An alternative holiday

This summer I spent two weeks working in Uganda as part of the Global Village programme run by Habitat for Humanity (HFH). HFH is a Christian self-build housing charity that builds simple, affordable homes in partnership with low income families around the world. I joined a team of 18 volunteers from all walks of life, including students, a nurse, youth worker, architect, publisher and housewife, with our ages ranging from 19 to 71. What a motley crew! Very few of us had any building experience, and those that did had acquired skills on previous HFH trips, but undeterred, and very determined, we set off for the African continent for what was to be the experience of a lifetime.

Contrary to my pre-conceptions, Uganda is a beautiful country, lush green with rich red soil. The people are warm and friendly and we had the most amazing welcome as we arrived in Ibulanka, a remote rural area several hours drive east of Kampala. The whole village had turned out to welcome us formally with music, dancing and speeches. We were fed and watered and treated like royalty and that was before we had even unpacked, never mind do any work.

And work we did. It costs just £800 to build a simple affordable home in Uganda, as much of the work is provided through ‘sweat equity’ - the sweat of family and friends and international teams of volunteers. These homes are very basic, one storey, bare brick walls, three or four small rooms, corrugated iron roof, no electricity or running water, but they are a huge improvement on one room mud huts with grass roofs, which is the current living accomodation for most families. Through fundraising before we left, our team raised enough money to provide 20 homes. We physically completed two during our trip and raised a third to roof level, to be completed by the family when we left. While it was undoubtedly hard going at times, working from 8. 00 am to late afternoon in searing African heat, we developed a wonderful team spirit and great relationships with the Habitat family, the young African builders and the local people, especially the children who appeared in great numbers every day.

For someone like myself who spends my working life managing a project, it was a huge achievement to be able to build. The African builders taught us all the skills from mixing cement, to building walls. We pushed wheelbarrows of sand, moved piles of bricks in a chain gang and carried pans of mortar on our heads African style. The builders showed amazing patience and a real interest in our lives and Irish culture. Their kindness and generosity was very humbling.

Just in case you might think it was all work, let me assure you that we also played hard. During our weekend off, we went white water rafting on the Nile, an experience not be missed, even for the more ‘mature’ women like myself. Boating through rapids and over grade five waterfalls is the most exciting and exhilarating thing I have ever done. We spent the whole day on the water, stopping on an island for our lunch, and swimming in the Nile between the waterfalls. We saw monkeys, a variety of exotic birds including fish eagles, a baby crocodile and two huge monitor lizards.

Some people thought I was mad to spend two weeks of my holiday building houses in Africa. I was fortunate enough to be supported by my employer, the Volunteer Development Agency, who gave me a few extra days through their Employer Supported Volunteering Scheme. I would encourage all of you to go for it. Age and background need be no deterrent to an amazing experience guaranteed to change your life.