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.

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.

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.

Danielle Soya  - USA  - 27 April 2008
Gatlang is a challenging place for a volunteer. The weather can be extreme, and the lifestyle is worlds away from home, but you'd be hard pressed to find a more welcoming community. I hope the increase in volunteers willing to travel out to Gatlang continues to grow. I know they are eagerly awaiting the next set that comes through.

Edward Macey - England - 12th May 2008
The main issue was obviously the language barrier, especially when teaching in the primary school as you were trying to teach them from the books they were given and the exercises were far too hard for them. The books were also outdated and often had mistakes in them, which the teachers would never realise, and therefore the teachers would have already drilled this into them.

Shweta Parmekar - USA - July 2009
I loved the variety that volunteering in different parts of Nepal offered.  It exposed us to various health conditions and circumstances which gave us a wider perspective on healthcare here.  It also allowed us to practice the clinical skills we've gained thus far and allowed us to see conditions that we may not normally see in the States.

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!
To sum it up, I had one of my greater experiences in my life, and I will never forget it.