February 2005

Tips That Can Change Your Life

Last year, Seattle native Suzanne Tedesko and a group of fellow tourist to Peru began a seven-day trek along the Inca Trail with the travel company Crooked Trails. They were to spend three nights along the way in three separate villages - remote outpost that had only recently encountered their first outside visitors.

But instead of just spending the night, giving their host money for room and board, and leaving, Tedesko and the Crooked Trails group offered a service that only they can provide to the villagers as well. At the invitation to the Peruvian non-profit, which has a relationship with Crooked Trails, they worked with local communities to help them develop community-based tourism that aids in the protection of "La Gran Ruta Inca."

Crooked Trails guides small groups of travelers to Nepal , Vietnam , India , Thailand , and Kenya , with a focus on fostering meaningful connections between travelers and locals through home stays and volunteer work projects. Some trips simply involve helping host families with day-to-day chores and farm work. Others involve larger, hands-on work projects identified by the locals themselves, from building toilets for a Nepalese school to helping Peruvians map ecologically sound hiking trails.

In addition to filling local needs, the service element of the trips helps bring people together, says Crooked Trails founder Chris Mackay: "When people work side by side, they have a common bond through which they can relate that goes beyond language and culture. People laugh together and see the fruits of their labor together."

Foe example residents of villages to which Tedsko's group traveled with Crooked Trails were eager to get outside advice on how to welcome and host additional travelers who might come their way. Taparaku villagers asked the Crooked Trails group to help devise a code of conduct governing travelers and host.

Their guide Basilio, a local Quechua man, arranged a workshop with the villagers to discuss the pros and cons of opening their community to travelers. To transcend the language barrier, Basilio suggested an improvisational exercise where the villagers act out " bad tourist" and the visitors would play "bad host".

"We played disrespectful, scantily-dressed intruders; inebriated locals who stumbled around, ignoring us. Soon, we were all laughing together and had broken the ice. Afterwards, we all sat down to discuss," related Tedesko. Together, the visitors and the villagers hammered out a code of conduct that would help the villagers and future travelers interact peacefully. And they also formed lasting friendships.

Service oriented vacations such as the trips offered by Crooked Trails provide the opportunity for travelers to leave a positive impact on the places they visit. From assisting in conservation efforts to teaching English to promoting peace, the volunteer activities you can get involved in on your travels vary widely. What they have in common is that each provides the opportunity to serve others on your vacation, learning firsthand about what your host community by working side by side with its people.

Find Your Bliss

Several organizations offer a host of other volunteer opportunities for vacationers.

Globe Aware develops locally identified, short-term "mini-peace corps" projects worldwide aimed at promoting cultural awareness and environmental sustainability. For more volunteer vacation opportunities, visit www.charityfinder.org/charity/vacation/.htm or see the book Volunteer Vacations (Chicago Review Press 2003) by Bill McMillion, Doug Cutchins, and Anne Geissinger.