Welcome to my blog! It's fancy isn't it?
I uploaded the picture myself, y'know?
I decided to start documenting my life over the next few months (or however long I stick to writing a blog) as I embark on a whole new chapter of my life. Let me set the scene...
As of this date (Sunday 29th September 2013) I am a 21 year old qualified hairstylist from a small village just outside Brighton, along the south coast of England. I live in a stunning area of the world, I have amazing friends and family and, as cliché as it sounds, I'm
blessed to have this. I'm incredibly driven and have the fire inside to succeed - but at what? The day to day world I live in has been getting me down for a long time, and since I spent a month and a half in Thailand last year, I've wanted to do nothing but see the world.
So I made a decision; either I stick inside my comfort zone with a lost aim or I pick myself up, do what I want to do and gain a wider perspective on life & living.
A few weeks back, at birthday drinks for an old friend, I was briefly told by said friend about a trip that she'll be taking in January to volunteer in Burkina Faso with
International Citizen Service. Instantly my ears perked up.
"What is this community service-sounding thing that they speak of?" I set about researching the organisation she's going with, found out how it works, filled out an application (ticking India as a preference) and, before I knew it, I'd clicked
Send. I've had an interest in volunteering abroad for years, and I've always wanted to go to India, so this seemed like the perfect choice. A few days passed and I received an email back from a charity called
Raleigh International, inviting me to an assessment day in Elephant & Castle on the next Wednesday.
This was a day filled with group activities, discussions, tasks and a one-on-one interview, to determine whether we'd be suitable to volunteer. Now I don't mean to sound cocky, but it was a complete success and my team
slayed the whole day! We had to show that we were positive, committed and willing to step outside the box. I'm still perplexed as to how I did it (I never succeed at these sorts of things; interviews, auditions, workshops - I almost always get a no) but a week later I got an email confirming my place - I'm going to India!
Now that I've pretty badly explained the previous month or so, let me explain
what's happening...
In February 2014, I will be boarding a plane to Bangalore, India, to volunteer in remote communities for ten weeks, with Raleigh & ICS. The exact location of the village we'll be working in will be determined when we arrive, but it will be within the Tamil Nadu/Karnataka regions.
That's here
Our project will be aimed at developing a sustainable environment for these small, isolated communities. We will be particularly focused on the crucial needs of the villages: health, education, sanitation, environmental issues and civil issues within developing rural areas. The sorts of things we'll be doing include (and excuse me if this list is long, remember this is only some): building toilets, taps & water flow systems, running health camps, vet camps & teaching on how to be clean & healthy, constructing fertilisation systems for farmers to sustain their land, redeveloping schools & community centres, running self-help groups and conducting surveys on the local area.
This won't be easy and, typical me, I picked the hottest time of the year to go! We're going to be working in sweltering heat and living in extremely basic conditions -
no perks. Home comforts will be at home, along with hot showers and western toilets.
Oh, western toilets. How I'll miss you!
Upon our return, we'll implement what we've learnt as well as tackle any issues within our own communities, through the Action At Home project.
If you want to find out any more or wish to donate towards my trip (I have to raise a minimum of £800 to go), then check out my
JustGiving page. You can also donate via SMS! Text
BMAN92 followed by the amount you wish to pledge (
£1/£2/£3/£4/£5/£10) to
70070.
This is definitely not all the travelling I'll be doing next year. I have my eyes set on returning to Thailand and the rest of South East Asia. I'm so excited, yet absolutely terrified, to start exploring and properly experiencing the different ways in which people live! After all, we're all in this together.
Sorry for the long first post! I promise to make it more fun next time, with updates on my fundraising and my journey to India. I aim on keeping this blog going as long as I can and, even though I won't be able to post when I'm volunteering, update as much as I can when I return.
YOU'RE ON THE JOURNEY WITH ME NOW - DEAL WITH IT.
Note: This is all actually an elaborate ploy to get a real tan - something that I don't possess.
(I'll miss you too, fake tan)
