After months of waiting training had finally arrived and this time I was going to make it to Coll. On the Friday I made the beautiful yet painstaking four hour journey down the banks of Loch Ness to Oban. The journey seemed to take twice as long due to my over excitement at the thought of finding my partner and finding out more about where I will be spending my year overseas. When I arrived Oban it couldn't have looked any different than it did on selection during the horrendous winter storms that saw the ferry to Coll cancelled for the week. It was sunny and warm and bustling with travellers and tourists who flood to the scenic sea side town in summer. After getting off the bus I made my way to the backpackers where all the Project Trust volunteers seem to stay. I instantly picked out a couple of people who I knew straight away were volunteers as well. I introduced myself to a boy in my dorm who I knew must have been making the journey to Coll. The boy introduced himself as Luka and we both spoke about where it was we were going to placed in South Africa, it turned out that within two minutes of arrival I had found my partner who I will be living and working with at Project Trust for the next year. As the day passed more and more volunteers arrived at the backpackers and the atmosphere was buzzing with anticipation and excitement for the next five days that we would be spending together on Coll. Time flew past and we all seemed to pay no attention to the time which was a bad idea as getting up at six o’clock the next day for the ferry to Coll proved to be a very hard task. On the ferry the excitement was now gone as everyone went to sleep to try and make sure that we were as fresh as we could be for the first day of training.
As Coll came into sight it was clear we had not taken the sunny weather with us as the rain and wind rattled and howled through the ferry. We were met off the ferry by Nic and Peter who rushed us into the bus to get us the the Hebridean Centre- the home of Project Trust. When we arrived we were given a small amount of time to settle in to our dorms then it was time for the intense lessons to begin. Before the first lesson we were introduced to the staff who were going to be working with us all week. We were introduced to Peter who will be my desk officer for the next year and straight away it was clear how much he cared for the people he is responsible for and how passionate he is about the work that Project Trust does. As we moved from lesson to lesson I was ticking off in my head every doubt that I had in my head about South Africa and where it is that I will be volunteering. The lessons were so thorough that it would be almost impossible to not be more confident. After a very intense 8 hours of lessons the day was up and it was time for dinner. The food was home made by the kitchen staff who worked all day to prepare the meals for volunteers and the food was delicious. The first night it was a true Scottish dish of mince and tatties, the other volunteers from south of the border didn’t have a clue what it was but they ate every last bit of it. After the meal we were given time to spend getting to know each other. Everyone made their way down to the beach as the weather had cleared up and the sun was now shining, I was expecting the usual rough grey beach with sharp rocks and smelly sea weed as I know only too well living in Scotland but this beach was something else. The sand was golden and the sea was light blue as if it was something straight out of an exotic travel catalogue. After spending hours playing sports at the beach and getting to know each other better everyone went back to the centre exhausted after a very long day.
The next day everyone was woken by the kitchen staff who marched down the hallway banging pots and pans to get everyone out of their bed. After breakfast it was straight into more lessons and workshops to prepare us for our year overseas. We were given training on planning classes and using effective teaching methods. The lessons on teaching made me realise the amount of effort that goes into planning lessons and how busy a job it must be to be a full time teacher. Through the rest of the lessons throughout the week I gained a much deeper insight into where it is that I will be staying, what job it is that I’ll be doing and how to be effective in a new and very unfamiliar role. Instead of making me worried, the workshops made me more confident that I will be able to cope with the difficult task of working with children with disabilities and that nobody is brilliant at the beginning of their year; it is a long process of development. We were taught about how to stay safe in a country which is different to the UK. We were taught about the different aspects of South African culture that we should get to know and respect. At the end of the week I felt as though I was going to explode with new information but I felt a hundred times more confident that I will be able to cope overseas. We were given our leaving dates- the second of September and given our flight tickets to South Africa, the reality that I am about to embark on the biggest adventure of my life so far kicked in. I could not be more excited.
To top off an extraordinary week we all got prepared for the three course meal and ceilidh that everyone had been looking forward to all week. The meal was great with good food and an amazing atmosphere of excitement for the year that lies ahead. The ceilidh turned out to be interesting as being Scottish it was funny seeing the English, Irish and Welsh volunteers attempt the unfamiliar dances. Everyone had a great night as the dancing and singing turned out to be the most fitting farewell to an extraordinary week.
Bring on the second of September.
