D-Day:

On 10 November 2019, I finally left for five weeks in Zanzibar for the More Africa project. Since I arrived in Zanzibar at night, I stayed in a hotel for the first “night,” and Ellen came to pick me up the next day. I really appreciated that Ellen came herself, because it just gives you peace of mind that everything is going smoothly. I also really liked that there was good contact with Ellen before my departure, and she helped with any questions I had. On the drive to the project, she already told me a few things about what to expect.

I found the support over the five weeks really great.

Tuesday was my first workday with the children. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, the toddlers came, and from Thursday to Saturday, the school-age children attended. I mainly focused on physiotherapy activities with the children, and with the school kids, I also helped with some writing exercises. I really enjoyed seeing how they worked with the children, as it was very different from what I was used to.

On Fridays, acrobats also came to spend an hour dancing and doing tricks with the children. It was so fun to watch because you could see the children really enjoying themselves. Every day we picked up the children around 8:30 am and returned them around 12:30 pm. After returning to the project, we would have something to eat and prepare for the next day. After that, you had free time until dinner, for example to go to the beach, which is a nice walk away.

I really appreciated the support during the five weeks, because if anything came up, you were well helped and things were sorted out properly. On the weekends, I had the freedom to do whatever I wanted, and if I wanted to go on an excursion, Ellen could arrange it. I really liked that she could organise that part, because it gave me peace of mind knowing everything was properly arranged.

You stay in the volunteer house, which is on the same grounds as the school for the children. On the same grounds, there’s also a guesthouse, a restaurant, and a swimming pool. I had five truly amazing weeks at this project, and I wouldn’t have missed it for anything.

So my advice if you’re hesitating is: just do it! How amazing is it to be able to support a project like this, because every bit of help is really needed.

- Romy