Program Reviews

I was fortunate to assist at a nonprofit school, and learn a great deal of what the children and their families experience on the daily. I realized just by the volunteers being there to help, was a huge deal. The teachers I worked with said the school needs volunteers like me there in order for the program to properly function. It felt good to know what little I thought I was doing, made a huge difference far beyond my understanding. A teaching staff of 6 women would have a difficult time instructing 75-100 kids if not for the volunteers sent by Cross-Cultural Solutions.

Laughter and good spirits masked the daily encounters the natives of Salvador experienced in such impoverished conditions. It was a pleasing sight to see how happy everyone was there. I learned most things we take for granted, they experience it like its their last. CCS educated us on Brazilian culture and allowed us to experience it first hand. It was an amazing experience, and one I shall carry with me forever.

I did the Dharamsala Teen Program last summer and loved it so much, I can't wait to go back! We volunteered in a day care center, where we taught the kids (age 9 months - 7 years old) basic English phrases, numbers, and letters. The kids loved singing as much as possible, so we played games like Hokey Pokey and Head Shoulders Knees and Toes. The program was very very safe, and Dharamsala is absolutely breathtaking. We took day trips around the town and went up to where the Dalai Lama lives. Homebase was lovely, the staff was very accomodating, and the food was incredible. I can't wait to go back as an adult volunteer!!

Had a great experience volunteering in Hohoe with CCS. The placement was an incredible opportunity, as was the Ewe education and cultural events. The Hohoe program director was unprofessional. Some of the students who volunteered for a week were very disrespectful and impacted the trip negatively for others. Really enjoyed the weekend getaways.

I just returned from volunteering 3 weeks with CCS in Morocco. I am a very well-traveled individual with more than 80 countries that have been checked off of my list, which I have been fortunate enough to visit. I do not put much faith in the media, and their ability to report fairly and accurately the situations that are happening abroad in each individual country, as I find them always to be extremely embellished and happening in a very localized area and not in the countries as a whole. But even I was hesitant to travel to Morocco with the bombardment of information from the media and internet regarding Africa and in particular, Northern Africa. As always, I am so thankful and happy I dismissed all information and traveled to Morocco, as I wanted to rely more on my personal experience and gathering of information from Morocco itself! Morocco was nothing like I expected, I must say. The people of Morocco are very giving, loving and most of all, appreciative! The country itself is beautiful in every way and the Sahara, it is absolutely breathtaking and a trip that should be on everyone's bucket list. I was so pleased that Mohamed went out of his way to put together a trip-of-a-lifetime to the Sahara. Honestly, 3 weeks was not enough to see and experience everything Morocco has to offer. And safety, well, we did have a 24-hour security guard, though I'm not sure it was even needed, as I never felt safer in a foreign country. Mohamed and the staff are completely dedicated to your security and ensuring that you get the most out of your experience in Morocco with CCS in every way. The home base is in Rabat, the capital; however, it is so quiet, you would never know you are in a capital city and the neighborhood in particular is a part of the Diplomatic area. You can walk to practically any kind of business you can imagine that would be catering to every foreign Diplomat and their families. Definitely not Third World.
And most importantly, the placements are incredibly rewarding and are so much more than I expected. I even had a request while I was there to be able to experience a couple of placements and Mohamed made sure that happened. As I had never taught before, I felt very unprepared to teach an advanced ESL class to adults. As suggested, I was glad I had done quite a bit of research beforehand and looked for teaching tools; however, I wish I had done so much more and brought more teaching materials with me. The only negative I can point to is the home base lacks resources, in particular for my placement, to equip you properly; however, as does everything, with some effort on your part, it works out! The people of Morocco are so appreciative for the work you are doing. I definitely came away feeling that what I gained from my placement was far greater than what I felt I contributed. Morocco and the CCS staff far exceeded my expectations! Mohamed and his staff at the CCS home base in Morocco make sure you gain knowledge about the language, people and culture of Morocco; however, it is like anything, it is up to you to put forth the effort and use the knowledge you are given. For anyone with a serving heart or just curious about volunteering overseas for the first time, CCS meets you at the level you are at and takes your hand through every part of the process! I would have to say this probably is one of the most meaningful experiences I have had in my travel and mission work overseas. CCS is the “real deal” of overseas volunteering, as far as immersing you in culture and allowing you to choose your placement and grow in your placement as a volunteer. Would I go back? I am counting the minutes already!
“Travel is the only thing that you can buy that makes you richer”

I spent 2 weeks teaching reading to 7th graders at a parochial school in late November 2011, but CCS usually requires a 3 week volunteer minimum and we overlapped with some recent college grads on longer internships. The local CCS staff were organized (especially by African standards), diligent, warm and friendly. We stayed in a newly built, comfortable, dormitory-style compound (4-6 people to a room with a shared bath) surrounded by a waist-high wall and took a mini-bus or taxi to our volunteer jobs each day where we worked for 3-4 hours. This doesn't sound like very long, but you work hard! In my case, the teacher completely disappeared for the entire 2 weeks after the first hour the first day leaving me completely on my own, though this may have been because I came well prepared. Afternoons were reserved for language lessons, cultural lectures, field trips to outdoor attractions and some free time to relax or walk into town to shop and explore.

The homebase was spacious, with electricity to run fans and lights plus running (cold) water for toilets, showers and washing. We arranged for brief, nightly internet access for work purposes, but in general CCS discourages volunteers from spending lots of time on computers. There were internet cafes in town (a 30 minute way to the center), but there were lengthy waits for erratic and unreliable connections. As more mature volunteers unwilling to risk getting sick we ate all our meals at the homebase which were prepared by professional cooks using imported meats (mostly chicken) and local fruits and vegetables. CCS provided unlimited bottled water, but you're on your own if you want soda and they have a no-alcohol policy during the week and at the homebase. Only one person in our group suffered a GI illness. We had guards for the compound, but their main job seemed to be keeping neighborhood goats, chickens and kids out of the yard. None of us ever felt unsafe while in Ghana where tourists are warmly welcomed though women need to stick with modest attire.

CCS met us in Accra, the capital, when we arrived and arrangd transportation to and from Hohoe, a 4-6 hour drive (depending on traffic) to the Volta Region. We found out our volunteer assignments about 2 weeks in advance, but you should come prepared to be flexible as the local situation is fluid and can change quickly. For example, one microfinance organization shut down without advance notice for a week to allow their staff to travel to a funeral. My school didn't inform CCS of upcoming exams that would prevent regular class instruction until the Thursday before exam week. If you come prepared to integrate into the local organizations on their terms rather than arrive with an agenda then you'll be fine. In my case, I felt less anxious by having more structure so I partnered with a local school to bring books, curriculum plans, and tests to use then I donated all of it to CCS at the end for future volunteers. If you're working with younger students then there were some craft supplies and books at the CCS homebase, but if you have something special planned to share or something from your culture then bring it as local supplies are hit and miss. We were free to travel personally over the weekend, but note that bus connections are prohibitively time consuming for a weekend so you must rent a car and driver to get anywhere. It's 7 hours minimum to the coast to tour the Slave Forts and about 3 hours to Lake Volta. This wasn't a problem for us as everyone wanted to go somewhere, but you're responsible for organizing it which is best done in advance. CCS can help you find a local driver, but they're not travel agents.

If you're looking for a volunteer assignment that requires you to live on the local economy, fend for yourself in most instances and really suffer, then CCS is not for you. CCS approaches the volunteer assignments in a fairly structured (though flexible) way that alternates time volunteering with cultural lectures, language lessons and a modest amount of free time. You will get a flavor for life in a low resource country (cold water showers, hand-washing your laundry) without having to actually suffer through the worst of it. If you accept the premise that personally interacting with organizations on their terms and helping them advance their mission, not yours (i.e., you are not allowed to donate anything but your time) is the approach you want to take then CCS is perfect. If you have a high need to make donations directly and live on the local economy with lots of free time then I would look elsewhere.

I signed up for the Cross-Cultural Solutions experience in India mainly because I wanted to take an international trip and I felt this was the safest environment in which I could travel solo. What I didn't realize is what an amazing effect this trip would have on my entire outlook on life and the world. I made long-term friends in the staff, the locals, and my fellow volunteers. I learned so much about the Indian culture and now feel a kinship toward Indian people back home in the States.

I returned to the United States with a passion for meaningful work. I immediately considered quitting my job to pursue a career in teaching after having such positive experience teaching English to teenagers in New Delhi. Although I have not yet executed this change, and may not ever become a teacher by trade, one thing for certain is that I have developed a passion to support the mission of Cross-Cultural Solutions. I have begun volunteering locally in the name of CCS and will continue to do what I can to support this organization, including traveling with them again in the future.

I had a blast, got to see so much of New Delhi and surrounding areas, and never once felt unsafe. Quite the opposite--I felt very comfortable thanks to the staff. They were warm and welcoming and did everything they could to make sure we were having a fulfilling experience in all aspects.

I had the opportunity to volunteer abroad with CCS as part of my graduate studies. My interest was in women and children within the culture and I volunteered my time at a local school where I taught English. Having had a background in teaching, this was helpful but I can only imagine the stress of a volunteer who has never taught before might have.

In order to 'teach' English, we were given a key to a supply room in our apartment that had various games, workbooks, activities etc which could be copied by CCS staff. At times, I felt overwhelmed with the large task of teaching English to 2-5 year old children in only two weeks (I stayed three weeks but we were only introduced to our site within the first week) and truly did not feel like an impact was made.

At times, I did not feel safe within the community and wish that CCS would have provided more social events for its volunteers within India in addition to the cultural and 'touristy' events although oddly enough certain events like going to the Taj Mahal had to be arranged on our own.

We arrived during the week of India's Independence Day yet oddly there were no event scheduled for us to attend except an invite to the Director's home with her family yet we had just met her and many of us did not feel comfortable attending. There was a lot of down time which included watching English shows on the TV or going to their movie library and watching English movies.

Overall, I was not satisfied with my experience in Delhi but would recommend using CCS given reviews I have heard from friends regarding the organization (they went to other countries through CCS)

The staff was wonderful. They were very helpful and knowledgeable. They kept us informed on everything going on from day to day. They had tutors, tours, lessons and more. We had spanish tutors, dance lessons, cooking lessons, tours of cathedrals, trip to the beach, tour of pachacamac and more. The program is wonderful. I would recommend it to ANYONE.

I absolutely loved this program! The CCS staff are wonderful and make you feel at home. The homebase was comfortable, clean, had good security, helpful and friendly staff, and food was very good! My co-volunteers were great fun, and we enjoyed each other's company.

I volunteered with UKUN, an AIDS outreach NGO in Bagamoyo, Tanzania. Daily work with UKUN included home visits to check on and care for AIDS patients, hospital visits with patients, home improvement projects for patients, and educational work with staff, patients and healthcare workers. It was an incredible experience! The relationships I developed through this NGO will last a lifetime, and I carry the patients I worked with in my heart always.

Tanzania as a country to visit is great! For the most part, people are friendly and welcoming, and there is so much to see in the country! As with anywhere, you have to be mindful that you are a traveler, and there are those that may try to take advantage of that situation.

In May of 2014 I had the most amazing and inspirational experience of my life. When I first arrived in Costa Rica, I had never traveled on my own, and all of the nerves and stresses I had before I arrived were totally worth it. The staff at the Cartago location made me feel welcome and I never questioned my safety. Everything was amazing from the food, people, language, activities, and even the bunk beds which became my home for a short two weeks. During my free time I explored the city with fellow volunteers and even had the chance to travel to the Caribbean side of the country which took my breath away. From bike riding to hidden beaches to eating the amazing local food at small cafes, I felt totally immersed in the Costa Rican culture. Now for the most important part of my trip; volunteering. I worked at a small orphanage in Cartago and fell in love with every single child I spent time with. Despite the language barrier, we made crafts together, played games, and sang songs. I bonded with each of them in a different way and I can only hope that I had at least half the impact on their lives as they had on mine. I would recommend this program to anyone interested in travelling while doing something good for those who are less privileged. You will not regret it!