International Volunteering changed my life. Morocco was incredible, the staff was wonderful - and made me want to volunteer again, so while in Morocco, I chose Peru while I was there. I was awed by the staff, and how everytime I had a question they dropped everything to help me out. I was very impressed with the experience and I felt I changed as the week went on. I was only in Morocco for a week and only in Ayacucho for a week, but the week was incredible. It helps a lot when the company goes out of their way to help you constantly. I always felt extremely supported by the CCS staff, and international volunteering was just a life altering experience. I remember every single one of the children at the orphanage in Morocco and how happy they seemed to have you around, and I was remember every experinece I had in Ayacucho. Such big hearts and such big smiles.
Cross-Cultural Solutions
As an international volunteer with Cross-Cultural Solutions, you're making a meaningful contribution, working side-by-side with local people and sharing in the goals of a community that warmly welcomes you. You're experiencing another culture like never before and really getting to know its people. You'll gain new perspectives and insight into the culture and yourself. It's an exciting and personally inspiring experience, and you'll develop memories that will be with you forever.
I choose this organization after researching other options and it seemed to offer the most support before and during the volunteer experience. All of my expectations were met. Before my trip, CCS was very helpful and provided support for planning. In country, the staff was wonderful: friendly, informative, helpful. Transportation was always provided (airport, to placements, and on field trips) and we were given an excellent orientation to local transportation for use during free time. In contrast to some othe postings, in Yaroslavl the placements are thrilled to have volunteers, and the in-country staff assist with placement planning so that I always knew what I would be doing and why. I volunteered for almost all day, every day (with the exception of a weekly field trip one afternoon each week). The impact of the volunteers in Russia is significant as the volunteers are literally the only visitors some of the placement clients/patients have.
I traveled to St. Petersburg with another volunteer over the weekend and that was a great trip.
I encourage volunteers to go for at least two weeks. It takes one week to accomodate to the time change and the language change.
Volunteered in Bangkok with CCS. Much more expensive than other similar companies, but they offer much more hand holding and have excellent orientation programs, so if this is new for you it may be worth the extra money. You are housed in a compound with other volunteers rather than staying with locals, although the staff are local.
I had two negative issues with the program. First, it didn't feel like we were really accomplishing anything. I was there two weeks and in that time was only scheduled to volunteer for 8 days out of 14, and only for about 2 1/2 hours a day. My placement was a day care that was well staffed and we were just sort of there. Once a day they would ask us to read a story to the kids, but that was about it. It felt more like we were the ones being baby sat. (Part of this was admittedly due to my limited time in country-- the more involved placements require longer stays.)
My second issue with the program was most of the volunteers seemed to be there more to experience the Bangkok scene than to actually do any volunteering good. Placements were frequently forsaken due to hangovers and late nights out. That fault is on the volunteers, not CCS, but it did kind of seem like the program was "dumbed down" and volunteering hours limited to accommodate other volunteers misplaced priorities.
All in all the program was very well organized, if maybe overly so, and the staff were great, but I left with a pretty empty and detached feeling. I had previously volunteered in Uganda for 2 weeks with Global Volunteer Network and, despite the similarly-limited time there, I left feeling much more connected with the people/culture and like I had made a difference with them (and they with me). With CCS I just left wondering why I had bothered. And considering that for my 2 week program GVN cost about $600 while CCS cost nearly $3000, it seems like I could have found better uses for my money.
Comments
In September 2006 I volunteered with CCS in Salvador, Brazil. Everything about the CCS program exceeded my expectations. I was thinking about volunteering abroad for quite some time and had contacted quite a few international volunteer organizations. Although they were all friendly and somewhat informative they left me feeling uncomfortable about make the decision to go to a country I have never been too and volunteer. I was actually re-considering volunteering in another country because of this. This was until I spoke with a very intelligent, informative, and friendly enrollment manager by the name of Brooke at Cross-Cultural Solutions. She not only answered all of my questions but furthermore me feel extremely comfortable about the CCS program and staying in a country that I have never been too, let alone volunteered in. She also never pressured me to "sign up" like other organizations did. After hanging up the phone it took me little time to make the decision the CCS was the right organization for me. As the time got closer to my trip, CCS prepared me with all the necessary information about the volunteer placement program that I choose and the country I was staying in. They informed me on everything from safety issues to local customs and were always there to answer any questions I had.
When I finally arrived at the CCS home base I found that everyone from the van drivers to the kitchen staff to the security personal to the Capoeira instructor to the Country Director Grace was kind, informative, and always there to help with any questions or issues I had. I also feel that CCS did a great job in balancing volunteer time and cultural activities. I knew that I would be volunteering which is why I signed up but I was not aware with just how much cultural activities we would be doing. From local tours of the community to having a local professor come in and speak about Brazil. It added a more profound and fulfilling experience as I left with a better understanding of Brazil's rich history and culture.
Even after I sadly arrived back home they kept in touch with me and asked what feedback I had about my experience. That shows to me that they are truly an organization that cares about what they do and are always looking for improvement. Their Alumni Director Quinn is still in contact with me and does a great job in keeping me informed about the latest CCS is doing.
Overall, CCS has a dedicated, loyal, informative, and intelligent staff. I whole-heartedly and comfortably encourage and recommend CCS to anyone who is looking for a life changing volunteer experience. My time with CCS literally changed my life and the only regret I have about the whole experience is that I was only able to go for 2 weeks. I still to this day, nearly 3 years later keep in touch with the people I volunteered with and know I will for the rest of my life.
I was there for 8 weeks and had a blast. They had a great house for all the volunteers, great placements where I felt I really made a difference and I made tons of awesome friends. We had plenty of time to travel on weekends and even see Salvador in the afternoons. I loved my experience and would recommend it to anyone.
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