Montserrat de Villasante Fuentes and Ricardo Borges Rutz - Spain / Brazil - July 2009 Children who used to come to the library had many different ages, from 2 years old till 20 years old, so we had to deal with this. Montse used to be with the little one, and Ricardo with the olders. The activities consisted on:
Playing nature memory in english, practicing numbers and names of animals, meals and other stuff…., playing with balloons, making jungle balls with balloons, for the olders the activities were: maths, geography, playing table tennis, and all the time using english language.
Rachel Reeves - USA - Nov 2009 Another thing you should know -- the teachers' lack of motivation/organization will likely frustrate you, but don't let it affect you. You just have to get used to it. Though they don't seem to care about their students, you can care about the students for them.
Tami Nudel - Israel - Sept 2008 The Langtang area is very impressive, and waking up every morning with the view of the massive mountains was wonderful.
The local food was very spicy, and I must admit that I will not eat rice for the near future, because eating Dhal Baat for 7 days a week, 3-4 times a day was a real challenge!
Shweta Parmekar - USA - July 2009 At our health placements we did 2-3 health camps at each location and included routine physicals, general checkups, and noting each patient's chief complaint. The physician would then provide us with insight to the diagnosis and would then prescribe appropriate medications. It made it quite difficult to communicate directly with the patients and establish any form of personal touch. Also occasionally the lack of medical equipment made it difficult to perform adequate examinations.
Sarah Looney - England - 23rd November 2008 Definitely, it was a lot of fun and very rewarding the children were lovely and very motivated and the host family was great- they made me feel really welcome in their home. In addition Sauraha is a great place to visit.
Yes, I have had a great experience and everybody at INFO is always helpful and accommodating and tries to make you experience as good as it can be. It was also really good meeting all the other volunteers. I have had a fantastic time.
Nina Chapman - Norway - Dec - 2008 Got up at 6.30 and had tea. First class at the RC at 7 am with the little kids, second class at 8 am with the older kids. Went back to the house for dhal bhat at 9.30. Taught at the primary school from 10am-1pm. After 1 pm: free time. Went hiking or visited the next village. 6-7 pm had dhal bhaat.
Tegan Burnet - Australia - 6th Dec 08
Take lots of things to do and read, as in the mountains there are less people to talk with, and if there is no school the days can be long. Be prepared to take the initiative and get involved. And be prepared with lots of ideas and resources at all sorts of levels as the children vary from no English to pretty good basics.
Simon Altman - German - Aug - 2009 And so my placement comes to an end…
It was a tough experience and to say I enjoyed it wouldn't be the right words. The isolation, freezing cold and very simple way of life definitely takes a big adjustment, and really tests your strength of character. But despite this, it's was an experience I'm glad I had. It taught me some valuable lessons, and made my understanding of the world and myself a little deeper.
Based in Kathmandu, INFO Nepal is a non-governmental organization (NGO) registered with the Social Welfare Council of Nepal. Founded in 2000 by four Nepalese with many years of experience managing other International NGOs, INFO Nepal is the first Nepali run volunteer organization for social benefit.
Our mission is to create a global understanding by encouraging volunteers to assist with our community development and youth mobilization programs. Since its inception, INFO has placed over
3000 volunteers from 52 countries in villages throughout Nepal and has developed a wide variety of successful programs addressing environmental and development issues. Many volunteers enjoy their experience so much that they return or extend their placement.
Volunteers visiting Nepal come for different reasons, but are united by their outgoing personality, friendly and easy going nature, their adventurous spirit and most importantly, their desire to make a difference. After completing a training session in Kathmandu, volunteers move to various placements all over Nepal, where they stay with a traditional host family.
INFO Objectives
Promote community development without destroying traditional ways of life.
To educate communities on the importance of education, English language and literacy, hygiene and sanitary living, and environmental management.
To bring Western knowledge, care methodology and experience on a variety of education and health matters to the village communities.
To provide education and training for community youths to encourage and create opportunities for self-employment.
To focus on improving life for the poorest and most marginalized members of Nepali society, specifically the Tharu and Bote tribes.
To provide language lessons and cultural information for people who come to Nepal to study, conduct research, and do voluntary work.
To introduce volunteers to the richness of Nepali culture and ensure a safe and memorable stay in a supportive environment.
Funding
INFO is funded solely through the Program Fees paid by volunteers, and individual sponsorships for children of the Happy Home and Boarding School projects.
lNFO receives no funding from donor agencies. Independent donations are welcomed and will be applied toward various projects established by INFO.
Projects Established by INFO Nepal include:
Children Day care center, Chitwan- Tandi : Started building in February 2008 and completed in 15th March with total cost 3500 Euros. Everyday 20 to 30 Children are coming to our center.
New Orphanage Home in Chitwan : Started building from 2007 February and completed in August 2007. Now we have 20 orphan children in this home. We are sponsoring all of these children.
Established Library , Ganganagar - This Library was closed for one year while we were building our Happy Home near by this Library. Now it has started and every day there are 20 to 30 village children attending this center.
Pokhara - Nirmalpokhari Children;s Resource Center : Established in Nov 2005. 60 to 80 student attend this center every day. This center is one hour by bus from Pokhara city in the top of the mountain. You can have a Good view of Annapurna and Fish tail from the center.
Pokhara - David's falls Children;s Resource Center - Established in Jan 2006. 60 to 80 student attend this center every day. This center is 15 minutes by bus from Pokhara city.
Pokhara - Thulaketh Children;s Resource Center : Established in Jan 2006. 60 to 80 student attend this center every day. This center is one hour by bus from Pokhara city. You can have a good view of Lake from the center.
Chitwan Resource Language Center, Patihani. This project was established in 2002 as a Library, Meeting Place for villagers, and English Language Training Centre. In 2005 a new Building was constructed, funded by the local community with assistance from INFO. The construction was done solely by community volunteers. The Annual "Women's Singing and Dancing Festival is very popular and the Centre also runs a Sports Event over 3 weeks, with competitions for both Children and Youth Groups.
Nava Jyoti Library and Resource Centre, Chormara, Nawalaparsi District. This project was established by the Losedhara Youth Club, and" Room To Read." In August 2002 INFO joined forces with the existing Project and placed the first volunteer in the community. In 2004 a new building was completed, involving the local community organisations and INFO Nepal, with all the construction done by local volunteers.
Ganganagar Children's Library and Community Youth Centre - A project staffed by volunteers where children can come before and after school to continue the day's education outside of a formal school environment. The volunteers on hand provide English language training and discussions and the children are free to utilize the many resources of the Center such as borrowing books and computer training.
Chitwan, Ganganagar Informal Education for Displaced Tribal Children - Providing sanitation and hygiene education (as well as toothbrushes and toothpaste) to the children of the Tharu and Bote Tribes displaced by the Rapati River flooding of 2002. The benefactors, 81 families, have received crucial hygiene training and some of the children have begun government schooling after participating in the informal education training administered by volunteers.
Prabatipur Library and Community Youth Centre, Chitwan District, established in 2002. More than 15 Volunteers have already been there from UK, USA, Australia, Germany and Holland. We have already trained 270 students in this library. Besides the childrens' class the volunteers can also take the youth and women's classes. This is the best placement for couple volunteers.
Amarapuri Library and Community Youth Centre, Nawalparasi District, established in 2002. This library is 16km away from main city of Narayangot. 15 Volunteers have already been there and they have trained 300 students. The women of the village are also very interested in visiting the library and learning from the volunteers. This is the best placement for single female volunteers.
Syabrubesi Children's Library, Rasuwa, Syabrubesi (Langtang region), established in 2006. 7 volunteers have already been to this library from UK, Ireland, Canada and USA. Around 60 students attend this library everyday. The women which run the hotels are also very interested to attend the library and improve their English skills. This library is between our other three libraries and any volunteers who come to this area can meet up with other volunteers on the weekends.
Scholarship Programme, Chitwan. To pay School Fees and Expenses e.g. Purchase uniforms and books, for the children of the very poor Tribes in the Chitwan District. These children would otherwise have no opportunity to gain education.
Thulo Bharkhu Children Resource Center, Langtang. In August 2005 we set up new library in Rasuwa, Thulo Bharkhu. 10 volunteers have already been to this library from UK, Germany, USA, Belgium. 60-80 children attend this library everyday. There is a primary school nearby where the volunteers can help the teachers and teach the students.
Goljung Children's Library , Langtang, established in November 2005. 10 volunteers have already been there from Slovakia, UK, USA, Finland, Holland and Belgium. 60-80 students attend this library everyday. There is a high school nearby the library where the volunteers can also help out.
Gatlang Library, Langtang- Established in March 2006. 80-100 students attend this library everyday. Gatlang is ideal for volunteers coming with a friend or partner. It is in the mountain region and the Langtang mountain view can be seen from the library.
Recruited, trained, and placed 1250 volunteers from the UK, Ireland, Algeria, Uruguay, USA, Korea, Japan, Holland, Denmark, Australia, Canada, Belgium, Sweden, France, Greece, Singapore, Germany, New Zealand, Egypt, Indonesia, Venezuela, Russia, Hong Kong , Finland, Bermuda, Slovakia, Lebanon, Israel, Argentina, Mexico, Poland, Spain and Portugal during the time period of 2000 - 2007
Staffed 14 Health Posts and 16 Environmental Posts throughout Nepal with volunteers in 2000- 2007
Initiated and staffed conversational English programs at 40 schools throughout Nepal 2000 - 2007
Developed and administered eight environmental projects including garbage management, plastic bag replacement with woven jute bags, paper recycling and clean-up program., anti-smoking, anti-drinking and anti-card playing campaigns 2001, 2003 and 2004.
Established Homestay / Cultural Exchange programs in which over 80 Nepali families have participated 2000 - 2007
Created income generation programs e.g. the production of woven jute bags to fund livestock purchases in 2001 and 2003.
Trained 2000 adolescent students in English language at our resource centres.
Trained 1260 Students in basic computer skills at our resource centres.
Created and staffed the INFO Library, which now has 450 members
Trained 1260 Children in English language in the INFO Children’s Library
Educated the children of the Bote and Tharu tribes in much-needed hygiene and have provided an informal education program for the children As a result, 10 children have begun consistent schooling.
Provided farmers' conference and veterinary care programme for the hygiene and nutrition of buffaloes
Fundraised and provided food, clothing and blankets for the Tharu and Bote people displaced by the 2002 Rapti River flooding.
Mobilised the Chitwan area Youth Clubs to help support the victims of the 2002 Rapti River floods
Conducted a 3 day Health Camp in Chormara for 50 families and 120 children, INFO provided toothbrushes, toothpaste and soap for every participant, along with intensive training in all the basics of daily hygiene. Clothing was also distributed
Established the Info Nepal Happy Home Children's Care House in Chitwan.
Two Days Health Camp in Kathmandu among fourty family and One hundred seventy two Patients were benefited from the camp.
Info have been assisting five poor condition orphanage home in Kathmandu and Chitwan. We have setup 5 libraries for those orphanages.
If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us via e-mail. We love to hear from you. Email: infonepal@mail.com.np
Anna Drutschinin - Australia - : February 6th 2008 - I would love to go back to Nirmal Pokhari as I formed so many close relationships there and it really is a beautiful village. Now that I know what its like, I would go back more prepared so that I could make more of a difference - I feel that I spent my time there learning about the culture of Nepal and the issues it faces more than actually doing quality teaching.
Anne-Marie Parry - England - 30th June 2008 We did full medical checks at the school and at the orphanage a total of one hundred children, the local doctor at a near by health post came also to prescribe any medication the children needed. We also took some of the children from the orphanage to the dentist in Narangard.
I was very sad to leave my placement as the people there and the children were so welcoming and helpful it really felt like home. I do hope in the future I will return here and see how the school has progressed and how the children have grown up.
Danielle Soya - USA - 27 April 2008 Last year I left Gatlang at the end of winter determined to return the next year. It may be a few months later than I'd hoped, but I did return this year to spend the month of May teaching at Gatlang Library and school. I had suggested last year that INFO give Tamang language training to Gatlang volunteers since they don't speak Nepali. When I arrived, I was happy to find out that Durga (the Gatlang host father) was in Kathmandu to give me just that. It was difficult, but the even the few words I remembered helped control the kids and helped me relate better to their very curious parents.
Edward Macey - England - 12th May 2008 At the library where we were given as much freedom as we wanted, we based the lessons usually around a topic such as time, weather, family etc and would then use various methods to teach it. The most popular method was drawing and some students managed to fill their books with drawings within a few weeks. Other popular methods included games such as hangman and pictionary. A methods which I tried to use only when necessary included writing on the board and they would simply copy as this is often employed at school and is not much fun or effective way of teaching for you or the students.
Children who used to come to the library had many different ages, from 2 years old till 20 years old, so we had to deal with this. Montse used to be with the little one, and Ricardo with the olders. The activities consisted on:
Another thing you should know -- the teachers' lack of motivation/organization will likely frustrate you, but don't let it affect you. You just have to get used to it. Though they don't seem to care about their students, you can care about the students for them.
The Langtang area is very impressive, and waking up every morning with the view of the massive mountains was wonderful.
At our health placements we did 2-3 health camps at each location and included routine physicals, general checkups, and noting each patient's chief complaint. The physician would then provide us with insight to the diagnosis and would then prescribe appropriate medications. It made it quite difficult to communicate directly with the patients and establish any form of personal touch. Also occasionally the lack of medical equipment made it difficult to perform adequate examinations.
Definitely, it was a lot of fun and very rewarding the children were lovely and very motivated and the host family was great- they made me feel really welcome in their home. In addition Sauraha is a great place to visit.
Got up at 6.30 and had tea. First class at the RC at 7 am with the little kids, second class at 8 am with the older kids. Went back to the house for dhal bhat at 9.30. Taught at the primary school from 10am-1pm. After 1 pm: free time. Went hiking or visited the next village. 6-7 pm had dhal bhaat. 
Take lots of things to do and read, as in the mountains there are less people to talk with, and if there is no school the days can be long. Be prepared to take the initiative and get involved. And be prepared with lots of ideas and resources at all sorts of levels as the children vary from no English to pretty good basics.
And so my placement comes to an end…
INFO is funded solely through the 
- I would love to go back to Nirmal Pokhari as I formed so many close relationships there and it really is a beautiful village. Now that I know what its like, I would go back more prepared so that I could make more of a difference - I feel that I spent my time there learning about the culture of Nepal and the issues it faces more than actually doing quality teaching.
We did full medical checks at the school and at the orphanage a total of one hundred children, the local doctor at a near by health post came also to prescribe any medication the children needed. We also took some of the children from the orphanage to the dentist in Narangard.
Last year I left Gatlang at the end of winter determined to return the next year. It may be a few months later than I'd hoped, but I did return this year to spend the month of May teaching at Gatlang Library and school. I had suggested last year that INFO give Tamang language training to Gatlang volunteers since they don't speak Nepali. When I arrived, I was happy to find out that Durga (the Gatlang host father) was in Kathmandu to give me just that. It was difficult, but the even the few words I remembered helped control the kids and helped me relate better to their very curious parents. 
At the library where we were given as much freedom as we wanted, we based the lessons usually around a topic such as time, weather, family etc and would then use various methods to teach it. The most popular method was drawing and some students managed to fill their books with drawings within a few weeks. Other popular methods included games such as hangman and pictionary. A methods which I tried to use only when necessary included writing on the board and they would simply copy as this is often employed at school and is not much fun or effective way of teaching for you or the students.