Selection course, where it begins.....

10.06.12 - Journey

I'm on the train to Glasgow. People seem to be looking at me funny, I reckon they think I'm running away! I wouldn't be surprised anyway, I have a huge rucksack and I'm dressed like someone that has been on the streets for a while. Oh well, comfort first!

Now I'm on the coach, I have been on it for 1hr and 20 minutes. At the moment were driving along the "Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond" It's so beautiful. The driver is playing giddy Scottish songs and keeps making jokes like "let's take a head count!" and "is everyone on board?!"... because there is only me and one other person on the coach! The rain is hammering on the window and the clouds are really low, the peaks are visible above them, it's such a pretty picture. I keep trying to take pictures out of the window, but it ends up with me hitting myself in the face with my camera when the ride gets bumpy! I keep trying to read or listen to music, but I'm too excited.
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The Coach to Oban

10.06.12 - Oban

Today has been brilliant. I arrived in Oban at 1.30. As soon as I got here, I headed to Backpackers (the bus drove by it on the way) I left my rucksack and then headed out. For a good 3 hours, I wondered around Oban myself. I went to check where to get the ferry in the morning and I got some chips for lunch...oh my goodness, you can't get anything without it being deep fried! At 4, I headed back to Backpackers. I was a little early returning, but so were four other people. So that's how I met Peyton, George and Jo! They are all so lovely jubbly (: Peyton and I, who were luckily in the same room, checked in and got our room keys. We
 spent the day with Jo and George who are both staying at a local b&b. Something I won't

forget was heading around to the big church which had a beautiful Hogwarts feel...Peyton and I paid 20p each to light a candle, place it on an alter, make a whish and blow it out. -insert from after selection: I can now say that my wish came true!- A little later on, everyone was in our room! Both our room and the one across the hall had been reserved for PT. So there was about 9 of us so far. It was really good to get to know everyone, we had a huge - tense -  game of monopoly, it was so funny! Later on, about 9.30 I went with some girls to pick up more people from the train station. When we got back I came to bed...very comfy for £19! I share the dorm with Peyton, Rosie, Joss and Emily. - I thought I would fall asleep and go to bed but I didn't so that night me and Rosie went down into the lounge for a while. (in our jammie's - that's that question answered!)

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 Our Backpackers Dorm

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Monopoly game in Backpackers

11.06.12 - Coll
We arrived in Coll after the very fun 3 hour ferry journey through the Sound of Mull. Everyone who had not met yet, got to meet on the ferry. Everyone is so brilliant, I've never met so many amazing people at the one time! We played cards on the ferry, it was a good laugh. On arrival at Coll, we were taken straight to the PT centre! As soon as we were there, we dumped our bags and went off to do some admin, just basic stuff like handing in forms we had not posted. After that, we had a little introduction to Project Trust and then...BAM, straight into "Projects Available".
From Projects Available, I added Malawi onto my mind's list of interest. I also decided that I would like to do teaching and childcare together. In between "Projects Available 1" and "2" we had lunch. We sat in the lunch hall with the staff mixed between us and ohhh it was so yummy. Just what everyone was dying for, soup! After lunch we were put into groups that we would stay in for certain tasks throughout the week. I was in a group of 5 with Sophie as our Team Leader. First was "Ice-breaker and construction". We had to make a model out of straws! The funny thing was, no one's model won, we were all rubbish! 

At the end of the day, we were all driven off to our hosts house, where we would be living for the week. I was partnered with Rosie, which I was very happy about! We were put with a lovely woman, who moved to the island ten years ago from Belgium.She lives alone (but insists she never feels alone!) in a huge beautiful house (The Windy Gap) Seriously...it's state of the art beautiful! The moment we stepped inside it was breathtaking and unpredictable. In the furthest away corner of the bottom floor sits a gorgeous grand piano, my heart fell at the sight of it! Even better, she likes me playing it! I'm not very good, I just really enjoy it but Mary-Louise encourages me to play it, so I spent the week trying to make one song sound like 10 different ones...You can't look out a single window in this house and not be thrown back, it's stunning! Although the house must have about 5 bedrooms, me and Rosie were furthest away on the top floor and in the same room!

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The Windy Gap

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The Grand Piano

12.06.12

Today has mainly been about teaching, and I've loved it! First we had "How to teach" and then "Lesson Preparation" and then we had 10 minutes to teach our groups a lesson! I went for a fun option and taught my group how to draw a face the proper way. It was really fun, I was so nervous and worried about it until I was actually up there teaching and thought it was brilliant! I must admit though, George still managed to draw a face that looked like Voldemort!

Next on the list for today was Dance Practice! Ohh it was SO fun! So there are about 22 people on this selection course and only 5 of us are Scottish, I think everyone expected us to be the pro's haha! It was that fun, no one even cared that it was also very embarrassing.

NEXT on the list was climbing the highest peak on Coll (don't worry, it's not very high) It was good to get up there, but my wellies hurt my feet...nonetheless I pushed myself onward. 

NEXT AGAIN was another group task, lazy bed digging! As boring as it sounds, it was actually really fun. Everyone seemed to make it a race as to who got it done faster. Quality, not quantity! During this task, we were individually called into the Land Rover for interviews.

Later tonight, me and Rosie went for a swim! It was absolutely amazing, we were sat there in the water, only about 4 metres from the sand and a seal popped up! It was so beautiful.
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On the highest "Peak"

13.06.12

Today was great. It was all about fundraising and I think I speak for everyone when I say it got you even more excited! We also went over some over-seas scenarios and their solutions...It was a bit scary, funny, unfortunate...Later on today we had an essay, yaaaay. But I don't think it was as bad as people expected, we had an option of questions to answer. Tonight, Mary-Louise took us to Braechacha caslte, it was good to see another part of the island, a historical part.
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Breachacha Castle

14.06.12

Woooow. Today has been amazing, every day just seems to get better. It has also been very sad though, knowing it's our last day on this wonderful island. I'm going to miss everyone so much, there's not one person who's name I don't know, everyone is amazing.

This morning we were shipped around the island for "individual tasks" We were grouped with people we had not yet spent time with. I was with Ella, Daisy, Rory and Chris as our Team Leader, we dug up a local's garden path! It was pretty intense work, from 9.00 - 12.45. It was Rory's birthday today (dedication) so back at the PT centre, we all sang happy birthday and had some chocolate cake. Well, Peyton had more than one bit! After this, we were back into our usual groups for presentation time (something we were to work on at hosts houses) I decided to do mine on historical events that disturbed the population - Potato Famine, Blood Bath, Highland Clearances. It had to last 10 minutes, like the lesson. I worked myself up about it but again, when I was actually doing it I enjoyed it.
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Our work in the Garden

Next on the list was a final Q+A session and then a fantastic session of going around different desk officers to hear about specific countries. I managed to fit in South Africa, Namibia and Malawi, my favourites. I learned so much about specific projects within these countries, it was so much more informative than anything else in the week! So my final 3 countries were decided in the order of South Africa, Namibia, Malawi.

Returning to host houses, we had two hours to get ready for the...the...THE CEILIDH. And it was amazing! It was just a complete laugh, we did about eight dances with much appreciated breaks in between. Everyone loved it and everyone was knackered by the end of it. We got a nice group photo. On the way back to host houses afterwards, I got some last pictures of our Land Rover crew, Annaleise, Rowan, Beth, Rosie and Fauve! Goodness, I'll miss that Land Rover.
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The Ceilidh!

Tomorrow we go to the PT centre one last time, and then it's the ferry home :(. I'm really not looking forward to telling people goodbye, I've made such amazing friends this week!

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Me and the girls in the Land Rover

15.06.12

I have just left Oban and I'm trying hard not to cry my eyes out. It was so horrible to say goodbye to the wonderful people who became such close friends in one week! I will definitely keep in touch, they are far too amazing to loose.

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Ella and Peyton saying goodbye :(