Greenheart Reviews

My experience so far has been incredible. I live in a small town in the most Northern part of Thailand. I eat delicious food everyday (for less than $1), I have seen a baby elephant walking through my town, and random Thai people will pick me up on their scooters and give me free rides. My students are also the sweetest and happiest kindergarteners! The worst part of my trip so far is that my apartment has no heat or hot water so my showers are freezing cold. However, I only pay 60 US dollars a month so I feel a little guilty complaining.

I had a wonderful time in France becoming fully immersed in the language, the culture and the family I stayed with during my time there. I got to meet many people outside the family as well and had plenty of opportunities to practice my French. My favorite parts of the homestay were the lesson preparation (for three different children), the individual lessons with each of them, and getting to know each of the children I taught. I had time on my own during the days when they were in school to plan lessons, explore the town I lived in and also to go to a nearby larger city and explore. I added extra time before my stay with the family to adjust to jet lag and to explore Paris. At the end of my stay I did some sightseeing along the Mediterranean (Nice, etc.).
I would recommend this experience to anyone interested as I felt very safe and very welcomed by the family I stayed with. They even took me with them on vacation and we had a wonderful time.

My time spent in France with my host family was unforgettable! From the get-go, Greenheart was supportive in communicating with me about any questions/concerns that I or my parents had. I was also connected through Facebook to other people who were travelling with Greenheart.

My host family and I connected right away and even had a few Skype conversations before I went to stay with them. Their home was comfortable and they were very accommodating. I enjoyed eating meals with them, discussing the differences in our cultures, and they were even kind enough to help me navigate the train systems and help me buy tickets when I needed them!

My family spoke excellent English, so for me it was truly a language exchange- I helped them practice English and they were able to help me learn French, but also could communicate easily with me in English. I stayed for one month- too short a time to really master the language. However, my personal goals for enrolling in the program was to experience another culture and see everything I could, so I was not disappointed by my language acquisition. If my primary goal was to master French, I could have stayed longer and enrolled in one of the many Language courses they offer in Paris.

I would definitely recommend this program to anyone who wants to travel, experience another culture from a host family's point of view, and be immersed in another language while picking up what you can of it in the allotted time. I will certainly stay in touch with Greenheart and would travel with them again in the future.

I stayed in Granada with an amazing host for two months. We really clicked and I'm so happy to have met her. She was such a positive and happy person who was excited to show me her favourite places in Granada. When I went to Granada I didn't know any Spanish and just by living there and being immersed in the culture I was able to pick some up which is such a nice thing to take away from such a special experience. I really loved Granada. The locals are so friendly and the landscape is beautiful. Outside of the small city there are lush mountains filled with interesting villages and there are multiple beaches when you head further south. There are even snow-capped mountains so you really have it all. I think I wouldn't have seen all the things I saw in Granada without living with a local, it's just such a unique experience. Granada was never even on my radar before this program because when you think of Spain normally just the big touristy cities come to mind. I really liked how Granada was a smaller city because the environment was just more welcoming and warmer which is often lost in bigger places like Barcelona or Madrid (which I visited as well). I also went traveled to other cities in Andalusia during my stay because it was so easy with their buses and most places aren't too far away. Also I just have to add that another thing I loved about Granada was their free tapas! Yum!

Some highlights of my travels so far:
- Getting to go to an elephant sanctuary
- Taking a muay thai lesson
- Exploring the night markets and eating nutella & banana rotee!
- Getting a foot fish spa and thai massage.

Some difficulties:
- Teaching in a rural village can be lonely
- Frustration with the language barrier

I loved my host family. They were very friendly and helpful. They showed me around and I had my own room. I met locals and even cooked with my family and neighbors. When I learned that they paid to have me teach them and I paid to teach them, I was a little confused and felt like I was definitely overcharged considering the families offer 3 meals a day, room and board, and the $2,000 you pay does not go towards any of that or your plane ticket. I will say though that when ever I had a question or concern, green heart was quick to help and set up a meeting with a representative. I did not receive an orientation and didn't get to meet my host family until the day I moved in (not weeks ahead like they said). It was very last minute. Also, I was told I would need to find my own way from the airport to my host family's house, but the day I flew in, I was picked up (thankfully) and greeted with open arms and a kiss on each cheek (a typical Spanish greeting!). Most things with the program itself was like that (unexpected and last minute). Overall though, I really enjoyed my time there. Everyone was friendly and warm. I made great friends and the program tries to connect you with other participants in your area! That's how I met my "Spanish sister" from Chicago. She was a great exploring buddy and even came to visit me in San Francisco after we got back.

Greenheart as a company is excellent, they are very pleasant and helpful. The Tesol course in Hua Hin with Xplore Asia was a lot of fun and very informative, but we have had difficulties with our placement agent. They were nice, but gave us a lot of conflicting/untrue information and we had to jump through several hoops and find our own accommodation.

I have three co-teachers, though I do all of the planning and teaching myself. The teachers are nice, and if the kids are being disruptive, the co-teacher will usually help restore order. Also, I am a male and all of my co-teachers are female, and I was more or less told that because of this, they wouldn't really be able to do anything beyond strictly school stuff. For example, many other EPIK teachers I know were taken out to get supplies by their co-teachers, or have been taken out for dinner/lunch and just in general helped them settle in, but that was not the case for me. It's not a deal breaker, but if you are a male and have female co-teacher(s), I think this may be a common theme.
Everything else about the program is pretty much as advertised, including the chaotic and often last minute schedule changing, which can sometimes be frustrating, but it's again not something that is bad. Overall though, I do enjoy my school and placement. I have not needed any real support for issues, but any little ones that happen do seem to be taken care of quickly. Though I do think that once you are actually in Korea, your recruiter and EPIK may actually not be as resourceful to you as they were prior to departing. Once here, it's pretty much the school and the respective POE/MOE offices.

Deciding to teach English in Korea was no easy decision to make, but Greenheart Travel made every step of the way 100 times easier! Greenheart was there to answer any questions I had (no matter how "dumb" the question was), and I always got a quick response. I especially loved how Greenheart connected me with people who had prior experience in Korea, as well as people who were going through this experience for the first time like myself.

The most difficult thing about Korea is the waiting game. Patience, patience, patience. It cannot be said enough. Waiting for a phone, internet, a bank account, and your ARC card can be hard considering that we take them for granted at home, but expect to wait a few weeks to finally get all of these things. After the initial shock of Korea and once you have settled into your new life, Korea isn't that different from home. I can find anything I could possible need all in my city. Also, everyone is super welcoming, Koreans and expats alike. So if there is anything that I can't figure out by myself, there is ALWAYS someone there to help me out in any way possible.

Teaching and living in Korea is definitely an experience I will never forget!

In Florence, my host family was very sweet and accommodating however they felt more of like a boarding house for multiple students. The language school was fun and that's where I met most of my friends.

In Milan, my host family was AMAZING, could not have asked for anything better.