Nepal

Namaste dear volunteers,
before I start to give you a review about this program, I want to introduce myself and I want to tell you what I have done here in Nepal. My Name is Nikolas and Im 18 years old, I choosed a volunteering program for 5 month as a teacher in a school near by Pokhara. All in all I can say that I had a wonderfull time here. If you decide to come to this country, you need to bring some skills. Above all, it is important that you are flexible, from now on a plan can change completely at the time. You should be able to improvise anyway. Nepal is a beautiful but poor country. So do not try to enter with high standards. Get involved with the country and the culture and you will enjoy it. Of course you will not only experience beautiful things here, like me, but that is part of it. All I can say is that the beautiful things that I have experienced here surpass all other negative experiences. The organization on site was okay. Not the best, but not the worst. I'm writing this so that you get an idea of it.

I spent a week volunteering in the Everest region (3 hrs from Lukla airport) teaching at a school and a monastery. The teaching of English and Maths to the novice monks was very satisfying; they were well motivated and very willing to help me and each other. The subject matter was relatively basic so anyone with reasonable school English and Maths would be able to help. I stayed at a teahouse/guesthouse, around a 90 mins climb to the monastery although closer accommodation could be arranged including at the monastery itself.
After the teaching I trekked to Everest Basecamp for 2 weeks. RCDP arranged both the volunteering and the trek which progressed seamlessly.
I would recommend this programme and RCDP represent excellent value for money.

At my age 70....I always wanted to do some volunteer work and ABV USA looked to me as a good organization and Nepal did sound as a very interesting location with many needs, I traveled with 2 of my best friends from NYC. The orientation day 1 was provided with information about the program places to go, and ways to go. I got a cell phone from the country and eat lunch at a local restaurant, orientation was good by the local coordinator. I worked on the school in the morning and library in the afternoon, the school was challenging because there were physically disabled children in the same class with the regular children, but it was a very satisfying experience and heart warming to see how the able children help the disabled to get around the school. In the library was a lot of fun working with the children from the community different ages, loving, very polite. The host family was wonderful. I was happy that the coordinator was the head of the host family because he was there to help with any questions or concerns. The whole family was wonderful. Meals were good, I eat everything. Nepali food was delicious and I did not get sick from eating it. I am glad I went to Nepal, it was a very good experience.

I've been in Nepal for 4 weeks to do volunteers in the Hospital. Just after I arrived in Nepal I met all the staff and they explain everything to me in a easy way to understand. In my first day I was a little bit shocked of the environment because it was my first time in Asia but after few day I became used to it. In the Hospital in Kathmandu they are really used to have volunteers so they can speak good English and they will make you feel really comfortable. I really recommend this project to Medical student because they will teach you everything and you can try to do so on the next patient. In the Hospital they have enough equipment and staff so your help is not needed so maybe for full doctor I will recommend other project. Remember to bring your white apron because if you don't have one you can't stay in the Hospital. I decided to spend two weeks in Kathmandu and the other two weeks in the Hospital in Bharatpur (Chitwan). In Chitwan the Hospital is smaller but the main problem is that the doctors work there just as OPD so they spend just few hours in the Hospital and you don't have much time to speak with them. So ... during my stay there I spent almost all my time with the nurses who couldn't speak really good English so you must be ready to explain with hand gesture. They will try their best to make you feel at home, but if you have just few weeks I will suggest you to stay just in Kathmandu. In conclusion I must say that both Host family are really kind and helpful so you don't have to worry about anything. Come here !

As a nearly qualified dentist, I was curious about dentistry in other countries and wanted to experience a different side of dentistry. I also wanted to help at the need community with the skills I had. This experience was more than just the “Dental Volunteering” you sign up for. You are exposed to an honest view of the country that you would fail to meet if you were on the standard tourist trail. Personally, I found this experience humbling and it has motivated me to make charitable work a significant part of any life. I look forward to being back in Nepal sometime soon.