Gap year & Travel News

I have to say it took me years to understand what my sister (our career expert) meant with her buzz infused speak – ‘soft skills, life skills’ what on earth are you talking about (I would think to myself!)  Well, let me welcome you to her world! These skills are UBER important and incorporate all those skills which our/your parents desperately try to instil in all of us from an early age remember the poke in the ribs and deadly whisper ‘ eye contact ‘ and the oh so boring…’you need more self motivation if you want to get straight A*” God I can remember hearing it, now I can hear myself saying it  – Anyway back to business what are they… well communication, motivation, teamwork, initiative, courage are all the tip of the iceberg and you need to demonstrate you have them in spades.

So enter the leap, your gap year and away we go…

First up: Initiative & Organisation 
Well to start with you’ve researched, raised money and committed to a structurced placement in the developing world, out of your comfort zone ( literrlay) where even the small task of catching a tuk tuk needs hours of planning, let alone teaching an unruly class of African children or indeed the nogiaiting of building materials in 100 degree humidity!

Perfect students!

Next Team work:  
Now this is what we, The Leap are renowned for – we do teamwork in a big way. To begin with we send teams of leapers all over the world, many of whom have never met each other before and are from all walks of life. Our Leapers have to live and work with each other often in challenging and uncomfortable surroundings where they have to learn to work efficiently and most importantly look out for each other.

Courage: 
More often than not you’ll pitch up at Heathrow to meet your fellow team who you’ve only met once at our training course (and on facebook) Big deep breath moment! And some of our leapers have never ventured out to a developing country before – overcoming culture shock is not to be underestimated.

Bringing home the bacon!

Commitment:
Our Leapers commit to 6 or 10 weeks where they will be tackling different projects in different places.  Some phases can be more physically and emotionally challenging than others but it’s sticking it out that counts and having the resolve to push through the pain barrier.

Only half way there!

Communication 
We take you way off the tourist trail to meet tribes and experience cultures any normal tourist would never have the opportunity to meet. Many of the children have never seen a Western face before, let alone a camera or a pair of trainers!

Maybe extreme, but you get my point!

So there you have it I could shed the light on many more but you might loose interest!

Any more advise on any of the above. leave message below
Thanks
Milly

South Africa Leapers have had to wave goodbye to 4 of their team mates this week as the 6-weekers fly home, but that hasn’t stopped them from cracking on with project work at the orphanage, survival nights an exercising the horses. The project leader Charlotte has been getting snap-happy in the past few days – take a look at what they’ve been getting up to…

Jack with his scorpion, caught for food on the survival day/night!

The 2 horse riders and a other leapers out on a ride.

Rayyan and one of the kids at the orphanage in the community, both tired out after a lot of running around.

To anyone thinking of taking some time out and exploring Latin America….all I can say is DO IT DO IT DO IT!! I’m fresh of the Iberia flight and have just spent an incredible and unforgettable 3 weeks in Ecuador, I had the absolute time of my life….but 3 weeks was certainly not long enough by any means. It may be the smallest country on the Latin American continent but its range of landscapes, natural beauty and the kindness of its people are not easily forgotten. Ill treasure my time there for many years to come, i cant tell you how much i loved and now miss the Latin Vibe!

Me admiring Quito's artwork.

You can get some incredible views of the infamous city.

The first few days of my adventure were spent in Quito – the crazy capital….the 2^nd highest capital city on earth thank you very much. Quito is a really interesting place, nestled high up in the Andes within the valley of an active volcano. Stunning mountain vistas and clouds surround you, it really is like being on top of the world. In fact it took me a day to get used to the altitude…I couldn’t believe I was in the Andes! Ecuador is actually the Spanish word for  Equator. Why you ask? Because the equator line actually runs straight through it….yep its true, I walked along it myself and even managed to balance a raw egg on the head of a nail…only possible on the equator line. And if you like a bargain – the indigenous markets there are some of the biggest and most famous in Latin America.

Views like this surround you in Quito!

Standing on the exact line of the Equator!

Exploring the local markets!

My main reason for being in Ecuador was to visit each of our new intern projects in Quito, take lots of photos and see for myself how the projects there could benefit from the help of our interns and how our interns could gain themselves some invaluable work experience to help their CV sparkle and of course have the experience of a lifetime. I I was blown away by the projects I visited and am so excited to get more interns out to Ecuador stat to help! In fact my days visiting our intern projects were some of the craziest days of my trip – traveling around Quito on the buses and the metro system, it was a lot of fun!

During my time in Quito I visited all of the medical, teaching, care and business placements we offer and all were absolutely amazing. The staff at each of the projects made me feel so welcome and are really excited about the prospect of help from our interns. The children I met had endless energy and would surround me as soon as I walked through the gates of the schools and care centers. The Clinics I visited can offer interns work in so many areas from emergency care to pediatrics, surgery, lab work and general medicine…the list goes on and on! Finally I visited our 2 business placements – 2 tour operators in Quito, in which interns can find themselves organizing itineraries for clients to visit some of the most spectacular areas of Latin America – the Amazon Rainforest, the Galapagos Islands and the infamous volcanoes of the Andes such as Cotapaxi……and these are all options for your spare time too! You can also opt to add an additional 4 weeks of volunteering on to your 6 week internship placement, which will allow you to see even more of the country and gain an even greater understanding of its cultures and issues and make a huge difference too.

The coolest kids in the world!

Sitting in the director of surgery's chair...shhh dont tell him!

Quito as a location is such an exciting place for your internship to take place. You can spend weekends ziplining through the jungles, chilling in the thermal baths at Banos, climbing volcanoes, chilling on the beach or exploring the amazing Amazon Rainfoest and I cant recommend highly enough a visit to the Galapagos Islands…they were created by numerous volcanic eruptions under the sea and are the only place on earth where animals have no fear of humans. It was here that the legendary Charles Darwin came up with and developed his theory of evolution.

You can find some incredible waterfalls all around!

Making new friends in the Galapagos!

Incredible volcanic islands

Beautiful beaches!

Beautiful sunsets!

Some well deserved beach time after all your hard work.

If you fancy getting away from the English grey and rainy skies and want to add some wow factor to your CV…I cant recommend an internship in Latin Ecuador enough. Ecuadorian organizations can give interns much more responsibility than the organizations in the UK can offer and you can spend your spare time dancing the night away in the salsa clubs, socialising with friends in the Mariscal and exploring the best that Latin America has to offer.

So what are you waiting for…..Take The Leap!

michaela@theleap.co.uk
01672 519922

Fiona - all smiles after an amazing Argentina Leap!

Fiona has just returned from Argentina, having spent 6 incredible weeks playing Polo and soaking up the sights, sounds,  sangria, salsa, and sensational social life of a private estancia on the outskirts of Buenos Aires has to offer. Here she shares her thoughts about the placement and some inspiring photos to whisk you away from drizzly England…

“Whether you are an absolute beginner or a seasoned Polo pro you will benefit in so many ways from your time with The Leap. Not only will you obviously learn how to play but there is so much more to the experience. Whether you are part of a large group or just a couple of you it really doesn´t matter.  The Llambias family is enormous by English standards, the house is always full of people and you just become one of the family. Also, at the weekends there are matches at the Polo club so you´ll get to play and socialise with ´the locals´. If you are concerned about your Spanish then don´t be, the whole family is, at least, bilingual as are ´the locals´.

Enjoying a post match beer

Siesta by the pool

Afternoons spent in the saddle

You are probably a horse lover so I should also mention the horses…Whatever your ability to ride/play you are matched accordingly. As your polo improves and you become more confident your horses will change with you. They are all schooled brilliantly by the grooms and watching thier horsemanship and polo is a pleasure.So what kit do you need? It´s all very relaxed about what you wear but hats, boots and knee pads are a must. As a hugely repected member of the  Argentine polo world your host, Marcos knows exactly where to take you for the best kit for the best price. You don´t find these addresses in Lonely Planet!

James leads the horses in from the paddock

Saddled up and ready for action!

Chukkas away!

So what else can I tell you…? The food is awesome and never in short supply. Watch out for the Dulce de Leche pancakes, they rock. If you fancy a trip away for a few days or a night out in Buenos Aires then that´s all possible too, however, be warned… playing polo on a hangover is very, very hard. One final thing to say, book it, you won´t regret it.

Another amazing lunchtime!

If you fancy a slice of the Polo project pie we are currently looking for Leapers to join us in August 2012 and February 2013. You can find out more on our website, or contact The Leap on 01672 519922 for more details.

The Leap featured covering various gap year options worldwide.

Jen Green was featured in the Sunderland Echo whilst volunteering with The Leap to Kenya.

Jen Green Kenya Article in Sunderland Echo

The Leap featured in the Independent in March 2008 focusing on one of our South American placements.

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Pete at work in 2012

“I want you to build a road.” He said in such a dead pan voice that I thought it must be some kind of joke. I stuttered some lame excuse about how I didn’t have the first idea how to build a road and I was rather expecting him to laugh at my weak response, but instead he remained totally serious and told me to find out. I was nineteen years old and had rather thought that I knew everything about everything until 20 seconds before.

I was on my gap year, part of which involved travelling with The Leap and helping to run a remote safari camp in deepest Africa, on the banks of the Luangwa river. It was a stunning spot; regularly transited by a family of elephants, the resident hippos, the odd buffalo and any other beast you may care to imagine.

I was rather imperiously accommodated in what I thought was a very smart thatched house, although I think the novelty of having a two story house to myself was enough to make me feel rather self important. I was immensely proud of my little home; I kept it very neat and tidy and reacted with incredulous rage when the vervet monkeys pulled the thatch out the roof and threw it at me as I showered. Despite this relative luxury I worked hard and enjoyed every second of it, especially when I was confronted with a challenge as obscure as the construction of a road.

On safari, camera in hand...

The friendly neighbourhood elephant

The (not so friendly!) Hippo

For the ensuing ten days my routine was similar. The first task of the day was to gather my workforce of about ten local guys including drivers for the two vehicles, the vehicles themselves and the tools for the job. This in itself was not easy as gathering the team was like herding cats as I don’t think any of them relished the prospect of a full day in the unforgiving sun like I did! Eventually we would leave camp with our full complement and drive out along the single tarmac road until we reached the junction with our track. We cut the tall grass, used spades to fill in the deep elephant tracks and graded the ‘road’ by driving over it several times. Day by day the track grew and progressed until we reached the intended end site. We cut a generous sized car park and I marvelled at our work. Little was I to know that this week’s work amongst the many other lessons that I learnt in Africa, thanks to The Leap, would furnish me so well for the future.

As I write this I am sitting in Camp Bastion, Helmand Province, Afghanistan. I have come to the end of a long six month deployment on operations as a Troop Leader commanding 6 ‘little tanks’ or CVRT as they are correctly known. My job has involved living in the desert, sometimes for weeks on end with a troop of 18 soldiers conducting different missions and tasks. The leadership skills that I developed on my gap year in many small situations such as ‘The Road Build!’ have undoubtedly aided me not only in my job today and over the last 6 months but also in my securing employment in such a competitive and sought after role within the British Army. Having the experiences to draw on is a huge help in real terms as lessons learnt at a young age are put into practice; but also having the examples to use during the interminable interview processes to make oneself stand out is crucial in this world where a degree is commonplace.

The Leap win the tour operator challenge in 2011, featured in the Sunday Times.

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Our Leap team have been busy in the past 3 weeks working on projects around Arusha in Northern Tanzania.

We also have our first Law Intern who is spending 4 weeks working for 2 law firms in Arusha which has included court appearances and watching archive footage of the Rwandan Genocide Trials.

In the first week the team helped at Olkokola Primary school based
in a Maasai Village about 40 minutes from town. The chief of the village is Jimmy our Leap drivers father. We have continued with construction of one of the classrooms, which was started by the January group. We have also taken part in an environmental project (planting trees) to help with erosion as it’s a very dusty area with sparse vegetation. We have also spent time playing with the local primary school students and teaching them English and sports.

Girls working hard in the Maasai

In Week 2 we started working at New Suye Secondary School based in
Arusha and helped paint the classrooms. A lick of paint makes a huge difference. We also helped teach the kids English and sports. More often than not the classrooms have 60 or more children with one or two teachers so some assistance can make a big difference.

In week 3 we returned to Moshono School which is a lovely school based close to the accommodation. We also worked at Wema Primary School and during this week the team continued with painting the classrooms, most of walls of the classrooms are very dusty so their effort will really improve the environment of the school and be a better place for the kids to learn.

Helping in the school

The weekends have been fun, over Easter the team went on a 4 day safari to see the big 5 in the world famous National Parks: Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater. Both places are situated in the Great Rift Valley and apart from being stunning offer some of the best game viewing in the world.

This week the team have headed out to Lake Manyara, again nestling on the slopes of the Rift Valley the team are based at a bush camp – Kiboko Lodge owned by Mr Roman Chuwa. Part of this week involves simply interacting with the local staff at Kiboko and helping improve their English but secondly continuing with the renovation of the dormitories at Watoto Care Orphanage Centre. This includes painting murals to brighten up the lives of the 40 or so adorable young children. They are so friendly and appreciative of some extra love, attention and hugs provided by our Leapers.

The Team have gone on some game drives in the park and it is an excellent place to do some mountain biking as well.

On safari