Philippines Construction and Renovation Program in Palawan

I’ve done 7 volunteer trips, 2 with IVHQ now and this experience was one of the best ever. And for so many reasons.

First of all, it’s the Philippines, one of the most beautiful island nations in the world The village, Tigman is on Palawan island, a quick hop from Manila, with all the pristine beaches we’ve all seen pictures of, but need to see firs hand.

The work itself, I did construction and renovation, was incredibly rewarding. We were building a brick wall near the school to keep little ones away from the ocean, and each day we could see the progress we made. Other volunteers were teaching at the village school or doing mangrove conservation and each evening we would all compare notes on what we accomplished.

The Local Team was the best I’ve experienced to date. Incredibly warm, inviting, appreciative of our contributions and genuinely lovely people trying to make a difference in their own country. They looked out for us, took our feedback with grace and made adjustment on the fly if volunteers wanted to get a taste of the other programs as well.

Finally, the other volunteers made it so fun! Ozzies, Brits, French, German, Israeli, American and Canadian (myself). Every night we would play games, go to the pub and were constantly laughing. Lifelong friends were made on this trip. (I’m Canadian so I appreciated the heat in January when it’s 25 at home!)

As is often the case, a bunch of us went to see what Palawan has to offer on the weekend and the Local Team hooked u up with affordable transportation to the beautiful Puerto Princesa and El Nido – scuba diving, snorkeling, island hopping …