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VOLUNTEER
ACCOMMODATION & FOOD |
ACCOMMODATION :
After
a long, often inter-continental flight and the initial
culture shock, the most important thing you look
forward to is a safe and comfortable place for you
to rest and get over your jetlag. At the Yearoutindia
office in Kochi, you will have clean rooms with
showers, access to the internet to email friends
and family back home. You'll then have a day or
so to go through the cultural orientation, discuss
the project and your placement.
Our
projects are often at locations far away from the
tourist tracks and in rural communities. At these
locations, we strive and often go to great lengths
to provide safe and comfortable accommodation for
our volunteers and staff. The accommodation will
by no-means be a luxury, but you’ll get to live
like a local with the support of our staff and community
we work with. The communities we work with adopt
YOI volunteers and give them the opportunity to
be a part of their day to day life. Volunteers experience
a unique cultural immersion which cannot be described,
often forming lifelong friendships. All our previous
volunteers have found this support and acceptance
from the community to be one of the highlights of
their placement.
YOI supports the local community by renting accommodation
in the project area, building up good relations
with the community members, some of whom become
our trusted members of staff. We also buy our daily
supplies of vegetables, fruits etc. from local farmers
directly or local shops.
Yearoutindia Volunteer houses
Yearoutindia
volunteer houses are independent houses that are
staffed and have all basic infrastructure in place
to provide for the volunteers needs. Our program
coordinators select and monitor their maintenance
on a weekly basis to ensure that they are ideal
and well equipped for our volunteers.
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Views
from Marayoor House |
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Yearoutindia
House - Mannan Tribal Village |
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The
rooms are clean and comfortable with beds, pillows
and blankets. Our volunteer houses always have clean
and well maintained toilets and clean running water.(These
can be both Western and Indian Style toilets) At some
sites we even have "en-suit" western toilets.
The rooms are also well lit, have ceiling fans, shelves,
clothes rack, a tables and chair etc. Our staff also
ensure that rooms stay mosquito and bug free.
We
ensure that there are only 3-4 volunteers at any one
time at these houses in tandem with our ideology of
not having more than 2-3 volunteers per project to
ensure a more direct interaction with the community,
locals, culture and a very personal experience for
the volunteer.
Homestay
Homestays
are almost always houses that belong to a local family
that have somehow directly benefited from Yearoutindia
activities over the years. The families are always
well known to the staff and program coordinators.
This ensures that the host family is completely supportive,
trustworthy, deserving and committed to Yearoutindia’s
cause and our volunteers` contributions to their rural
community.
The family homes are full of local traditions, religious
rituals and other specialties which give the volunteers
an insight into Indian way of life from within. Most
families grow their own vegetables, herbs, chillies
and fruits which ensure a constant supply of fresh
food for the Kitchen. The family members try to involve
the volunteers in all aspects of the house like cooking,
traditional customs and provide a friendly, welcoming,
warm and homely atmosphere! Almost all volunteers
learn to cook Indian food and get an in-depth experience
of Indian cuisine. The families also provide other
services like laundry, local sightseeing, temple visits,
treks etc.
Camps, Tents and Mud houses
At some locations we also use tents, camps, tree houses
and even mud houses as accommodation. These are usually
for short durations during weekend breaks, or at remote
locations in/near forest where no other form of accommodation
is available. These provide a unique experience of
the wild and nature at its best. Naturally basic in
its offering, these accommodations are an ideal way
to sample outdoor life at truly stunning locations.
FOOD
With its exotic aromas and complex flavors, Indian
cuisine is one of the world's best. It's no wonder
that all our volunteers adore it and also no surprise
that everyone seems to want to learn to cook Indian
food at home.
Our staff will prepare all your meals for you. They
will be predominantly Indian and western where possible.
Both Vegetarian and Non-vegetarian food will be provided.
Our staff will also customise the food according to
your taste and spice tolerance levels. All meals are
included. (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner & Teas/coffees,
snacks, local fruits etc) You can supplement this
diet at your own expense with other foods like pasta,
western foods, or anything that you fancy as long
as you/we can source them. You can also cook anything
you want for yourself. There will be utensils (no
ovens though) that you can use. In case you want to
try your hand at preparing your own food, you are
welcome to do so.
All our volunteer accommodations
have clean, reasonably equipped kitchens with all
necessary utensils to enable our volunteers to sharpen
their cooking skills. The staff also help you learn
to cook - Indian style.
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Volunteer
Room |
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Homestay
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Tree
house |
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Kitchen
Supplies |
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Kitchen |
Marayoor
House |
Lunch
at Tribal Village |
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*Please note that all the project accommodations provided by Yearoutindia have all basic facilities.
Amenities like Internet, ATM's/Cash machines, Fax etc are usually located walking distance from the house.
At some locations ATMs (cash machines) are only available in the nearby towns which can be
about an hour's drive away.
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Contact
the YOI support team at: info@yearoutindia.com
Call:
+91 484 4020040 (India Head office) Fax: +91
484 4020041, UK Tel:
07092 233122 Fax: 07092 380001
©2005 Yearoutindia. All rights reserved.
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