My time as a volunteer in a soup kitchen in Windhoek, Namibia

After completing my master's degree last fall, I didn't know if I wanted to continue working in the relatively superficial marketing industry and decided to do something completely different to develop myself further and broaden my horizons and just something, completely to do for me alone. I first volunteered for a few weeks at the Berliner Tafel, where I sorted food that was saved from being thrown away and distributed to the needy. I quickly realized that I really enjoyed working with food and people, and the social aspect in particular, the tackling and manual work and the gratitude of the many needy people touched me very much.

My review about the time in a soup kitchen in Windhoek, Namibia

A friend then told me about her experience with a social project in Namibia and so I researched until I found my soup kitchen in Windhoek's townships through RGV, where I wanted to volunteer for two months. This decision was the best thing I could have done and the time in Namibia was enriching and absolutely magical.

Accommodation in Student House in Windhoek

The student house is in a safe and central area and is really good for meeting people and for a period of time in Windhoek. Although it's kept a bit carelessly and simply, it's clean, there's everything you need and it's never boring because of the many young people from Germany and Africa who live there.

The only thing that left a little to be desired was the internet connection, although with about 40 residents you can't expect much else and in general I more than enjoyed the often internet-free time in Namibia. The moods of the two women who worked there were sometimes exhausting, although you could overlook that quite well.

I lived in a 4-person girls' room with three other girls from Germany, who I grew very fond of after a short time. It was just exciting and nice to exchange ideas, help out and above all travel together on the weekends.

My project: The soup kitchen

Admittedly, when I first saw the township soup kitchen, I was shocked at how small everything was. A tiny corrugated iron hut and a small square around it, for more than 500 children every day seemed unimaginable at first. Mainly because there were no toilets, little water and hardly any electricity. Despite the terrible circumstances, the children were always happy and loved being played with, drawing with them and helping them with their homework.

With soap bubbles, balloons, skipping ropes, glitter and stickers for the faces and above all a lot of attention, I and the other volunteers managed to put a smile on the children's faces day after day. In particular, the Funday we organized at the Zoo Park in Windhoek with 15 of the older children, who always helped with everything, was a complete success. In addition to the activities and education of the children, the Soupkitchen is particularly about the food, which, thanks to Greg and his team, was really very good and at least fed the many children a little every day and gave them strength.

I particularly liked singing and praying with the little ones before eating, it was full of joie de vivre and temperament, like so much in Namibia!

Although it was very exhausting and also stressful to see so much poverty, it was an absolute enrichment, full of moments of happiness, to be able to help in so many ways in this project and to show initiative in many unusual situations.

weekend getaways

As I was able to learn, Namibia is an absolutely beautiful, huge country with a very special, diverse nature, many wild animals and beautiful sunrises and sunsets. Every weekend and after my project I did different trips, all of which were unforgettable. Particularly worth seeing are:

Etosha National Park, Spitzkoppe, Sossusvlei, Kalahari Desert, Swakopmund and Damaraland. It would take too long to list the highlights here, but the road trips and camping were just beautiful, adventurous and there was always a feeling of freedom and closeness to nature. Even if the African culture is partly very different and you have to get used to a lot, such as the fact that everything takes longer, many things are very outdated or don't work, I advise everyone to try the country and the people as soon as the opportunity arises it's about getting to know each other and not just staying in Windhoek.

Conclusion of two months project and one month traveling

Being alone as a light-skinned young girl in Africa for volunteer work naturally also brings challenges and a change. In unfamiliar and perhaps risky situations you sometimes reach your limits, but if you manage to get involved with the country and the people with courage, openness, respect, caution and composure, you have an unforgettable time ahead of you.

You can already achieve so much on site with few means and afterwards you can easily collect donations from Germany and draw attention to the project with photos and videos. It was a matter close to my heart to get to know this and many other sides of Namibia. I recommend this form of helpfulness and subsequent appreciation and gratitude to everyone.

"My time as a volunteer in a soup kitchen in Windhoek, Namibia", by Hannah P., who worked with RGV on site from January to April 2017