Writing this sat at my university desk I can’t help frequently
glancing up at the picture painted in Mikindani and the various photos
of my gap year experience.

Having gone over the whole experience with true friend back home, I can’t
say that I was overly enthused about the prospect of having to talk through
the whole ‘year out’ thing to several strangers in fake bids
to find new friendships. But even after thinking over what the visits
to Mikindani have done for me, it wasn’t until I chatted about everyone
else’s gap years that I realised just how valuable they were. Past
volunteers will have all contemplated the commercial organisations and
weighed up what volunteers are gaining but I’d like everyone to
think about these again.

When I talked to people about my gap year, it was hard to sum up just
how much I went through with George and Emily. The work we partook covered
everything from teaching in the primary schools, running a tree nursery
and planting program, teaching sports to the locals, improving vocational
training in the hotel, and researching and writing for a guide book. Our
cultural experiences were, for me, highlights of the stay; the learning
of a new language, staying with a host family, going through Ramadan,
Christmas abroad. The learning of a Swahili is something, which is pushed
at Trade Aid, and rightly so, it is after all a key in developing our
work and provides a great deal more scope in possibilities for volunteer
input. But the thing that stuck out the most was purely being a little
part of the village. In such a scale a project as this, your input is
very direct and results or improvements are clear and achievable. At the
end of the six month stay I could regard many locals as friends, not just
people who had provided me with an experience. With huge mountains, natural
wonders of the world, and exotic islands ahead, it was hell having to
say goodbye to these people I had spent so much of every day with for
some time. Not one person here at university has seemed to show as much
sorrow as our group did when leaving and they all are impressed at how
personal my experience seemed. It has sparked a true interest in Africa
and the situation in developing countries, I would now definitely consider
it as an option when working in healthcare once my physiotherapy degree
allows me to.

Others tales tended to take two main routes. First were the ‘round
the world’ people. An air ticket bought several thousand miles and
covered a path generally following China, Australia, New Zealand, Los
Angeles, and home again. All very well for getting lots of stamps in your
passport but I often question how much these people got to know a place.
In addition to getting off the plane, completing a quick tourist tour,
and maybe eating a local dish, I heard little else of what they gained.
Any past volunteer will know exactly how much of an opportunity is granted
to get involved and mix with Mikindani’s people. The second lot
arranged experiences through commercial companies, set up to provide students
with trips and work in developing countries. Much of their work and goals
were similar to those I aimed towards with Trade Aid and the satisfaction
of doing something active to help others out was obvious in most. The
contrast seemed to be in the socialising once the working day had finished.
Those in bigger groups told of many nights together and parties in foreign
beauty spots, fun but not on the same level as sitting on Bomani street
joking and chatting to the locals during the evening hours, and not going
down to Doa’s bar on a moonlight night with the Boma staff.

Of course although my opinion on things has been favoured towards what
I found, having only experienced a year with Trade Aid, I realise also
that every single person has had a ‘time of their life’ and
each and every one is much the wiser because of it. Since returning home
to study I have kept very much in touch with the charity and look forwards
to revisiting in December to carry on with some work and maintain my interest.

For more information about Trade Aid, volunteers and their work, please
visit their website www.mikindani.com or e-mail Sherie on tradeaid@netcomuk.co.uk