Third time in Ghana in 9 months!

The saying is true...the harder the goodbye the greater the memories. I have just returned home from spending four weeks in Ghana and what an amazing four weeks they were. Having first travelled to Ghana with Plan My Gap Year in June last year and also at Christmas last year this was my third time in Ghana. With regards to the application process I cannot fault PMGY as after returning from my first trip last year I joined the Alumni club which saved me money and time. As I am part of the alumni club and have been with PMGY previously I did not have to fill out another application form which made the process so quick and simple. Philip and Josh are UK based staff who are incredible at their jobs. Any questions that I had they were able to answer and made going back to Ghana three times within nine months possible! Nothing was ever a problem for them. I spent my four weeks doing the Orphanage project which was all of the following..... Challenging, fun, emotional, hard work, rewarding and full of plenty of laughs and memories. These precious memories will last a lifetime and I am so thankful for PMGY for everything they do to make projects like this possible. Seth Mensah I will be forever thankful for you! Seth is the host in Ghana and warmly welcomes all the volunteers into the volunteer house and ensures they are well looked after during their stay. In the words of Seth Mensah “Don’t count each day, make each day count”.
The orphanage itself is government run meaning that they have limited funding which means they rely heavily on donations from local businesses. The children are cared for by ‘mothers’ twenty four hours a day. These mothers sometimes came across as being demanding or rude but once I got to know them I realised that they were all lovely. I loved helping the mothers with washing, cooking, cleaning or whatever else needed done. I absolutely loved the orphanage and by the end of my trip this time I was known by the mothers, children and staff as Mother Katherine.
The volunteer house is situated in a great area. I felt extremely safe and well looked after. The local children who lived near the house became like my family. I loved experiencing the culture and in my spare time I would help the children’s families prepare dinner or help with washing clothes (it is harder than what it looks). I found that there were lots of mosquitoes so my advice would be to bring lots of insect repellent with a high level of deet in it!
I also got to spend a couple of days at the teaching project with Madam Florence. Madam Florence is a PMGY coordinator and lives on site at the house with the volunteers. Not only is Madam Florence an amazing teacher but she is a great coordinator! If I needed any help or had any issues Madam Florence was always available and willing to go out of her way to help.
This may have been my third time in Ghana with PMGY but I know it is not going to be my last! I will be back!