Heading to Tanzania in Jan for 3 months volunteer work.

Four of a kind

Myself and my girlfriend will be heading to Arusha in Tanzania middle of Jan to do three months independent volunteer work in orphanages.

When I say independent, I mean that we did'tn have to pay a penny. We got in contact with a hostel out there who run a few volunteer projects in association with a few local organisations and its through them that we'll be volunteering. The only catch is that we have to stay in their hostel for the duration of the three months...which is fine with us.

This will be our first time volunteering and also our first time in Africa so we don't know what to expect. We are both well travelled and know that it won't be an easy task in any sense of the word.

What I would like to know is:

1. Has anyone any tips/advice for us regarding things to do before/during we're out there?

2. Has anyone else volunteered in Arusha or Tanzania for that matter? If so, could you tell me of what you thought of it

3. what kind of items/gifts should we bring with us to give to the little children out there? We were told pencils and soft small teddies are ideal. Any other items that we should consider?

thanks in advance

Four of a kind

Four of a kind wrote: »

Myself and my girlfriend will be heading to Arusha in Tanzania middle of Jan to do three months independent volunteer work in orphanages.

When I say independent, I mean that we did'tn have to pay a penny. We got in contact with a hostel out there who run a few volunteer projects in association with a few local organisations and its through them that we'll be volunteering. The only catch is that we have to stay in their hostel for the duration of the three months...which is fine with us.

This will be our first time volunteering and also our first time in Africa so we don't know what to expect. We are both well travelled and know that it won't be an easy task in any sense of the word.

What I would like to know is:

1. Has anyone any tips/advice for us regarding things to do before/during we're out there?

2. Has anyone else volunteered in Arusha or Tanzania for that matter? If so, could you tell me of what you thought of it

3. what kind of items/gifts should we bring with us to give to the little children out there? We were told pencils and soft small teddies are ideal. Any other items that we should consider?

thanks in advance

No one any advice or info ?

towel401

*is happy for you*

i have no idea. usually you have to pay to volunteer in other countries. its a ****ing dose. consider yourself lucky you got in without previous experience

nako2nako

Hey Four Of Kind. Just came across your thread and I thought should give some tips as I'm from Arusha,Tanzania.
Arusha is small town but very nice.It is the link between all the major national parks so there is not much to see in the town itself, so you can probably visit the all town within five hours.so places to see for me are the 2 museum.International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).The clock tower which is the centre of africa meaning the distance to cape town in south africa and cairo in egypt is the same from there. Try and visit the national parks if you can, it is not cheap but it is worth every penny.Try a day trip to Ngorongoro crater as it is just 2 to 3 drive From the town,It is cheaper to hire a car to there compared to booking a whole holiday package.remember not all car hire companies a registered I know of one which is reliable which is Serena car hire and tour.
Places to hang out,Arusha has nice places to hang out cause of high number of western people so there is vibrant night life.Places like Masasi camp,via via, colobus night club you find a mixture of locals and europeans americans..
About what gifts to taken i would say the same of what your where told i would add a couple football balls/soccer if your american.Football is main sport.
Last, make sure you see you GP for anti malaria medicine or vaccine book early. cause it take about four weeks if you are in the UK.
Well all the best.Try looking at some photos in Flickr for Arusha to get some idea.

Spinnaker

Hi Four,

I was in Aruaha for half a day on Dec 23rd 2006 with my gf. We waited for a bus transfer at The Impala Hotel -3 or 4 star I'd say.

Small busy market town for local crops. Also a tourist hub. Well developed compared to other towns and villages around with many facilites, well stocked shops, several hotels at least.

Wrt to what to bring...We visited an orphange near Nairoibi, Kenya -AIDS orphans. Conditions there were very very basic like bad farm outhouses here to be honest. Kids were barely clothed but were happy to have shelter and companionship and were delightful to be with.

Anything you bring will be so appreciated to move you a great deal. Pens, crayons, small board games, playing cards, picture books, teaching aids, footballs ...as much as you can carry that will provide group fun and entertainment.

An experienced English volunteer teacher arrived at the orphanage for a one month stay as we left he was carrying one holdall for himself and one holdall full of shoes that he had collected from the lost and found cupboards of his local schools in London. Many of the children had been wearing ill-fitting shoes out of necessity or none at all.

For yourselves, with basic conditions there, I expect all you will need is simple, cheap, handwashable, rugged disposable clothing. (Penneys grade... great). You can also consider leaving it behind as you leave. Dress almost everywhere is casual.

Personal-care items (sun tan lotions, razor blades etc, personal first aid) can be hard to get in the quality that you are used to here. The same can apply for batteries if you are a heavy user of camera, ipod, torches etc. Get a good recharger and rechargeable batteries, suitable for flash photography here.

The Ngorogoro crater at least is a must see. Pack a camera with at least 10X zoom and a decent pair of binoculors to get the wildlife treat of a lifetime.

It is a great thing that you are about to do and it will be very very rewarding I'm sure. PM me if you want to call and discuss.

Spin

alices_wonder

hey firstly congrats and I hope you have a really good experience.
My bf is heading over to Tanzania soon so i'll send you an update in 3 weeks.
I spent a few months in India working in an orphanage. Not the same thing clearly but there were a few tips i picked up along the way.
Bring lots of salted peanuts, they're brilliant for restoring the salts in the body throughout intense heat. Try a mosquito net, pencils and copies and soft crayons are brilliant. chalk is usually good too. When your in the hostel always hide your belongings thoroughly, so much was stolen from my friends. This is a bit gross but i also found hiding money in clean sanitary pads fooled them everytime.
I'll send more later! Just always be safe and never venture too dar without a guide and if either of you are blonde or fair skinned always dye your hair first! There is a terrible problem there with albino killings!

Four of a kind

thanks guys/girls for all the info and kind words. I'll look forward to hearing any more feedback that you can provide.

I shall be keeping a blog of my trip out there in Tanzania. Here's the link for all anyone who's interested in reading it:

www.carlocretaro.blogspot.com

Also I'll be updating my photo's to flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carlo-cretaro/

longlane

Hey,
I was in Arusha just two years ago. Lovely spot. Went there to climb Kilimanjaro.
What will get to you first is all the locals see you as a walking shilling. They will befriend you, engage you in conversation and then try to sell you a painting or something. If they ask you to come to their studio, don't go, not saying it's dangerous but it is very hard to leave once they they have you there. And then there are the hard sellers who will utterly pester you. I found the easy way to deal with this was tell them that you are broke and you are not going to buy anything at all off them. Be firm, but not mean, they won't mind. In fact they will respect you. and get their names, it's always handy to know some of them for the future.
What to bring with you, colouring books and pencils, footballs,and i seen a guy with a polaroid camera, kids loved it, balloons. Try not to give them money as it will draw attention to you and them.
If you decide to go on a safari, wait until you get there, you will find lots of safari companies where you will be able to ask for exactly what you want and will not be tied to a tour that a travel agent thinks you should have. These guys will be all local and very knowledgeable. And boys can those lads cook in a camp.
Places to see and things to do.
Camp overnight or two in Serengeti. Not cheap for a nights camping pass but so worth it. Again local guys will show you more.And know where to go as they have no restrictions.
Climb for a day or two up Kilimanjaro. Ask around for local guides or enquire from local lodges.
Get a local mini bus to Kenya or somewhere. Just hop on and go.
You will love it out there.

Have fun and talk to as many people as possible and spend as much time in the countryside as possible. You will see the real country there.

longlane