CabuReRa was a really great experience in all levels: I had the chance to meet new people from other countries, different backgrounds and experiences, different points of view and all of the experiences in different contexts made me grow as a person.
I also had the chance to work, for the first time, in my field of studies – cultural heritage. I worked in Lebanon with a group of young entrepreneurs that were building a company of cultural tourism. My role was helping them to find the right strategy to grow and to implement themselves in the market. For the first time I felt that what I have studied was useful and that feeling was amazing!
Back to Portugal that feeling grew even more: I started working with a project that is really what I want to do with my life – develop the cultural tourism in Algarve. This project is called The Mediterranean Diet Route (www.rdm.pt) aims to cover not just food/ restaurants but also local products, artisans and heritage!
For me it was very positive to work in this project not just for the project itself but, mostly, because to work with culture in Portugal is very difficult. There is no money and it’s extremely hard to “enter”! The feeling I get is that one door is already opened, I just need to keep working, show my value and hope for another door to open…
Mónica Mendonça