Party Vibe

i might be able to help you there

what sort of volunteering do you want to do?

i went to the Amazon in Bolivia about 2 an a half years ago

you can do WOOFing (Work On Organic Farms) in any country pretty much…

some of the WOOF ‘farms’ in the Amazon are full-on shamanic communes which might freak out even the most secure heads /farm-hands

but could be interesting 😉

there are also a few places where you can gert involved with animals… but beware that some of these places don’t seem to have any release policy for animals that have come into their care and volunteers pay to help… the whole thing seems a bit planet of the apes (in some cases) 🙁

there is also conservation work…

you can get involved right up to a governmental level, but beware… in parts of Brazil, for example, campaigners have been intimidated or even killed for their trouble

and of course there are social projects you can help with…

plenty of charities like childrensaid would be very happy for your help… 🙂

have a look at raleigh international and Voluntary Service Overseas for some of all of the above 🙂

loads of companies will charge you loads of money to place you abroad while you volunteer… while you usually need to pay your travel costs and maybe a contribution towards food, some of these companies are just creating a business on the back of the goodwill of people like you… beware of shit like this

Our placement fees range from $775-$975. These fees cover the costs of making all the arrangments for you to arrive at your placement site. In some cases a donation is made to the hosting organization.

cos it’s bollox… legitimate charities may well ask for a donation / or contribution to you living expenses, but not for ‘making all the arrangments”

have fun

the amazon is amazin 😎

i went on a 16,000 kilometre overland expedition from the antarctic to amazoian bolivia and back

i was in the amazon jungle and rainforest for about a month

i was doing a lot of walking, camping, drinking, generally having a look around 🙂

i did get involved in some social voluntary work, but not in the amazon

i spent about £4000 in 4 months (including flights, equipment, food, travel, accomodation, insurance, etc etc) but if you are planning on spending most of your time staying in one place you can spend a lot less… even so, a flight to brazil (or other SA country) is going to cost you minimum £650 if you go for more than a month…

if money is tight you could try contacting the airlines cargo office before you buy a ticket to see if they run a courier service (where you get a reduced fare by taking a customs-sealed parcel… usually some business documents… as a kind of postman) as you can save a lot, but need to have fixed travel dates

oh yeh! i forgot you both live in Brighton

try asking brighton volunteer bureau for any advice

if you’ve been involved in volunteering in this country (that includes doing creative / art / music stuff for free) and you’re under 25 there are ways you can go anywhere in the world for free 😀 😎