Dear friends,

Important : One should read the following in one’s poshest English accent.

I hope you are all well and, wherever you may be in the world and whatever you might be doing, you are happy and enjoying life.

I am writing this little reflection on our time together sat in a coffee shop in Chiang Mai, a couple of days after we said our goodbyes at the airport.  Tianna is quiet, and a  little sad, without you all.

Looking back over the last two weeks and remembering …

The tired and some slightly apprehensive faces arriving at Tianna on the first day, yet still, Sam with her beautiful, beaming smile and Phoebe looking completely knackered, but still so very enthusiastic about the adventures to come.

The van journeys … those long rides to and from school made somewhat longer by Zac talking about … Zac; Crystal doing the instrumentals breaks in the songs; the songs … the Ice man and his moves to ‘It’s Raining Men’, Jack warbling ‘You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling’, Olivia’s Abba skills, Under the Boardwalk, Boardwalk!  Thank you for the many beautiful voices (Rhi, I will always remember Stay), and the others like Gianna, who despite lacking any noticeable singing skills, tried nonetheless.

I’m sure the experience of those five days at school will be something that you will always remember.  I saw some great work in the classroom and was particularly impressed by the progress made in your teaching skills as you grew in confidence over the week.  Working with children is a bit of a rollercoaster of emotions, there are ups and downs, good days and bad days.  I hope you all enjoyed the experience, perhaps it has inspired you to work with children in the future and try to make a positive difference in their lives.

Unfortunately, the memory that may live with me the longest is of the day a lovely, little birdy came to visit the classroom.  Sat at the back and seeing the reactions on the faces of Maggie and Zac, I wondered if a decapitated zombie had crawled in.  Maggie shrieked and ran, Zac jumped onto a chair pushing away any sweet, innocent children that were in his way, only to grab them once again when he was on the chair and use them as human shields.  Even the poor, cute birdy, seeing Zac and Maggie react as they did, thought there must be some big, scary creature behind it and took cover in the classroom.  I think it was probably as puzzled, but not as amused as the rest of us when it realised the truth of the matter.  It was last seen strolling out of the classroom muttering something about how we were all doomed if these were indeed the leaders of tomorrow!

Spending the day with the elephants was a brilliant experience, even with Rhi taking particular pleasure in rubbing elephant poo and pee into my face.  Not quite so sure about Flora attempting a full on snog with the elephant when the mahouts asked the elephant to kiss her.  Somewhat inappropriate, and a little embarrassing if I’m honest Flora.

The Cultural Exchange was a fantastic afternoon.  The boys in particular seemed to enjoy it, wonder why!  Well done all of you, particularly Sam and Kendall.

Thank you to Phoebe for teaching me about her unique accent – that would be Phoebe from Chicago, or as she constantly kept correcting me, F-wee-bee from Chick-ar-go (don’t forget to jerk your head from side-to-side in order to achieve the genuine Phoebe look).

A note for those who chose to bully me throughout the two weeks, you know who you are.  I am sure my cuts and bruises will heal soon, though the mental scars and trauma may take a little bit longer, but remember … you are on THE LIST and some where, some time, your comeuppance awaits!

Thank you to all of you for making it such a wonderful experience.  Always remember the friendly Thai staff and people, what we learned about Thailand, what we learned about ourselves, the fun, the laughs, the banter, happy days, happy memories.

Peace, love and happiness always,

-Gurdip

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Sa Wah Dee Kap!!

It is now Thursday, August 4th and it so strange not to not have you all here.  I actually miss the pirate talk echoing down the halls or the elated cries of Bing Bong booming through the air.  From our first meeting at the airport to our last dinner on the river, it is amazing just how much you all grew in these past 21 days.  We kept you so busy but you took it all with a smile. Even when we had unplanned bumps in the road you were still able to maintain a positive attitude.  I am so impressed by your tenacity, perseverance, and overall awesomeness.

We entered the program as individuals with very little idea of what was in store for us. Over the past three weeks we laughed together, cried together, sang together, sweated together, but most of all grew as a family…together.  In service, we accomplished so much as a group and learned just how much of an impact that small gestures can make in the world; if everybody does just a little bit…nobody will have to do a lot.  

We learned the importance of approaching every situation with flexibility because the reality of life is that it is uncertain and things constantly change. Remember: “To bend like a reed in the wind, that is true strength”.  We demonstrated amazing courage by facing our fears head on regardless of the outcomes. It is in those moments that true greatness is born because we learn the most important lesson of failure: learning to pick ourselves back up.  

As we resettle back into our lives let us remember the lessons we learned and the lifelong bonds we made this summer. Until next time…

Bing Bong!!!

Much love,

-Julie, Chris, Dee

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Mambo everyone!

Time flies, we can’t believe it’s already been a year since our time together in Moshi. I can still smell Mama D’s cooking and hear the roosters waking us up in the morning (or 1am, 3am & 5am, roosters crowing at dawn really is a myth)! It seems like just yesterday that we were walking through the streets of Rau greeting all of the green, purple and blue babies with hugs and high fives. You are all probably off in different corners in of the country, back in school and carrying on with your adventurous lives, but we hope that Tanzania still holds a space in your heart. I hope that you have all stayed in touch and some of you have had a chance to meet up again. Here in Rau your visit continues to have a lasting impact on the community and the school.

As one of the first GLA groups to ever work with Rau Primary School, you have opened the door for a lasting partnership. The Head Teacher and staff at the school were truly grateful for all of the hard work that you put in to teaching English and refurbishing classrooms by painting and cementing a new floor. The projects will stay with the school for years to come as a reminder of our contribution and time together. We know that, while you spent many hours volunteering your time with students, even more valuable were the lessons and growth that you each made individually.

From seeing lions on safari, to swimming in freezing cold waterfalls at the base of Mt. Kilimanjaro, laughing holding hands & dancing with students at Rau Primary and hearing from leaders in the local community on topics such as education, FGM and HIV/AIDS we truly did share the trip of a life time together. We were so impressed by how all of you stepped up and really embodied what it means to be a leader, whether it was taking the lead in conflict resolution or staying up late planning lessons for your students. You took ownership over this program, and really made it yours. Thanks for all the laughter and smiles that you brought to our small family over the two weeks that we shared together. We hope that these memories will stay with you forever and inspire you to continue your world travels as the conscientious world citizens that you all are!

Some special moments from our trip:

-Being swarmed by all of the excited children on the first day of school.

-Getting shown up by the students and their amazing dance moves any time we had a dance party.

-Learning about the circle of life while watching ostriches on safari and seeing all of the amazing animals up close.

-Mama D’s cooking!

-Getting our hair braided, especially you Carl, and the resulting afros when we took them out.

-The feeling of accomplishment after completing the classroom floor and painting the walls.

-Teaching English in the classrooms.

-Connecting with each other and local staff.

-Crashing the wifi any time we all tried to get on at the same time at a cafe.

-Agape’s laughter =)

-Hearing Mama Uweza’s inspirational life story.

Kwaheri for now!

-Ellen and the Moshi Team

P.S. If we haven’t heard from you, drop us a line and let us know what you are up to!

Feeling nostalgic? You can experience that same sense of friendship and adventure abroad again! Check out all our new destinations for Summer 2018, or enroll now.