know better myself, become more cultured, and grow physically and psychologically.

# data[].attributes.body
I decide to do some different things this year based on adventure and new experiences.🗺️ I will bet on some traveling adventure, volunteering, and work abroad to save some money.

# data[].attributes.body
For my traveling adventure, I'm going to visit Barcelona, Paris, and Germany (Berlim and Munique). I'm confident I will learn many things about their cultures, lifestyles, and food. I will also enjoy their landscapes, meet new people, and learn other languages. ✈️

# data[].attributes.body
I will participate in a conservation volunteering aboard too, dealing with some wildlife animals in South Africa.

# data[].attributes.body
Finally but not least I’m trying to find a part-time job in German and Barcelona so I can save some money because a Gap Year can have a lot of costs 💸.
I choose to work in these places, so I can practice my Spanish and my German and perhapes meet someone new.

# data[].attributes.headline
Itinerary, it's time to take you on a trip ✈️

# data[].attributes.subject
Itinerary, it's time to take you on a trip ✈️

# data[].attributes.body
You can follow the whole travel here. It shows you the places I'm visiting and some curiosities, including some pictures.
The rooms 🛏️ I´ll be staying in will also be located on the map.
PHOTO by: a friend :)

# data[].attributes.body
PHOTO by: a friend :)

# data[].attributes.body
This city is extremely beautiful and organized, there are a lot of performances in the street, music🎶, dance, gymnastic and many people painting🎨.

# data[].attributes.body
I recommend restaurants on the map, just look for the purple pins.
🥗

# data[].attributes.body
"Nothing is art if it does not come from nature."
-Antoni Gaudí

# data[].attributes.body
After so many painful situations we found a dream and magic city! 🎆

# data[].attributes.body
There are bakeries everywhere but i don't complain because they have such good sweets!! It is a very beautiful city, mainly at night, some people call it the city of lights💡.

# data[].attributes.body
"If you can dream it, you can do it." 🌺
-Walt Disney

# data[].attributes.body
Yes that's right, I'm on my way to Berlin, Germany.
PHOTO by: a friend :)

# data[].attributes.body
And now, after all the cities i have been on, it's time to live and appreciate nature and wildlife. 🐘

# data[].attributes.body
This city is known for its annual "Oktoberfest" celebration and all the brewerys. 🍻

# data[].attributes.body
After this trip is necessary to take awareness about how much did this cost.
Between flights (1.193€), travels (110€), rooms (2.412€), monuments (721€) and food (550€) I spent 8.328€!

*South Africa (3.242€);

Health care (60€);

Insurance (140€).

# data[].attributes.body
For health care, I got one from MetLife, which covers the medical network, pharmacies, well-being, and more. 👨🏻‍⚕️

I chose to take one because I am going on a safari and volunteering with wild animals🦁 and we never know what risks we are taking. Furthermore, on these trips to different countries, we never know what we can find, in terms of food, and we can feel bad and sick🦟.
I also chose to do travel insurance to feel more secure and comfortable if my luggage could be stolen or lost. 🛄

It covers some medical expenses, luggage, and if the trip has to be canceled or interrupted.

This is AXA´s classic pack.

# data[].attributes.body
Yes, I think I can say it! I'm on my way to the last place I would be in this Gap Year, South Africa. 🌲

# data[].attributes.body
Talking about money, during my Gap Year I released 2.500€, because of my job.  The lifestyle in Germany is different than the lifestyle in Portugal so, in only 2 months, I received 2.500€, working at a restaurant🍴.
Furthermore, I practiced my German a lot, met good friends 🧑🏽‍🤝‍🧑🏼 and, lived great moments and experiences.

# data[].attributes.body
On safari in Africa I had the opportunity to see and take this photo. 📸
For me it means a lot because seeing the animals interact, without any conflict or human persecution, filled my heart.
Nature is something so pure and so valuable even though few value it or respect everything it gives us. ⛰️
Being able to admire that moment with my own eyes was one of the best experiences I had in my Gap Year! 💚

# data[].attributes.body
In Munich, Germany, I witnessed the "Oktoberfest"*1 for the first time.

I worked all day in the restaurant, it was a very busy day with lots of people coming and going. Seeing the people's joy and the festival's grandeur made me appreciate the best part of that day. 👯

I remember in the evening, after work, having the opportunity to enjoy the wave of the moment. I went to the Hofbräuhaus am Platzlonde brewery, where you could see everyone together celebrating and giving all the importance, to that moment. 💃

*1 -> beer festival that includes shows and other events, it is also a product and entertainment fair.🎠

# data[].attributes.body
Something I most enjoyed experiencing was seeing people of all ages gathered together and holding hands🤝 dancing to the music🎶 of a band, in the Gothic quarter. People of extreme energy and a lot of love💞 and attention to give representing people's modesty.

# data[].attributes.body
Bye friends, I loved this adventure and I hope you liked it too but this is the end...
If you have some doubts you can always ask me, through this blog.

See ya 👋

# data[].attributes.body
I also had the opportunity to contact different people, from different cultures with different points of view, it allowed me to improve communication🌐, and social👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 interaction skills based on personal characteristics that could be improved. It can make me more efficient, more harmonious, and more productive in my workplace, based on my optimism and empathy, helping me to fit into any workplace, in any role. Helping me to get and keep a job, although it is not only related to jobs, but also my attitude towards life's challenges.
Throughout this year, the experience of working in a restaurant in Munich allowed me to develop the skills described for social interaction and collaborative work, and volunteering with wild animals allowed me to develop skills of optimism🙂, patience, and empathy.

# data[].attributes.body
In my gap year, I had the opportunity to develop the learning of other languages ​​(German, French and Spanish), to develop organizational skills📋(travel, costs, hazards) and to develop general knowledge in contact with different cultures when visiting the monuments of each country, which they can help you get an interview based on my academic knowledge📚, technological skills, and the specific training I may have. It can help me to insert myself in the best position of an organization related to my abilities, but by themselves, they are insufficient in today's society.
That is why the soft skills that were also developed during this year are so or more important.