Name: Hsiang Chang
Country of Program: Costa Rica

We would appreciate if you could summarize your Volunteer/Travel experience with Rustic Volunteer Program

Overall the trip was good. We got to see how local people's lives were like. I really liked Atenas. The people there were really nice. We also tried different kinds of food, which were delicious. However, the service project was really tiring. Also we had problem communicating with the woman in the turtle conservation place so that for some parts of the project we didn't understand what we were doing. If next time the volunteers can be guaranteed a English speaker in the service project it should be better because in that way, the volunteers can understand what and why they are doing the different projects for. Lastly, the good thing about the Rustic Volunteer Program is that the local coordinator really helped us a lot. Tina suggested us different places to visit and helped us organize the trips. That really made our trip a lot easier!

Would you recommend Rustic Volunteer/Travel program for others?
(Please mark) (√) YES ( ) No

Can we pass your e-mail address to interested potential participants?

Name: Alexei Khair Mokhammad
Country of Program: Costa Rica

We would appreciate if you could summarize your Volunteer/Travel experience with Rustic Volunteer Program

I very much enjoyed the volunteer/travel experience with Rustic Volunteer Organization. My Spanish improved dramatically apart from all the new experiences that made my stay there so memorable. The airport pickup was very reliable, and even though my flight was delayed by more than 4 hours, with the plane arriving at almost midnight, the designated people still met me exactly where was described in previous notification. The accommodations exceeded my expectations and my host mom was one of the nicest and kindest people I’ve ever met. Food was absolutely delicious; the room I stayed in was clean and quite big; I had my own bathroom with hot water; I was treated like a guest for the entire five weeks.

The Spanish lessons were very personal and almost private with only 4 students. Often we would go off track and discuss Costa Rican culture and norms, obviously in Spanish. I enjoyed the company of our teacher who was quite the character. We learned tons of information on the culture as well as the language itself.

The Volunteer project was challenging and very rewarding. Upon my arrival there was barely anything at all at the site and all initiative was given to the volunteers. After lots of patience and work, I believe the group of volunteers I was working with really spearheaded the project, which is now very popular with the kids who come by every day. Students with ages ranging from 5 to 17 with various levels of English are difficult to teach during the same lesson but with more volunteers on site, we were able to split them up into more representative and similar groups, and achieve much more that way.

Overall this experience was very enjoyable, and at most times relaxing. I discovered new things about myself by communicating with the people I met during my travel and understanding the culture of Costa Rica. This experience definitely contributed to who I am now, as some aspects of it are permanently retained and contribute to the way I live today.

Would you recommend Rustic Volunteer/Travel program for others?
(Please mark) (√) YES ( ) No

Can we pass your e-mail address to interested potential participants?
If yes, e-mail: khairmok@ualberta.ca