Thinking of Volunteering Abroad?

I say go for it! It's the only way to travel for me - far better than just going as a tourist. If you're thinking of doing it here's my advice:

1. Go for at least 1 month, but no more than 3.

Two weeks was too short. It's amazing how quickly you can adapt and feel at home in a place, but 2 weeks doesn't give you enough time to really get into the swing of things, experience everything or feel like you've made a difference.

But at the same time, perhaps don't stay for longer than 3 months (in the same place that is.) If you want to volunteer for a longer time, like 6months or a year, perhaps go to several different places. Changing projects or countries will help stop the time there becoming just like going to work. Remember how I said you adapt surprisingly quickly to a new place? It's also true that things become common place pretty quickly and you forget to appreciate it.

The exception to this would be if you have your heart set on a particular place or project for a particular reason, or have been on one before that really meant something to you and want to return with some pupse in mind to make a significant difference.

2. Appreciate Diversity

You will meet a whole range of different people - whether because of culture, beliefs, age, or just personality. If you can't get on with people different to yourself, you'll find it hard. But maybe that's just all the more reason to go and learn to adapt! If you find it hard to meet new people, but want to challenge yourself, go for it. It's worth the discomfort. And if you love meeting new people, you'll be in your element.

3. Go with an open mind.

You can learn something from everyone you meet. And volunteering is a great time to do it, because everyone is there for new experiences and so more open and inquisitive that people generally are at home. Whether it is learning about a different culture or country, either the one your in, or the countries of other volunteers you meet; or learning to be a more open minded person - refering to number 2, the different people you meet, the ones you get along with and the ones that rub you the wrong way (sometimes especially those) can have a really lasting impact on how you see the world and even yourself.

4. Don't be afraid to Go It Alone

I went in a group for this trip, which was fun. But I have also travelled solo before, and I loved it. Normally I'm not the most outgoing person, and feel nervous meeting new people, but travelling alone was great for me. You are forced to go out of your comfort zone, and forced to meet new people because you'll get lonely after a few days not talking to anyone! Plus you can be more approachable than in a group, and you can also be more flexible in your travel plans.

5. Do some touristy things

Just because you're going on a volunteer trip, don't think you're meant to be completely noble and selflesss and not allow some touristy time. Tourism is a big industry after all, and provides a lot of jobs. And even if a place is touristy, it's often because there is something worthwhile seeing there. It became popular for a reason, so don't be put off just because you have to get there on a tourist bus. Plus, living and working in the country will provide you with a lot of opportunities that are off the beaten track and more genuine too.

6. Bring a laptop.
If you're going for a long time, or a short time, it's really helpful to be able to keep in touch with home. Skype will provide you with some of the most frustrating delayed conversations of your life, but it's still good to hear people's voices. And it's good for people at home to be able to see what you're doing and share the experience even though they're not there themselves. Going on a volunteer trip isn't just helpful for the communities you go to, or enlightening for you, but it can be impactful on the people around you at home when you tell them about it. (And if you've fundraised for your trip, people like to see what you're doing with their money ;) And keeping up with what's happening at home can help you not feel so disconnected once you get back.

The obvious exception to this advice is if you're going to a place without electricity or internet. One day I would like to go somewhere where I can't bring my phone and computer, just to force myself out of the reliance on technology for the experience. But international snail mail is slow, and being totally disconnected for a long time can be isolating when you're not used to it. So be easy on yourself.




So go for it! It probably will be challenging sometimes, but we'd never grow if we never did anything out of our comfort zone. And you might suprise yourself with what you're capable of when you take that step!

Building Project, Cape Town, South Africa

I'm not sure where it comes from - perhaps Aussie Cricketers it has been suggested - but Australians don't seem to have the best reputation in South Africa. More than once when we answered the question "Where are you from?" with "Australia" we were met with a flat and doubtful "Oh."

And being a group of six females, and Australian, I think everyone was worried we were going to a difficult bunch. Fortunately, by the feedback we got, they were impressed with us and so you can thank us for what we've done to improve the image of women and Australians everywhere!

The building project is in a township called Village Heights and is part of a plan to build a community centre to feed and care for children and adults in the area. We were working on sandbag structures, which consist of filling fabric sacks with sand and sealing them sort of like folding over a pillow case. When filled the sandbags are about the equivalent of three bricks side by side. These are stacked up inside a simple timber frame and then plastered over to form strong, insulating and fire retardant walls. Everything, apart from the frame and the roof, and some timber cladding, uses sand. The bags, the cement, the plaster. And sand is a cheap option considering there was literally tonnes and tonnes of it just lying outside the back door. Much of what is now land in Cape Town used to be sea bed, so there is sand everywhere.

From the back of the project. The wooden building on the left is a library - the cement building on the right is the beginning of the community centre which we helped to plaster. Closer to the fence in front of the cement building, we started lay the foundation for the first plumbed toilet in the whole township.

When we arrived at the project, we were all a bit worried about how we were going to go. We thought we might be met with a group of people, probably males, who all knew what they were doing and were going to look down on a group of females getting in the way. But as it turned out, we actually really enjoyed the whole process and did more work than they seemed to expect of us. Filling sand bags could become tedious, but plastering and cementing were fun. Practise icing cakes and you can get good at plastering and screeding.

Filling sandbags

Plastering a wall

Cleaning up

The volunteers already on site were welcoming, and I didn't feel like they thought we were in the way - although with six of us, anywhere we go gets crowded and so we probably took away some of their work.

There probably wasn't quite enough work to go round with amount of people now on the project, as well as the fact that the project manager was very caring and concerned, always asking us if we needed a break and telling us not to work too hard. To us, though, the weather was pleasant, not hot. And with six of us to carry the load we hardly felt we'd broken a sweat before they were telling us to take a break.

Some days there wasn't much more to do by the middle of the day, as we had to wait for more materials or wait for cement to dry. So sometimes we went home early, or stayed around and played with the children that were running around. There were five children in the family whose home we were building out the back of, as they ran the community centre. And neighbouring children would often be dropping around. The boys spent their time running, jumping on our newly filled sandbags, or fighting with eachother in play but with enough force I was suprised they didn't break eachother. The girls spent their time plaiting our hair. And they all spent time 'helping' us fill and carry sand bags, or taking our cameras to take and look at photos of themselves.

They were all very cute, but far more tiring than any of the building work (which had us a bit worried for the following week at the care - when it is ALL children.)

The family living there welcomed us, and when we left they gave us a heartfelt letter thanking us for what we had ahcieved, even though we'd only been there a short time. They gave the letter to me to read out loud to everyone, but I had to pass it on to someone else when I started crying halfway through.

We wished we could have stayed longer there, and I really hope the rest of the building goes successfully. It was great to see someone who actually lives in the community so dedicated to helping those around them and I was glad that we could be a part of supporting them.

We were taken for a bit of a walk around the township - only safe to do when we were with Bernie and Edward - the people that lived there. It is dirty, with rubbish and dogs everywhere, but people have created homes and gardens out of what we would think of as scrap. I think we probably didn't get a complete view of what it's really like. We were only there during the day, and with a family who were helping others. So we didn't see what it was like to really live there - with no plumbed toilets, no running water except a central tap. We didn't see the families affected by drugs, and the children left to fend for themselves on the street all day. (Not many photos of the township itself as it's a bit dangerous to carry your camera around, plus you don't want to make the people living there feel like they're in a zoo.)

The children we saw were happy - as least as far as we could see. But I think we maybe got a false sense of security from what we saw. Children are resilient, particularly when they are young. 

As well as helping with the building, I think another benefit of the project is that it brings volunteers from all over the world and draws the attention of the local people. When they starting asking "Who are all those white people at your house?" and Bernie gets to tell them about what they are doing and why they are here, people who have lived all their lives in a township and often never even been to the beach though it is ten minutes away, start to hear about a bigger world out there and find out that the world out there has people in it who care about them. That, I hope, will give some of them hope of a broader future, at least for their children and the future generations, if not for them.

Arriving in Cape Town

So beginning a run down of the first three days in Cape Town from my sun addled, jetlagged memory. Already got my first minor sunburn - even with applying sunscreen, I missed just the right spots to get singlet strap lines on each shoulder.

Anyway, our first day found us arriving at early in the morning (though it felt like it should be night time) and being taken to our host family accommodation. Our driver who picked us up from the airport gave a lot of good advice and information, of which I remember none. Other than him saying, don't keep your camera out all the time looking like a tourist. And he always gets someone to sit in the front of the van, so we look less touristy, which had me wondering if I should be worried about people coming up to the car. And consequently I was too nervous to take pictures for the half the day.

We safely reached our accommodation, and right away we met many people, our host mother and other volunteers staying here too, and right away we forgot who everyone was.

But we got our rooms, and as the privileged "teacher" I have a room to myself, while the girls are sharing in and group of three and a pair.

Our host mother is extremely welcoming and has hosted volunteers almost non-stop for years, and as the owner of a catering business, is very generous with food!

We are sure she is from Hansel and Gretel and fattening us up. Her husband is Ghandi - not just kind of resembles him, but in a picture you would, and we did, actually mistake him for Ghandi.

We all had very welcome showers, and our second and third breakfasts for the day. (One on the plane, one when we arrived at the host family's house, and a third we other volunteers got out of bed so that they didnt have to eat alone!)

I think we all would have liked to sleep at this stage, but we were picked up a little later by a guy from Projects Abroad - picked up on foot that is, to be taken on a tour of the public transport, a few shopping areas, and the Projects Abroad office.

But this is not your standard public transport - the first leg consisted of piling into a minibus taxi which holds fifteen passengers at a time and has a loosely set route but few set pick up zones. It just drives and honks at people, and a guy leans out the window and asks if people want a ride. These people then in turn indicate how many of them they are - say by holding up three fingers. Then we either stop wherever we happen to be at the time on the side of the road and they pile in. Or if there's no room we keep on driving. All the while with music pumping. Adherence to the road rules seems to be of secondary concern, but everyone knows this and watches out for the minibus taxis, as they won't be watching out for you.

This was an iteresting experience for the minibus itself, and for the streets and view of Cape Town it took us through - parts you would probably never see as a regular tourist unless you perhaps made a wrong turn somewhere. The set up of the streets reminded of me of the type of houses on the street that Billy Elliot lived on in the movie. Except relpace the brick houses with ramshackle tin and iron. Replace the footpaths with dirt. The white British people with black South Africans. And add a bit more rubbish.

Then was the train leg of our trip. Not dissimilar to trains anywhere, but a little more graffittied than trains at home. All of this was run through and paid for by our Projects Abroad guide, but at a pace that didn't have time to sink in to our sleep deprived brains. We've yet to attempt that journey on our own.

We met the staff at Projects Abroad office, who were friendly and welcoming, and again went through information that wasn't retained, but gave us an orientation pack, and basically we know we just have to be ready for pick up at 8.30 Monday morning to be taken to the building site where we begin our project.

Lunch was also provided for us, and we were dropped back home by the same train and minibus route, although the mini bus taxi was much more sedate this time.

Though we'd already eaten three breakfasts and a big lunch, we had another generous amount of food for tea. We had considered the idea of going to the soccer at the big stadium that was built here in Cape Town for the World Cup. But weren't sure where to get tickets, and decided that two days without proper sleep was long enough and went to bed fairly early instead.

It was an insightful start to our time here, and though some of the girls felt a bit nervous initially at their first impressions, have come to realise that it is not a place to be afraid of, but a place that can be appreciated for it's diversity and contrast. It is easy to quickly fall in love with South Africa.

Even the Dogs Have Street Smarts

The main word that comes to mind for Cape Town is 'Contrast'. From the mountains dominating the sky line, to the houses and people in the streets.

Lining the highway from the airport, townships stretch for kilometres, mish-mashes of corrugated iron put together to form rough housing. It's free for them to live there . So much of the new housing that has been built right next door to the township stands empty, because those they would have to pay to live in.

On the roads side by side with regular new cars you would see in any city, drives a ute with five people piled into the tray. Walking down the street of our host family, several old rattly cars drive by, rusted and with patches and replaced panels in different colours. Then just seconds later, a shiny BMW convertible passes us.

From the outside it looks like any other city, but on the outskirts, in the back streets, and even just across the road we see the evidence of very different ways of life.  Weaving through some backstreets crammed into a minibus taxi with our Projects Abroad guide, the six of us, and then whoever else waived down the taxi, I suppressed tears watching the way people were living in some parts - rough corrugated housing, rubbish dumped on the side of the road, right next to a sign that says "No Dumping", and this is not even in the townships. But I wasn't moved by feelings of pity, but just at watching children playing on the side of the road, women gossiping over their back fences. They weren't pitiful. They were living their lives they way they know them. And I was saddened by the fact that nobody knows about them. I don't think most people outside of South Africa, or even outside of the Western Cape, know what Cape Town is like beyond the tourist destinations. I definitely didn't.

There are definitely problems of generations of unemployment and the history of these areas, and all the issues that go with that. And while we come here intending to help, I think the biggest thing we'll leave with is inspiration and with a new appreciation and perspective on humanity.

Driving along the street on our way to be dropped at our host family, one of many stay dogs crossed the busy road in front of us. Rather than blindly crossing and dodging cars, he waited before crossing. Then he stopped in the middle and waited for the traffic coming the other way before continuing his journey safely  to the other side.  They know what they're doing.

Minibus Taxi