Tanzania

I volunteered at the Good Hope Orphanage in Arusha for 3 weeks and it was great!! The children are gorgeous and the support was great. There are many people staying at or connected to the orphanage that are happy to help with anything you might need and you end up feeling a part of the family :) Apart from working at the orphanage you can also teach or assist at the school which is alot of fun. Its a great way to see Tanzania in depth and by the end you wont want to leave. Amazing experience!!

My experience with Global Crossroads was generally positive. I stayed in Moshi for 12 weeks. First, Fatuma, Ally, and Deo, are the local hosts and are kind and knowledgeable. Fatuma, the house mother, cooks, cleans, and personally takes care of everyone. She had a large impact on my stay and is always bursting with happiness. Ally and Deo are the coordinators that organize the projects, arrange the first few days with new volunteers, and eat dinner with everyone about 5 times per week. However, they have a small personal role once the project is started. My project was at St. Joseph Hospital. Unfortunately, it took about an hour to get to and from the hospital every day. In addition, it changed my opinion about volunteering. The hospital does not need help. I gained medical exposure and shadowed many doctors, but often felt more of a burden than an aid. Staying 12 weeks was essential as it took about one month before I felt comfortable at the hospital. Unfortunately, I have a few negative notes about the organization. First, I am not sure how much of your fee actually makes it to Africa. The experience costs a lot and Global Crossroads is definitely a FOR PROFIT organization. Second, do not take a safari through the organization because you can hire local guides for significantly less when you are in Africa. Do not pay for the language/culture course because it is not very informative and you can learn more by going to a project instead. Lastly, I was not picked up at the airport when I arrived and was completely stranded for my first six hours in Africa. Thus, while I have little to say about the organization as a whole, the local staff in Africa made my experience life changing. Thank you.

I spent two months this summer in Tanzania at an NGO in Moshi, Give a Heart to Africa. (www.giveahearttoafrica.org) I taught English to adult men and women at this free school, which also offers business and computer classes to 40 students for 6-month-semesters. I had just retired from a teaching career in the USA of 30 years, and went to Africa for the first time. The students are so enthusiastic, eager, dedicated and grateful for the chance to learn. The NGO's vision is to help primarily women gain skills that will help them start a business in order to improve the quality of life and increase opportunities for success for their children and themselves. GHTA has a home where up to 6 volunteers can live; the classrooms are attached to the home, too, so it is very convenient for the teaching assignments. Each class has a basic curriculum and a Tanzanian translator. One of my former students has just assumed one of those spots in the English class after graduating, so her opportunity to use what she has learned began immediately. If you truly want to make an impact during your volunteer experience, I wholeheartedly recommend Give a Heart to Africa. The NGO is small, but 100% of your volunteer fees go directly to it, not to an umbrella organization. I absolutely loved living together in a home with volunteers from the USA, Italy, Spain, Canada, the UK, and New Zealand, each of whom had a strong desire to help improve the lives of local men and women through free education. The students always were so grateful for our help and expressed it. We were also invited to make home visits on Fridays--a favorite day of the week when we could spend time one-on-one with students in their own homes. Their generosity and hospitality was so genuine and joyful, and we were able to really get to know them. I taught four mornings a week, and we also had an after-school children's program for two hours twice a week in the afternoons. It allowed us to reach out into our neighborhood and connect with children for play, basic English conversation, and fun activities such as art and music. On clear days, you can see Mt. Kilimanjaro; it is a short walk into Moshi for the market, coffee houses, restaurants, and local shopping. You can also connect with public transportation for additional travel from Moshi. It is a perfect starting point for safari, national park visits, Zanzibar and Pemba trips either before or after your volunteer assignment. Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) is less than one hour from Moshi, so it is very convenient to GHTA. The 60 days I spent at Give a Heart to Africa changed my life in many ways, and I would return in a heartbeat! Check out the website!

I volunteered at the Good Hope orphanage in Arusha, Tanzania with a non-profit company called IFRE. My experience at the orphanage was incredible. The caregivers had prepared a room for me, they welcomed me with open arms and always made sure that I was well taken care of even though I was suppose to be there helping them. It was amazing to see how happy and loving they were even though some had little more than the shirt on their back. It was truly a humbling experience and I recommend it to everyone. I was happy that I used a volunteer company for my first experience in Africa because it provided me with the security and reassurance I needed. There was always someone there to help me. Someone picked me up from the airport, the bus station and dropped me off as well. The coordinator did all my paperwork to get a work permit, took me for a few tours around the city to familiarize myself, organized a safari for me, and even took me to the hospital when I wasn't feeling very well. My one complaint would be the amount of money it cost to volunteer with IFRE. It cost me $1200 for 3 weeks which I found to be quite excessive. And that was actually cheap compared to some other companies I researched. I understand why you need to pay to volunteer... to help the orphanage because they survive completely on donations. But what bothered me was how little money actually went to the orphanage. In future I will contact the place I want to volunteer directly and give them the full amount of money. The other thing that bugged me about IFRE is that it's the same company as Rustic and Global Crossroads, they just fail to mention it. When I looked at volunteer feedback about the companies I saw a lot of negative feedback about Global Crossroads so I wanted to stay clear of that company. Then later I realized to my dismay it was the same company, just another name. But again, I was happy in the end that I used them because the coordinator at IFRE and the coordinators at the orphanage were all absolutely amazing to me.

I volunteered at the Good Hope orphanage in Arusha, Tanzania with IFRE. My experience at the orphanage was incredible. The caregivers had prepared a room for me, they welcomed me with open arms and always made sure that I was well taken care of even though I was suppose to be there helping them. It was amazing to see how happy and loving they were even though some had little more than the shirt on their back. It was truly a humbling experience and I recommend it to everyone. I was happy that I used a volunteer company for my first experience in Africa because it provided me with the security and reassurance I needed. There was always someone there to help me. Someone picked me up from the airport, the bus station and dropped me off as well. The coordinator did all my paperwork to get a work permit, took me for a few tours around the city to familiarize myself, organized a safari for me, and even took me to the hospital when I wasn't feeling very well. My one complaint would be the amount of money it cost to volunteer with IFRE. It cost me $1200 for 3 weeks which I found to be quite excessive. And that was actually cheap compared to some other companies I researched. I understand why you need to pay to volunteer... to help the orphanage because they survive completely on donations. But what bothered me was how little money actually went to the orphanage. In future I will contact the place I want to volunteer directly and give them the full amount of money. The other thing that bugged me about IFRE is that it's the same company as Rustic and Global Crossroads, they just fail to mention it. When I looked at volunteer feedback about the companies I saw a lot of negative feedback about Global Crossroads so I wanted to stay clear of that company. Then later I realized to my dismay it was the same company, just another name. But again, I was happy in the end that I used them because the coordinator at IFRE and the coordinators at the orphanage were all absolutely amazing to me.

I went through TVE when I volunteered in a maternity clinic in Arusha. I highly recommend them if you are planning on volunteering in Arusha. Right from the moment I arrived off the airport until I returned I enjoyed it.

In February 2009 at age 66 I made my first trip to Africa and luckily, I chose to partner with Cross Cultural Solutions. I can say without reservation that it was, indeed, a peak experience and the best 3 week ‘vacation” of my adult life. It was a perfect combination of living in a college dorm, being at camp and experiencing a new culture with its many challenges and immeasurable rewards. The accommodations at the Moshi homebase were more than adequate, including an endless supply of bottled water. Better than a college dorm or camp, our room was cleaned daily, all meals included fresh fruits and vegetables and a hot dish, and the staff were friendly and responsive. Aside from helping with transportation and adjustments to the volunteer placement, they were available to give directions into town, help in connecting with reliable taxi drivers, ensuring personal safety in many ways and just to chat about whatever was on my mind. It was delightful to spend time with the younger generation. They kept my mind and my body active and inspired me with their dedication to volunteer service. My roommates shared their hairdryers and other essentials wit me, invited me to join them during social occasions, acquainted me with the internet cafes and encouraged me on the long day hike up Kilimanjaro. During my placement with Mawenzi Regional Hospital, I was paired with a young nurse from Canada. It was nice on our walks home to stop for coffee and debrief about the almost overwhelming differences in medical delivery and resources available in Tanzania. We became friends through this experience and still keep in touch today. After our morning placements, the group gathered for Swahili lessons or other cultural experiences arranged by the staff. In the late afternoons and evenings, we were free to relax or enjoy an opportunity of playing with kids at a local orphanage. This was definitely a highlight for me as well as many others. The infectious smiles of the children and the sense of family at the orphanage just grabbed my heart. You could not help but fall in love with them. As you can tell, I am crazy about this program. So much so that I will be returning in December 2010. While I know it cannot be a repeat of my first experience, I am confident that it will be equally memorable.

We had an amazing experience and truly gained the "broader view" we were looking for. Having never done anything like this before, it's hard to know how it measures up. My only constructive feedback is that the paperwork (particularly the visas) was somewhat confusing and (even though abroaderview is on the cheap end of things) it would be nice to know more about what the money I sent them went towards. The Arusha abroaderview employee (Nelson) went above and beyond to make sure volunteers felt comfortable/safe upon arrival. If we go back to Tanzania we would probably not need to go through abroaderview (now that we know people there), but if we go somewhere different where we don't feel comfortable "figuring it out when we get there," we'll very likely go through abroaderview.

When I first started looking at different organizations ABV stood out because of their customer service. My calls were returned the same day, and my emails (sometimes 2-3 a day!) were always answered quickly. On the outset I was debating between two companies but went with ABV because I could pick my own dates and they were cheaper. I know I made a great choice! The Tanzania program was amazing. My coordinator Fatuma and the local staff were so welcoming. I met the most wonderful woman in the GOIG program, and loved every minute I was able to spend with them. I'm thankful for having had this opportunity and the support provided by ABV during the entire process.

We loved the host family we lived with! Hannah and Freddy were amazing and very welcoming. If you live with them, you'll have a blast and a very authentic experience! They showed us around town and introduced us to so many people. They took the time to make sure we were comfortable and felt safe. We highly recommend them!