Fiji

I had my first experience with Projects Abroad in June 2015, and it won't be my last! I chose to volunteer with the Shark Conservation project in Pacific Harbour, Fiji for three weeks. I had such a great experience that I almost extended my trip one more week. This was my first trip outside of the U.S. so I wasn't sure what to expect, but the staff and other volunteers were very welcoming and I slipped into the routine in no time. The staff was friendly and very knowledgeable. I extremely enjoyed the presentations they each gave about sharks, tagging, macrolife, and mangroves. They were all very involved, really care about the work they are doing, and are excited to share it with the volunteers. Every day the schedule was posted for the next day so I was never confused about what I would be doing for the day. There was also a whole bookshelf full of study aids and also information packets which explained how to do each job. They held weekly meetings to discuss any changes and to give volunteers an opportunity to make suggestions.
All in all I thought the project was organized an run very well. I learned so much from the experience, and the work that they are doing there is really making a difference. Helping out the villages and spending time with the people there was such a valuable experience. I highly recommend this program!

Before arriving in Beqa I was nervous about being away by myself, however after meeting the staff and the other volunteers I felt at home right from the start, and they couldn't have made settling in easier. Although the camp was basic, it wasn't as basic as I was expecting, it did have a source of running water and a basic kitchen, along with I proper-ish toilet. The location of the project gives volunteers the opportunity to see a very different culture, where peoples lives are not focussed on working, but for doing jobs for each other. Camp itself is well run with a rota ensuring camp is clean and people are fed, although initially the thought of cooking for so many people seemed daunting, advice and suggestions are always at hand from ARO's and other volunteers who are happy to help. During the project I was involved with mapping the cove for where mangroves were present, and then started trying to establish what fish were present in the mangroves. Most mornings I went out with the marine conservationists where I was able to snorkel above them, as the water was so clear there is no shortage of things to see. While on camp I was able to learn the names of some of the fish present at the dive sights, this made it very rewarding when I found I was able to name a lot of the fish I saw. I had an amazing time on Beqa and would recommend it to anyone wanting to travel abroad.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in Fiji taking part in the Shark Conservation Programme. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect but everything has worked out really well! The camp is great and less basic than I thought it would be (although not on the beach which is what I, and other volunteers, had envisaged!). I have 2 days left on Beqa however wish I was staying longer! I would highly recommend anyone thinking of applying to the Shark/Marine project in Fiji to come for at least 1 month minimum! I have done almost everything I have wanted to do whilst being here, besides being able to complete fish surveys myself, however I have gained lots of knowledge on how to complete fish surveys and enjoyed being a physical surveyor. Despite not being a fish surveyor myself I learned lots of new species and was able to identify most of them whilst diving. As my project was Shark Conservation I loved diving and seeing sharks almost every dive! And thoroughly enjoyed the shark presentations given to me by one of the ARO's (Katy, shark enthusiast, who taught me loads!). In all honesty she has made the shark project so great, and without her I am not sure the new volunteers will gain as much from the project as I have. I have been slightly disappointed with the amount of shark activities actually included in the project. I did an amazing shark dive with the local resort (saw a 5m tiger shark - wow!!!) however was disappointed to find out it was not included in the project and I had to pay extra to do it. The Shark Conservation project is more expensive than the Marine Conservation one however I do not feel this is completely justified as the only difference in the projects is the shark presentations and the shark tagging. I am disappointed it is only in my last week I will be able to go out on the shark tagging boat as I thought this would be a major part of my project. I will probably not be able to tag the sharks myself due to lack of experience (which could have been avoided by me going out earlier in my month on Beqa!) which again is disappointing. I am also slightly irritated by the fact one of the Marine volunteers is going to take part in the shark tagging, as I feel it should be something project specific, especially as I am paying more for the Shark project. I really enjoyed interacting with the local villages and the school in Ravi Ravi! I feel the presentations we did to a class at the school could be arranged more often as the pupils gained a lot from it, as did us volunteers! Camp life is great with lots of diving and time in the afternoons/evenings to explore the local beaches/chill out/play card games/do whatever you want! The rota system works really well, with everyone doing their part to keep the camp running! The presentations that started in my second week have been great! I have learnt a lot from them and the staff and will go away with more knowledge of the Marine world than I came with, especially about sharks and the importance of their conservation! (Thanks Katy!) The original organisation of my project was quite difficult to organise, with communication with the London office being hard and being told different things by different members of staff. During my interview I was told the only dive gear I would need would be a wetsuit and dive computer, however once I paid for the project a much longer kit list came through! I found this very cheeky as the extra kit not mentioned in my interview was very expensive! This should definitely be mentioned in the interview as it may change whether people can afford the project or not. Mala and his family (the family who own the land our camp is based on) have added a lot to my experience on Beqa. They have been extremely welcoming and have given us new opportunities to do whilst on Beqa, such as going to the sandbar for the day! Allie the dive officer is great and made completing my advanced PADI very fun and easy! She runs the diving side of the projects so well, ensuring everyone gets lots of diving in each week, whilst making sure everyone is comfortable and safe. Julie, the PI, is great too. She made sure I felt welcome and settled in okay! The AROs are also great, basically all the staff are fab and add to the whole experience! It is a shame some aspects of the project are limited by budgets (such as the food accessible on the resupply and being able to go out in the boat for fundives in spare time because of the cost of fuel) since all the volunteers are paying a large sum of money to be here! Overall I have got a lot from my time on the project and would recommend it to anyone who is thinking of signing up!

Before coming to Fiji communication with London HQ was slightly challenging as responses were very slow. Some specifics were also sent rather late, and as i was already in New Zealand there was very little I could do to make adjustments. On arriving in Fiji the entire process of getting to Beqa Island was smoother and easier than i could have imagined thanks to Brittany's guidance. On arriving, whilst the camp was further from the beach than expected, I immediately felt welcome and everyone was very welcoming. The food was better than expected and the diving so spectacular. My confidence in the water has grown immensely along with my love for the ocean. There have been some frustrating days due to rain, and the amount of free time was definitely not clearly shown in advertising. There has also been some confusion over where exactly money goes, and also as to the exact scientific direction of the project, but the awesome staff Allie and Julia have done their best to clear these issues up. Overall an amazing experience if you love the sea and are after some isolation.

Having spent the last couple of months on this project I can honestly say it has been one of the best and most rewarding experiences of my life. The location of the project is fantastic, a remote Fijian Island covered in rainforest and surrounded by beautiful beaches and mangrove forests, the chance to mix with the locals and get a real feel for Fijian culture. The camp life is basic but is a welcome relief from city life and is what traveling and project work like this is all about. Getting to eat local food direct from the land was fantastic and being able to cook as a group was great and a real bonding activity. The people you live with on this camp become your best friends and you get to experience so much together.

The project itself if fantastic, the team are working really hard to survey the reefs in the area to see how healthy they are and are working with loads of important scientists and the local community to actually put their findings to good use. Diving on the reefs and helping to collect this data was so rewarding, knowing you're contributing to such a great cause. The actual diving was amazing, the water is so clear, the coral was so colourful and covered the sea floor and the fish were out of this world, 1000's of them, all different colours, shapes and sizes! Learning to dive in on the project was great and I cant wait to carry it on when I get back home. We also saw many sharks and even a turtle on the project and got the chance to collect data to help in their conservation, the great Fiji shark count was also going on while I was there and our sightings of the sharks were going towards this project as well.

I can't recommend this project enough and look forward to coming back again soon! If you want to experience real Fijian culture, dive some of the mot amazing sites in Fiji, make friends for life and contribute to a project that is really helping marine life and the environment then you should chose this one!

I spent 8 weeks on the beautiful Beqa Island where I was given the opportunity to improve both my diving and survey methodology skills. I plan on studying to become a marine biologist this autumn, and consequently I loved being given the opportunity as an intern to create my own invertebrate survey which has now become a regular part of surveying. I also thoroughly enjoyed helping to collect information about mangroves in the area which we used to make a series of blogs and an accompanying video about Frontiers collaboration with WWF. Doing these things helped to feel like I was really able to make a difference. I loved spending time with our resident Fijian family, it gave the kind of cultural experience you wouldn't get through a package tour company. I also surprisingly enjoyed living a more basic life. Having limited luxuries made them feel so much more valuable when I got back to the mainland.

I would reccomend people bring a solar panel, as i liked to have some sort of contact with the outside world, and electricity is very hard to come by. The staff were great and did their best when power was limited. The three AROs deserve special mention for helping me learn all the fish species, reassuring me when I thought my diving was rubbish and generally keeping morale up with extra activities such as movies. Their planned trip to the gorgeous sandbar was also a highlight of my visit.

My only complaint worth mentioning is there is still a slightly neglected feel to the project. At times I felt like london wasn't interested in us. If a bit of money could be freed up to help with things like proper chairs (lugging tanks up and down a hill kills your back) and making said hill safe to navigate after rainy weather (an urgent problem), instead of putting extra costs on those of us who already paid a lot to be there, then I think morale at camp could be sky high.

That said, I truly enjoyed my time on the project and after only one day from camp I find I miss nearly everything about it (especially the people). I would definitely recommend to others, and would definitely return to Beqa if I ever have money again.

The Fiji Shark Conservation project was the most amazing experience I have ever had. When I arrived in Fiji I felt instantly welcome and at home. The volunteers are extremely friendly and helpful and the staff are too! The staff explain all tasks thoroughly and explain the reasons behind performing the task and how it contributes to the overall project as well. The staff made me feel comfortable asking questions and were extremely knowledgeable on all parts of the project.

Since I had just learned to dive I wasn't completely comfortable with all aspects of diving under the water just yet, but the staff helped me on my first few survey dives and I learned to be completely self sufficient under the water (although you will always have a dive buddy).

The accommodation was homey and a nice place to hang out with other volunteers after a long day of work or diving. The other volunteers were always so friendly and it was nice to just relax and get to know each other at the end of the day.

Overall, my Projects Abroad experience - from sending my application to staying in Fiji and then to returning home - was great. The staff were helpful every step along the way and the volunteers were very supportive too. I would recommend this project to anyone passionate about ocean conservation and helping save our planet.

I think I need say little else other than, as I'm planning on returning to Fiji in the hopefully very, very near future, it was a pretty fantastic experience; however I do in fact have heaps more to say on the matter as I adored EVERYTHING about my time there!

I took part in the teaching project: originally TEFL, though after speaking to the headmistress of my assigned school at our introductory meeting, I was given the opportunity to teach my preferred subjects - a huge boon for me as an aspiring secondary school history teacher, as I was able to garner invaluable subject-specific experience, rather than just the classroom experience I had bargained on.
I, along with my fellow teaching volunteers, was placed in a Methodist primary school in the heart of the capital Suva, just a short walk from our home stay. I was assigned to Master Pau and his yr 8. class (the education system works a little differently and primary goes up to yr 8, and the students then move on to college for the equivalent of their GCSEs and A Levels) and taught social science, health science and creative writing to a wonderful bunch of interested, engaging, amiable students ... plus a handful of cheeky ones, of course! My teacher was fantastic, gave me full control of lesson planning and delivery, but was also hugely supportive with supplying curricular material, and a significant source of knowledge on the history of the Fijian education system as well as the students personal education histories which was hugely helpful to myself; was always happy to answer my many questions, and we swapped information and stories about our differing experiences as students and trainee teachers in the times when I wasn't stood in front of the blackboard - he even bought me lunch on my first day! A typical Fijian - friendly, welcoming and oh so charming - as were all the staff, who in no short order popped their heads into my classroom to introduce themselves (and offer me lesson time in their own classrooms!) We, the volunteers, were included in all the schools social events from recess coffee and cake mornings to Friday night after school kava and lovo (the traditional food and drink), and a huge fuss was made of us with both welcoming ceremonies and leaving parties; I felt my time there was hugely worthwhile, both staff and students were hugely grateful, and I saw a real improvement in my class during my time with them, both academically and confidence wise (as they were a tad shy to begin with).
We were also welcomed to join in on extracurricular activities, and so I joined Master Vili in coaching the under-11 rugby boys, training with them after school, and accompanying them to their Saturday tournaments to scream and shout with their proud parents on the sidelines!

If the school placement experience was exceptional, then the home stay one was out of this world! I had a bed at the main home stay on Brown St with several other volunteers, the in-field project co-ordinator (who need mention as she was both a fantastic support as mentor, and fun cohort and friend for evening and weekend activities and adventures). Staying with the Sokosoko family - now my Fijian, or second family, 68 Brown St truly became a home away from home - I had oh so many wonderful experiences with this family. The entire clan (of which there were many) were so warm and oh so welcoming: from head of the household Master, who sat around around drinking grog and wine with us till the early hours many a Friday night, teaching us to dance/ward off unwelcome partners Fijian style, to two-year old Lote who'd toddle up the driveway every weekday afternoon to great us from school with a big hug and drag us into whatever mischief her and her siblings and cousins were up to that day! From the youngest to the oldest we interacted with all, and I have a plethora of happy memories from my time, including racing around having water pistol fights to cool off in the heat with my darling Charles, Minnie, Ba and Andi; and nights out with my Fijian sisters spent dancing till dawn! My time here, just a month, I warn, was far too short, but so well spent, and I can't recommend the project highly enough!

I volunteered in Fiji for 6 weeks and it was the best thing I've done. Prior to my journey, Frontier were helpful and efficient in answering any queries I had via email. They also held a briefing weekend which gave me a further opportunity to ask any questions, find out how to prepare for my project, and meet other volunteers. Overall, I was really impressed with the way Frontier helped to make me feel prepared for my project their quick responses to my emails. I also had various emails from the Project Coordinator who was in Fiji at the time, who explained what would happen when I arrived in the country. This made me feel at ease as I knew who I was meeting and where. The online area was also a great way to view and share important documents or information.

From the moment I arrived in Fiji, the Frontier Staff (particularly the Project Coordinator) made me feel at ease. The homestay was pretty basic, but I loved it like I loved my own home. Every evening we would come home to a home-made meal, from chicken noodle soup to vegetable curry. The Frontier volunteers had their own area, and there was also a shared communal area – The Mango Bar - which brought the volunteers and family together. The home stay family were so welcoming and staying with them was one of my highlights of being in Fiji.

My project coordinator was amazing – friendly, informative and hilarious. She would always be there to answer any questions or concerns I had, and would always do what she could to make me feel at home. She knew Fiji so well and, although she’d only been there for the same time as me, she always gave advice on the best places to visit. If I had any issues I would never hesitate to let her know, and I know she would always provide a fair solution.

The other volunteers were fantastic and we got on really well. The children at my school were amazing and so grateful to have you there. The project gives you so much freedom to teach, you have plenty of teaching time and can pretty much plan whatever you please. I got the opportunity to each at least 2-3 hours a day.

I can’t stress how much I loved my time in Fiji. I would definitely recommend this project for any budding teachers!