Our brochures will be out next week for our High School Service Learning Trip to India in the summer of 2013.

(We’ll be posting links next week on Twitter and Facebook to the PDF version of the brochure)

What’s this trip all about? It’s two weeks in India, specifically Delhi, volunteering while learning about Indian society and culture.

Some of the highlights of the trip will include:

• Volunteering with children at a care center
• Visiting the Taj Mahal
• Weekend stay in the city of Jaipur
• Homestay with an Indian family
• Yoga and Bollywood dancing classes
• Visits to Hindu and Buddhist temples

Here is one of our albums from Delhi:

Darren, a 17 year-old from Australia, arrived the other day for our Christmas Break Volunteer Program in Vietnam. His trip will also include a sightseeing trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels as well as as Vietnamese Water Puppet performance.

This week’s edition — Black Narcissus (1947)

This week’s edition — Pass the Hot Sauce Please

This week’s edition — Getting Punched in the Mouth Abroad

India recently announced that tourists on multi-entry visas will no longer have to wait two months to re-enter India.

So, if you want to visit Nepal for a few days, then return to India — you can now do so right away.

This is relevant to our volunteers because most enter India on a tourist visa..

The week’s edition — Why Are You Volunteering Abroad

After you officially sign-up for your volunteer abroad program, you need to start preparing for the trip. Here is a list of the next steps you need to take:

5 things to do after signing-up for your volunteer abroad program:

1. Passport. Apply for your passport right away. You will obviously need it when you travel, but you will also need it to do things like book your flights and obtain visas. The processing time is usually 4-6  weeks once you submit your passport application.

2. Flights. Historically, the earlier you book your flights, the cheaper your fare will be. The window for buying the best international fares is 6 – 24 weeks. Start searching with Hipmunk and Yapta.

3. Fundraising. Start planning your fundraising efforts, which could include applying for scholarships, giving presentations to civic groups, and writing letters to family and friends.

4. Vaccinations. Consult with a travel medicine doctor at least two months before you departure. Some vaccines need to be given in a series, over a period of time.

5. Visa. The visa is the document issued by the host country giving you entry permission. Some countries do allow you to obtain the visa upon arrival. But If you’re going to a country that doesn’t, you’ll need to apply for the visa before you leave home.