Name : Annie Merkley
Gender: Female
Country: Spain
Program: Women Empowerment and teaching English

1. What did your average day look like?
My average day here was very varied I arrived during festival, so many of the schools were on break. This however gave me ample time to get lesson plans organized for the monastery students. I would come to breakfast at Durga’s around 9am, work on lesson planning or go sightseeing, come back for lunch around 12-12:30 and then go teach the student monks from 1:00-3:00. Dinner was at 7:00 and then free time after. Once the hindu schools were back in session I also tough women English in the library at the volunteer house from 4:30pm-5:30pm and visited/ gave presentations to students at a private school during the morning.

2. Other things I did on my placement.
During my placement I was fortunate enough to go with Durga at to the farm in Chitwan. I also made a point to chat with the women of Raniban, it was wonderful to get to know the people of the neighborhood and share in a bit of cultural exchange, and I played banjo and song for my student.

3. What are some of the issues or challenges you faced?
Lesson planning, the students at the school are at a higher level English than anticipated, and the women are at a basic level.

4. Advice to next volunteer going to your placement?
For the student monks, plan a game for them to get them up and of their seats and keep them interested. I would do half reading, writing, comprehension and half learning games. For the women, gear the classed towards their interests. Get them talking about their family, themselves, and their daily life.

5. Would you volunteer at this placement again?
Yes! I love it here. Sad to say goodbye to my student.

6. Would you volunteer at this organization again?
Yes.

7. Suggestion or problem?
Before volunteers arrive, recommend that they bring whatever school suppliers they can! I wish I would have thought to bring some books/ coloring books/ English learning books with me.

8. Please write a Journal-type entry of your whole experience now. It will be better roughly one full page.
During my two week stay with Future Nepal I have gotten to know intimately a little pocket of Kathmandu and have absolutely loved working with my students. I am so terribly sad to say goodbye to the student monks and women that I worked with. Teaching English is such an incredible platform to really teach issues that matter to me and fan topics as well.
Durga and her family welcomed me in to their home like a member of their family. We shared food and laughter, and I even got a super informative lesson as Nepali history from Divas. Staying here in Raniban has helped me to see past the tourist viel, really sink my heals in and see what life is like in this gorgeous corner of the world. And during my time here I’ ve realized how much I enjoy being in classrooms and teaching, I think I’ve found my next life’s calling!

Name : Chui Lee Wong
Gender: Female
Country: Malasiya
Program: women empowerment and Teaching Karate to Girls for self Defense

1. What did your average day look like?
Everyday wake up at 5:30am, teaching Teakwondo class to the local kids. The class will take an hour to an hour and a half. Breakfast at 8am, then will start helping cook lunch around 9am-9:30am. After lunch is free time til my evening class at 5pm. During free time, Imight read my book, join the community women for sewing class or afternoon nap some times. Evening class(Teakwondo class) will starts from 5pm for an hour; Sometimes it ends at 7am depends on the kids interest or progress. I will help to cook dinner if they are not ready yet. After dinner, some bonding time with other volunteers & family member before we go to bed.

2. Other things I did on my placement.
There are days that I went out with other volunteers to shop for material (for school/ women society purpose). I did go for tea time with other volunteers as well and some other time I did my work out or try to do some yoga.

3. What are some of the issues or challenges you faced?
Basically I have not much issue/ challenge through out my volunteering, just some culture shocked, different level of living standard and lastly some serious bites from mosquitoes/ insects.

4. Advice to next volunteer going to your placement?
I would advice to be mentally & physically ready if its their first time and never been to any under develop country before to make the voluntary work more meaningful.

5. Would you volunteer at this placement again?
For Sure!

6. Would you volunteer at this organization again?
Why not!

7. Suggestion or problem?
Probably set a dearer expectation once the volunteer chose the program that are interested in & what will they gain from the voluntary work.

8. Please write a Journal-type entry of your whole experience now. It will be better roughly one full page.
It is the most memorable journey in my life. There excellent memory & of course some different moment that I have to overcome myself(mostly emotionally). I feel the culture, try to make myself do different things that I wouldn’t do back home, overcome fears, take the challenge & solve them. Most importantly enjoy life, be truthful to your, be who you are keep the heart beautiful & be happy, appreciate evening that’s given. Life is full of choices, if depend how each individual choose to live with and never said that me have not been given a choice, it might that those choices are not making you happy the most. Use your heart to feel Nepal, the people and culture.

Name: Tatiana Ostapenko <atkola@gmail.com>
Country: Spain
Program: Teaching in Monastery

1. What did your average day look like?
We wake early in 6:30. Our days were start with a breakfast. Then we had some time to prepare to the lesion and to walk around (groped a cup of coffee) 11:30 lunch time. The lesson were a 1pm. There were 3 levels of students. Each level had 20 minutes English+ 20 minutes math. 3pm tea time. Then we relaxed- red books, sleep or play with children. Dinner 6pm. Then a few hours with children or in the internet. And we went sleep.

2. Other things I did on my placement.
At weekend you have your free time so we travelled a bit –went to Kopon monastery, Shivapuri national park and Sankhu. We also talked to older monks sometimes, participated puja and clean our room of course.

3. What are some of the issues or challenges you faced?

You should be prepared for really basic condition- to not water(just in a hostel near the monastery, but you will not go there each day). Meal is also basic- it is rice mostly. You will need some time to used to all this.

4. Advice to next volunteer going to your placement?

Take some materials with you, something for Basic English. There are some books in the monastery, but kids use them every time-they really like reading, new books will work great( books with pictures).

5. Would you volunteer at this placement again?
Yes, we will need some time to come back to our usual life, but in a year or 10, yes, it is possible.

6. Would you volunteer at this organization again?
Yes, we love the children, they are amazing, kind, open, clever. I really would be happy to see them again, to see how they will change in a few years.

7. Suggestion or problem?

For kids would be good to have long-termed teachers (1 months). If you come for a week, you just have time to understand their level and it’s time to left the monastery.

8. Please write a Journal-type entery of experience now.

We found Future Nepal in the internet and a program was a love from the first sight”. At that moment we tried to find some work with children, something that will school” our brains and we wanted to go to Asia. So this program was perfect. It is very unusual experience for us, it was hard at the beginning, nervous about lesson (we are not professional teachers), but in a few weeks this changed and everything went even better, then we expected. Kids in the monastery are very unusual-very open and kind, they don’t use would “ mine”, they share everything with each other. It is easy to work and to talk with them. We had a lot of positive emotions during our volunteering great experience- During that time we had all needed information and support. Thank you Future Nepal!

Name: Yuriy Budenko
Country: Spain
Program: Teaching in Monastery

1. What did your average day look like?
Get up at 6:30am, Breakfast at 7:00. Moring Puja or preparing to lesson. Lunch at 11:30am. Dinner at 6pm. Free time. Gates closed at 8pm.

2. Other things I did on my placement.
Clean up room. Playing with children. Attending Puja. Tracking around.

3. What are some of the issues or challenges you faced?
No real challenges were met.

4. Advice to next volunteer going to your placement?
Be prepared that main meals is rice and spice vegetables.

5. Would you volunteer at this placement again?
Yeas, it’s possible.

6. Would you volunteer at this organization again?
Yes, I would like.

7. Suggestion or problem?
I don’t know how to do it, but it would be great to organize some knowledge transfer between volunteers. In order that new volunteers know what was done before.

8. Please write a Journal-type entry of experience now.
I was tired from my current job in Ukraine. I feel like my work is useless. So I wanted to get new experience and try something real. My wife suggested trying volunteering. We found in the internet a site with volunteering programs and decided to apply program about teaching English monks in Nepal monastery. We arrived in Nepal and were settled in a monastery where we spent four weeks.
It was a life like I never had before.
It was challenging to transfer to give knowledge to a little children, especially without speaking native language. It was a great experience for me to learn children’s behavior, interact with them, play with them, get their attention.