Updated
July 20, 2001

Emma went to Gambia through a Christian Charity, if you want more details from Emma she is very happy to be contacted, just send an email to GTS and we will forward it.

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INSURANCE
Again the insurance was included from the charity, it was done through an organisation called Inter health which is Christian insurance company especially for people serving long times abroad and includes things like repatriation and advice from doctors in the UK. It is important to get fully covered incase there is an emergency, we also had an agreement with MIC hospital which is British funded that they would treat us if we were taken ill, and the treatment is good.

VACCINATIONS ETC
polio, tetanus, yellow fever, hep A, hep B, meningitis... urm... the doctor can give you a list required for west Africa, its important to start early so you have time to fit in all of the courses and allow for illness as they wont inject if you are a bit under the weather. Antimalarials that I used were paludrine and chloroquine which are fairly good but you must take the entire course, every day. I stopped taking mine when i got home and did get malaria!

SHOULD LEAVE BEHIND
you don't need many clothes as you can get more local stuff out there. Stuff like soap and shampoo, unless you use special stuff can be bought out there and so you don't need to take loads, the same for sanitary stuff. I took one pair of trousers and one jumper, which was enough. I took trainers and probably wore them twice, good sandals are enough.

SHOULD TAKE
Loads of photos, it gives you something to talk about, especially ones of family and friends. Take lots of presents to give to people, like stuff to read, second hand clothes, games, packs of cards, photo albums, music, musical instruments, teaching material for all ages, colouring pencil, paper, stuff to remind you of home, books for you to read, writing paper, address book, vest tops...

SECOND THOUGHTS
I don't think I had any second thoughts when I actually got there, i did when i was leaving my house and saying goodbye to my boyfriend but when you get there you just slip into things and have to make the most of it. I know that there were times that i found difficult, but i can't really remember them now and you're not that far away from home, you can usually get hold of people on the telephone. Keeping in touch with people is really important and means that people at home can be part of what is going on and also gives you quite a large hotmail in box!

ONE WORST THING
its hard to think of one worst thing, now i only really remember the good things but the hardest thing was trying to sort out problems with the family that we were living with, we weren't treated as renters but more as quests which put quite a lot of pressure on us to do the right thing, which we didn't usually do. Things like not socialising with the family enough and going out until too late. But looking back that was still part of the whole 'Gambia thing'

ONE BEST THING
Definitely the opportunity to meet such amazing people, sounds incredibly cheesy but I still feel really happy when I think of the times I spent with them.

ENOUGH TO DO
One thing we were taught before we went out was "its not about doing but about being". I don't think that westerners understand this concept, I don't think I did until about 3 months in. As much as you try and stop yourself I think its really hard not to see it as your chance to go out and save starving African children, it's really humbling when you discover how much they give and teach you. Jo and I taught in a nursery in the mornings and then did various things like teach in a secondary school and help a local missionary couple do admin. stuff. There is always going to be enough to do, you are going to a country where people are desperate to learn and you have the capacity to teach them, whether it is one to one or with a group it is all worth while. Just being Gambian is also a good thing to fill your time with, shopping, cleaning, cooking, eating, chatting... things that we don't have time to appreciate here and that the people you are living with will appreciate just because you are spending time with them. Having said that it is important to have some way of spending time at the beginning to make contacts in the village and begin to feel part of something.

ACCOMMODATION
We stayed in N'jei Kunda. Jo and I our own rooms rented from the family and then shared toilet, wash room and cooking area. This didn't turn out too well as the family wern't atypical of the Gambian norm. They were fairy rich and had quite different mentalities to other Gambians that we met. We felt quite held back quite a lot but this was mianly because they were trying to look out for us. I think the best way to live is to rent from a large family where there are other lodgers and then you will be treated as a lodger rather than part of the family. Not at all meaning that they wont welcome you but you will have quite a lot more freedom. Gambians can't really see the benefit of being on your own and so it is important to have a place where you can go, our separate rooms were good for that.

TOILETS AND WASHING...
The toilets are mainly holes in the ground that you squat over and then wash yourself with water from a plastic kettle. Washing is usually done from a bucket in a little cubicle. All of this you can discover!

FOOD
You will get fed! People are really generous with their food, if there is a meal on the compound you'll usually be invited to join in. Main staple is rice with fish and then veg; cassava, bitter tomato, aubergine, potato and cabbage. We did cook for ourselves for the first few months but then realised the Gambians did it so much better. Shopping is really fun in the market and you feel like you are participating in ordinary life. Its all very cheap, 50p for 2 for a meal easily. Its hot. We drank the water and were fine as it is all piped.

WHAT WE HAD TO BUY
Everything once we were out there, food, travel, presents, treats, stamps, bikes, Gambian dresses. All of the flights, insurance, accommodation and training was taken care of. We paid a lump sum before we left of about £2000 and then I took £1500 out as spending money and came back with £800. Living is really cheap and it is better not to be frivolous with money because it will just set you apart, they already think you are minted which of course you are to them but its better living simply.

TRAVEL
We were going to travel for a month in August but by the end we only spent a week doing odd little things in Senegal and Gambia. By the end we just wanted to spend time with people before we went back to England. But there are loads of places around that would be brilliant to go and visit... Timbuktu!

AGAIN
I don't think I would do exactly the same project as before, it wouldn't be the same. But it is definitely amazing spending enough time in a country so that you feel like you are living there. Gambia is a perfect place to do it in because the people are so friendly. I would love to go out and stay again and see everybody again, i consider them as some of my best friends even though our time together was fairly brief. My time in Gambia did also give me a better perspective on the third world as a whole.

FUNNY THINGS
wont bore you but...
watching children dancing
cooking with palm oil and having to creep out of the compound to dump it, next day found our plastic bag had been found, washed and hung up to dry!
walking back home through a rain storm with metal boxes on our heads wading through a newly formed river.
Jo not being able to refrain from talking to bumsters on the beach.

SAD THINGS
Not many, one in particular when one of the boys from the nursery died and we all went round to the family compound to pray for the family.

SEX
Because I went out with a Christian organisation their ethos was no relationships although this isn't reinforced and things do happen in some country groups. There are certain things to think about; STD's, some peoples reasoning for having a white partner, the length of time you are there, respect for the culture and how much it could effect your time out there. We weren't closely supervised by the charity, we had people who we could go to if we needed help or advice, in particular one English lady who it was nice to share sarcastic humour with. Men out there can be a pain, we could be a passport to Europe and so you do get hassle from some. The best way is to ignore people who give you hassle, it will usually be people who see tourists a lot. Otherwise, by respecting cultural things like dress as people realise you are staying for a while you will gradually get more respect.

RAINY SEASON
Take Antimalarials continuously. We weren't there for most of it and so it was quite exciting but it is really humid, muddy and wet. It is hard to keep clothes clean and dry so a bit more care is naturally taken over hygiene and stuff.

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