Tanzania & Zanzibar Island: African Safari, School Construction & Education, and Swimming with Dolphins

Going into my trip with GIVE, I was nervous and wasn’t sure what to expect, I kept an open mind though, and was ready to experience the culture of Tanzania, see what the other side of the world was like. After leaving Tanzania, my perspective of the world was completely changed. I learned what being a community really meant, I learned so much about the culture of the Muslim community in Tanzania as well as some Swahili, I especially learned that living life pole pole (slowly) is so important. Through this trip I was put into a completely different culture and living style, saw how amazing people can be. Everyone I met along the way was so kind and appreciative of everything and just happy to be alive with each other. With all of that being said, I now have life long friends with the people I met along the way and I’m still in touch with people in Zanzibar, Tanzania. If you’re considering traveling with GIVE, do it! You will not regret it, you’ll want to go back asap, life is short and this experience will change your perspective on a lot of things!

I can’t even put my trip to Tanzania into words. It was the most inspiring and incredible trip I have ever done. I have never traveled outside the States and this is by far the best choice I have ever made. Waking up in the village of Kairo with amazing volunteers, the kindest staff, and locals was rewarding enough. I highly recommend this trip and traveling with a purpose. Nothing was better than teaching the local women English, having dance parties, swimming in the Indian Ocean, exploring the island of Zanzibar, and traveling on the mainland on a boat and jeep safari. If you're looking for a sign to be spontaneous and travel without knowing anyone, take this as your sign! I can’t wait for my next GIVE trip!!!!

I can not even put the words together to justify how amazing this opportunity was. I went into it without very many expectations and I was blown away. I learned so much about the company, such a wonderful organization truly working out of kindness with only the best intentions for the people and communities they are serving. I was able to see firsthand how the company works to provide not only service but also jobs and knowledge to the communities they work with. The guides are amazing people inside and out and I could see how much of a community is built by the long relationships between give, the volunteers, and the local community members. I will definitely be taking another trip with Give!

Habari Marafiki! 🇹🇿

A year ago, I encountered a bright green flier with the words “GIVE” in bold while sitting in my math class at Illinois State University. Feeling reverse culture shock after a transformative first semester of college living in Costa Rica, I can’t explain the happiness I felt when I saw this bright green opportunity in front of me. I now realize these moments we encounter, when our heart beats, our smile grows, and our minds turn their gears, are signs of a manifestation awaiting our presence. ✨

“If you have YOUR WILL, you’ll find YOUR WAY”. 🗺

This summer, I was blessed to travel to Africa, the motherland, for the first time, volunteer as an English teacher to a hardworking Masai tribe, sweat with the construction crew as we built cement pavements for the Yakairo GIVE primary school in Zanzibar, Tanzania, and go on insightful excursions: safari, swimming with dolphins, visiting the original slave market and museum in Stone town.

Last week we ascended 5,895 meters to the world’s tallest freestanding mountain, Mt.Kilimanjaro! I couldn't have made it to the roof of Africa if it wasn't for every hand who helped make this experience possible for me, including the best guides, porters, chefs at Green Paw Adventures and supportive GIVE Volunteers in Tanzania! 🇹🇿

Congratulations to everyone pushing their limits and conquering new heights for themselves! 🏆

“Travel is not a place outside of reality, but into reality”. - Professor Kent, Suny Cortland, Ecotourism Course 🌏

Thank you GIVE (Growth International Volunteer Excursions) and the family of Kairo for touching me deeply with your smiles, your laughter, your dreams, your pole pole “slowly slowly” and hakuna matata “no worries” lifestyle. Above all, thank you for sharing your abundant love and care, without hesitation of giving me the shoes off your feet or a warm meal inside of your home. Thank you GIVE guides, volunteers, teachers, chefs, and the many helping hands that continue to help build our community up from its roots. 🌳

“Thank you again for supporting my beautiful village of Kario, it misses you all very much”. - Baboi, GIVE Tanzania Guide ❤️

My trip to Tanzania impacted me more than I could have ever imagined. Each day was filled with so much joy, so much passion, and most of all a bigger purpose. Each day was a new gift, engaging and getting to know each of our students and in return getting to learn about their cultures in an immersed way. By the end of this trip each of the locals truly left an imprint on my heart, Kairo is a place with the most beautiful souls and the most love to give. I also did the Kilimanjaro add on and it was one of the best ways to end this amazing experience! So challenging, supportive and beautiful all at the same time.

This was the experience of a lifetime with GIVE. The guides are so amazing, literally giving the volunteers the shoes off their feet and the shirts of their back. GIVE staff put their full effort into truly making this experience the best it possibly can for volunteers and the locals. Would go again!!! More specifically, my trip to Tanzania and Zanzibar was a blast. It was a great mix of culture, volunteering, education, and fun! The people I met will be friends for a lifetime and I will never forget this experience. Highly recommend!

My experience on this volunteer trip was nothing like I expected in the best way possible. It was fun, interesting, exciting, in an amazing welcoming community getting to do things I would have never dreamed of and being able to help others while I did. The things that you never knew you never knew will baffle you and leave you searching to learn everything more that you can. It put an entirely new lease on traveling and being a tourist and showed me how you can see the world without damaging the communities you want to learn about. I would recommend this trip to anyone I know who’s ready to work hard and learn something new!

This was my second trip with GIVE and as always, I felt so safe the entire time during the trip and the community itself was so welcoming! This trip is definitely life changing and I have made the best friends during my time there. I got to teach locals English and work on building walkable pathways for the students to get to their classrooms more efficiently. It was so hard saying goodbye to the village of Kairo because it changed who I am as a person and will forever hold a special place in my heart. I will definitely be booking another trip!