TANZANIA 2021

Five years ago i saw an Instagrampost with a url to Vrijwillig Werldwijd, an organisation that orginise trips all over the wold. This particully Instagram was about volluntering in Tanzania and Zanzibar, together with 19 others. I was intersted to i started reading more about Tanzania. I stared to tell my parents that i was interesed in vollunteering in Tanzania (at that time i just turned 16). First my parents thouged that i was not serious and thats it just was a tamparary idea, but it wasn’t!

With the aggreement of my mom and dad i signed in for a trip to Tanzania to work at IOP ( ilula Orphan Program). In the summer of 2018 i went, together with 19 other girls and one boy to Tanzania. The first day in Tanzania was enough to make made me fall in love with all the people and IOP in particuly.

Spending one week at IOP was enough for me to prommise the people there that i would come back. In that one week had created friendships that i will charish the rest of my life. Met my best friend Fabiola, one of the most special perons i have met in my life. On the end of that one week i prommised Fabiola that i would come back.

Only a half year after my trip to Tanzania, i booked a flight for my second trip to Tanzania for in the summer of 2019. This time i was gonne travel alone. I total i stayed 5 weeks in Tanzania. The 4 weeks at IOP wherd the best weeks iny life. I created a lot of friendships and met more amazing people. Besides the fact that i had the best weeks in my life, i also learnd a lot about myself. IOP made me realize that i needed help to fined myself back. Ater sepnding 5 weeks in Tanzania and a month at IOP i prommissed them again that i would come back. The people there are so special to me. I have no words for the love they gave me and all the paciance. I told them that i planned to travel back to Tanzania but due to covid-19 i had to cancell my plannes.

1.5 year went by and i had still contact with most of IOP staff. Almost evey week i called with Fabiola. Every time she kept saying that i had to come back to my family. When i saw a opperunity to finally travel back to IOP, i took that without any doupt. I booked my flight at the 27th of april 2021. I planned my trip to Tanzania on the 27th of june. This time i would not stay one or five weeks, but 7 weeks. In the beginning i was a bid afraid about the fact that it maybe was to long.

Now 7 weeks later i can say that staying at IOP for would never be to long. The past 7 weeks where the most amazing weeks in my life. I met more people and created more friendsips that i will cherish for ever. Ezra, you are one of those friendships.

Also this time i prommised everybody at IOP that i will come back. Saying goodbye to them i hard but easy at the same time. This because i know thats its never a goodbye coz i will always try to come back evey year.

5 years ago i did no immagine that IOP and Tanzania would become my second home. IOP gave me a family who loves me. The schools from IOP will always be a place where i can work.