Teaching Volunteer Stories, Peru

Teaching in Peru - Joanna Blint Hi my name is Joanna Blint, I'm 24 years old and on a career break from London and I'd like to share with you my experience in Peru, teaching, working on the Conservation project in the Rainforest and travelling. I hope after reading my story you will be inspired and eager to create an experience of your own, in Peru of course!

Teaching in Peru - Laura Gent As a student studying Spanish at Newcastle University, the time came for me to decide on my year abroad placement. After much research, I finally chose to spend part of my year abroad teaching in Peru, and having spent 3 months in the South of Spain, I knew this was going to be a very different experience.....

Teaching in Peru - Natalie Cook I went to Peru on a teaching placement in 2006. I spent three months living there with a local host family in a small town in between Urubamba and Pisac called Calca. I was teaching in Agropecuario school in Calca which was about a ten minute walk from my house along a beautiful river with mountains either side of it.

Teaching in Peru - Ben Peers Sitting on the long 11 hour plane journey from Madrid to Lima, I still had no idea of what to expect of the three months I would spend in Peru - two of them teaching English. I knew very little about Peru as a country, little more about South America and it felt very much like a step into the unknown. Scary? Yes. Exciting? Tremendously! The final leg of my journey, from Lima to Cuzco, flew me over the legendary Andes, and the anticipation began to set in. You do feel as if you are entering a different world.

Teaching and Care & Community in Peru - Joanna King Every day I returned home to the host family and had all my meals with them. The constancy of acceptance and affection that the family provided, I believe to be the principle reason I was able to get involved to the extent I did. The family and I had such fun together. What I learnt and observed through them was that they had an indescribable natural generosity of heart and spirit - something which will be with me for a long time.There is something about living with locals which allows you to get a distinct perspective and insight into things.

Teaching in Peru - John & Susan Keane Susan and I taught at the Agropecurario School in Calca in the magnificent Sacred Valley. Our school was basic, no textbooks just blackboard, chalk, rickety chairs and desks. Like kids all over the world there were the good, the not so good and the indifferent, giving you a challenge that was enjoyable, rewarding and frustrating in turns.

Teaching in Peru - Katherine-Shirtcliffe I lived in the small town Urubamba, in the Sacred Valley of Peru. The valley is steeped in history and culture and the locals are proud of their Inca heritage. Everyone is warm and welcoming and life appears to be laid back and carefree. Celebrations in the valley combine the Spanish and Inca traditions, which provide many excuses for partying. Seeing how happy everyone is almost convinces you that people in the valley have no problems, it is only when speaking to them that you realise how much they want the help of volunteers. Volunteers help to teach the local children English, offering them a chance of a better future.

Teaching in Peru - Katherine Wragg About a year before I left for Peru I sat down in front of my laptop and started to search the Internet. I was in my 2nd year of a French and Spanish degree and was trying to decide what to do with my Year Abroad. I had already decided to go and study at University in France for the first semester but was determined to find something completely different to do for the Spanish half. A lot of my friends were just heading off to Madrid or Seville but I knew I wanted to go to South America, it's not often you get the opportunity to just go away somewhere for a few months so I wanted to make the most of it! I had heard of people who had been away with Projects Abroad and decided to look into it further. I attended an Open Day where I got the chance to talk to former volunteers and immediately had my heart set on teaching in Peru. So in March this year I left home and started the long journey to Peru.

Teaching in Peru - Anna-Keenlyside I spent three months in Peru with PA, and loved every minute of the experience! I was a volunteer on the teaching programme in a secondary school, but because my placement ran into the Christmas holidays I also helped on two dental health campaigns and taught at a summer school for adults. I lived with a family in Urubamba, a small village in the centre of the Sacred Valley where the PA office is based and where volunteers gathered in the afternoons and evenings.

Teaching in Peru - Richard Bartlett Between March and June 2005 I spent 3 months volunteering on a teaching project with Projects Abroad in Peru. I lived with a family in the village of Calca in the Sacred Valley and taught in an all-boys school called Humberto Luna. My months with Projects Abroad were part of an 8 month trip covering the majority of South America. The trip was part of my Gap Year between school and university.

Teaching in Peru - Tom Bennett I flew into Cusco on an internal flight from Lima high up in the Andes. It was pretty spectacular flying over the Andes, and Cusco itself is surrounded on all sides by the mountains. I was met at the airport by one of the Teaching & Projects Abroad staff, and we took a taxi to Urubamba where Projects Abroad have their Peru office. We then continued on to Ollantaytambo where I'm based (avoiding the rocks laid across the road at various points, which had been carefully placed a day before as part of a ´general protest against transport´).