Tanzania: Heart & Soul of Kilimanjaro Program for Teens

There are a lot of my favorite memories that I get from this trip. One of them is to teach the local students. I never be a teacher and teach a lot of kids before so it really is my first time and precious moment. Even if I don't get anything in return, it is more than anything to know that the local students learn something from me. I placed my self on their position when I was there; comparing my conditions and their conditions really make me grateful that I can be there to help them. I can go on and on if I talk about the lesson that I get. Every moment from the trip was just precious.

I didn't realize how this experience change me until I went back to United States. I have more confident to express myself, specifically in front of other people.

I can honestly say that Tanzania changed my life. There is not a day I don't wish I could go back. I know that the peers and staff I met there are lifelong friends. Global Leadership Adventures Tanzania has given me a new sense of confidence in myself. While teaching at the local school, the students taught me more about myself than I could ever teach them. As a picky eater, I was surprised at how delicious the food was. I was also surprised at how safe and comfortable I felt at all times. I wish I could go back!

The GLA trip has made me so much more confident as a person! I highly recommend it to all!
The staff were professional and kept our safety as a first priority all the time! Everyone had an amazing time and I feel privileged having gone on such an amazing trip!

My Tanzanian experience was indescribable. Each day we would wake up to the smell of fresh coffee, bread, and fruit then set out to a workday at the primary school. Teaching the children English was the by far the most rewarding thing I have ever done. To know that you have made an impact on someone's future is a feeling that stays with you for the rest of your life. Not only do we teach them, but they taught us. The children were so content, despite what I had anticipated. I am thankful for each moment I had in Tanzania and try my best to follow their lead in finding joy in little things. We also got to adventure on safari to Tarangire National Park and the Ngorogoro Crater, where we saw beautiful animals and landscapes. We were also fortunate enough to stay for a weekend under the stars with the Maasai, where we were immersed into a culture completely foreign to us. Staying with the Maasai challenged me in a way that truly made me accept everyone's differences. We also got to climb around the base of Kilimanjaro--which was amazing and beautiful. When I think back to Africa, I become lost; the stress in everyday life disappears and I feel an inexplicable sense of peace and joy for the blessings I have been given.

While in Tanzania, I was able to experience a new culture and lifestyle while building lifetime relationships with those in my group and also my mentors and teachers. Each day the group would have breakfast together, and then go on to either help out at Patandi primary school, or explore the Arusha/Kilimanjaro area. The scene itself is breathtaking, the company is heart warming, and everyone makes you feel welcome. I found another family while in Tanzania and grew through each lesson along with my peers and shared the workload of giving the children of Patandi a new classroom, as we chiseled away at the old concrete to lay a new flooring. We would go on hikes, play soccer, go to museums to learn the history of tanzania, and each night reflect on what we can take from these experiences. In having a leadership seminar to challenge our abilities as leaders and also help build better leaders, I was able to learn how to better communicate and work within groups to complete a task. If there is any question in your mind about whether this trip is for you, then know that there is no education like adversity!

The welcome we received from all of the GLA staff and Tanzania locals was absolutely amazing. The environment enabled us to fully enjoy our experience to the best of our ability and learn all their was to learn about ourselves and the surrounding community. I have never come back from any trip quite so educated or opinionated before and it was refreshing to have had the opportunity to do so.

The GLA Tanzania trip was truly incredible. The staff were friendly and nice and the community service was very enjoyable and fulfilling.
An absolutely amazing trip.

I went to Tanzania to volunteer and make some small change in the world but Tanzania ended up making a big change in me. The phrase "life changing" could mean lots of things but Global Leadership Adventures changes lives by providing the experiences that help young adults grow as a person. Working at the school everyday teaching English and learning about their needs and problems, listening to guest speakers about problems facing the community and witnessing first hand the basic necessities many families were missing opened my eyes to the world. It has completely changed my life goals and now I am going to major in international relations and go into non-profit work in order to solve some of these problems.
As for the adventure and fun, this trip is full of it. The first weekend we went on a two day safari and saw the amazing wild life of Tanzania's national parks. Elephants, lions, giraffes, hippos, rhinos, you name it you will probably get the chance to see it!! The second weekend we spent the night with the Masai tribe and watched and learned about some of their traditions. Including their traditional dancing which we did by a campfire late into the night under an amazing sky full of stars (the most stars I have ever seen in my life!)

The volunteering part of the trip including teaching English everyday in a village school and repairing their classrooms. The staff is super flexible so when we requested to do extra community service they rearranged our schedule and we got to go to Faraja orphanage and we tilled a corn field so that they could make a vegetable garden.

Every part of this trip is so incredibly rewarding. It changes your outlook on life and how you want to live the rest of your life.