General Impression
Overall Rating: / 10
I was a bit nervous before heading to Vietnam, however, once I got there and met all the volunteer people all around the world, I immediately felt comfortable and was excited to work for my project. The volunteer project at the Friendship Village was definitely challenging and was something I had never done before, however, it was so much fun. I cannot describe with words how attached i got to the children and how sweet the children were. The staff and the teachers were extremely nice as well, and I overall enjoyed my project so much. I wish I had stayed for longer than two weeks!!Country
It was my very first time visiting South East Asia. I thought the infrastructure would not be as developed as Japan or other advanced countries, and thought the country as a whole is not as safe to walk around on your own, especially at night. However, the area of volunteer office was very safe and peaceful, and very local as well. I did not see many tourists around the area where I stayed and I liked it so much. Although infrastructure and transportation were not as good, it was still better than I had expected. The city of Hanoi was very crowded with many tourists, but Vietnamese people were generally extremely friendly. The bathrooms and showers were not as clean as I had hoped, but otherwise I fell in love with Vietnam and I will definitely want to come visit again.
Project & Staff
Working with children with disabilities at the Friendship Village was such an amazing experience that certainly exceeded my expectations. Staff were very nice and supportive, so for the whole two weeks of my stay I did not have to feel uneasy at all. There were some time in the classroom where I had to take care of nearly 15 students all by myself because the teacher would leave the class for a short period of time, and that was quite challenging. But I loved the project so much and most importantly I loved the children, teachers, and the staff. However, although I did not really mind it, I would have appreciated if they had told me about having to provide English lessons for the teachers at the Friendship Village during lunch break before the start of the project. It turned out fine, but if I had been told about it, I could have been more prepared for it.
Tips
I had no experience with children with disabilities prior to this project, nor I spoke any Vietnamese. But I still had the best experiences I could ever ask for and I would love to do the project all over again, even for a longer period of time. All children are so pure and they will welcome you with all their heart if you treat the kids with love. Be aware of not very clean toilets and make sure to bring around tissue or your own toilet paper since many bathrooms don't have toilet papers. But otherwise, you will love everything about the project and Vietnam.