Final Preparations

On Sunday the 11^th of September I will go to Ethiopia where I will stay in the capital, Addis Ababa, for about two weeks. After that I will travel to a town called Debre Birhan, which is to be my home for the next year. There I will work as a VSO volunteer in a teacher training college to improve the quality of the teacher training programme.

VSO are very experienced with sending volunteers abroad to developing countries to improve core structures within communities to help them progress. Their training for volunteers is thorough and intense. It consists of self-briefing, two residential training courses, two online training courses, a health and safety workshop, an accredited reflective log and in-country training! Both the residential training courses were well-structured and very thought provoking. The training helps to put things into perspective and makes you question whether volunteering with VSO is really right for you. The face to face training was also a good opportunity to meet with like-minded people to share our worries and concerns (as there’s no shortage of those!).  

I am in the final stages of preparing to leave my life in the UK. I am packing my things and saying goodbye to family, friends and colleagues. There were so many things that I wanted to do before I left but the time to leave has suddenly crept up on me and I’ve run out of time! I had a relaxing summer, but the last couple of weeks have been extremely busy.

The problem with my preparations to go is that I have very little idea of what I will need when I am there. However, I have managed to fill two suitcases. I guess I will soon find out what I should have brought.