Love it or hate it, you can’t stop the big, notoriously famed Indian monsoons. And if the traveller in you has been planning a long monsoon getaway, what better way than to go for monsoon voluntourism. Letting you escape for weeks and months away from city din, volunteering at some of the most magical monsoon places is what I am talking of.
Here’s the best that India offers for volunteers during monsoons.
Volunteering in Goa
Fall in love with Goa all over again, as it turns as shimmery as a wet painting in the monsoons. Spare some hours of your day at Volunteering Goa, an organisation that seeks help in the fields of Orphanage Work and Animal Care for the monsoons. For the rest of the day, you know Goa has sunsets and sunrises the beauty of which we cannot fathom. And of course, rains woo the rainbows too!
Minimum stay period is for 2 months. Stay and food arranged by the organisation for a fixed sum to be borne by the volunteer.
Volunteering in Ladakh
With the high passes to the remotest of Ladakh corners open now, you cannot skip a visit. Plus, you’ll have a chance to make a difference unlike thousands of tourists that visit the region every year by volunteering with 17000ft, an organisation working in the education sector in the region. Write to them with your skill set and they’ll pack you off to conduct workshops/teaching assignments with Ladakhi kids on topics as diverse as languages, art & crafts, sciences, health & hygiene and more.
Minimum stay is period is for 2 weeks (June to October). Homestay accommodation in the stunningly beautiful, remote Ladakh villages and tonnes of Ladakhi cuisine and hospitality assured. Costs to be borne by the volunteers. A great opportunity if you are running away from the rains, as it’s a rare phenomenon in the region!
Volunteering in Spiti
Jamyang Foundation gives you the opportunity to teach Buddhist nuns at any of its monasteries at Zanskar, Kinnaur and Spiti. Choose from English, Arts (basic), Geography, Health and Hygiene, Biology. More than anything, the nuns look forward to improving their communication skills, especially in Hindi. The food provided is basic, organic, and vegetarian. And the skyline is the same, the great great Himalayas, with no rain clouds at all! Rejoice if you have never loved rains.
Photo Courtesy- Science Reflections.com
While the cost of travelling and living are to be borne by the volunteers, it’s minimal for an experience like this. You need to volunteer for a minimum of one week (min 4 hrs a day).
Volunteering in Kerala
If the Kerala Monsoon campaign by Incredible India worked wonders on you, this volunteering call is for you. While you may feel like reciting The Rime of the Ancient Mariner with the rain that falls in torrents here, let the magic charm rub on you by volunteering with Rainbow Voluntours.
This organisation will place you at one of the schools in Kochi/elsewhere in Kerala, where you will be teaching one of the disciplines to underprivileged children. Weekends will be free and so will be the evenings, giving you ample of time to fall in love with Kerala. Costs to be borne by the volunteers.
Volunteering in Karnataka
If tiny, slithering insects during rains are something that you do not mind, a volunteering opportunity in the middle of a rainforest at Shimoga, Karnataka, awaits you. Mist, fog and rains will be your pals at Agumbe, which turns nothing less than breathtaking during monsoons.
Passion for rainforest conservation is all you need to get in touch with Agumbe Rainforest management. You’ll find ample to lend a hand here, with non-technical work that includes data collection, fundraising, administrative work, maintenance and more.
If there is another place that turns awesome in monsoons (and offers volunteering opportunities) that I forgot to mention here, do leave the details in the comments section below. Will be happy to add more to this story.
Till then, happy travelling.
About the author
Shikha Gautam loves to play with steering wheels, roads, words, flute and guitar among other things. Not necessarily in that order! You can contact her on twitter @ShikhaGautam
