by Kirstin Reil

Volunteer job at Lha: German Teacher

September 16, 2019: it’s around noon and my plane from Delhi is slowly reaching Gaggal Airport down in the Kangra valley. Looking out the window I can see the mountain range in the distance which had caught my eye more than a year ago when I first came to Mcleod Ganj.At that time I immediately felt connected to this place as well as its people and decided to spend some months here as soon as I would be given the chance.

My sabbatical this year was the perfect time for this. A friend of mine recommended Lha and I contacted the organisation early this year to find out if my support was needed.Communicating with the staff members about my volunteering here was easy and supportive in every aspect. They informed me about the various things I could do and so I came to Mcleod Ganj in mid-September and stayed for three months. Now, at the end of my time here, I can say I have been spending three fantastic and enriching months teaching German for beginners and English at intermediate level.

My field of work in Germany has been academic, continuing education and adult education for twenty years. During the past fifteen years I have been focusing on language teaching with international students. Having worked with these students from around the world is an experience that certainly helped me to settle in here quickly. The mix of students learning at Lha added a lot to my intercultural experience and I am very grateful for having met so many wonderful people.
Looking back I can honestly say that I have hardly ever worked with such dedicated and amazing students. I feel I have learned as much from them as they hopefully have learned from me. It was a real pleasure to come to “work” every day. I also spent some time writing up a curriculum and some recommendations for German courses at beginner level. This can hopefully be of help for future German teachers coming to Lha.
I would like to thank all Lha staff members in the office and at Ahimsa House for their support and commitment. I remember my worries I might be too old for doing voluntary work here at Lha. So many other organisations put an age limit to this kind of work. But now I can only say age does not matter if you have the privilege to be able to do what you love. I will definitely come back. Thank you so much!