COUNTRY: India
PROGRAM: UniBreak
PROJECT: Teaching & Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Mei Turnbul
We were warned.
Prior to departing, Antipodeans Abroad hosted a webinar and workshop for all of the international volunteers to attend to better prepare us for what we would face whilst over here. We were told we may feel shocked or frustrated by the culture clash or even a little useless as doing a volunteer program for a month isn’t a great amount of time to witness any real change.
Following our orientation, we started our work week with an “observation day” where we were to shadow the local staff and other volunteers to see how the projects were run, and what would be expected of us when we became more involved over the coming days. For some, ‘observation’ proved to be a loose term. Upon arrival, they were thrown into the deep end as they had to balance: early childhood education, a language barrier, and an inability to offer consolation through physical contact when the toddlers were crying. As we recounted our experiences over dinner, the disparity between project areas became apparent and those of us who had a comparatively easy day spoke rather sheepishly, keeping our stories brief.
Over the coming days, placement became a little less challenging for the volunteers, as we became more familiar with what to expect when we walked into the classroom, and what methods work best to educate and entertain the children. Fortunately, Arun, the Camp Manager is a very understanding, and those who felt that their project area was a bit much, were free to swap to an area that was less confronting. As happy as we were for the working week to be over, we remain focused and determined to meet next week’s challenges head on.
As the old saying goes, there is no rest for the wicked. If that is the case, then the Antips volunteering crew must be very wicked indeed! Our first weekend in Goa has been filled with sight-seeing and adventure. Every Friday, we only have placement in the mornings. Rather than plan a weekend away, we opted for day-trips here and there. After lunch, one of the drivers took us to the Mapusa Market, which is quite renowned and only occurs once a week. For those of us who went straight to camp on arrival, and didn't travel the country beforehand, this was our first taste of ‘the real India’.
Walking between stalls, shopkeepers would call out to us. If we tried to ignore them, they would run out and grab your arm and try to bring you back to look at their wares. Haggling wasn’t as fun as it is in Colva; the merchants would become visibly frustrated when we tried to pay a lower price. A particularly persistent shopkeeper actually waited for almost an hour outside of a café that we stopped in, he must’ve been so desperate for a sale! Needless to say, we were relieved to find our driver had arrived fifteen minutes ahead of schedule to pick us up.
It was dinner-time when we returned to the camp. The camp staff has set up tables outside, lit a bonfire, and we dined on Western-style food (pizza!) by candlelight. It was so beautiful, and a lovely opportunity for us to get to know the other international volunteers at the camp, and wind-down after a stressful week.
On Saturday, the Camp had planned a day of sight-seeing for the volunteers. After breakfast, we left for a Spice Plantation where we learned about the produce grown here in Goa, their natural properties, and even got to dine on them for lunch. Afterwards we rode on elephants, and the girls got to get into the river and wash the elephant. The highlight was getting to climb on top of it, and getting sprayed. It’s a once in a lifetime experience and I definitely recommend going for it if ever you get the opportunity. We then went to Panjim, Goa’s capital, and went shopping for a couple of hours, before setting off on a boat cruise. Despite being exhausted from a big day, everyone got up and danced on the cruise and we made some new friends as the locals shimmied over to show us some local dance moves!
It goes without saying we had a bit of a late one on Saturday, but that didn’t stop us from getting up at the crack of dawn to go to the Dudhsagar Falls. We took the train out to Kulem (a bargain at only seven rupees), which is about an hour East of Majorda. From there, we all jumped in a four-wheel drive which took us to the waterfall. We were exhausted, hot, and hungry (for missing breakfast); but all that was soon forgotten when we reached the pool at the bottom of the falls. Unlike the ocean, the water here was cool and refreshing. We frolicked and played in the water for as long as we could, before we had to head back to our driver.
When we returned to camp mid-afternoon, and took it easy and lounged about the Recreation Room watching movies. Finally, we granted ourselves a well-deserved rest.. And started to plan our adventures for next weekend
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