Gina writes:

There have been many times in the past few years when I've realized what a great thing it is that VSO places volunteers from many different countries to work in many countries.

1. I realized it before starting my placement, when attending the interview and 2 trainings in Ottawa. Since some parts of Canada speak French as their first language, there were two groups during the trainings, the English-speaking group and the "Francophone" group. Further, there were a number of volunteers who were living in Canada or the U.S. but were from other countries, including Peru, Kenya, and Poland. We were going to places all over the world, but we were also from places all over the world.

2. When we arrived in India, the international flavor was so much more amplified. In addition to being in India, we were in the month-long training with other volunteers from the England, Scotland, Ireland, the Phillipines, Kenya, Australia, and Canada.



Our conversations weren't just about Indian culture and experiences; we learned a lot about each other's background and cultures too. An unexpected side of VSO that I didn't anticipate, but loved. Example: A few weekends ago, some volunteers came to stay in Koraput for the weekend, as a respite from the heat of Bhubaneswar. Our gatherings consisted of 2 Americans (me and Corey), 2 Australians, and Irish girl, and a Filipino!

3. I keep in touch with some of the volunteers that we were in training with in Ottawa, through blogs and Facebook. To know that the 64-year-old nurse in Sri Lanka and the family of 4 in Namibia and the young couple in Cameroon are experiencing similar things to me is comforting. It's interesting to have the shared perspective of all being VSO volunteers, but to learn about the countries that they are in as well.

4. I was glad once again for the "VSO network" when Corey and I were planning our post-placement trip in Nepal and Thailand. VSO has an office in both Nepal and Thailand and we've already been in touch with them, so they are available to us if we find ourselves in trouble or just need advice. Also, one American volunteer that we know has been working in Nepal for the past 2 years and another has been working in Thailand for the past 2 years. We'll have a chance to see one, if not both of them, for a meal while traveling! And they've been helpful with travel tips. What a great resource to be able to depend on!

5. After we return to the U.S., we'll be maintaining communication with a number of volunteers that we've met while here in India. We have open invitations to London and Cape Cod and we'd look up friends in Australia, the Phillipines, Canada, and Ireland if we were ever there on a trip.

What I'm trying to say is that my interactions with other cultures has been so much more than I anticipated. Discussions about the differences between "Western" culture and Indian culture are interesting, but they're made more fulfilling when the discussion is about U.S. vs. British vs. Filipino vs. Indian culture!

Oh...and any volunteers wanting to visit the great city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania? OPEN INVITATION!!

Gina writes:

Last week, Corey and I were both in Delhi for 4 days to attend a VSO meeting. Here is a smattering of thoughts about the trip.

Train Travel

This was my first trip back to Delhi since our month-long orientation in November 2009. I've avoided going a few times because of the travel time there and back. To get there, we had to take a 4-hour train to another part of Orissa, stay overnight there, then take a 28-hour train to Agra where the Taj Mahal is, then take a 2-hour train to Delhi. The travel itself isn't so bad, since you're sitting on padded air-conditioned benches and can lay down, use your laptop (there are outlets), buy all kinds of food from the vendors coming through the carriages. It's just the length of time that's difficult to deal with.

For the 32-hour train on the way back, we were put on a waitlist when purchasing the tickets. This is normal and has never been a problem in the past, since people cancel up until the last day and there are reserved seats released at the last minute. However, this time we never made it off the waitlist! Just before the train left Delhi, Corey managed to get a refund for our original tickets in the air-conditioned class and purchase the last remaining ticket for sleeper class (the non a/c cheaper and fuller carriages that we usually don't consider for long trips). After getting on the train, the ticket checker fined us because only one of us had a ticket and then later told us that the one ticket we did have was fraudulent! We spent the first 7-8 hours trying to be calm and nonchalant hanging out with 10 other people in a group of 8 bunks, but we were both dreading either sleeping on the floor with the rats and cockroaches and mud or possibly sharing one 6 foot by 2 foot bunk for the night. Eventually, Corey talked with the ticket checker and we were given 2 bunks that would be free for the night. Relief... After that, the trip was fine, we slept well, and the train emptied out significantly for the second day. But the stress of not really understanding where we were allowed to sit and whose seat we were actually sitting in illegally and thinking about a long, sleepless night with nowhere to sleep was too much!

VolComm

The purpose of our trip to Delhi was to attend a Volunteer Committee meeting. I am the chair of the 4-member committee that works with the VSO India office to address any issues the volunteeers are having and try to improve the whole volunteer experience, increase the impact we're having, etc. It's an interesting committee to lead because 1) it's pretty much all on-line since the members are all over the country, so there's a lot of email coordination and follow-up which can be a challenge; 2) it's a unique opportunity to be invited to critique the activities and processes of the VSO India office (I can't say I've ever been able to tell previous "bosses" what I think they should change and how!). As volunteers being paid only a living stipend, we're invested in doing what we can to make the experience as fulfilling as possible, so we're invited to be an integral part of deciding how to make the whole program better; making appropriate use of this permission is sometimes tricky, since we don't want to tell the VSO India staff how to do their jobs or be confrontational.

The 4 members of the committee (plus Corey and another volunteer, who have been working on some things with the VSO India office) met for 3 full days. We ended up 1) developing a monthly progress report that the volunteers would fill out, to help the NGO and the volunteer understand each other's expectations and problems better and earlier; 2) recommending changes to the placement description template that is basically the "job announcement" that we see when we're offered the placement, with info about duties, the NGO, and the location; 3) a few other simple solutions to problems of losing knowledge when there's a gap between 2 volunteers in an NGO and building the confidence of volunteers when they arrive in placement and have a lot of logistics to arrange in a culture that they're new to. All in all, it was a very productive meeting.

Other Volunteers

Another benefit to the visit was the chance to see some of the other volunteers that I know and meet some that I don't know. Out of the 50-60 volunteers that were here when we arrived 21 months ago, only 6 are still here! Placements end, new groups come, the number of volunteers is decreasing due to funding changes...all resulting in the fact that I hardly know any volunteers now, except a few through email. I scheduled this meeting at the same time as the in-country orientation for a new group of volunteers, so counting the 5 other volunteers in the meeting, the 4 new volunteers, and the handful of current Delhi volunteers that I saw at a party at the VSO India office, I interacted with about 15 current volunteers and the program staff that I haven't seen since 2009, which was great and made me feel less disconnected to the whole group.

American-esque Experiences

Other than the Volunteer Committee meeting, I had a short list of things that I wanted to do in Delhi, mostly involving American food and typical metropolitan experiences. With a group of 9 volunteers, we went for happy hour at a casual bar (something not possible in Koraput) followed by dinner at a Thai restaurant. It was nice to just be in that environment of ordering drinks, relating to people from a Western culture, and chilling out for a few hours without a rush to finish dinner.

Friday was our free day, added on to the trip to make time for errands and such. The day started off with a trip to the dentist for me, just for a cleaning. I wanted to take advantage of VSO's benefit of paying for a dental visit after 1 year of service and wasn't about to consider visiting a dentist in Koraput! Just like Corey's visit to a different Delhi dentist in December, this was exactly the same as in the U.S. -- same look to the office, same routines (albeit a little rougher and completed by the dentist herself and not a hygienist). Cheaper though, the equivalent of about 40 USD. Lunch was cheeseburgers at Cafe Oz! So delicious, exactly what I wanted. The restaurant was casual and simple, but the service was more Western-style, with the same pace and little things like checking whether we liked our food and if we needed anything else. About half of the patrons there were foreigners; it was just such a shock to see places crowded with White faces and to not get the stares that we've become accustomed to in Koraput. After lunch, we headed out to a mall! I generally hate malls and was not interested in any stores in particular, but more the environment in general. It was nice to stroll around in the air-conditioning, check out the Apple store (well, for Corey anyway), and forget about the pollution and poverty just outside the doors. We ended up going to a movie (popcorn! English! quiet and not smelly!) and then getting pizza for dinner from Domino's! An excellent day of non-Indian fun.

It was interesting to see how my perspective of a big crazy city has changed since being there last time. Also, I doubt I'll be back in Delhi before our placement is finished, so it was nice to see the program office staff again and to take a trip back to "where it all began". We even stayed in the same hostel as we did during training, it was like deja vu!

Gina writes:

Multiple choice quiz: What does capacity-building mean?

1. I have no clue, but I use it all the time because I work in development and using it makes me look smrt.
   
2. Something about teaching a man to fish instead of sharing your fish with him.
   
3. An ongoing, iterative process whereby individuals, groups, organizations and societies enhance their ability to identify and meet development challenges by coordinating their efforts through participatory facilitation.

I think 3 might technically be right, but I can't quite get past the bullshit to see! 2 is a simplified version of the definition. Yes, capacity-building is the act of teaching someone HOW to do something rather than to do it for them. In the development world, this is like the Holy Grail of project planning.

It's been on my mind lately and I thought my ramblings might be of interest to some of this blog's audiences.

Capacity-building is one of VSO's key approaches to placements. We volunteers are trained to concentrate on transferring our skills to our coworkers in the partner NGO. This is why you don't see Corey and I out in the field very often; except for needing to understand the work that's done outside of the office (and wanting to be out there experienceing amazing stuff), there's not much that we can do out there to help our coworkers become better at their jobs. Though it's not as exciting, it's more useful for us to help in the office with report-writing skills, computer knowledge, and other things that affect future funding and the organization's ability to do and show their good work (and make the individuals themselves better development workers, for any future NGO they work at).

When you start work at an Indian NGO, however, it's difficult to get started building capacity immediately, telling people what they need to change and why. Especially as a younger person (both Corey and I) and as a woman (me, of course!), there's a relationship-formation process that has to happen before any foreigner can be critical and fill the role of "trainer". The key "ingredient" to speeding up this acceptance or even seeing it happen at all is the support shown to the volunteer by the NGO's director (called the "secretary" here). For my first year, the director did not publicly convey his belief in my skills, so capacity-building was next to impossible. When I left and started working at SPREAD instead, the director showed subtle signs of approval that the staff picked up on from the first day. It wasn't long before they started to come to me with questions.

Just yesterday was a small but meaningful victory for me. My coworker Prasant had asked me, on his own initiative, to develop a "documentation improvement plan" for him. I wrote some tips on how to ensure better English and better organization in his reports and how to include more relevant and useful data. When I sat with him yesterday to go over it in detail, he called in another staff member who is at an equivalent position (project manager) and also submits English reports to funders. Ajaya came into my office and the three of us ended up having a full hour, almost uninterrupted impromptu report training! It felt great to know that they respected my knowledge and were taking the time to gain skills from me. Small wins here in India...

Here's a "dramatic reenactment" of me training Prasant. It was taking today and not yesterday, but that really is how things work; people just sit with me at my desk and we work on my laptop on reports.

I'll mention that capacity-building is a "goal" for VSO volunteers, but that it's rarely possible to have a placement with 100% capacity-building activity. Usually there's a project or two that a volunteer does mostly indepently, like designing a website, developing templates, or developing a database to track information. These projects help to form the relationship that's necessary for capacity-building. They also fill a gap in the organization, because no one at the NGO has the skills to do it and hiring an external consultant it too expensive. And they provide long-time value for the organization.

What we volunteers try NOT to do too much of is provide direct service delivery, like writing proposal and reports (me) or fixing computers (Corey). Since we won't be around forever, we're supposed to train someone at the office to do it, connect the office with a capable service provider (i.e. computer repair shop), or just accept that the English or design might not be the same level that we could produce, but that's it's at least truly coming from the permanent staff.

The concept of capacity-building isn't that profound, but it's an idea that we keep in mind whenever we face a task. Is there a way to integrate some training in this task? What skills can I teach the people around me that will make them better at their jobs for years to come?

Corey writes:

Today is our 2nd anniversary. We’ve been married in India longer than we’ve been married outside of India! I think that somehow makes us common-law here. What better time to share some observations about being a VSO couple.

For one thing, we spend a LOT of time together. Gina and I are together from 6:00pm to 9:00am Monday to Saturday, and then all day on Sunday. (For our first year here, when we both worked for the same organization, we were together basically 24/7.) 90% of our time is spent in the same room. We go out to restaurants together, we go to the Internet cafe together. You get the picture. There's not much to do in Koraput and most of our friends are just casual work friends, so we're stuck with each other!

To simulate the "alone time" that both of us like, we’ve both adopted certain habits that simulate being alone. We both have earbuds attached to our laptops. I sit at my desk and Gina sits on her couch (mattresses stacked on the floor). Sometimes we go for hours without speaking to each other. Often, only one of us will go to the market, just to give the other some space. We’ve each developed techniques to try to respect each other’s space and alone time, but at the same time have some good conversations and laughs. I've gone on 7 or 8 work trips for 3-14 days and Gina has enjoyed the change (but missed me at the same time!).

We spend a lot of time talking about and analyzing this experience. We talk about something confusing that happened to us that day (this happens less frequently now) or some frustrating thing or awesome thing that happened. We try to understand what these things mean, are they good or bad, is it our fault or someone else’s? What could we have done differently? It’s like we’re co-authoring a book in our heads about India and development. This is one of my favourite things about having Gina with me. By talking about this experience with each other, day by day we put everything into place, and help each other develop coherent thoughts, philosophies, or judgements about our life.

By seeing the husband/wife roles in India we’ve realised more about husband/wife roles in the U.S. culture and also in our relationship. For one thing, the roles are much more clearly defined and rigid here in India. Husbands earn the money, make important decisions, and are the ambassador of the family. Wives lead a more cloistered life, managing the house and children. While the U.S. may have been like this at some point (see Mad Men), now roles are much more negotiable. We both do things that are shocking to our neighbours. For example, I wash my own clothes and cook many meals. We both prefer it this way.

Like all volunteers, we experience a great deal of stress in a culture that isn't ours. Everything is so new and different, etc. Even now we both have frustrating days at work, just like we would have in the U.S. Having a spouse helps immensely in coping with this stress, but frustrations are sometimes misplaced on the spouse (the only other person in the support "network") and can cause fights. I imagine this sort of thing happens all the time with new marriages, but being overseas can turn up the stress a little bit more. If a VSO couple doesn't end up killing each other, they'll usually end up with a better understanding of each other!

One situation where being a couple really reduces stress is at weddings or parties (just like in the U.S.). It’s been really great to have Gina there to chat with when everyone else is just staring at me. However, the flip side of this is that a foreign couple is much less approachable than a loner. Many times we’ve been on a train staring in silence at our co-passengers for hours. Then I’ll get up to go to the bathroom and when I come back 3 people have all struck up conversations with Gina. Also, since we have each other, we're less likely to force ourselves out of our comfort zones and have probably missed some great experiences by sticking with the familiar (each other).

Another interesting bit about being a couple in a different culture is individuality. In the U.S., it was important for Gina and I to have separate identities and some separate friends. While it’s still important to us here, it’s not really an option. When we both worked at SOVA we became “Coreygina” - one word. Partly this individuality thing is a result of the amount of time we spend together but it’s also because we are both VSO volunteers.

On the whole, Gina and I are both glad we volunteered together. For us, the benefits of being a VSO couple definitely outweigh the negatives. We’ve both said that we never would have had the guts to do such a long placement individually, and we really respect some of our VSO friends that have gone it alone.

Corey writes:

As Gina said in her previous entry, I've been away from home since May 5th. I've been traveling to attend a regional conference on the In-Country Training (ICT) that VSO provides to volunteers. It was in Nainital, about 273 kms northeast of Delhi. It looks like this:

I realize now that I won't get any sympathy from you.

The conference started on 10th May, which meant I needed to leave Koraput the evening of 5th May. There's no direct train from Koraput to Delhi, so I went to Rayagada first (about 5 hours away). After an overnight stay, I caught a morning train to Delhi. 31 hours later, I stepped off that train in New Delhi. The heat! Oh man, the heat. Everyone talks about it, everyone sweats and thinks about it. Now I know what all the poor saps not living at high altitudes feel like.

I stayed with another VSO volunteer and general man-about-Delhi, Liam. We spent the next 36 hours living the metropolitan life: beer, chicken, espressos, shopping, visiting a temple, and house party.

The vehicle to Nainital came to pick me up at 6 a.m. on the 9th, and we were off. The VSO staff person responsible for ICT also attended the conference, so we went together. 12 dusty hours later, we pulled in to the conference venue. It was really unique and beautiful, much better than the standard white-walled, air conditioned hotel conference room.

The only complaint I have is that I was expecting the boring, white-walled, air-conditioned conference experience. Along with television, a working landline, and maybe MAYBE free wifi. But I quickly adapted, eventually finding the one spot about a km away near the local village where I got a mobile signal. Even on a fricking mountaintop, I can still check The Facebook.

The training itself was more fun than I expected. The facilitators were very good, and we got to practice some facilitation ourselves. It's kind of like being a teacher and a circus performer at the same time. "I need someone from the audience, please..." There were reps from all of the Asian VSO Offices (India, China, Bangladesh, Mongolia, Nepal, and Sri Lanka). We got a chance to see what everyone else in the region is doing at their trainings. I also got to learn a little about some cultures other than India. Who knew that Mongolians are really fashionable dressers?

The conference ended on the 15th, and we all went our separate ways. I came back to Delhi and have spent the last couple days doing more espressos, chicken, shopping, and even saw Iron Man 2 (with air conditioning!!!!). Now I'm ready to head back, and will be back on the 20th. Bring on boring Koraput, I'm ready!

Corey writes:

So this past week, Gina and I were on the road again, this time traveling to Puri for a VSO Conference. Puri is on the east coast of India, on the Bay of Bengal. It's a popular tourist destination within India because the original Jagganath Temple is there. (Apparently the one we have in Koraput is just a copy.) It also has a few miles of great beaches which draw even international tourists.

Gina and I thought we would take the opportunity to spend a few extra days after the conference to get some sun and see what's what. She'll be following up with a blog on the fun part of the trip later.

We left Koraput after work on Monday (last Monday) and took the overnight train to Bhubaneswar (or Bhub if you don't have the time). No problems on the trip, we arrived to a blast furnace of 90+ F and about 4000% humidity. We screamed and ran for the A/C room at our friend AnnMarie's. After an awesome tofu scramble (yes I'm becoming a damned hippy) and a few hours chilling (get it?), we ventured out to the Big Bazaar close to her work. This was culture shock for us hicks rural volunteers: four floors crammed with merchandise, air conditioning, and "helpful" staff! We selected some treasures we can't get in K-put (Kidney Beans! Yay!) and got out. Later we caught the VSO bus to Puri and after two hours, we arrived at the Holiday Resort.

As soon as we checked into our hotel, we got busy with one of the prime reasons for the conference: catching up with all the folks we have't seen in three months. It's like a dinner party where everyone has interesting stories to tell.


The next day, Wednesday, we started the conference proper. This was where we got to another conference goal: sharing professional information. We heard about what is going on, and going well or not-so-well throughout the VSO partner NGOs. This continued, with frequent food breaks, until Friday afternoon. The conference ended with a choose-your-own-adventure trip, we decided to visit a small artist's village close to Puri. We bought some nice art, but ultimately it was more of a sales pitch than our visit to Kotpad. Stay tuned for the rest of our trip when Gina writes next!

Corey writes:

This past week, Gina and I went to a Strategy Workshop for VSO India. It was held at a hotel in Gurgaon, which is a suburb of Delhi. We left ISI on Tuesday and arrived after an uneventful 2 hour drive. We had the rest of the day to enjoy the hotel, so after a very nice lunch, Gina and I settled in to our respective hammocks and read the afternoon away.



On Wednesday, the workshop started. Let me preface by saying that I think it's great that VSO India invited us newbies to provide input on their strategy. This, along with many other things have made Gina and I feel like a part of the VSO India family. Throughout the the two day workshop we learned about the development trends in India, VSO's proposed strategy, and also how some of VSO's partner NGOs are making a difference. I got to meet a couple partners in person and had some great discussions about India and the U.S.

The workshop ended on Thursday, Nov. 26th, AKA Thanksgiving for us Americans. Gina and I were really touched because the VSO staff made an announcement to the group about Thanksgiving and we had a special T-day lunch with roasted chicken, roasted sweet potatoes, and pumpkin pie!

There are many ways to make a difference in the fight to alleviate poverty. Although our desire is to make a difference by working overseas, we realize that this is neither an option nor a desire for most people. Instead, you can support our work with a financial contribution to CUSO-VSO. Although our salaries and other expenses have already been secured, financial support from you will ensure that CUSO-VSO can continue to send volunteers around the world.

Our goal is to raise $5,000 during our two-year placement. This amount will only partially offset the costs of sending us overseas, as we hear that it costs between $30,000 to $40,000 dollars to train, send, and support one volunteer for two years.

There are many ways to donate. On-line donations are also accepted at our personal fundraising site. By printing and completing the donation form, you can contribute by mail. CUSO-VSO is a Canadian organization without 501(c)3 status, so donations under $500 are not tax-deductible, though we hope that doesn’t inhibit your generosity! Questions can be directed to 888-434-2876 or support@cuso-vso.org.

Corey writes:

We're off to see the wizard Koraput! After talking about it for a year-and-a-half, and working with VSO since last November, we've finally been accepted to a position with SOVA in Koraput, Orissa, India. We'll be leaving around November 8th.

Gina and I are both thrilled but also daunted by the amount of prep work we need to do before we leave. However, reading the blog of a recently returned volunteer made us both wish we were leaving tomorrow! More details to come.

Gina writes:

Our first placement offer came from VSO on April 20. It was in India and was a great match to our skills. The placement looked great, but it started in July, which was earlier than we had anticipated and also meant we had to miss my brother's wedding. After asking if we could start sometime after September 6 and then waiting...and waiting...the employer told VSO that Corey's skills were not quite right for the position.

Our second placement offer came on May 25. It was also in India and was another great match to our professional skills. Between our wedding and honeymoon and waiting for the employer to call us to have a direct conversation, we were feeling anxious, but hopeful. In mid-July, we were told that the employer's funding was such that they could only afford Corey.

Fortunately, a third placement offer came to us on July 14. Like the others, it was in India and also a good match to our professional background. Of the limited information that we had about the placements, this one seemed to be the best. There is an upside!

When we met face-to-face with our volunteer advisor in Canada on July 18, she told us that the second placement offer was reconsidering their ability to accept both of us and that the third placement offer was also available. The second placement is of greater strategic priority to VSO, but we have a slight preference for the third placement. We are again waiting for a phone call or email directly from the second placement employer.

We have money orders for our entry visas into India and we've been told that if the second placement doesn't come through, the third placement is ours. We don't have the all-important letter of acceptace yet, but this news is certainly good to hear!

We were told from the beginning of this process that placement of couples is often difficult and time-consuming, so the fact that we were offered three fantastic opportunities makes us feel lucky and grateful and competent. That balances the fact that the lack of concrete information has been slightly frustrating. In any case, we are certainly learning patience that will be useful in our overseas adventure!

Gina writes:

PFC (Preparing for Change) training was this past weekend in Ottawa. Given the sub-zero temperatures during our assessment day in January, we really appreciated Ottawa's summer beauty!

It was intense, four full days of lectures, role plays, discussions, and just about every other kind of group learning that you can think of. It wasn't boring or tedious at all, though. The people in the group and the instructors were great and the material was so relevant and valuable, the time passed so quickly.

It was such an incredible feeling to be surrounded by 20 people all preparing for the same adventure as us. The diversity of the volunteers was impressive -- people of all ages, professions, races. Their placements were all over the world -- Namibia, Uganda, Cameroon, Ghana, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Peru, Sri Lanka, Mongolia.

Some of the logistic information that we learned:

• Health care when overseas; the role of the VSO doctor
  
• Fundraising ideas

Some of the other sessions focused on how to be happy, effective, and safe in the situations that we're likely to encounter. We talked about:

• Overcoming loneliness
• Cultural sensitivity
• Advantages and disadvantages of serving as a couple

We also learned about VSO's approach to development. The organization and execution of the training reaffirmed my decision to pursue this opportunity. I'm so glad that I found VSO and that VSO chose us!