Olivia Higginson is writing a great blog about her time volunteering in Kerala, India for 3 months, below are some excerpts from her blog describing her first couple of days and adjusting to life in an Indian fishing community… So have spent 2 nights with my new family. Where to start? (more…)
Tag Archives | culture
A day in the life: Thailand Project
“Get involved with the culture and take every opportunity that comes your way as not only does it combat homesickness, it will create memories to make this one of the greatest experiences of your life!” Katie Desmond and Stacey Smail, Volunteers in Thailand 2012
Student Leader Diary – Thailand 2012 – The Land of Smiles
James Hallworth was selected as a Student Leader for one of the two Thailand projects that VESL ran at Edgehill University this year, here he reflects on his time overseas and the challenges he faced. I was very nervous about taking this role due to having no previous management experience. Looking back, I am so […]
Student Leader Diary – India 2012
For the next five weeks I am a Student Leader for the volunteers that are in India this summer, my next couple of blog posts will reflect on this role and my time in India. Arrival in India My first week in India has finished all too quickly and it has been an amazing, busy week! […]
Tips for Hand Washing Your Clothes
Washing your clothes while overseas can be an interesting experience. In my host family, watching me hand wash my clothes was something they found totally hilarious. No matter how many times I did it, and how many lessons I had, I never seemed to quite match up to their standards! These are some tips that […]
5 Things to See and Do in Chiang Rai, Thailand
Following on from our blog on what to see and do in Kerala – we didn’t want our Thailand volunteers to feel left out, so we got in contact with some of our past volunteers and have put together a list of top things to do in Thailand – after all you will want to […]
VESL’s visit to Sri Lanka 2012
Arriving in Sri Lanka I arrived in Sri Lanka half asleep in the afternoon, I was expecting the chaos that greeted me when I first arrived in India (hundreds of people pushing and shoving to complete forms and get through immigration) but arriving in Sri Lanka was unbelievably calm, I queued for immigration and was through […]
How time flies… [Volunteer Journal]
Lucy Allcock is a student from Edgehill University and she is a volunteer in one of the Student Leadership Programme teams from Edgehill. Lucy has completed her first week in India, here she enlightens you all on how the time has flown by and what an amazing time she has had so far… Wow! It’s […]
How do I communicate with home when I am overseas?
Going overseas can be quite daunting especially if it is your first time overseas without friends or family. There are lots of different ways to stay in contact with your nearest and dearest so here are a couple of suggestions! Phone Mobile phone is obviously the easiest way to communicate whilst abroad, however not with […]
Ten Tips On Staying Safe Overseas
A lot of people worry about safety overseas, so here is a collection of advice to help you stay safe and assure you there is no need to panic! 1. Money belt 2. Large sums of money It is often easier to take large sums of money out of an ATM because a) you don’t […]
VESL Volunteer Featured in Gap Year Travel Guide
Alex Quinn has been featured in a 2012 Gap Year Travel Guide… Alex is one of our long term volunteers in Northern Thailand on an 11 month project that began in Autumn 2011. Alex has been teaching English in a local primary school and also supports a special needs school near Chiang Rai. In […]
Bargaining
A normal part of daily life In many places bargaining is a normal part of daily life but it can be hard for foreigners to get used to. It’s difficult to get over the feeling that you’re being rude or that you might insult someone, however, bargaining is the usual medium of exchange and people […]
How To Eat With Your Hands
In some countries (like Sri Lanka and India) you might be expected to eat with your hands. Sometimes in these countries a knife and fork (or more usually, a fork and spoon) will be provided for you but often, it’s just you and your fingers… and don’t forget – your hosts (and those around you) […]
Gifts For Your Host Family
I’ve stayed with lots of people whilst volunteering in India and in Sri Lanka and I’ve always found it difficult to buy gifts for people. What exactly is an appropriate gift?
