An unforgettable experience

If I start telling you about my volunteering at the Yayasan Widya Sari in Tianyar, I really wouldn’t know where and how to start.
I experienced so many beautiful moments, met wonderful people, collected one of a kind experiences, which changed me in such a positive way. In Tianyar I actually spent one of the best times in my life.

I am overjoyed to have made this decision to spend 4 months there. I even extended my stay for one month because I just didn’t want to leave this beautiful place.
There is so much to be found in this place, so much happiness, so much joy, so much harmony and love…

During my 4 months I taught the preschool class, the A classes and all computer classes. All the children that I taught were 8 – 15 years old. At first I was incredibly nervous, no wonder, since I had never taught English before. But all my worries quickly vanished when I finally met the children. These children are so warm-hearted, happy and so affectionate. Their beautiful smiles were contagious. Teaching the classes was great fun. Every class has its own curriculum so that you know what the other volunteers previously taught and how you can continue. However, you have the freedom to create the lessons any way you like. Should you need help though, you can always ask anyone.
What fascinated me was that these students really want to learn.
They are open to anything and they are really ambitious and excited.
Be it a new grammatical topic, a new project or a new song…these kids were happy about everything, they even cheered about every new worksheet they got.:) That really sticks in my mind.
It showed me that the school's goal, the improvement of these kids future, was being fulfilled

Before and after classes you have time to play with the kids, go to the beach or simply enjoy the Balinese life. Since Tianyar is a very small and traditional village, you get to experience their incredibly, fascinating culture and religious life, be it the countless, colorful ceremonies, the Balinese dance lessons, the traditional market or the incredibly delicious Balinese food surrounded by the friendliest people I’ve ever met.

Since my great passion is dancing, I really wanted to share that with the kids. So I decided to teach them Hip Hop after class.
That was really a dream! :))
I’ve never had so much fun in my life before. The kids were thrilled with the Hip-Hop classes, which they deeply appreciated and they always made me laugh. In the beginning everyone was really shy to dance in front of the others but that was exactly the point. My goal was to reinforce their self-confidence in doing something they had never done before and to show them to believe in themselves and never give up. During my 4 months we studied different choreographies and in the end gave a stunning performance in front of the whole school. I can’t describe the amazing feeling to see these children so happy and proud. One of the most impressive moments in my life...

I owe all this to Ketut, the founder of this school. He does a really great job and it was wonderful for me to meet someone, who so loveingly invests all his time in these great children and put his whole heart into the school and the kids.
Whenever someone has problems, they can always count on him. But the whole staff/family that you live with is unique. They do a great job and really made me part of their family. I am very grateful that I can call this family my friends.
My heartfelt thanks goes to Nyoman, the cook, who served amazing and delicious meals every day. I totally fell in love with her food and I am already missing her and the food.

Friday through Sunday you have the possibility to travel and get to know the beautiful island of Bali. Bali is really dreamlike with lots of things to do like sightseeing, partying or diving…
My weekends in Tianyar as well as travelling across the island were never boring but memorable.

All in all my overall impression is, that everyone benefits from this amazing project, the children as well as the volunteers and I greatly recommend this experience to anyone.
l have all these amazing memories and friendships because of this program.
A program, which fights for a better future for many talented kids and needs all the support they can get from us to carry on with their wonderful work. I also decided to sponsor a child of this school because I know that my money really will be supporting this child’s education.

I wish everybody at the Yayasan Widya Sari all the best!
Thank you Ketut, Leony and Nyoman for everything! I miss you already!

But it’s not a goodbye, just see you later! :)