I know where I'm going!

In May of 2013, I found out where I will be in South Africa! :D

I will be going to Underberg Primary School which is situated in the Drakensberg Mountains! There, I will be assisting with teaching and social care. I will also have the opportunity to work with children who have learning disabilities. Here's a bit more about it all.

"Underberg school is a new project nestled in the majestic foothills of
the Drakensburg Mountains of South Africa. The town has a sleepy feel
to it and is rural but certainly doesn’t fit into the typical picture of ‘rural
Africa.’ The picturesque mountains and cooler climate combined with a
small town with relatively good amenities give Underberg a very different
feel to what you may expect from South Africa.

As with the rest of the country, Underberg has disparate communities
juxtaposed in close proximity to each other. A comfortable middle
class community are neighboured to a government ‘low cost housing’
township. Volunteers placed in Underberg will have the opportunity to
seek out a range of different lifestyles and communities all based within a
few miles of each other.

The primary role will be within Underberg Primary school. This is a
fee-paying school and represents South African education at its best;
a melting pot of different ethnicities within all classes working side by
side with excellent facilities and standard of teaching to push them
academically as well as life outside of the classroom. The school prides
itself in its high standards of teaching and opportunities, offering small
classes from Grade 1-7. As well as helping with literacy in the younger
years, volunteers would have the opportunity to assist in the sports
programme as well as with any other extra-curricular clubs which they
have a passion for. Another interesting aspect to the project is the school
mastery unit. This unit has been set up to address the varied academic
needs of students with learning difficulties or in more need of support.

Accommodation is based at the school hostel; a residential unit with
38 pupils in residence. It is envisaged that the volunteers will immerse
themselves in the day to day running of this unit, with emphasis on
working directly with the children."

How exciting does that sound?! The Underberg project is a new one, so my partners and I will be the first people to volunteer there. What a privilege! I also found out the date I will be leaving which is the 22nd August. My confirmed training dates are the 15th-19th July. Yippee! I received an attachment along with my project details... oh my. What a lot of information. Included were things I needed to get/organise: visa application (£35), Disclosure, (£25), Medical Report (full physical examination, yellow fever, chest x-ray and BCG jab = £150). We also got the list of equipment and clothing that we will need. Spent about £50 on Amazon that day! We have to have it all sorted by the 15th of June.. that's only just under a month! I feel very lucky that I am not busy with exams at the moment like a lot of other people are.

So, apart from fundraising, there's actually quite a lot of extra expenses that you forget about until now..! Altogether, extra expenses have come up to just under £500. Lucky I saved my holiday money last summer as I am supa' organised. I think it's worth it though, especially getting the BCG and yellow fever which does you for 10 years and BCG for life. It was in fact very lucky that I went to the doctor for my physical examination, as the GP is suspicious that I may have a urinary infection. Let's hope I don't, but if I do - I have nipped it in the bud!

My fundraising total is currently at about £4,500 which is simply AMAZING. I am so proud and so thankful to those who have donated and helped me out over the past year and a bit. I have 2 months to get as near £5000 as possible. If you are thinking about doing volunteering on this scale, I would definitely recommend starting everything super early so you have time to fund-raise and organise everything. There is something called 'luck' which comes into the equation too. If you are surrounded by support from your community, friends and family, then things are going to run a lot smoother and it will be easier to raise that amount..


I still can't believe this is all happening to me. What an opportunity. Thank you.


Now, time to learn some Afrikaans and Zulu! Totsiens!

Iona