There's no denying it, these bloggers are bound to make you jealous. Whether it's their guts, their energy or their tan you admire, overseas volunteers have got plenty to share with you about their remarkable work in fascinating countries. Read on to find out what you could be missing.

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Friday Jun 30, 2006

Let me tell you about myself

I never know what to write when trying to paint a picture of who I am, to outline my personality or talk about what I have done to get me where I am today. Ironic isn't it, that the only person you live with constantly, twenty-four-seven is the very person who becomes most difficult for you to analyse. The person you look at in a mirror every morning, the only person you have ever experienced every bout of laughter and every tear with, every crush and every arguement with friends and family. But then maybe that is what life is for, self-discovery.  

 I shall start by telling people what I do. I'm a human rights and politics student studying in Kingston University who turns twenty three this December. Some people have hinted on me being ancient and compared to most fellow students I have encountered in my time down south, I am a few years older and I would not take back any actions and descisions that hindered me in getting to university at the age of eighteen. This is because I had some amazing experiences in my home town of Wrexham. I took opportunity to volunteer with young people who have disabilities for example and have also involved myself with one off volunteering days helping the elderly around Christmas time. I have also been politically active, both with working alongside Cafod to help people from North Wales get to Gleneagles for the G8 and with peace campaigning both in Aberystwyth and London.  

And so I came to university at the ripe age of twenty one, having never really travelled the world or experienced London and had the good fortune of being put in to halls with two Americans and a young man who was originally from Ghana, but who had lived in Holland for a lot of his life and a friend who is studying architecture who comes from Gloucester (I have no idea how the heck to spell where he comes from!) and already I had fallen in love with the student way of living. Cheap beer at the union bars and the fantastic opportunity to meet people from all walks of life! The first two months flew by in a flurry of beer bottles, takeaways and stumbling across the dancefloor like John Wayne in wet cement and it was only by chance that I actually walked past the student union offices one day to meet somebody fantastic who changed mine and undoubtedly other people's lives with her support (love ya Lynette!). I wanted something more out of university. Endless nights drinking were starting to hurt both my liver and my wallet.     

Through the volunteer co-ordinator I found myself involved in appropriate adult training, which means that if a young or vulnerable individual is taken in to custody, we go in and make sure that their rights are looked after. I also am currenty involved with another pilot project acting as a mentor and working with a local chairty to help them run more sustainably. Both projects are fascinating and I have learnt so much from them, they are the sort of experiences that change your way of thinking and way of living completely. I have also been invovled with both environmental and peace activism in my time down south and loving every minute of it. I am soon to be Kingston University's Environmental and Ethical Officer too. I love it down here, there's so much to do, I feel completely blessed.

Posted by Selina ( 12:42 PM )
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Monday Jun 26, 2006

trials and tribulations...but its all worth it.

well only 2 days and then I'll have finished my A-levels! I really should be reivising, but thought it was alowd to take a short break!

Fundraising is coming on slowly, have got another £80 banked from friends and family, just waiting for a bit more to roll in, I hope! But thought I would take a walk down memory lane and talk about the problems I've had durring volunteering. Obviously the most troublesome volunteering was in Ghana. I threw myself into a completly different culture on my own at 17...I never take the easy route.

The biggest 'problem' in Ghana was the 1st day I arrived. The woman I was volunteering with had been out there for a day or two already, but she was a very reserved, 'proper' private school geography teacher who seemed continually clean in the mucky surrounings, and uncomfortable with any boundary breaking of any sort.

I went to meet the headteacher of the school where I would be helping out, and had all the children shouting "Abruni" at me (which means white person) In the first game we tried to play the kids sat terrified in a corner, they had never seen a white person before, we shared hardly any language and both sides were absolutly terified. we tried to teach them songs and dances, or see some of theirs, to break the ice, but they didnt understand, as their lessons usually consist of repetition and copying off the black board.

We gave up, and returned, defeated to the headmaters office...(a broom cupboard in a different life) I realised I had left my bag in the room we had been teaching (or trying to) and walked back to pick it up. At the door way (note; no door) all the kids crowded me but at a distance to not touch my "Freaky" skin! I put out my had to a young girl of about 8, and after some tentative glances at her friends she reached out and touched my fingers. I smiled, which I realised I hadnt been brave enough to do yet, and with that the kids smothered me...huging and shouting and laughing and all desperate to touch me. After we establised my skin didnt rub off, and that I was REAL I collected my bag and went back to the office un-able to detach the little hands grabbing my clothes, and every part of me.

It was amazing. I felt un-belivably accepted, and relaxed. I dont know if I cried, but I do everytime I think about it now. That experience will stay with me forever, and it was the most representative moment of all the time I spent there. 

It was un-belivably difficult for the first 4-6 hours, thinking that it wouldnt work, why had I come?, they wont accept us, but when I put my-self out there, and showed the real me...with a big grin, I knew I had found acceptance, and felt imediatly at home. After that language didnt matter, I communicated through motions, stupid faces and laughter- I grew very attatched to everyone at the orphanage in only 5 weeks, and hated leaving them.

This was taken one the second or third day when every child in the area wanted to see the "aubruni's":

                                                   

If you ever encounter problems, or trials with comunication in volunteering all I can say is put yourself out there...show a side to you that makes people laugh and smile...pull a face, make a stupid noise....anything; Even if it doesnt help it will definatly release your tension!

Posted by Emily ( 12:04 PM )
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Friday Jun 23, 2006

life on a budget

When I was a befriender, my kids learned a variety of things - using chopsticks, snowboarding, horseriding - but probably the most important skill of all had to be budgeting.

With just £15 to spend most weeks, it was challenging to find enough dosh to splurge on dinner and a movie complete with munchies, so we always had to watch our pennies. Fortunately, we were allowed to 'bank' money from week to week so with a bit of planning and cheap-n-cheerful outings, we could save up enough to treat ourselves.

Once my girls got the hang of it, they became master penny-pinchers. The girls quickly moved from the easy challenge of saving cash for the cinema and learned that by setting a goal and figuring out a budget it was easy to be getting manicures, lunching and soaking up the rare Edinburgh sun with Starbucks in hand. Now, I don't want anyone to think we lounged about doing nothing and walked aimlessly during our outings in order to save up - we still went to art galleries, went swimming, challenged each other to vicious games of badminton and chatted over weak cups of tea in the cafe- but it just became part and parcel of our planning.

So, I feel confident that even though they're studying at college and thus perennially broke, they took away from befriending the lifelong skill of budgeting and are able to boost their mood by saving up for the occasional decadent splurge of manis and Starbucks!

Posted by Dana ( 6:57 PM )
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Friday Jun 16, 2006

a) makin' friends, b) new interests

Can I just say I adore (almost) every single friend I've made while volunteering? Wether they were volunteers as well or 'locals', they are all fantastic.

With the World Cup going on, there've been some great back-n-forth emails about whose country is trouncing who - having made friends from the UK, Japan, Italy, Hong Kong and Honduras, there's much fun to be had. Even if we haven't been in touch for ages, it's easy to pick up where we left off and continue our good-natured banter.

Making new friends from around the world is one of the best things about volunteering overseas.

Developing new interests (football aka soccer was never my thing here in the States, but I now appreciate it as the beautiful game) is also high on the list of cool things gained from volunteering somewhere else. I'm hoping I get back to the UK in time for rugby season! (If I could only remember the difference between Union and League rugby)

- I'm asking all to keep their fingers crossed that I get good news about my volunteering position on Monday...

Posted by Dana ( 7:15 PM )
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Monday Jun 12, 2006

Exams r us!

Afraid it can only be a quick entry this week, just had an A-level english- lit exam for 4 hours, oh the joy! And now preparing for my psychology paper tomorrow, but figured I need a break from psycho-annalysis babble.

Fundraising is looking better, my page on justgiving.com has had a few hits,(namely my parents!) and I've got all my letters printed, ready to post once I work out how to print labels. I've decided Im going to try and get money off at the local post office, they are a small village one, and I'm hoping they will knock a bit off stamps for me...it is for a good cause after all. Still about £400 away from what I'm meant to have right now, but thats life. Decided that I'm going to really work hard on my Swahili leaning after exams, but I've cooled off that for a while, but i can say telephone...simu! I'm not very good with languages, got an E as AS french, but I'll get there, I have to! its my only form of communication for 8 months and I talk far too much to not master it.

Anyway, better get back to revision and my good old friends Jean Piaget, Sigmund Freud and some bloke called curry who thinks we are all onions!

 This is Freud by the way!

Posted by Emily ( 4:02 PM )
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Wednesday Jun 07, 2006

waiting impatiently

ARGH. I'm now stuck in that hideous limbo between having applied for a great volunteer position and waiting to hear back from them. I had applied back at the beginning of May and had been told that a decision would be made in early June, so I was able to not think about it too much.

But, now, all I seem to be able to think about it finding out. After receiving a letter on Monday that the organisation had awarded me a scholarship, I got all excited thinking that it meant everything had been decided, but it turns out they only do scholarships twice a year and so they decided to offer it to me even though nothing's been decided yet. Grateful for it, yes. More stressed now? Oh yes.

So, for now it's back to waiting impatiently and rushing home each day to check the post. I'll say ciao for now and head off to continue daydreaming about how wonderful my life would be if only I get this fantastic vol spot!

Posted by Dana ( 3:27 PM )
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Friday Jun 02, 2006

Money makes the world go round!

Well this week I have been deep in revision for my A-level exams that start next week! fun!, if anyone needs any useless info on Lord Byrons "Don Juan", shakespeare, psychology, sociology or world war one let me know! On top of that my volunteering preperation is hotting up. Ive got 7 months now until I head of for Tanzania for 8 months, but the fundraising is struggeling. I need £3600, and so far have £200! so im doing well. (catch the sarcasm?) Im writing letters to all my friends and family to ask for money on justgiving.com and then I'm hoping to target buisness for sponsorship, the only problem with that is that unfortunatly I have to get in the public eye to get sponsorship, so anyone in sussex and hampshire look out for embarrassing newspaper articles about me! everyone else I talk to volunteering in their gap year are paying £1000, or £1500 but no, I had to follow my morals and go with a charity that I believe truely works and helps the people in the "target" countries and so I have loaded myself with a heck of a fundraising task. The only type of fundraising I have done so far was my UMBONGO-ing. For 27 hours I had to finish every sentence with UMBONGO. It was going quite well until I arrived at English literature, and had to give a presentation on the horrors of the first world war as shown through wilfred Owen's poetry! I must say my english teacher wasn't best pleased when all the students insisted if I wanted my money it had to also count within poetry. By the end of it i had lost all of my friends, and didnt blame them...try it for just an hour and you will get an idea....I think I pleased some friends and family though because I quickly realsised if i didnt speak too much I didnt have to say UMBONGO too much!

No matter how much people have to raise, fundraising for a trip is hard, and many people I have talked to agree that it is in fact harder than fundraising directly for a charity. As a gap year student I have noticed a lot of reactions arguing that we are just trying to raise money for a holiday, it's hard to over come this without spending hours with each person repeating yourself. I can understand the reaction completly, but it is just frustrating when you know that its not true.

 

Posted by Emily ( 3:57 PM )
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