Best Experience of my Life

My experience volunteering with IVHQ in Tanzania was amazing. Beforehand I felt at ease everything was well prepared and I had all the information I required. From the first day I felt welcome and at home. The local team were amazing and very supportive. I made plenty of friends from across the world who I will be friends with for life and the volunteer house experience was very good, I felt at home and very safe, it was clean, with hot water and I shared a room with 3 other girls, it was close to my school and amenities such as the supermarket. I really enjoyed volunteering at my school, whilst initially a shock, each day I became closer to the children , the teachers and the community. I was able to make an impact to their learning and resources. The local team were always there to assist you with helping the school, offering advice and gathering feedback and making a change. It was very sad to leave after 4 amazing weeks. The highlight of my trip was that Arusha and Tanzania had so much to offer, there was never a boring moment as I was constantly busy, whether this was after school in the afternoons or on the weekends. Some of the things I got up too include: safaris, waterfall, hot springs, coffee tours, caves, massai immersion, trip to Zanzibar, visiting orphanages, local markets, visiting women empowerment centres for cooking classes and practice salons, getting my nails done, going to cafes, restaurants, bars and clubs, women’s outreach (taking supplies to families in need) , visiting children’s families from school, canoeing on the lake, visiting an animal shelter, sunset hikes, paining classes, making necklaces at a art centre amongst many more things! I felt like I really got to experience Tanzanian life and culture and got to experience and understand life there in a way a tourist never would whilst also making a difference to the community. I definitely would recommend IVHQ and volunteering in Tanzania. I have been back for less than a week and I’m already planning my next trip. It truly exceeded all my expectations.