एक बिट में आप देख

That’s Hindi for “see you in a bit”.

As I sit here, eating my last Western meal for three months (pork pie and cold pizza – like a boss) and I look out the window at the rain-soaked state that I’m leaving England in, two things come into my mind. The first is “Shit! I’ve still got to call the bank” and the second is “Well, this is weird”.
As of 12.30pm today, I am officially unemployed and about to embark on a whirlwind experience. It’s time to say goodbye to our first world luxuries and cash the reality cheque.

My coach to Heathrow leaves in two and a half hours, where I’ll be enjoying the last alcoholic beverages for a while with a few of the other volunteers at the Ibis hotel. Then, tomorrow morning, it’s up early to jump on the plane!

The final total for Raleigh ICS was £1600. Exactly double my target (200%!) and pretty effing incredible.

Another massive thank you to everybody who has supported me, helped me, donated towards my experience, given their time and patience and generally just shown an interest in what I’m doing. I will never truly be able to show my gratitude to you, but I hope you realise how humbled I am by your kindness.

This all sounds incredibly emotional and (almost) narcissistic, but this thing is big for me and I’m risking a lot by quitting my job and travelling the world.

I guess it’s time to sign off for three months.

Please continue to check out this blog, I’ll be updating it post-India with my entire journal. Prepare yourselves. There will be many an tearful moment, I’m sure.

Until April x

JABBED

Just over three weeks until I board that plane to India.

Isn’t that crazy?

I’m pretty horrendous at keeping up to date with my blog. I will try to better myself, promise.
So I guess I better start with the great news. As of 10th January (the final fundraising deadline), my total for Raleigh/ICS stands at £1555! Absolutely incredible and far surpassing my £800 target. The money raised facilitates our project through the ICS programme and, because of that, we can work at the grassroots of international development to change the world. To everybody who has donated, to everybody who has given their time, their love, their support and spread the message, from myself and on behalf of our community in India, THANK YOU!
I cannot wait to get going now; I’m jabbed, I’m insured, I’m visa-ed – all I have left is to finishing collecting kit and then it’s a waiting game. I’m pretty much ready with regards to kit but there’s still a few things I have to get. Buying enough sun cream to last for three months isn’t a cheap affair.
My coach to Heathrow is booked, as is my hotel for the night before. I’m sharing with the lovely Jess who I met at my training weekend, and I’m damn sure that we’ll enjoy those last bits of luxury before we head back to basics. There’s a bar, and there’s a bowling alley next to our accommodation. I’m sold.

If you want to keep up to date with what I’m doing over there, while I’m on project site, then check out the official Raleigh ICS blog here. Also, keep yourself up to date after my placement by coming back here, where I’ll be posting up my entire India journal, as well as continuing to share travel stories from my onwards travels.

Now that brings me nicely to my next big news – my flights are booked! I’m heading back to South East Asia! At last! I’ve been craving a return visit since, well, I stepped off my flight at Heathrow in 2012. As I fly into Bangkok, I’ll be spending some time chilling out and visiting friends in Thailand before travelling through Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and wherever else funds allow. I can’t wait to finish the trip that I feel like I started last time.

What else have I tackled in the time since I last posted on here? Christmas and new year.
My alcohol resistance level has been severely affected and I think it’s time for an India detox.
Do leave a comment or two and give me your thoughts. I like to read thoughts. Psychic, you see.
Happy 2014!

FEELINGS

Hello world!

Alas, many a day has passed without a blog.
I do apologise, but I doubt you care.
(If you are that traumatised then thank you, but get a hobby)(and maybe a better role model)
Well, what’s been happening then?
Nearly two weeks ago (I know! Bad blogger should go back to blogging school) I held my main fundraising event for India, That Friday Feeling, a night of ska, reggae & soul.
After weeks of organising, Friday 15th November came along faster than a tube train coming out of the tunnel. They do appear very quickly, don’t they?
With a lot of help from my friends, family and in particular my cousin Romy, the night was a complete and utter success! Word had been spread and more and more people came through the door! If you’re reading this and you’ve got a public fundraising event planned or you may do in the future, I can assure you that the best feeling is that which runs through you when strangers attend said event! By the looks of it, my persistent littering of noticeboards and shop windows with posters seems to have paid off. Other humans gone done attended!
Along with the DJs, I ran a raffle through the night with prizes including vouchers for Choccywoccydoodah (check out their show on GoodFood channel if you don’t know who they are) and Peter Andre’s New York Coffee Club. This helped bring in funds and the raffle alone raised around £100.
The Hassocks, where I held the event, were incredibly hospitable, allowing us the function room for free and even getting involved in the evening themselves. A big thank you to them!
The drink did flow and the music did play, so much so that friends who’d only ever dance to Britney Spears were joining in with the talcum powder floor fun (it’s a northern soul thing, Google it)
A special thanks also to Grapevine sound system for DJing and compering the evening!
All in all, we raised well over £400 which takes my total over and above £1000 now.
To everybody that came, helped, danced, drank and gave, THANK YOU!


Other stuff! Other stuff!
Well, as of today, I’ve got my departure date – Thursday 7th February 2014.
Shit just got real.
It’s all so, like, HAPPENING.
I seem to go through spells, as I’m sure everyone is, of being incredibly excited followed by moments of incredible fear and “I can’t get out of this can I?” It’s a very odd feeling knowing that you’re intentionally putting yourself out of your comfort zone. I guess I’m feeling it a lot more because of how I felt at points during my stay in Thailand (being sick and having escaped a crap time at home were big influences). I need to stop relating it to how I felt then!
As I don’t return to the UK until the 17th April, it means I get my 22nd birthday out there! WHAT! My birthday in India! I don’t say this word ever, but that’ll be SICK!

So, I go in 70 days exactly.

MADNESS

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TEA AND TRAINING

This is relevant OKAY?!

So, say you were applying or preparing for a Raleigh ICS placement abroad and you were wondering what to expect from your pre-departure training weekend..
Say that was you..
(Work with me)
Just pretend..
Then you’d appreciate a blog telling you what to expect, yes?
YES?!
Well, then you’ve come to the right place, my friend

This past weekend (8th – 10th November) I took a little trip to South London Scout Camp in Dulwich, to experience my pre-departure training weekend.
I have to say, before arriving at Sydenham Hill station, I was a little anxious about what the weekend would hold. I’m great with putting myself outside my comfort zone, but the thought of what we’d be doing and whether this would deter me from actually wanting to go to India unnerved me a tad.
After journeying on some very busy rush hour trains on Friday evening, with numerous bags and an empty stomach, I reached SH station and made my way to the camp. On the way I found other intrepid volunteers, a couple of them also being team India, and we traced our way through the dark, dismal night to find the training event (via the golf course – watch out for that).
Upon arrival, we found a room full of friendly faces – including that of a girl on my team at the assessment day. After sticking our bags in the back room, we sat down for an introductory talk then got divided into two groups. Our group took to another room, and guided by our trainer Nathan, got straight into team exercises to get to know one another.
This first evening was a great introduction to the weekend, with more team activities, group talks, presentations – and pizza. I don’t want to spoil it for you, so I won’t explain exactly what we did, but we didn’t finish until about half 10. Most of us were completely shattered by this point but immediately comfortable in our surroundings.
”Sleeping arrangements?” I hear you ask.

The two nights in Dulwich were spent sleeping on bunk beds, so the roll-mat I had bought wasn’t needed. A little tip to anybody tall like myself or precious about their head; don’t choose the top bunk. Low ceilings and tiny ladders lead to a bruised cranium. All in all, pretty comfortable for what it was, just prepare for the cold. These scout huts are notorious for their poor heating.
The following day, we were up at 7am for breakfast at 8. Sadly, I’m used to being up at this time on a Saturday. After brekkie and getting ready, it was back in our groups and right away, into more activities. This day, although long, was incredibly fun. We learnt a lot more about the project itself, the Millenium Development Goals, environmental issues, global community and our role as Global Active Citizens, to name just a few things, broken up nicely with soup and A LOT of tea, in an attempt to drag myself out of a tiresome state. I learnt a lot on this day and gained real inspiration for the project.
That evening, both groups re-joined and enjoyed the delicious curry cooked by volunteer chef Maddock. This was then followed by a quiz night, run by trainer Al. Now, if I was to say to you that volunteers – people with the aim of changing the world for the better – were highly competitive, you wouldn’t believe me. Well, I probably wouldn’t believe it myself. Turns out, us good folk are actually hilarious at being rivals.
Our night didn’t finish at the quiz, with many of us staying up to play board games and Jenga and throw balls around. I don’t think my head hit the pillow until about half one Sunday morning. A really great evening with some really great people.
7am on Sunday came and it was all about day three. Sausage sandwiches for breakfast then the get ready and go, with a lot of us craving a couple more hours sleep. Today we focused on cultural issues, how to deal with cultural boundaries, conflicts and differing situations. There was also a talk on kit, another on medical stuff and more information on the project. I don’t think my brain has quite processed all we learnt over the weekend, but on the plus side the knowledge is worth the brain melt. We wrapped up the day with a final group activity, telling what we’ve gained from training, then packed up, said goodbye to our new friends and headed to the station. Most of us caught the same train back to London Victoria, before parting ways.
So, what can you expect from the weekend?A fantastic time, some great new friends (that I can’t wait to see again), the perfect gateway into your Raleigh ICS experience, gained knowledge of many world issues and to have your eyes opened before even boarding a plane.
I’m more excited than ever before for India and I can’t wait to make a real difference in the world.

Oh, and expect plenty of tea. Tea and biscuits are a non-stop thing over the weekend.

Leave a comment, let me know what your thoughts are on my blog or if you are preparing for a Raleigh trip!
Peace

AN EIGHT AND TWO ZEROS

Before I update y’all on life and that, I thought I should let you know that I’m over £800!!

WHAT!!

£800 is the minimum I needed to raise to get me going to India and because of your generosity I’ve surpassed it!
So, to family, friends, acquaintances and especially clients in the salon – THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

I’m shocked that I’m this far already and I’m yet to hold That Friday Feeling!

Let’s get this mutha to 1k!

THANK YOU!!!!!!

Check out my current total at http://www.JustGiving.com/BambiRaleigh and please continue to give what you can for the charity