Africa & Asia Venture | Gap Year Company - Haslemere

Oscar Mitchell

I did a 12 week trip with AV to Msambweni in Kenya. It was truly an unforgettable experience. I felt well looked after throughout from the team in England to Grace and Khalfan in Kenya. However although I felt looked after, was also given full independence to make my own decisions and do what I wanted. Teaching in the school was an unforgettable experience and really showed me how lucky we are in England. The house in Kenya is situated in a beautiful part of the world, right near a great beach and near Diani which is a great place also. People in Kenya were very nice, although it took me a while to get used to being one of the only white people there and getting stared at a lot. Overall would reccomend it to anyone looking for an interesting and cultural experience!

Ollie Cotton

I spent nearly 11 weeks with AV on the beautiful southern coast of Kenya. What an experience it was. I highly recommend AV.
If you're looking for full cultural immersion on your gap year, here is your answer. Within the first fortnight, we had already attended weddings, supported the local football team, gone to the local market, got rustic (!) haircuts and started teaching at our placement schools.
It was the first time that I had been away from home for an extended period of time, as well as living with a group of individuals my age. This brought many challenges as well as rewards and is all part of the experience. I formed relationships that I will treasure for a long time, both with my housemates as well as our hosts.
I also witnessed that there is a direct correlation between the effort you put in and the amount you get out. I was committed to the school and wanted to make a difference, which was obviously immensely appreciated by our hosts. Getting to know the kids and teachers takes time but is so rewarding.
I had to leave early on account of increasing Covid-19 restrictions but I will be back!

Emily Ormond

I have recently just returned home after traveling for five months, four of which were spent with Africa Asia Venture. I had the most amazing experience with them and felt that I got to soak up the atmosphere from the locals, from going to weddings to snorkeling trips, to sports competitions at other schools. The privilege and ability to take a long period out of your day-to-day routine to plunge yourself into life in Msambweni are rare, so you want to sign up with a company that will look after you and cater to your wants and needs.

The process right from the start feels super easy as you have an initial consultation with either Andrew or Sarah, who will make sure you have signed up for the right project, as they have many to pick from. AV is a brilliant organization as it is small enough to feel like family, as the people take the time to get to know you as an individual, but big enough that they have a network of connections and contacts who come and look after you. One of the team will meet you at the airport, and that is when you get fully thrown into the experience, as this will most likely be the first time you will meet the people you will be living with for the next three months.

Once you arrive in the local town, Diani, you will be met by Grace and Khalfan, some of the AV team down on the ground, who will then give you an orientation. They make you feel right at home immediately as you meet the locals, take you to their favorite shops, and show you the schools. This for me was something that I thought made AV stand out, because leaving your home to spend 3-4 months halfway across the world, naturally, can feel daunting, so this orientation makes you feel very well looked after.

After this weekend is over the time starts to fly by. Monday to Friday will be spent teaching at your school, I taught Maths, English, and Science, so don't worry if you feel like you don't know the subjects well enough the teachers are there to help! When you are not teaching lessons, there is still plenty to do. I would often chat with the teachers, draw with the kids, or paint murals on the school walls. If you don't believe me when I say you become best friends with the teachers then let me tell you that my friend Layla and I were even lucky enough a couple of times to go over to one of our teacher's houses and learn how to make chapatti and beans (my favorite). Once the school day is over, you have the opportunity to play football or other sports with the children or go to the beach, which is on your doorstep. It is a surreal experience to be able to walk 100 meters and be on a lovely white sandy beach, a perfect way to cool down after an exhausting and sweaty day.

It gets even better, every weekend like clockwork we could wake up on Saturday and go straight to Diani by tuk-tuk, the local transport. In Diani there are so many different things to do, by the beach, you could sail, windsurf, kitesurf, kayak, paddleboard or go tubing. There are also lots of lovely places to eat, all at a very affordable price, and there is a big drinking scene, especially Diani backpackers which was the best and our favourite place we would go every weekend.

Alex Boyer

I spent 4 weeks in Kenya with AV and it is suffice to say that it was the best time of my life. I made friends for life - not only with the other AVs I was living with but with the locals who I still talk to almost on a daily basis. AV really looked after us whilst we were there, providing necessities such as information, knowledge and electric fans. The staff both in Britain and Kenya were both kind and supportive, our guide Khalfan even missed his prayers at the mosque in order to get me to the hospital.

Although the experience can be expensive for some, the value for money you get is superb, especially as it costs less than other gap year firms.
Teaching is both challenging and rewarding, I miss the teachers and children at Vingujini Primary School and I can't wait to go back. If you want to be both challenged and rewarded, AV is the company for you.

I am very thankful to AV for all the fun, challenges and personal development they have gifted me with. My advice - If you don't have many commitments in the UK go for much longer than 4 weeks, you won't want to leave Kenya.

Layla Sawyer

I recently returned home after spending 12 weeks with AV in Kenya volunteering, and an additional 4 weeks travelling in Tanzania after the program ended. I can confidently say that my choice to sign up for this program with AV was the best decision I could have made for myself.
Before arriving in kenya, AV helped us prepare for our travels by sending out information of what to expect upon arrival. We were also put in touch with the other volunteers on the program. After arriving, we had a lowkey, but also very helpful orientation course with our local guides, Khalfhan and Grace.
After settling in the first 2 weeks, I quickly fell into a routine of going to school Monday-Friday to teach and participate in after school activities with the kids, and then going into the local town of Diani on weekends with the other volunteers. We found a good balance between the time we spent volunteering in school, and the time we spent relaxing outside of the classroom.
I was very lucky with the group I was apart of throughout this program. Because you are all living together in the same house, and sleeping in the same bedroom, it is very important that all of the volunteers are able to get along together. I was very happy with the group that I went with.
The main thing that I found so great about the AV project was the cultural immersion aspect of it. This is not a program where you travel from location to location doing very touristy activities, but rather it is meant as a way for you to become immersed in the local culture. This comes very naturally, as you spend the duration of your stay living in the same house among all of the locals. We found ourselves getting invited to dinner at peoples homes, playing football matches with the local team, and many other things.
Another aspect that I found to work well is the balance that AV has found between allowing the volunteers to have their own freedom, while also keeping an eye on everyone and making sure that they are safe throughout. We were able to make plans on our own and travel freely around the village, but we always knew that Khalfhan and Grace were always there in case we ran into any difficulties.
Overall, if you’re looking to sign up for a gap year program, I believe that AV is the best way to go!

Sophie Osmond

Wow, thank you AV!! I went on the 16 week programme departing to Kenya in January 2022. I met the most incredible people in the community, who I am still in regular contact with to this day. From invites to weddings, funerals, playing in football matches, teaching, painting and exploring a new culture, you do really get involved with everything.

The support you get from Sarah in the UK through to Khalfan in the village is great. They were always on hand when you have a question, and even now asking for job references later down the line. I truly wouldn’t be in the line of work I am now if it wasn’t for my experience and confidence gained through AV.

Alice James

This was undoubtedly the most incredible and surreal experience of my life. I was in Kenya for 2 months and within the first couple of weeks we were already teaching the children subjects of our choosing, getting involved in local weddings, football matches and mud hut building, having hour long chats with the local tailor on her living room floor and being invited round our host's house to learn how to make national dishes.
The schools we were volunteering at were brilliant with the teachers being extremely accommodating, friendly, and helpful and the children were super fun and cheeky and more or less kept me smiling 24/7. I felt far more like a friend to them than a teacher but I still like to think that they learnt a lot from me - I know I learnt a lot from them.
At the weekends, we would go and explore the coast, visiting game reserves, beaches, and villages and getting to snorkel, camel ride and try different cuisine. Everyone was so kind and supportive wherever we went. They were the most caring and selfless community I've met and were eager to teach us about their culture.
There were 10 other volunteers and as cliche as it sounds, they become my second family and Msambweni became our home away from home. We all learnt and grew together and I am so grateful to have met such amazing people because experiences like this are much better shared.
I cannot recommend AV more. They provide the perfect balance between support and independence and give you the opportunity to get as involved as you wish to be.

Toby Byford

Volunteering in Kenya with AV in the summer of 2016 was an amazing experience. I got to meet and great people from across the globe and the local community were very friendly and welcoming. AV were incredibly well organised in preparing the volunteers for what to expect and what to bring. The UK and Kenya office were very efficient, making the whole process very simple and easy for the volunteers, in addition to keeping families at home updated with our progress. The projects and extra activities available were amazing. I can not speak highly enough of our guide Charles. He knew how to get the most out of us and made sure we had as great an experience as possible. The more you put into this fantastic experience, the more you get out.