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 Jul 31, 2009

From YMCA to jammy lodgings

Hello!

I'm sorry for not updating recently. I think it's symptomatic of being back in your own country that things seem less exciting and worth talking about, even when, on reflection, you've done and been through a lot.

After 2 weeks of uncertainty in Ealing YMCA, we finally moved to our host community in King's Lynn. Still, I was one of 8 volunteers who still had no host home! After a week or so about 30 minutes out of King'sLynn in a travel lodge with my counterpart but no bus service, "The House" was finally found!

And it was lovely: a large, old, terraced house near the centre of town, with an enourmous kitchen, light spacious rooms, a patio and barbeque area and my own huge, fluffy double bed! It means so much to have a permanent house, and I relished the freedom to cook and choose my own food after so many weeks of being catered for.

Still, it was a house, not a home. In addition,the novelty of house-training 5 messy boys wears off surprisingly quickly! So, I was extremely happy when about two weeks ago I learnt that I finally had a proper host home! I'm now living with a single dad and firefighter, who is -in my view- undoubtedly the best host parent . My counterpart and I are also a little jammy with the location, since we are again in a lovely terraced house overlooking the park, on the same road as the volunteer house I lived in previously. Unlike the other volunteers, who are trapped in their villages by terrible public transport, 10 minutes walk takes me to the town centre, and 15 minutes gets me to my work placement. The satisfaction I've felt from having a home and a "family" of sorts made me reflect onthe homeless people we lived with in the YMCA, and I was really glad when we were able to do some fundraising for the local omeless shelter last week.

I was lucky enough to be given the volunteer placement I really wanted. I'm now working in  Development Education Centre called NEAD, and it is really great work. Before the summer holidays began, we were going into schools to help with a program aimed improving community cohesion by increasing children's understanding of and enthusiasm for other countries. Each class studied one country, with someone from that country. They tried cooking and eating the food, learnt traditional dances, learnt about the geography and lifestyel... as much as could be squeezedin, but always in a fun way. And on the alst daythey shared what they'd learnt on a "One World Day" that was just magical. The children were loads of fun, and the teachers all seemed worthy of knighthoods, if not sainthood (lots of religious schools!!!); it almost made me want to be a primary teacher.

Now It's really interesting learning about all the different cultural items, as it gives a real insight into the coutnries we'reworking on. It is hard to focus all day, but I'm seeing this as a learning opportunity as my sister tells me there'll be a lot of that at university (yipee...). I think this job is another one I'd seriously consider for the future, as combining development and education is right up my street!

Other things we've been involved in include a weekend break/ mid-phase review at the seaside, an upcoming African night at an eco "hideaway", fundraising on the street for the local homeless shelter, planning fundraising for the Malawian volunteers to use for community projects back home, making steps for the Queen's Sandringham estate (I hope Her Majesty doesn't trip on them, they're not very even...), and enjoying the king's Lynn music festival (S Club 3, Beverly night, and Britain's Got Talent "nearlies"!!!), probably as well as all manner of thing's I've tragically forgotten.

And now, true "veggy returned to the UK" fashion, I'm off to eat my lentil and spinach soup. Thanks for reading.

 

Posted by Sally ( 10:05 AM )
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Tuesday Jul 28, 2009

New York and it's time to go home!

With the 21st of July came the time for me to leave Mexico, after a month of being there I was quite sad to be leaving the place, after having gotten so used to the seemingly nationwide friendly and laidback approach to life, I was really going to miss it! I was and still am sure that I will return there some day though, so I set my mind on the next couple of days, and seeing New York instead.

I had never been to the US before (other than on my journey out that is, and airports don't really count) so I was pretty excited at getting a look around the Big Apple for the first time. We only had one actual full day to spend in the city, but we crammed plenty in, buying tickets for those "hop-on hop-off" open top bus tours (around £40) like they have in London and other cities in the UK, which lasted for 48 hours so we were sorted for transport for the whole of our stay!

So firstly, we got on the bus and listened to the tourguide until we reached the stop for the Statten Island ferry, which is free and gives great views of the Statue of Liberty, although there's really not much to do actually on Statten Island, you can just get the free return back again! Then we walked over to the Liberty/Ellis Island ferry, as our bus tickets included free entry onto this ferry as well, and went over to get a closer look at Lady Liberty. Got to admit, she wasn't as big as I thought she would be, but still really impressive! Was a great sunny day when we were there so we stayed and wandered around the tiny island for a little bit just to enjoy the weather really. Unfortunately, you have to book about 3 months in advance to go up the statue now, as it's been so busy since they re-opened it for entry, but it's still great just to go over and see it up close anyway!

Then we got back on the bus tour (which are great by the way, although it largely depends on the guide) and then wandered around Central Park, as we were in a hotel that was only about 2 blocks away from the South end of the park. The park was maybe my favourite part of New York, completely man-made it's a real escape from the bustling city, and yet it's always busy as well, filled with people jogging and cycling and just generally relaxing as well. It just felt strange to see all this wildlife, in the middle of such a giant city, but it's obviously really appreciated by everyone who lives there, unlike loads of the parks in the UK.

Anyway, one bit of advice for anyone going to New York, go up the Empire State Building at night! We went at midnight (it's open until 2am) and firstly, the bright city lights are beautiful to see, but also and maybe more importantly, there was barely any queue! During the day we had seen the queue outside the Empire State Building stretching right around the block (bearing in mind there's miles of queues inside the building as well), yet at night we were able to walk almost straight up, with only a short queue near the lifts. Definitely a great experience (and Empire State entry was included in the bus tickets too).

The next day we decided to check out the uptown loop of the bus tour, which unfortunately wasn't altogether exciting so we got off and wandered around the Northern side of Central Park instead, before spending our last hour or so in the Central Park Zoo. It costs $10 for entry, and although it's pretty tiny, it is a nice place to visit with lots of animals to see including two Polar Bears and some proper show-off Sea Lions! Of course after working in a monkey sanctuary last summer, I always love seeing the monkeys, so I thought it was a great way to spend the last little while we had in the city. But with that, it was time to get to the airport and head home!

So after a 7 hour overnight flight, I eventually arrived home again. I loved every minute of Mexico and really enjoyed New York too (finding it much less busy, and much more friendly than movies portray it to be), but I have to admit I'm glad to be home again. 5 weeks away from my boyfriend has been really tough, and I'm not sure if I've ever grinned more than when I saw him waiting at the airport! He's been really supportive the whole time, and I guess knowing he was on the other end of a phone line really helped me anytime I felt things were tough at the Refugio in Puerto Vallarta. I guess voluntary work (especially abroad) is always a bit tough, and you need to be confident and a bit brave to go it alone, but it really does help when you have people at home who support you with it, whether they realise they're helping or not.

So with that, I guess I'm finished! My time in Mexico will stay with me forever, and I really hope I will go back some day, especially to see the children at the Refugio. It's encouraged me to take up a proper Spanish course as well, so hopefully in future if I go back I will be able to speak to them properly. So until next time, adios! Fi.

Posted by Fiona ( 11:40 AM )
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3 little days in Cancun...

Ok, so that last blog was so long that I felt the need to have a whole day's rest...sorry for blabbering on for so long it's just that I love travelling around!

Right, so with Chichen Itza done with, we then took the long straight road back to Cancun, where we had booked to stay in a really nice hotel for the last 3 days of Mexico. We were staying in the Hotel Zone which is basically a tiny strip of an island joined by a road on either end to the real Cancun. It is completely tourist orientated with massive 5-star resorts along the whole 20km stretch of it which to me, was a bit daunting! A completely different experience than staying in my local Mexican apartment in Puerto Vallarta. I have to admit I'm not a fan of the Cancun hotel zone, which is designed to make you stay in your hotel really! There are restaurants and shopping plazas around, but not many in relation to the number of hotels and they are pretty spread out as well. Also, it is insanely expensive! So if you're on a budget, I'd say steer clear or head to Downtown Cancun instead, where prices will be cheaper.

I couldn't bear the thought of staying in the hotel for my few days in Cancun, so instead, I went scuba diving (the diving in the Caribbean was far better than on the Pacific Coast by the by - more varied largely thanks to a massive coral reef near to the coast) and also zip-wiring, again. The zip-wiring was a bit more timid this time as it was just between trees with the absence of the mountains they had in Puerto Vallarta, as the whole of the Yucatan Peninsula is extremely flat, but they make up for it by letting you do it upside-down (AMAZING FUN) or on your stomach like Superman! For our last day in Mexico, we had booked to go swimming with whale sharks (aka basking sharks) as a once-in-a-lifetime experience and it was incredible! 30 miles or so out into the ocean, and there was at least 50 of these massive things swimming about, totally oblivious to or just not bothered by our company. They only eat plankton so it's totally safe - although I'm sure their mouths are big enough they could quite easily have swallowed me - and you get to swim right up beside them as long as you don't touch them. I really would recommend going to something like that because it was so amazing to see these creatures and in their natural habitat unlike a lot of the swimming with dolphins tours they run now, although it definitely wasn't cheap at $190 each! Definitely a fantastic way to end Mexico though.

So anyway, although I wasn't so keen on the Hotel Zone in Cancun, I have to admit that the massive tourist trade definitely helps to make up for it, with no shortage of activities and outings to go on if, like me, you don't relish the idea of just lazing by the pool and never leaving your hotel when staying somewhere. With the caribbean sea and the second largest coral reef in the world right on your doorstep, it's a great place for scuba diving, snorkelling, or just any trips which involve a boat! There's also chances to take trips down to places like Tulum (Mayan ruins on the beach) or Cobá (another impressive ruins site) if you're into that, and nature reserves are nearby as well. So all in all, I did love Cancun as well, though if I ever return I'll definitely be staying in Downtown, for a more 'Mexican' experience, rather than the far-removed clinical world of the Hotel Zone, where you might not even realise you were in Mexico! Fi.

Posted by Fiona ( 11:00 AM )
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Adios ninos

Well today has been heart wrenching! My last day working in the refugio, and I am of course really sad to be leaving the kids. It is impossible to stop yourself from getting attached to them, so saying goodbye today was really hard, especially when with an eclectic mix of Spanish words, and miming an aeroplane they understood what I was trying to say, and their faces fell!

I will never forget my times at the refugio, or any of the children there, its hard to think that I might not be able to come back again - but who knows what the future holds! Though I was very careful not to make any promises. Especially as for the last few days, one of the youngest girls - Lucy - has taken to calling me Mama, no matter how many times I told her "no!", it simultaneously hurts and is comforting to think that they will most likely forget about me within a couple of weeks when it comes to situations like that! I know that I couldn’t help becoming attached, but I am still angry at myself for letting her become too attached as well, with a turbulent past already behind her at such a young age, she doesn’t need me to add to the confusion.

I have to admit that this placement has been really hard! We have received a lot of time off, but working 4-5 hour shifts in this heat has always been trying, and facing temper tantrums was always a bit daunting! Especially as some of the kids had conditions such as ADHD, and also just with the language barrier meaning that I often found it hard to figure out what was wrong in the first place, or to explain to a child why I was stopping them from doing something! Also the staff have not been altogether supportive or appreciative of any of the volunteers, which has been quite hurtful! Never mind the fact that they would often use the volunteers by making us do the tasks they didn’t want to do... one volunteer was even made to clean the bathrooms and unblock the toilets when they broke, staying 2 hours after her shift was meant to end! However, cheesy as it is I have to admit it is true, that anything I had to endure during my stay here has been totally made worth it, purely by the way the kids faces would light up and they would shout "Fiioooonaaa!" each day when they first saw me, and how they would come and cuddle me while watching tv before bedtime.

I will miss the kids so much, and I doubt they will be far from my thoughts for a long time, they have a good chance at life thanks to the refugio, which offers many of them the chance to attend private schools, and they are never short of food or toys there. Many of these children have come from terrible backgrounds so it is a great job that the refugio and those who work there do, and I am so glad to have been a part of it and contributed at least a little bit to their lives.

So now I am about to set off on the second part of my adventure, and travel east towards firstly Chichen Itza, and then Cancun before hitting New York on my way home...hopefully I will get a chance to update on that part of my trip soon, until then...Adios! Fi.

Posted by Fiona ( 10:39 AM )
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Monday Jul 27, 2009

Last days in PV/Chichen Itza

Well hello there... Readily accessible internet was not so easy to find as I thought it would be during my travelling and last 2 weeks in Mexico, so I thought I'd use two blogs now to fill you all in on what I got up to!

I filled my last couple of days In Puerto Vallarta with fun activities as I hadn't really taken too much advantage of the tourist trade available there - plus I had been living pretty cheaply and somehow had managed to have more money than I expected to have by this time! Puerto Vallarta is surrounded by jungle high up in the mountains, and is actually pretty nearby to where the Predator film (you know you love Arnie really) was shot, so I decided to take a trip up there and go on one of the many zip-wire courses they have up there! If you've never been zip-wiring before, I absolutely recommend it, there's nothing quite like looking around as you zoom over the tops of trees and suddenly see the ground fall away to reveal a large canyon and see the waterfall that you're about to abseil down! Maybe not for the faint-hearted or those scared of heights, some of the zips were over 300ft drops, but I completely loved it!I also decided to try some scuba diving while I was there, as I had only been once before 4 years ago (an experience which ended with my ears in agony and me generally not being too impressed). Luckily, this time round was a lot more fun!

I decided not to go back to the refugio as I had already said goodbye to the kids and didn't want to confuse them - though it felt really harsh at the time, I'm still pretty sure that it was the better choice. So, finally my time in Puerto Vallarta came to an end, as I set off for Chichen Itza! We actually had to get a flight to Mexico City first, and then a connecting flight to Cancun where we picked up a hire car and then drove the straight (and almost empty) 2 and a half hour road to reach Chichen Itza (the 8th modern wonder of the world apparently) deep in the Yucatan peninsula.

If you ever go to Chichen Itza, I highly recommend staying at the Archeological Villas, the accommodation originally used to the archeologists who first came to excavate the ancient Mayan site, which has now been turned into a lovely hotel, quieter and more modest than it's rivals, this hotel has real charm and is generally more interesting than staying at some purpose-built-for-tourists-package-holiday kind of hotel which are so common these days. (I promise I'm not employed by them, I just really liked it there!)

The ruins at Chichen Itza are of course amazing, especially to a big history student nerd like me. They are brilliantly preserved and there are boards with information about each of the structures in Spanish, Mayan and English all over the site, although it is just as interesting to just wander around the site without reading the information. The only thing which disappointed me with Chichen Itza was their famous light show they do at night, in which they supposedly re-create the optical illusion which naturally occurs there twice a year at the spring and autumn equinoxes in which serpents appear to be slithering up the central pyramid structure. I can tell you now, they've either stopped doing this or they never did, because it certainly isn't featured now! The show is really just disappointing all round, basically just lighting the buildings up in different colours with terrible commentary alongside it, so really not much to rave about.

However, there are lots of other things to do around Chichen Itza as well, besides lazing around in the beautiful sunshine they get there, and as we were there for a couple of days, we decided to take the car for a drive, as it was a lot less stressful, a lot quieter and a lot safer to drive around Mexico than we were expecting, with strict speed limits, long straight roads, and the Green Angels, a government funded service which provides tourists with road-side assistance in case of emergencies. First we ventured to Valladolid, a nearby city which appeared to be half empty! It had a lovely town square in the center and some nice cafes so it was a nice trip...but not altogether interesting nor exciting. On another day we went over to Isamel, also known as the Yellow Town, as a lot of the buildings are painted yellow! Apparently the best time to see the Yellow Town is at sunset to get the whole effect of this glowing yellow town, but we couldn't really stay the night there and it's dangerous to drive in Mexico after dark so we just had to make do with the afternoon. We took a horse and carriage tour of the town which cost M$200 (around £10 for 3 of us) and lasted about half an hour or more which was really nice in the sunshine. Our guide showed us the main buildings in the town and also some old Mayan ruins which still survived, one of which was abolutely massive, it would have been at least twice the size of the main building at Chichen Itza in its time! Pretty interesting to see, Isamel displays the way in which the indigenous cultures "merged" with the Spanish Conquistadors' as the town church is in face built over the ruins of an old Mayan structure, which was destroyed in order to make way for the Church as a demonstration of power, and modern Isamel definitely has the appearance of a very Spanish town.

The Chichen Itza area itself is also a great place to spend time, surrounded by the wildnerness it is great for walking around, but I preferred the lazy option and went horseriding to see the scenery instead! Mexican horseriding is a lot easier than most styles so really anyone can do it, and it's a great way to see the jungle, and you even get to see a dry Sinkhole (loads of them are dotted across the Yucatan and they're really quite impressive) and if you're a bit of an idiot like me, you can even swing about on one of those vines that Tarzan used! Maya World Hotel (right beside the Chichen Itza ruins entrance) advertise these horse treks and will happily book you onto them even if you don't stay at the hotel (like me).

So that was Chichen Itza! Lots of fun and perhaps my favourite place that I visited in Mexico, if you're ever in Cancun you should definitely take a trip over to see it. Fi.

 

Posted by Fiona ( 3:19 PM )
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The power of one

Volunteering and traveling obviously opens your eyes to different things. The biggest thing I keep feeling is the power of one person to change things. We met Molli from New York, now in her thirties. She volunteered in her twenties and saw need for the diagnosis of autism in Ghana. She then started her own NGO, single handedly and currently helps people starting their own NGO's. An American women in the market queue in front of me I randomly met, with blond platted hair that couldn't have been more then twenty started an NGO  for little girls to get an education. They make social change seem so within reach.

The people making a difference aren't just foreigners. I sat waiting with my co-worker (as its Ghana and waiting is a big part of life!) I asked him about how he came to work at the NGO. He told me his story. Born to Sixteen brothers and sisters, with a father with many wives and children and little money. His mother didn't encourage him and his siblings didn't go, but for some reason he wanted to go to school. There was the obvious problem, money, but he told me that as a little boy did laboring work to earn his schooling. He then worked this way through university. At university he attended lectures that started at 6.30 in the morning (but to get a seat you needed to arrive at 4.30 am as the 300 capacity lecture hall was filled with 700 people).The lectures lasted six hours with a five minute break, people regularly collapsed from heat and hunger. I couldn't relate it to my lectures at Manchester with the awful levels of attendance and student apathy. He is now working in the NGO to change society. He was so softly spoken and humble and didn't seem to feel any great significance to the story, barely worth mentioning. It was a normal one apparently. The normalcy shocked me more than the story itself.

Ghana is full of NGOs and volunteers trying to make a difference. It's a mixture of empowering and dis- empowering and overwhelming  to be here so far. It seems like theres so much work being done by amazing people and organizations to improve things, but looking around walking in the street, there's just so much injustice that needs to be changed.

Posted by Lucille ( 8:56 AM )
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Monday Jul 20, 2009

Volunteering in an NGO

In Tamale our new home, the group of 16 of us here with Tzedek live in two houses and have placements. We have teachers, nurses and NGO workers. I'm working in an NGO, a Non governmental Organization which works to combat Human trafficking.

Human trafficking (something which before arriving here I knew little about) is a form of modern day slavery. Children and young adults are sold from their homes in rural villagers to traffickers. The traffickers target the poor uneducated rural north. They tell them if they sell them their children they will find them good jobs in the prosperous south. This is a lie. The reality is they are made to work but receive little money .They live in diabolical conditions and are often forced into prostitution and  develop AIDS. They are taken to the South of Ghana for example Accra, or the neighboring countries. There they enslaved until old age. I spent a day at my placement in utter shock. I couldn't compare my world in England to this story from some horror movie. There  are communities so poor that selling their children seems like the best thing for the child. It was a bit too much to handle, I couldn't begin to react.

The Center for the prevention of Human trafficking works to address the root of the problem lack of education and poverty. They visit the rural villagers to educate them .They also try and help the villagers develop skills so they can earn a livelihood and therefore not need to sell their children.

The NGO also helps to track down the traffickers. On my first day my boss after being absent all morning, showed me an article about an arrest of two Nigerian traffickers in the capital of Ghana. He had reported them to the police and helped with their arrest. He sincerely apologized for missing my first day .I had to laugh at his apology I told him I thought it was fine, he was doing something ever so slightly more important than greeting me.

I work in the NGO five days a week, but the staff work seven days every day of the week! We work from eight to five with a lunch break. While the electricity does work my first job has been to edit a proposal for a grant for money from an overseas donor. Its really interesting to learn how an NGO works and be part of it. Working in the NGO is different that other offices. The electricity cuts out every now and again. Just like that the computer monitor turns off and we have to wait until who knows when. The first time it happened the shock on my face obviously showed .'Its Africa' laughed my co-worker, 'get used to it!

Posted by Lucille ( 9:17 AM )
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Monday Jul 13, 2009

Rabbits in headlights

Stepping of the plane and queuing in the humid airport, the first signs of the social issues in Ghana were visible. The sign on the Airport wall read clearly: "Visitors are warmly welcomed but paedophilia is illegal in Ghana and anyone coming for illegal sex is not welcome".

The passengers (a mix of Ghanaian people dressed in bright prints and cliché travellers wearing the obligatory 'individual uniform' of baggy clothes and bracelets) walked through to  went to collect their bags.

Our first experiences in Accra were quite comic as we were like rabbits in headlights. The women carrying heavy loads were fantastic (the novelty has since worn off). The sewage running down the streets and the people sleeping rough made me feel far from home.

Ghana is very religious and it's visible in the streets. Everywhere comic shop names with God in the title make me laugh for example' God is with you hair Salon' and 'grace and glory cold store'.

The 14 hour bus ride from Accra to Tamale, which is where the 16 of us will be volunteering for 2 months was great fun. We watched Ghana change from the urban city of Accra to rural villages with traditional mud huts in mountain settings. The loo stops were an experience in themselves. Our toilet experiences ranged from a hole in the ground [which we were charged to use] to a kind of communal drain. I will never take a toilet seat for granted again they are wonderful creations that make me very happy.

Tamale, our new home for two months is quieter and the poorest part of Ghana. The poverty is very visible in big and little ways, from shoeless children to lack of infastructure. As much as the poverty has impacted me the friendliness also is so overwhelming.  The way that every person greets you in the street and smiles really makes you feel welcome .The little children mesmerized by our strange white skin enthusiastically greet us with 'silly minger' meaning white person. Apparently its 'dugbani' a local language but I'm sure some joker tourists must have started a trend.

We have been in Tamale for a week and a thing I am still adjusting to is the contrasting view of time in Ghana. They are very laid back, for example, a meeting scheduled for two can be attended at four. Life in general is much slower (including the internet of the computer I am currently writing on in a local internet cafe) .Talking to a Ghanaian man whilst I was waiting for someone (who was late, surprise, surprise), he mocked the western view of time. 'Time is money' to you he chuckled at this laughable concept. I see him sitting on that bench every day, doing as I can see nothing with his time. I'm not sure why.

Posted by Lucille ( 11:21 AM )
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Friday Jul 03, 2009

A word on the actual work!

Holaaa, I was reading through some of my other posts and realised I havent really talked very much about what I actually do at the orphanage yet! Well, its my day off today and its raining just now so I thought I would give a brief run-through:

On normal days I turn up at the refugio a little before 3.30pm, and head down to the courtyard type area where most of the kids usually are, on weekdays there is only the very young ones as the others head to school during the afternoon and return around 6. So I go in and bascially play with them, sometimes on the junglejim and in the den-house, sometimes just carrying them round (Alejandro demands this nearly everytime I walk in, as does Michelle and even Teresa...who really is a bit big for it now, but I guess I can view it as a workout), I also often just sit and try to talk to the children, mainly in Spanish as they take great joy in trying to teach me and I can understand a lot of what they say now...though I can rarely answer properly! We also do lots of art stuff, mainly just drawing and colouring in though as theyre not often allowed to play with glue or paint as the nuns (who run the place overall) tell me it is too messy, though I think they are rather strict and it is also just part of the discipline!

At 5 the kids get their dinner, which can be anything from bread with sugar toasted on top, to chocolate cake, to soup! They have some very strange dinners, often sugar-filled, but I guess as they run on donations it depends on whatever they have been given, and whatever they can afford to buy for each meal. The kids do also get  lots of milk and fruit though, so it isnt all bad. After that its playtime for the kids again as the volunteers help to do the dishes, wipe down and stack away the tables and chairs (mucky wee pups they are!) and also sweep and mop up the floor, before heading out to interact with the kids some more until its time to start getting them bathed. This part of the shift can be a nightmare, getting them in to the small bathroom, stripped and into the large sink we use to shower them, out of there again, dried and put into pyjamas (and almost all of them wear nappies too which surprised me). This may not sound so bad, but many of the kids start wailing as soon as they are in the bathroom, and try their very hardest not to cooperate in the slightest in the whole process...also Pearlita will often decide to grab the shampoo and pour almost half out before rubbing it in her hair, which then takes ages to rinse out, meanwhile Jose seems to love grabbing the shower hose and soaking all the volunteers! A shock I wasnt expecting the first time I bathed him! The lucky volunteers will be upstairs at this stage bathing the 5 youngest children, a much easier task!

Then its time to watch tv for around a half hour, and many of the kids will come and cuddle you and sit on your lap and fall asleep then before being taken off to bed at 7.30...

So theres a bit more insight into the work I have been doing here! Not a long shift, but pretty tiring! Especially in this Mexican heat... Anyway, thats all for now, I am in my last week at the orphanage now so will soon update on my last few days and those final goodbyes which are going to be so hard! Fi.

Posted by Fiona ( 7:41 PM )
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