Frustration...
So getting settled into the land of volunteering has been a bit less satisfying than I might have hoped. To be honest, I´m not so enthralled with my position- the people are nice and it can be interesting, but its not challenging and I don´t have much community interaction. It also sucks up all of my time. Yes I know its full-time, which here means Mon-Fri 9:30 am - 5:00 pm. Standard. However, this means I can´t volunteer with any other more involved community groups and have no time to fit in Spanish lessons which I desperately want to start. Really, I´ve been a bit unsettled over it all. And, on a more selfish level, although I am here to work and learn, I of course want to be able to travel and do things around the area and see more of Peru as well. Volunteering full time rules out anything outside of the Sacred Valley and most treks to more off the beaten path type places.
So, after a great deal of thinking, I am going to get my courage up and ask to only volunteer at SAE part-time. The people are lovely and I feel bad to ask but really, it is only a volunteer position and ALL of the other volunteers are part-time themselves, an option I was not made aware of when I inquired about positions. This way, I will have time freed up to see more of Peru, take Spanish lessons AND volunteer for a start-up NGO that needs research done in some rural communities in the valley. For anyone who knows me, I am not going to be happy unless I am busy and CHALLENGED. Providing information to SAE members about treks, South American travel and Cusco in general is a fun way to meet people but it means I will never actually get to do anything I am talking about, won´t practice my Spanish and will generally be unchallenged. Now, the problem is just to find the nerve to ask (demand?) for part-time work. ::sigh:: Ultimately, I just want to make the most of my time here, and working full-time in an office doing clerical work is something I could do at home and be paid for!!
In other, happier news, I am going to the jungle for 4 days on a deal through work (yes, hypocrite!) its a promo through an agency we work with and super cheap which is why I can afford to go. (I will probably have to work 3 weekend days to make up for the time I miss next week!) It´s a trip to Manu Cultural Reserve, two days driving and the other two by boat, staying on the river in lodges, lots of wildlife, birds, flora and fauna. Very excited to go and do something different! Funny how time just melts away here...thats why I am so pressed to get involved with volunteer agencies out and about, not just in the office here.
So, I guess mixed feelings all around but working on a plan...which it would appear I need to implement sooner rather than later (does that mean tomorrow??)
Wish me luck...oh and by the way, generally feeling much better although still working on getting rid of my lingering cough which I attribute to being cold at work and at night...hopefully some warmer weather in the jungle will help!!
So, after a great deal of thinking, I am going to get my courage up and ask to only volunteer at SAE part-time. The people are lovely and I feel bad to ask but really, it is only a volunteer position and ALL of the other volunteers are part-time themselves, an option I was not made aware of when I inquired about positions. This way, I will have time freed up to see more of Peru, take Spanish lessons AND volunteer for a start-up NGO that needs research done in some rural communities in the valley. For anyone who knows me, I am not going to be happy unless I am busy and CHALLENGED. Providing information to SAE members about treks, South American travel and Cusco in general is a fun way to meet people but it means I will never actually get to do anything I am talking about, won´t practice my Spanish and will generally be unchallenged. Now, the problem is just to find the nerve to ask (demand?) for part-time work. ::sigh:: Ultimately, I just want to make the most of my time here, and working full-time in an office doing clerical work is something I could do at home and be paid for!!
In other, happier news, I am going to the jungle for 4 days on a deal through work (yes, hypocrite!) its a promo through an agency we work with and super cheap which is why I can afford to go. (I will probably have to work 3 weekend days to make up for the time I miss next week!) It´s a trip to Manu Cultural Reserve, two days driving and the other two by boat, staying on the river in lodges, lots of wildlife, birds, flora and fauna. Very excited to go and do something different! Funny how time just melts away here...thats why I am so pressed to get involved with volunteer agencies out and about, not just in the office here.
So, I guess mixed feelings all around but working on a plan...which it would appear I need to implement sooner rather than later (does that mean tomorrow??)
Wish me luck...oh and by the way, generally feeling much better although still working on getting rid of my lingering cough which I attribute to being cold at work and at night...hopefully some warmer weather in the jungle will help!!
posted by WanderLust at 6/07/2006 05:35:00 PM
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