Yara in Saint Lucia - The Power of Sports

Name
Yara

How long did you do your internship?
6 weeks

Short biography
Hi, I’m Yara, 19 years old and I’m in my final year at CIOS. For the elective course ISO, I went to Saint Lucia together with a friend to do our internship there! In my daily life, I work as a swimming instructor and I also do competitive swimming myself.

I had an amazing time and really enjoyed it! I would go back to Saint Lucia in a heartbeat.

How satisfied were you with the guidance in your home country?
I was very satisfied! Before my trip started, I had quite a bit of contact with Ruben and Joël and was well informed. If I had any questions about my trip or during my internship, they were answered very quickly and you could ask anything.

My story

The 6 weeks flew by so fast! I would recommend this kind of trip to everyone.

On Thursday, April 11th, we took the train to London, and on Friday, April 12th, we flew to Saint Lucia! The first weekend we took it easy, got to know the group, and explored the neighborhood.

Then the internship started. In the mornings, we went to schools to give gym lessons, and in the afternoons I had either a swimming session or a netball session. The internship was from Monday to Thursday, and on Saturday morning there was another session. On Fridays, we went on excursions, Friday evenings were for the street party, and during the weekends we relaxed on the beach or planned other activities.

In the middle of my internship, my roommate Sanne and I started the KC program. This program involved working with special needs children to help them develop by exploring different movement skills. This was one of my highlights!

I also really enjoyed the swimming sessions! I got to coach the kids who wanted to join the swim team, which is truly my passion, so I was very happy to coach these kids. The best part was that I got to participate in a swim competition myself. It was great because I got to swim, but also because I could watch the kids I was coaching compete. Truly a wonderful experience 🙂

The group was really fun and cozy too, since we all lived together in one house. It quickly became a close-knit group! We did many fun activities together, like karaoke every Wednesday evening, excursions on Fridays, the street party, and many more great things!

I had an amazing time and really enjoyed every moment! I would go back to Saint Lucia in a heartbeat.