Bahraini Global Volunteer in the Land of Fire

أغسطس 27, 2019

Bahraini Global Volunteer in the Land of Fire

This blogpost is written for Bahrain youths who are considering to volunteer in Azerbijan with AIESEC

General Information

Role Description & Main Activities

Duration: 56 days = 8 weeks July-Aug, generally it is 4-6weeks
SDG: #4 Quality education
LC: Qafqaz, Azerbaijan
Includes: Accommodation, dormitory + host

1- In Bahrain

1-1 Picking Opportunity/Choosing a Project:

According to your expectations, you can develop your own list of standards. For example, mine was:

I don't want to get ill or take any vaccines.
Cheap currency compared to the Bahraini dinar.
Cheap transportation / public transportation available.
Hard-working AIESECERS and a good rating LC.
A different culture so you are more likely to face a culture shock.

1-2 Preparation:

Contract, Visa, Insurance, Ticket, and Airport Pick-up

Once you apply and get accepted after the interview, AIESEC Bahrain will contact you immediately in order to read, explain, sign the contract and pay the fees. Now you can book the ticket or you can use this app to get easy and affordable tickets. It's best to book the ticket with one of the AIESECers so you don't have to wait more than 16 hours at the airport due to the lack of public transportation from 24 to 06. Regarding the visa, it's up to you. You can issue the visa online through the website which will take around 3 days or on arrival which will cost you around 5 BHD.

Preparation Seminar and Opportunity Manager

I highly recommend you to attend the preparation seminar as they will provide you with a checklist that will make your life easier! They will support you before the journey with valuable information such as how to deal with different situations. Your project manager will stay in touch with you during the project and will be there if anything suddenly appeared. Many thanks to the most considerable and understanding PM Areej Alfradan. Thank you soo much for being there every time I needed you and for asking about me between now and then ❣

Money

You can exchange money with the Azerbaijani Manat at the airport only, but I recommend you to exchange money to US dollars because you are going to stay in Azerbaijan for a while. so there is a probability to get a better exchange rate. Personally, I prefer to use the card so I can track my spendings and expenses. Besides that, there is no exchange rate tax. Bear in mind that using the card will avoid you ripping off situations due to dealing only with professional shops such as hypermarkets and so on but the problem is you can't pay by card for everything. regional trips organized by AIESEC for instance. A good tip is to use apps that help you to manage your finance to find the answer to the question: what I spent my money on? I may recommend this red app because you can enter your expenses in different currencies. You can estimate how much money do you need by this website.

But before all of that, you have to decide do you want to stay only 30 days or the whole period of the project? because in case of the second option you have to issue 2 visas and two migration because you are going to Georgia! or at least Tbilisi.

P.S. take with you Samsung port so you won't need an adapter, and pack up two phones if .you are staying for more than 30 days.

ask about the accommodation address and location also ask the AIESECers to send you pictures of it.

make sure that you know who is going to pick you up from the airport and send a recent picture of you so he or she can recognise you. a good tip is to buy the SIM card with the one who picked you up from the airport, it would be much cheaper

2- in Azerbaijan

1-1 settings

airport pick up

I emphasis again to book your ticket with one of the AIESECers, so you will arrive at the time where they can pick you in other words when public transportation is available. In my case, the person who supposed to pick me up came to the airport and I couldn't meet him because his phone is not working and when he tried to contact me by his mother phone but I blocked him - I though he is one of the Taxi drivers who tried to approach me - 😂 anyway, after waiting more than 7 hours in the airport I decided to go to the dorm. When I was in Bahrain I asked them about the location. But I got ripped off he asked for 30AZN while the cost is 15 AZN 😂. I highly recommend to buy the SIM card with one who picked you up ( ask him or her to bring the ID) it would be much cheaper. regard the company most of the EPs bought bakcell I think it is a good company because there is a service everywhere.

transportation

talking about the transportation public transportation is quite cheap 0.30 AZN per ride either in metro/ underground or the buses there are two types of buses new buses ( red& purple) and white ones are old versions, don't take bus card, but cash. I would highly recommend you to use an app called " Bolt" it is the uber version of AZERBAIJAN so you won't get steeled by the local Taxi you can pay in cash or by card too. To use the metro you need the metro map, to use the buses google map is your best friend.

aeroexpress

to travel between regions or Turkey, Russia and Georgia by bus

to go to Georgia, Ukraine or Russia by train

accommodation

first of all, many thanks to Suraya the only one who is working with passion and doing her best. second, I have to thank them for the great accommodation I got which is a dormitory called univeriumit is located in Ganjlick station in front of the dorm there is a park where you can walk and enjoy your time and just 15 minutes away there are Ganjlik mall and Bravo supermarket and the metro station. Luckily, if your accommodation is the univerium you will share your room with three people from the same gender as you. you can get laundry for 0.44 BHD and a meal for 0.66 BHD! they clean the place weekly and I assure you that you will love the experience there. On the same time I blame the AIESECERS in Azerbaijan in regards of the host if you got a good host family, that is nice. but here they let anyone host! for example a guy, a student even though it is mentioned on the website it would be either a hostel or a host family! on the same time, I have to admit that living with a host family will utilize your experience and ease your life there if you got a host family you will understand their culture deeply and you will gain a direct interaction with there norms, beliefs and other cultural factors. Moreover, laundry, food, rides and unlimited love for free.

the room from inside

the park opposite to the dorm

an example of the meal served in the dorm cafeteria

preparation seminar & registration

the preparation seminar is a presentation about Azerbaijani culture and AIESEC in general and AIESEC Azerbaijan. if you are not living with a host family it would be useful because in some slides there are recommendations of places, restaurants, traditional dishes that you have to try! but most important, some Azerbaijani phrases that you will need in day-to-day tasks. at the end of the seminar, you will sign the contract.

once you will arrive, you have to do the registration it is a document that should be issued if you are going to stay in Azerbaijan for more than 10 days otherwise you are going to pay 400 AZN Around 90 BHD as penalising. it should be issued by the AIESECERS if you stayed in a host or by the univerium if you are staying in it.

2-2 Activities

there are two kind of activities you will enjoy in this experience everyday routine activities and weekend activities, although I have to mention picking a tourism project means not being assigned to a local organisation. which I don't recommend in Azerbaijan due to the limited activities you can do in Baku and Azerbaijan in general.

2-1-1: work at an organisation

In my case, I worked at an organisation called CELT kids from 8 to 5 everyday except for Sunday because it is the weekend there. CELT kids it is a centre to teach kids 3-11 years old, English to support schools in Grammar and speaking. It has many Branches over Baku -the capital- I worked under Elmlar branch.

I taught speaking, every hour a group of kids come into the class and then we start a conversation that is related to the book or the unit they are studying for 45 minutes and for the 15 minutes left we play a game.

This experience really added to me more than I thought! I feel very thankful for being a part in this organisation even for a small period it taught me punctuality, multi-tasking, working under a supervisor, learn more about the younger generation and how to teach and communicate information to kids from a different social and cultural background but the most important thing I manged to develop in CELT is to deal with different kinds of personalities besides my listening skills. Also I met a very intellectual students that I am still in touch with to this day! and the cutest supervisor a person could get. it is important to mention that feeling I used to feel after work is priceless for many days my job used to be the source of happiness and productivity. it also pushed me to research more about education and third language learning and pushed me in general to be a better version of myself, to be A role model to the students!

a game that we used to play at the end of the session

a day out with my students

with the parents

Fareed my favourite student

2-1-2 EYOF

2-2 attend AIESEC events :

the local community are expected to throw around 5 parties or events to welcome and entrain you. I highly recommend you to attend them and participate it is a great chance to make friends communicate with other participants from around the world specially the ones who live with host families.

1. incoming prepration seminar

2. welcome ceremony

3.socializing and globalization

4.global village

5.Galatcia ceremony

2-3: Tourism!

the programme is design in way where you can find balance between work and fun. However,Azerbaijan is not full of activities. but if you are into nature and history like me, you will defiantly like it. If you want to know more about Tourism here is a website about Baku " Baku&Beyond" you can find everything about the culture, nature, food, nightlife and 1day trip. by friends in fire flights project

3-1: landmarks

explore Baku

agenda with more than 40 places to visit in Baku

old city

mini venice

you should totally visit the parks on weekends! and take a ride on Baku eye

region trips: that you can go during the weekend with aiesec or plan it youreslef ! public transportation to the following regions using busses is available in this link.

1.Qabala