Portugal
participants
This activity had two main goals: to promote a different kind of sports activity for the most adventurous students, and to raise awareness to the importance of preserving the local flora and fauna of the surrounding regions of Coimbra.
Participants met with ESN volunteers and Trans Serrano's monitors, who drove them to the starting point of the activity. There, the monitors explained, in English, the basic safety rules of kayaking and taugh the participants how to use the equipment. After this explanation, everyone got on their kayaks in pairs and the descent of the river began. While on the path along the river, the monitors also pointed out important aspects of the conservation of the environment that surrounded them and raised awareness to the importance of sustainable activities and touristic practices such as kayaking. The international students who participated were pleasantly surprised by the beauty of the environment.
After the activity, the participants expressed that they managed to meet new people which led to long-lasting friendships by the end of this semester. Furthermore, this group also organised, throughout the semester, outdoor activities amongst themselves, such as hikes in the mountains near the city.
