Here are some SCAMS you’ll want to avoid: Volunteering – before you pay thousands of dollars to “volunteer,” be absolutely sure you are getting what you pay for. Most volunteer organizations are doing little to actually help Nepal. There are a couple good ones, so do your homework, but here are the biggest complaints I have heard from volunteers (including myself on my first trip). o“The place was unorganized and didn’t have anything for me to do when I got here.” o“I didn’t know I would be sharing a room (& maybe a bed) with 5 people.” oA licensed nurse told me, that even though she had specifically volunteered to do medical care, the volunteer organization failed to tell her she was NOT allowed to work in Nepali hospitals and so she ended up “observing” nurses who were less experienced and qualified than herself. She quit her assignment 5 weeks early. oTwo volunteers signed up to make a documentary about rescued Kamlaris (girls who work as slaves), just to be told that the organization had given exclusive rights to a previous volunteer. o“Orphanages” often recruit children from villages who actually do have parents and a large extended family. In return the children get a better education than they would have otherwise, but still, they are not REALLY orphans. The most volunteers do is play with these kids after school. I have heard it is quite boring after the first week. Most of these kids are a tourist attraction -- that is the cold hard truth! o“I pay 5000 per week to my host family.” OK, well a regular Nepali pays 5000 – 10000 rupees per MONTH for their apartment; a really luxury apartment might cost max. 40000. So, if you are paying 20000 per month for the bed you occupy and 2 plates of Daal Bhat per day, um, you are paying the rent and food for the entire family….definitely! o“I went to teach at a school, but they don’t really need me. The teacher is there in the classroom drinking tea all day.” o“I trekked for 5 days to a village. The volunteer organization had no planned activities for me, but said since the village was really remote, I could definitely teach English at the school. After 5 days of trekking, I arrived at the village to find that the school was closed for the next two weeks for the Dashain holiday. There was absolutely NOTHING for me to do there, and no one spoke English. I know now that you can possibly die of boredom, after one week, I saved my own life by hiring a guide and leaving.” These stories go on and on. Volunteering is a BUSINESS in Nepal, so be careful with whom you sign up. Many volunteers end up leaving their assignments early due to disappointment. So what to do? If you want to volunteer while you’re here; plan to spend a 3-7 days in Thamel (Kathmandu) and look around at all the restaurant bulletin boards where there are notices for “volunteers.” This is a lot cheaper than the hundreds and thousands that some places charge, and you get a chance to see with your own eyes the organization before you commit. If you are going to spend a few thousand dollars in Nepal, why not go trekking, rafting, rock climbing, etc. Tourist activities provide livelihood for Nepali families, so you are still helping Nepal and having a good time. There are some organizations doing very good things, but just be careful with volunteering. Not everything is as you might expect. For first-timers to Nepal, they do admit that they appreciated the camaraderie of other volunteers and the support they got from the volunteer organization when they first arrived. Maybe a good middle ground (if you don’t want to come and find your way on you own) would be to volunteer for a short stint and spend the rest of the time just enjoying Nepal.
Posted on: Wed, 10 Jul 2013 18:14:36 +0000
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