Alumni Open Day volunteers, thank you for your help!

There was a real international flavour to our Open Day in Leeds at the weekend. It was great to have Saad from Morocco, Sajani from Nepal, Walter from Peru and Pabbu from India. Our UK staff always enjoy the trip north from Sussex after they have got over the usual hideous Friday night traffic on the M1. Last Friday was thankfully very quiet. It was also great to have the company of Sajani who educated me on the wide range of projects available before falling off to sleep either because of my boring conversation or hopefully because of jet lag.

Sajani, the Director of Nepal with Dr. Peter Slowe, Projects Abroad’s Director enjoying a tea.

All our staff and ex-volunteers were kept really busy through their sessions which hopefully gave a real insight into the country and what the projects are all about. You get all sorts of questions which potential volunteers as well as their parents in many cases are keen to know about.

It is amazing how volunteers come from far and wide. A mother and daughter flew over from Belfast to find out about the Human Rights Law placement in Ghana. Another girl travelled from Newport in South Wales and another family from East Anglia.

Saad, our Moroccan Country Director, showing some Moroccan pride!

It is great to be able to meet up with the ex-volunteers who have been away with us. Hannah Lane who is now studying at Sheffield is a real character who gave a great presentation on her time in Ghana. Hannah spoke to me before she went away to Ghana at a careers fair in Somerset and then we met up in Ghana so it is always good to catch up on what she is doing. Heather Buchanan was able to speak about her time in Sri Lanka and Ghana. The next Open Day we have is in London on 16th February. To sign up please click HERE.

-Ian Birbeck

Dakar Airport

After reading the T2Impact blog, I was tipped off that Foreign Policy magazine had recently released their list of worst airports in the world and being a frequent traveler I wanted to see if I had been to any.

Here is the full list:

Dakar, Senegal
Delhi - Indira Gandhi
Mineralnye Vody Airport, Russia
Baghdad International, Iraq
Paris - Charles de Gaulle

One airport I am very familiar with is Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport in Dakar, Senegal. I flew in there from Lisbon on my first trip with Projects Abroad and I revisited it when I headed to South Africa as planes make a refueling stop there from New York.

It is definitely nothing like the shining new airports and terminals that are going up around the world but I don’t know if I would call it one of the worst airports in the world. The amenities are lackluster and although Foreign Policy magazine incorrectly states that there are no seats, the ones that are available are metal and quite hard from first hand experience. But in general it is adequate.

In my opinion, the real thing that detracts from a passenger’s time at the Dakar airport is the fact that almost all flights originating from Europe and North America arrive and depart between 11 PM and 3 AM. Consequently all passengers are confused, groggy and slightly discombobulated.

Has anyone else been to the Dakar airport? What is your least favorite airport?

Sornavel, a member of our Travel Team, has just returned from representing Tamil Nadu at India’s National Tennikoit Championship http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennikoit.

He finished second in the Men’s event and third in the Mixed Doubles event.

He is a superstar in the India office!

If you wish, you can pass your congratulations to him by sending an email to
travel@projects-abroad.org.

- Greg Thomson

Sornavel in action!

If you haven’t gotten addicted yet, you should head over to Free Rice right now. For each word you get right, they donate 10 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program. So far today I have been able to earn 150 grains of rice. It’s not a lot but hopefully some of you out there with better vocabularies can do even better!

You can try your hand here.