Media Centre for Volunteer and Adventure in Nepal

Samantha-Kate Ferretto

I’m in Kathmandu ready to leave for Italy on Friday, I’m a little nervous about that but also in reflection mode of my time in Pokhara.

I have some really bad news; I lost my camera so have absolutely no photos to show anyone... I was so sad; I had so many good photos!! All the good ones have been burnt into my memory though; I looked at them so many times!!

So yes, I can say that I think I was the luckiest volunteer, I had the most amazing experience of my life!! I had a group of kids that really needed a volunteer and an orphanage that needed lots of attention/monitoring. The kids were so special.

My kids were rural kids and there was lots of talk of them being wild and hard to control, but I found to be completely untrue!! They were so loving and affectionate; all they wanted was someone to talk to and to be there with them. That’s what I did.

The week that I was supposed to be teaching them they had exams so they needed extra time to study. I made up practice exams for them and just played educational English games. I was more about bonding with the kids than being their teacher. I think that’s why my experience was so good too, because we had fun together, I took them swimming and dancing and to the stupah, they loved it!!

We really bonded despite the fact that they could hardly speak English!! The last day was so difficult (sad) but so so special at the same time. We cried together in the classroom all morning. They gave me various gifts and a huge red thika on my forehead!! It was so amazing!! I am so glad that I kept a diary the entire time.

I have so many more stories and memories but, rest assured I had the most fantastic time, and feel very lucky.