Hanoi

To see something completely new, to experience a culture other than the German, to go abroad and in doing so become socially involved – that is the motivation of many volunteers in the weltwärts (world-wards) programme, the volunteer service of the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

In summer of 2008 the first 22 volunteers came to Vietnam, at the time supervised by the DED staff members Oliver Heller and his Vietnamese colleague Nguyen Thanh Huyen. Felix Rüdiger, Rebecca Mayer and Saba Brause are among the 13 volunteers in Vietnam this year, who have gone “weltwärts with the GIZ” (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit) and are celebrating half a year in Hanoi at the Tet Festival.

When do you know you’ve arrived in Vietnam? When you let a Vietnamese hairdresser cut your fringe, first call home to Germany with your Vietnamese cell phone or when you are able to order your food so that the waiters understand you? Felix Rüdiger (19), Rebecca Mayer (20) and Saba Brause (20) by all means move about in Hanoi with a certain degree of self-confidence, even though they came here directly after finishing school – at a time in their lives when many of their contemporaries were at most looking for their own apartment in Germany. “I wanted to get out of Germany. I has already active in the community and am interested in working in the social field one day. So a year in a different country was perfect for me,” says Rebecca Mayer.

The three sought and quickly found the Deutsche Entwicklungsdienst, which since the beginning of 2011 is part of the newly founded Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). The fact that in the weltwärts programme of the GIZ the federal government covers the flight costs, accommodation and food and “there is a certain structure – like a roof over your head and a steady job – made it easier for us,” explains Saba Brause. Her mother supports her and also Felix’s parents are happy for him after getting over their initial surprise.

There are various reasons why Felix Rüdiger, Rebecca Mayer and Saba Brause came to Vietnam of over 80 possible countries: Felix and Rebecca were both fascinated by Asia, Saba was influenced by a Vietnamese friend and for all three the project that they applied for was decisive in their choice. About 50 percent of the applications for a volunteer place succeed. “Of course, there are interesting and less interesting projects and locations where life is better or worse. What matters is what the volunteers make of the respective situation,” according to Eva Lindenlaub, who has worked since 2009 as the Consultant for Junior Staff Development of weltwärts in Vietnam. Rebecca is now working for the Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation, an Australian organization for disadvantaged children and young people that has a centre they can go to where she plays, roller skates, paints and talks with the children and takes care of disabled and street kids. “It is a lot of work, but I like that,” says Rebecca. Felix and Saba are working at the German faculty of the University of Hanoi where they support the teachers who consult them as native speakers, helping both with exam preparations and administration and even teach courses themselves. “The work is challenging but a lot of fun. We are very well integrated,” says Felix.

All three of them were well aware beforehand that they ought not to arrive here with an attitude that they can change the world. “The preparatory seminar in Germany was quite good for that: To think that they need us urgently is no good,” explains Rebecca. “Instead the idea is to create an international society. I see the premise of the programme more as to change oneself and one’s own society and to get to know everyday life in developing countries,” adds Felix. In addition to the seminar all three also took a three-week language course to prepare for their work.

All three remember their first confrontation with reality in Hanoi well. “When we arrived here in August it was very hot – it was a real shock,” relates Felix. On the bus ride from the airport to their accommodation, he saw the many people, the countless motorbikes, this huge city of Hanoi and was “totally fascinated.” Saba, too, who was very tired from the long flight, was suddenly wide-awake. “Somehow everything looked so familiar and yet so different,” recalls Rebecca, who was so tired she began walking across the street without watching where she was going and earned herself excited shrieks. Their first days were challenging. “Until then, I only knew this world from the outside, now I was right in the middle of it,” relates Felix, who was uncertain of what he could eat and felt basically overwhelmed at first. His feeling was surely intensified by the way the Vietnamese marvelled at his height.

By now, the three feel more integrated, in particular due to their jobs. Many Vietnamese people are happy that they speak a little of the language and invite them for dinner. And the trio has become used to the fact that the mentality here involves speaking directly about how one feels – even if that means announcing that you have a big bum. Felix Rüdiger, Rebecca Mayer and Saba Brause already link Vietnam to those experiences they will never forget. Some were pleasant, like the performance of “Snow White” that Saba and Felix organized with a gifted Vietnamese student as the witch in high heels, which was the highlight of the faculty Christmas party along with a reinterpretation of the hit song “Satellite” by the German Grand Prix winner Lena Meyer-Landrut. Some situations have been tragic, as Rebecca experienced when a little boy under her care perished along with his grandmother when their houseboat burned down.

All three have already learned a great deal. “I experienced a new way of looking at things, and also learned new things about Germany through my work at the university,” says Saba. Rebecca notices that she reacts to situations differently than before. “I don’t rely as much on what I expect, but am more open to things.” Felix hopes to take some of the Vietnamese imperturbability home with him when he leaves. “You don’t need rules and regulations for everything. There is a certain order behind any chaos. Some things simply happen – be a little more spontaneous and flexible.”

They are making plans for the future. Saba has already been accepted to study political science in France, Felix wants to study international relations in Dresden and Rebecca would like to study psychology in an English-speaking country – an idea she first developed here in Vietnam. Possibly the year as volunteers has made all three a bit more grown up. “Of course, it’s an enriching experience,” says Felix. “To take up responsibility changes you,” Saba agrees. Rebecca hesitates. “I’m not so sure. I’ve become a bit more easygoing – and my personality is less extreme.”