Frontier

These past 6 weeks have passed WAY too quickly - I can't imagine a more beautiful place to be or better people to share my time with. Thank you to everyone for your kindness, flexibility, good humor, etc. I only hope you all retain your positive attitudes and enthusiasm because you are all doing incredibly meaningful work! I am excited to hear about all of the programs in the future and how they evolve with all your hard work. This is truly a gorgeous place and I feel very lucky to have spent time here. I already miss it.

This project has a very high potential and big plans. I took the opportunity to work in the carpentry over months which was like a training for me. Possibilities like this are given here and open for everybody, which is great. But especially when you're working in the grounds you're not working for one person, but as a volunteer for a charity, that you're not paying a expensive room, but that your money is a donation. This feeling of working together, inventing projects together, having influence in future decisions, all in all a very horizontal structure.... I took a lot of opportunities which I wouldn't have taken at home. The stay here opened my mind, made me more sensitive for other people and cultures and I hope it also changed me, what I will see back at home. For future volunteers: take the opportunities which are offered to change people and to change yourself, and there are a lot. Enjoy sleeping in a hammock, waking up and seeing Kukenan and Roraima Mountains, listening to Tucans and Monkeys and other strange sounds. Enjoy the fresh air and the breathtaking scenery around you. Help the foundation to realize it's ideas. Learn Spanish! Aprended espanol! Enjoy your stay, Suerte Jakob.

The 4 weeks I have spent here have been a fantastic experience! I'm back to my 'normal life' now, but can't help smiling! It has been a journey for me. I wanted to do something different, see something new and possibly give a meaning to that experience. First time in South America and first time as a volunteer! When I arrived after an incredibly long trip I was wondering where I was and trying to grasp what that was all about. The place was really beautiful, the nature and the landscape were breathtaking. It really is an amazing place for personal development: you can make what you want out of it! There are different options on the way you can contribute and my experience in the Teaching and Tutoring programs was really rewarding. Working with the kids had been good fun and I loved it when they expressed words of appreciation to our work and the fact that they enjoyed learning English and eager to try new things out. And when meeting them on the streets and hearing 'Hola Profe!!' I must admit that made me feel good! The cooperative living part was the least easy for me, used to total freedom and independence, the life together in a shared space sometimes was pushing my limits a bit but the people I've met have definitely left a trace in me. Once we got to know each other better it was really good fun to spend time and have a laugh together.

This project was a lot of fun and it was great to know that you were really helping out these incredible creatures! I loved my time on camp, monitoring the turtles and analysing the information we recorded, and just generally learning about the turtles. Carrying out the beach surveys meant I got a lot of exercise, I think my legs are still recovering! And Uruguay was a beautiful place to visit, the beaches were just breath taking!

I really enjoyed my time in Peru, it was great to be able to do different types of work on one project. I really liked meeting the locals and learning about how the stoves help improve their life's as well as the environment. Making the stoves was tricky at first but once I'd done it a few times it was a breeze, the other volunteers and I had a great time and it's definitely a skill I'll never forget. The two weeks in the orphanage were great, I really enjoyed playing with all the kids and trying out my bad Spanish! Thanks for a great trip Frontier!