Summer 2015 PMGY Vietnam

I have spent 2 months volunteering with PMGY in Vietnam and everything has been absolutely fantastic. Long story short - I decided to stay for a whole year. I did the Real Vietnam Experience in July and I am currently working on the teaching project in Hanoi. I fell in love with Vietnam and CSDS the day I arrived, so it only took a me few days to decide that I wanted stay, and I will be starting a 9-month long NGO internship in October.
The application process with PMGY was very straight forward and my entire trip (incl. flights and visa) was booked within two days - special thanks to Philip who had to deal with everything so quickly and did an excellent job! The volunteer handbook contains all the information you need, but if you have any further questions someone is always there to answer them immediately.
When I arrived at the airport there was a driver who took me directly to the volunteer house. I felt very welcome and comfortable from the first moment, as the environment was very family-like and every member of staff kept making sure I had everything I needed. I also attended several orientation meetings that were very well structured and offered all necessary information.
The volunteer house is an amazing place, always full of friendly people who make me feel like I'm at home. The rooms are lovely and clean with 4-6 beds. Before I left England I thought that 2 months in a shared room would result in an inconvenient lack of privacy, however when there was a time when I had the room to myself for a night, I quickly realised I how unnecessary my worries had been. In fact, all I could think about was the silence and the unusually empty house, and I could not wait for the new volunteers to arrive. I have met many interesting people and made loads of friends, so here is a special thanks to CSDS who made this even easier by creating such a wonderful home-like environment with lots of care and support. A very important member of staff is 'the nanny' - the lady who cleans the house as well as cooks also happens to be a domestic goddess and so far I have loved every single meal she prepared. There is always a large selection of food and if you have any special dietary needs or allergies you usually get an extra dish to make up for the things you cannot eat.
My first project 'The Real Vietnam Experience' was definitely the best 4 weeks of my life. Sa Pa, Ha Long Bay, Ninh Binh and Hai Duong - all absolutely stunning places I plan to visit again next year. The entire project was very well organised and there is not a single thing I could complain about. The dedicated leaders and local supporters made this trip a memory for life and a reason to come back soon. My second project is teaching English to university students at a local community class where I teach two 2h-long lessons every day. All students are very focused, enthusiastic, and keen to learn, and often ask for help when it comes to applying for jobs and writing cover letters or CVs. I can always tell that I have made a difference in someone's life when I hear about a new job offer or a passed IELTS test; which is also why I would recommend this project to anyone who actually wants to contribute to the community, as well as have one of the most wonderful holidays of their life. You do not need to have any teaching qualifications or previous experience, you do not even have to be a native speaker. As long as you are confident about your language skills you can get all the teaching materials from CSDS who also make sure there is at least one other teacher and a local supporter in the classroom with you, in case you need any help.
Overall, I have had an incredible summer and I am very excited to spend my industrial placement year here in Hanoi (Thank you very much for organising my internship, Que & Philip), and I would definitely recommend PMGY Vietnam to anyone who is considering volunteer work.