Renewable Energy Development in Lobitos, Peru

“One of my best experiences abroad! Peru has definitely left a mark on me.

As a volunteer for the NGO I participated in many projects in such a short time! Time flew! These are some of the projects that my team and I were involved in:

Planting day🌱! Although we had to wake up every week at 6:00 it was very fun!
Reforestation to protect the Peruvian “Cortarramas” bird and restore its habitat
Website translation (Spanish and English)
Facebook and Steemit marketing
Buying groceries, etc in Talara for all the ecoFamily
Writing a letter to the Mayor to obtain permission to install our sign
Designing and building a solar distiller to produce drinking water from seawater
Trialling different materials in the dry toilet to reduce water and form compost
Designing a renewable energy system for the rural health clinic to avoid disposing the vaccines after a blackout
Checking the performance of a PV system

In addition, I also learnt how to live with less resources, responsibly use water, deal with extended electrical blackouts, minimize my internet access, travel in overcrowded vans with many people on bumpy dirt rides, recover from frequent food poisoning, survive without a proper hospital in the village and I also learnt about corruption.

All this makes you value what you have at home. I really missed having a hot shower! 🚿

Apart from this, Lobitos is a great place to learn to surf, go fishing, eat ceviche, watch the sunset, learn spanish, see wild animals in front of your house, and even swim with turtles!

It was sad to say goodbye so soon, I would’ve loved to see my major project finished. Thanks for everything! I wish you the best and that you are very successful with your future endeavours. I will recommend this experience to everyone who asks me!

🌄And Machupicchu… WOW! This place is magical and amazing! I almost didn’t make it, but after two flight cancellations, driving to another airport, convincing the airline to change my flights, hotel cancelations, losing my laptop and suitcase, not sleeping at all and so on, I arrived just in time to catch the train to Machupicchu. This place really captivated me. But don’t get too excited and climb very quickly, otherwise you might feel the altitude sickness!”

Renewable Energy Development in Peru

Never Say Naver

“I never thought a simple google search would lead me to one of the most memorable experiences of my life. I’ve wanted to study marine biology for as long as I can remember and I figured, what better way to know for sure that this is the right path for me than to get out there and see and be apart of the work that is involved? Global Nomadic happen to be one of the first three websites I clicked on and it seemed to be the most organized as opposed to the others and boy am I glad I chose this project. Initially arriving on the island of Ishcia there was an apparent language barrier but the locals were more than happy to help assist me in finding where I needed to go. I arrived a day and a half early to the project and stayed at the Hotel Gemma. They were very accommodating considering I had not made previous arrangements for my stay. They had complimentary breakfast every morning and the gentleman working the front desk let me borrow his phone charger during my stay until I purchased the correct wall plug in piece.

Upon arriving to the Jean Gab I was greeted by the researcher, Hayley, who immediately offered me drink and food after helping me get my luggage into the boat. I was given a tour of the boat and once the rest of the volunteers arrived we were given a very informative orientation and a basis of our itinerary for the week. The first day out sailing I unfortunately got sea sick, but I was resilient and determined to gain as much from this project as possible. We ended up having a Sperm whale sighting that very day, come to find out the whale was not yet in the database! It was a perfect way to end a rough start to the day. I also participated in photo identying previous dolphin sightings as well as collected data on the the birds we saw. I firmly believe this organization is making a significant impact in their cause. There was impeccable team work amongst the volunteers.

We each took turn in cooking and cleaning. I cannot express the amount of gratitude I have for Angelos generosity and willingness to share not his boat, but his knowledge of the sea and his personal experiences. On the days we weren’t able to sail we visited the local resorts and shops as well as snorkeling in the bays around the island. Prior to this trip I had an extreme fear of boats and large bodies of water in general. I can confidently say I have defeated this fear, much of which was due to the support and encouragement of the volunteers and Hayley especially. It was bittersweet when it came time to leave but I now have full affirmation that this is a career I want to pursue and I’m looking forward to going back next year!”

By Celeste Rowe

Dolphin Research Placement in Italy

Bree in La Gi

“Let me say that this is my first trip to Asia on my own. It was not as much the teaching I feared but coping with insects and other unexpected things. My challenges was to not let my fear of insects and other animals overcome my desire of making a difference by teaching childeren. So far I dealed with that part but still am not a fan of anything that creeps and crawls into my room or near my feet.

As of the teaching I had a great experience. It is completely different from how I teach in Holland. For starters, this is a summerschool that gives children the opportunity to improve their English. I expected to teach at a school in a local town with children that have no English at their school and through volunteers get the opportunity. Nevertheless I was an overal good experience. I had to teach with little means, smallest classroom, no books, table and little space to do energizers. Some children were eager to speak, others so shy it was hard to get a word out. But still I had to make sure it was an hours lesson well spend. I think i’ve made a difference by making the lessons fun, interactive and with a lot of enthousiasm. The children got more open to speak and I was very positive about their speaking skills.

The director, Mr. Lang and his staff go out of their way to make you feel welcome and at home. They help wherever they can, take you out to see places and trust you with their students. I think childeren are lucky to come to Di La center as all teachers are enthousiastic and loving towards the children.

I am proud of the fact that I’ve always said to want to teach abroad and now I did. And also that despite of teaching being different than what I am used to, I was able to give fun interactive lessons.

I would definitely recommend this program to others.”

by Brigitte Rimann 2018

Language and Cultural Exchange Project in Vietnam

Making a documentary in South Africa

“My time at the project in Mossel Bay was very special to me. This project really focuses on wildlife filmmaking and everything that comes with it. There hasn’t been a day where I was bored or felt out of place. Every single day was pure work, laughs and overall an amazing experience. I don’t know if I personally made a difference to the project but people like me who are willing to learn and meet new people in this field are the ones that make this project a success and a joy for everyone.

One of my biggest challenges was the fact that I’ve never edited before and we spend a good amount of time editing our films. I was often stuck and had to figure it out by myself but that’s how you learn the most, it’s by doing it yourself. I am very proud of myself that I learned so many useful things during my time there and extremely grateful for all the staff who helped me overcome my challenges. I am extremely satisfied with my short film and looking forward to doing another experience like that in the future. This project did meet my expectations and I would definitely recommend this to a friend who has experience in filmmaking.”

by Chiara Seidlitz

Wildlife Documentary Film-Making Internship in South Africa

Madagascar Volunteer Trip July 2018

“From July 1st to August 1st, I worked alongside the Madagascar project in construction and wildlife conservation in the Anosy region. The first two weeks I spent in the village of Manambaro constructing a primary school for the children along with three other volunteers and Malagasy locals hired by the project. We spent the bulk of our days moving granite rocks into the building and laying them together to build the floor. After the floors were started, we mixed cement by shovel for hours and passed it off to the Malagasy workers to lay down over the rocks and create a smooth flooring. The rest of our work consisted of painting the interior walls of the school and building desks for the children.

We all really enjoyed this work despite how physically challenging it could be. It was fulfilling to see our progress after only a few hours of work, and have tangible results as proof of our efforts. The children and older residents of Manambaro expressed their thanks to us by welcoming us into their home and offering us a meal, saying that our work made an important difference to the community.

After construction, they transported us to Sainte Luce Reserve to aid in wildlife conservation. This work primarily consisted of long forest walks to record data on lemurs, frogs, geckos, logging, tree growth, and other indicators of a healthy natural environment. This work was at a much slower pace and overall less exciting than the construction work. For someone interested in herpetology or nature – the work is interesting. However I did not enjoy it as much. Nonetheless, I made the most of my time and am glad I got to experience both areas of the volunteer work.

The hardest part of the entire experience was probably the physical adjustment to the environment; everyone got diarrhea (some more than others) or other sicknesses. It rained every day for three weeks, which really developed a somber mood within the camp. Showering was only possible every 2-3 days due to the rain and was usually cold as a result of the dreary weather. Rice was the base of all of our meals, which was to be expected, but the lack of flavor and variety after 3-4 weeks was frustrating. The cooks did their best to switch it up by adding cabbage, pumpkin, chicken, or vegetables every day. But overall, rice based meals for 4 weeks was the hardest part for me.

The showering, sleeping, and eating conditions were expected and disclosed to us before travelling, and it was all doable without complaints because there was no alternative. This taught me to reject negative thoughts about my circumstances in Madagascar and acknowledge the contrast between my every day lifestyle in America and that of the Malagasy people. I definitely feel stronger and tougher in character after my time in the country, and I have a new found appreciation for the things I once took for granted such as a hot shower, plumbing, air conditioning and electricity, a comfortable bed, and full meals at any given time.

As for my expectations with the project – I thought wildlife conservation would be my favorite part of the entire trip, when really, construction took the spotlight. I did not expect to become so close to my fellow volunteers and to miss them so much when our time in Madagascar ended. I am thankful that this project brought us together from different corners of the world and connected us. I am grateful to the staff and our Malagasy guides for taking such good care of us at all times and treating us not as subordinates, but as equals. One thing I did not predict was the amount of laughter we all shared on the daily, and they are my favorite memories to share with those back home.

I would recommend this project to someone who wants to experience a culture unlike one they have seen before. This program is not for someone who is unable to adapt to a completely different way of living than that of a first world country. I would also not suggest this to someone who is highly impatient, because everything in the country does take a considerable amount of time. For those who love natural beauty and friendly and welcoming citizens, this country has plenty of it.

Overall, I am glad I signed up for this adventure. Though in the future I may choose a shorter amount of time in a third world country, I am grateful for the full experience and will remember my time in Madagascar for the rest of my life.”

by Regan Beauchamp 2018

Forestry and Wildlife Conservation in Madagascar

We loved our school, our kids, our community, and the life-long teacher friends we made along the way.

“In January 2015 after finishing yet another miserable semester of nursing school, I decided to leave college: to take a break. To find myself, if you will. This turned out to be one of the best decisions I have ever made as it lead me to teaching English in Thailand.

In March of the same year, my best friend was getting ready to graduate college in just a few months. Not yet ready to enter the workforce and begin her career, she sought out alternative options that would be constructive, illuminating, and allow her to travel.

After Googling “teach English abroad” she came across Global Nomadic’s site. She told me of her plans and I decided to go with her. We settled on Global Nomadic because Jeremy and his team made us feel cared for. We hadn’t dont much traveling at this point in our lives and the thought of booking a one-way flight literally across the world to Thailand was truly terrifying. We needed a little hand holding, you could say.

And hold our hands Jeremy did. He answered every neurotic email in a timely fashion, provided us with tons of material on the TEFL program we’d be joining, suggested packing lists, an intro to cultural expectations, and more.

We were very concerned about logistics — where would we live? How would we get from the airport to our accommodation? Would people speak English? How could they be so sure we’d get jobs? Jeremy answered all of these questions patiently and assuringly. He made us feel like despite this big crazy change in our lives, everything was going to be ok. More than ok— it was going to be great. And great it was.

Our handoff from Global Nomadic to the Samui team was seamless. We went from being well-cared for by one party to well-cared for by another. We were cultured shocked and mosquito bitten but deliriously happy and very excited.

Samui TEFl was no cake walk. It was a very thorough and, at times, intense program, but without it we would been lost in the classroom. Kathryn and Rosanne made sure this was not the case. We learned methods for bringing the classroom’s attention back to the teacher, creating age-appropriate lesson plans, adjusting the material based on our students’ level of English, and most importantly, how to convey information when you don’t speak the same language.

The TEFL course was transformative. Kelsey and I found jobs together at a government school in a southeast Bangkok suburb called Chachoengsao after Samui TEFL. And while we stood there knees shaking and nervous on our first day of teaching, we drew on the wealth of knowledge and experience we had gained at Samui TEFL and we did just fine.

We loved our school, our kids, our community, and the life-long teacher friends we made along the way. We ate Pad Kaw Pro and Khao Mon Gai, drank Chang beer, and rode motorbikes everywhere. My students made me cards and hugged my knees, held my hand and thanked me constantly, and cried tears out of those big brown eyes when I left. I told them I’d always think of them, and think of them still, I do.

Catherine Tansey 2018″

TEFL Training & Teaching in Thailand

Human Rights and Legal Aid Placement, Tanzania

“Today is my 14th day in Arusha, Tanzania. Having spent two weeks here, I think I am able to give a fair report of how work and life outside of the office is here. I am doing the-program, an internship where I am volunteering at Arusha Women Legal Aid and Human Rights Organisation (AWLAHURIO).

Before coming here my expectations were to experience a different culture and to meet new friends while doing something good for people in need. I think it is fair to say that those expectations has been fulfilled so far. Even though the faiths of (especially) local women that you come in contact with can be overwhelming and the slow pace here combined with the general disorganization can be frustrating, you get so much life experience from just spending time here when coming from more developed parts of the world.

AWLAHURIO is a small, non-profit, NGO, focused on helping women in need of legal aid. The typical client is a local woman that recently got divorced or became a widow whereupon her male relatives claimed her assets including home, land etc, since women are usually regarded as not able to own their property according to the culture. However, this approach is not legitimate according to the law and this is where AWLAHURIO comes in. There is usually 2-3 women coming in to the office each day where we, free-of-charge, help them with their legal issues. In most cases where the women have some sort of legal documentation of their property we are usually successful. Sometimes when they do not, the situation gets more complicated and the matter goes to court. Last week when we went to court, the judge did not show up. Struggles like this, which apparently happens a lot, makes the work further difficult. In summary, AWLAHURIO is doing an important job and really helps a lot of local women in desperate need.

A normal day here starts at Tanzanite, the house where I and among 30 other volunteers lives. Innocent, one of the very friendly people working at Tanzanite, will cook you breakfast. Then at circa 9.30 am, after 20-minutes-walk or catching a moto-taxi, I get to the office. We are currently 5 people working in this tiny office, where Martha is the coordinator. Being a law student, normally focused on solving strictly legal issues in school, work here is quite different. Firstly, since our current biggest issue is to get a bigger office so that more women can be helped, a central part of the job is to fundraise money in different creative ways. Other tasks can be to file papers, organize client-registers etc. In general the work at the office is quite “free” which is why it is important that you take your own initiatives instead of waiting to get handled assignments. For example, we are now planning a work shop to educate women in human rights and a open BBQ to fundraise money for our next office. If you come up with ideas like these work will be much more rewarding and fun. Note that most of our clients only speak Swahili which unfortunately makes it difficult to have direct-contact. We usually go to lunch at 12.30 to 2.30, and then home again at around 5.30 pm. Then there is a lot of people to hang out with and dinner will be served at 7 pm.

It has been two times so far, where there was little to do for me at the office, I was given the opportunity to help Charles (my contact person at Global Nomadic who has his own law-firm) with some cases where the work was more “technical legal”. This was a great experience and I hope do it again.

Outside of the office there is a lot of tours, hikes and adventures that you can attend and the guys at Tanzanite are always helpful with organizing and dealing with taxi-drivers etc. If you want to go to safari, longer trips or just take a day off to visit African Court on Human Rights like we did the other day, Martha or the work at the office will not stop you. Tanzania offers some amazing nature and Arusha has a good night-life and is a interesting place just to walk in the streets to experience the hectic everyday-life.

If you come here with the right attitude and the right expectations you will learn a lot and have a great time.

Oscar Bang, July 2018″

Human Rights & Legal Aid Internship in Tanzania

The Best Experience I’ve Ever Had!

“My heart has been stolen, and I am glad to say the island of Tobago is the most thoughtful thief. The beautiful people who occupy its cultivated land have moved my soul beyond what I thought was possible. The project is not just a place for therapy; it is a place where anyone of any size, shape, and age can go to be revived. You are given more than an opportunity to ride a horse. You get to feel the emotion, the passion, the luxurious mane and coat of the horse, and the both of you form a powerful team as the journey along the trail ride begins.

The history behind every animal at the park is very unique, however I am not a spoiler here! You must go to the project to hear all about the peculiar animals, told by two truly passionate people: Veronika and Lennon, the founders of it all. The love and dedication they have for the program, and for people who go to experience the trail ride (and often much more), is surreal and purely inspiring. I find it quite an arduous task to find the right words to explain the magic that happens there. Every inch of their park area was built upon love. The workers, volunteers, and the children who go to the park for therapy designed each piece of artwork. As I learned more about the park and the foundation of people who created it all, I was in utter awe.

I spent a lot of time with the children who came to the park for therapy, most of them with a disorder and/or a disability of such inhibiting their ability to function properly in their daily life; many of the children were on the autistic spectrum, or diagnosed with Downs Syndrome, others had to be held by a caregiver during the first few years of their life. I would walk around the park with the children and other volunteers, helping to strengthen both the spinal and lower extremity muscles in the body of each child; it was a very emotional rollercoaster to say the least. For some of the children, I would simply be assisting Veronika with placing the child in a prone position on a horse. While the child rested on the horse, feeling it’s heart beat and sensing the calmness of its emotions, her and I would massage the hands and feet of the child to calm of the nerves innervating the muscles. I learned such a valuable lesson that day, that no matter if I have a certification, a degree, and become a professional in the field of Physical Therapy, nothing is more important than what I learn when I am extant with a child during spiritual healing. I could sense the pain the child was experiencing and all I wanted was to transfer it to my own body. Nevertheless, God has a reason for everything and that day he showed me a glimpse of the person I can become. When it came time to say goodbye, I absolutely refused to let any of them believe that I would not be back again. It was and is the truth; I will return when I am able to.

As I boarded my first flight out of Tobago it felt like I had chains around my ankles, enough weight to make it hard to walk. It was enough weight to make me realize that I had done exactly what I went there to do, and I was proud of myself and so very thankful for my fifteen days in Tobago. I would highly recommend this Internship to others seeking an experience in Equine Therapy. The project also encourages others to visit the facility for a tour, or gain hours of volunteering with the children at the park.

Thank you, to all of the hardworking people at the project, I could not have done it without you. Indeed, my soul has been revived. I willingly leave part of my heart in Tobago.

Yours Truly,

Jessa Yvonne Baisden ”

July 2018

Equine Therapy Placement in Trinidad & Tobago