Reality Volunteers - Meet Annabelle

A few weeks ago we introduced you to Annabelle, a volunteer from England, who has joined the Reality Gives team here in Mumbai for the next few months. She is here to help develop the Youth Empowerment Program, focusing mainly on the Soft Skills aspect of it and will also be working at the Royal City School, running sessions to help empower and develop the teachers. Annabelle took a few minutes out of her hectic schedule to have a quick chat with us and tell us a little more about herself... 

Hi Annabelle, welcome to Mumbai! How are you finding It so far?

Hi! All good so far. A little hot, but great!

Annabelle poses for the obligatory 'first day facebook post' photo

Haha. So, what were you doing before you came here?

I have been working in education in the UK for the past few years. I initially started by working in a specialist autism school, where I realised my passion for teaching. I then went on to work in a school in a favela (slum) in Rio de Janeiro; this opened my eyes to global education issues. After that I taught in a government school in London where I was working alongside some particularly inspiring practioners, so I learnt a lot fast. 

Amazing, so what made you want to come to India?

I visited India last year during one of my school holidays and I fell in love with the country. Not only did I love the food, but I was also struck by the welcoming and vibrant atmosphere. On top of this, I came to Dharavi and visited the Community Centre and was inspired by all the brilliant projects that you are doing here and was instantly eager to join in on the fun and hard work. I am so excited that I am now here and able to make these programs even more successful.

Reality Volunteers - "I have enjoyed every minute"

From late August to early October, Lydia Wummel, a Business Management student from Germany volunteered with us. Just before she boarded a flight we caught up with her and made one more request (she was gracious enough never to say 'no' to whatever we asked, one of the many qualities we loved her for), to tell us about her time here...

"It is hard to believe that my six weeks of volunteering with Reality Gives have come to an end. The time has gone by so fast and I have enjoyed every minute of it. But let’s start at the beginning…

This was not my first time here in India. Coming to Mumbai as a student in 2011 I immediately fell in love with the country and it's amazing people. That time it was clear - I will come back to Mumbai again! As I wanted to see other parts of the city I applied to be a volunteer with RGi and luckily I got the chance to work here for a period of six weeks.

My first day started with the Dharavi slum tour. Having seen Slumdog Millionaire and being asked question from Mumbaikars like “why would you go there?” I was really excited to see this part of the city. This tour broke my stereotypical depiction of a slum. I was surprised by all the self-sustainable factories, safety and hospitality of the people there.

Maggie and Lydia work on the volunteer program (l-r)

So, I was ready to start my volunteering experience in Dharavi. On my first day I met the entire team of RGi and Reality Tours & Travel and welcomed with a nice lunch at an Indian restaurant nearby. After introductions and visits to our different projects and partners I was ready to start my project work with Maggie, another lovely volunteer from Italy who joined in my second week.

Maggie and I were responsible for shaping the volunteer and ambassador programs of Reality Gives and we really enjoyed our work. Besides this we got hands on practical experience while giving English classes to staff members, preparing a presentation about our country to teachers and assisting the girl’s football program, a unique program in Dharavi. Throughout the English conversation classes Banu, Sangeeta and Ravi taught us a lot about Indian traditions and festival. We were lucky to be here during the Ganpati Festival and got all information about it from our students. India has amazing and unique festivals!

Youths from Dharavi perform their dances for the teachers at Royal City School - a highligh of Lydia's time here

One of our highlights was the organisation of a dance performance with students from our Young Empowerment program. We were amazed by their dance skills and the performances they prepared for teachers day at the Royal City School. On Teacher’s day we got the chance to be judges for several things the teachers had prepared themselves. We tasted yummy food, saw amazing posters and draws, got Mehndi and saw beautiful Rangolis. A really eventful and memorable day!

Besides volunteering, Mumbai never gets boring! Every time we thought we understood the city we would find something new and start all over again! Chai walas, colours, festivals, food, smells, smiling people. This will not be my last time in India!

I also want to take the chance hereby to thank all the fantastic colleagues from RGi, RT&T, Royal City School, the Community Center and all the lovely people from Dharavi who made this stay unforgettable. You guys are amazing. Keep it up! Looking forward to seeing you back in Mumbai soon!"