At Budget Travel, we’ve been telling you about volunteer vacations for years. These are the trips where you donate your time to helping out on local community projects like teaching English, repairing schools, and renovating health clinics. Nowadays, organizations make sure they are welcome by the locals, and work in coordination with them to form true bonds while avoiding patronizing “neo-colonial” attitudes towards whom they are helping. It’s a great way to delve deeply into a country very quickly, and volunteers rave about their experiences afterwards, saying it was their best vacation ever. advertisement
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Africa, the poorest of continents, has long been a focus of aid efforts, and with the scourge of AIDS and economic hardship, not to mention the friendliness of its peoples, it’s a natural location to spend a volunteer vacation. So why just look after your own tan hide this vacation? Step out and try something different, and who knows? You may just make the world a better place at the same time. Here is a round-up of 2004 African volunteer vacation offerings from three top U.S. organizations specializing in these types of trips: Cross-Cultural Solutions (800/380-4777, www.crossculturalsolutions.org) offers 14 year-round programs entirely run by the host communities. Based in New York, Cross-Cultural Solutions has centers in ten countries and expects to send at least 1,500 volunteers to destinations around the globe this year—nearly double the 854 who participated in its programs a year ago, says executive director Steve Rosenthal. “Last year Latin America was big for us, but now we’ve seen a huge surge in interest for our Africa programs. I think people are venturing farther a field, I think that’s why Africa is so popular. In fact, we have opened up extra sites in both Ghana (in West Africa) and Tanzania (in East Africa) opening this summer, that’s how popular our African programs are becoming.” Their two-week programs in Africa cost $2,175 including food, lodging, and in-country transportation. The bases are comfortable and clean lodges where programs on local culture and language take place so the volunteers understand who they are helping.  | Courtesy of Cross-Cultural Solutions A Cross-Cultural Solutions volunteer at her placement working with children in Ghana, where Cross-Cultural Solutions operates one of its 17 programs around the world
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In Ghana, Cross-Cultural Solutions' home base is in the Volta region, the area between the coast and Lake Volta, the largest manmade lake in the world. With its large urban areas, small fishing villages and rural farming, the Volta Region is home to many different Ghanaian people and traditions. Visiting the Volta Region, you will travel down red dirt roads with the lush green of palm trees all around. The program has great flexibility, and you can volunteer in schools or clinics, work with local business owners, or record oral histories. In their free time, many volunteers hang out with the locals, play and visit; or take excursions and ecological tours to the Kakum National Park or the Atorkor Slave Memorial Park.The 2004 dates for the Ghana program are Apr. 24, May 22, July 17, Aug. 14, Sept. 11, Oct. 9, Nov. 6, and Dec. 4. In Tanzania, Cross Cultural Solutions run similar programs in Moshi, located at the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro. The area is full of waterfalls, coffee plantations and banana fields attracting visitors both for its beauty and its spirit. Moshi town is refreshingly open and spacious, with tree-lined roads and flowery and leafy suburbs. With a population of just over 200,000 people, its relaxed feeling is very attractive to mountain climbers and many other visitors. Volunteer opportunities include teaching English to women's groups, working with children at orphanages (many of whom lost parents to HIV/AIDS), or working with students with disabilities. When not working, many volunteers choose to go on safari to the many national parks in the area or visit Mount Kilimanjaro. You may also want to hike to the nearby Mount Meru, where you are sure to see giraffes, zebras and other exotic wildlife. The 2004 start dates for the Tanzania two-week trips are Apr. 24, May 22, May 29, Jun. 26, Jul. 17, Jul. 24, Aug. 14, Sept. 11, Oct. 2, Oct. 30, Nov. 20, and Dec. 11. There are also three-week African volunteer opportunities for vacationers who have the time to spare. Global Citizens Network (800/644-9292, www.globalcitizens.org) emphasizes global understanding and the preservation of indigenous cultures, traditions, and ecologies. The organization is also experiencing an increase overall in people signing up for volunteer programs. Global Citizens’ Tanzania volunteer trip works with a local Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church that covers the Mwanga and Same political regions and encompasses approximately 83 villages and 370,000 people. It is the largest and poorest region in Tanzania. In the flatlands there is little or no water at some times and flooding at others, with much soil degradation. Volunteer possibilities in the area include irrigation projects, health center or school construction, reforestation, and many more. They are also running exploratory trips this year to learn about new volunteer program opportunities. The team will stay primarily in the bishop's guesthouse and/or a nearby hostel in Same, although they may spend a couple of nights in one or more of the villages. Meals will be prepared by the cooking staff at either location. And it’s not all work: You’ll have the opportunity (for additional cost) to go on a two to three day safari at the end of the trip. Several famous game reserves are within easy reach, including Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater, and the Serengeti. Also nearby are the Usambara Mountains, original home of the African Violet. The 2004 dates are from June 24 to July 15, and the cost for the entire time $1,650 per person. Global Citizens Network’s Kenya trip happens from July 8 to 29, and Aug. 5 to 26. The cost for these trips are $1,950 per person. Citizens Network has been sending volunteers to Kenya since July 1993, when its first site was established in a small village called Charuru. Currently, Citizens Network has two sites in Kenya; one is in Taracha Village, located in the western highlands, a small farming community of about 3,000 people, where it has been sending volunteers to this community since June 1998 to help construct a health clinic. In April of 2000, the clinic was completed, but the teams have since been working on much needed renovations to the local school. Its other Kenya site is in Rombo, located at the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro, a small Maasai community of about 1,000 families. Citizens Network has been invited by the community to assist with the construction of a health clinic there too. And lastly, Minnesota-based Global Volunteers (800/487-1074, www.globalvolunteers.org) plans to send nearly 1,700 travelers on volunteer vacations this year. Global Volunteers is a well-established organization that responds to volunteer requests by local communities for human and economic development. It also runs programs in both Ghana and Tanzania. | During free time you can visit several colonial "castles" used as slave fortresses that dot the Cape Coast. It is a powerful and moving experience.
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Volunteers on their Ghana trip assist with education, health care and community infrastructure. Volunteers may teach elementary- and secondary-school subjects such as English, basic sciences and math or assist at a vocational school where women ages 18 to 25 learn catering, nutrition and home management. Virtually any native English speaker can assist with English classes. And if you have an area of expertise in science or math and you can explain concepts to elementary- and secondary-age students, then you can help as well. During free time you can visit several colonial "castles" used as slave fortresses that dot the Cape Coast. It is a powerful and moving experience. The two-week cost of the Ghana trips are $2,250 (if booked over their web site – other bookings are $100 higher), and the 2004 dates for the programs are Jun. 13, Jul. 11, Aug. 8, Sept. 19, Oct. 10, and Nov 7.In Tanzania, Global Volunteers offers three-week programs that cost even less - $2,285 (again, if booked through their web site). Volunteers work on village development projects including teaching, building classrooms and dormitories, and supplying books and other school materials. You’ll work alongside local teachers and students during the school year in remote partner communities. The 2004 dates for these trips are Jun. 20, Jul. 11, Aug. 1, Sept. 12, and Oct. 3. No matter what project you choose, you are sure to gain a much deeper understanding and appreciation for the places you’re visiting than if you stayed at a hotel and sipped mai tais by the pool. And that glow about you may not be a tan, but something a lot more meaningful. Copyright © 2004 Newsweek Budget Travel, Inc. |  | Cape Town capers |
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