Another lifetime ago, when I was a young(er) man, I had the good fortune to hitch my wagon with VSO (Voluntary Services Overseas). At the age of 26, I was starting to realize that if I was going to fulfill my dream of travelling and possibly working abroad, then it was time to actually do something about it. While I didn't exactly fit the criteria of desirable volunteers, I did work hard to get a certificate for teaching overseas (TEFL). I had attended some of VSO's local presentations for volunteer recruitment, and basically pestered the organizers in order to get my foot in the door. At that stage of my life, it was imperative that I got as far away as possible. I needed desperately to go out into the world and forge a new life for myself. I needed to prove to myself and also to everyone around me that I was up to the challenge.
After several months of participating in workshops and interviews, I was in fact deemed a suitable candidate for becoming an overseas volunteer English teacher. I had to anxiously await news from VSO as to where I was to be deployed. A few months had passed and I finally received word that I was selected for a position in Mongolia! While most soon-to-be volunteers were given 2 or 3 options, I was given a take it or leave it choice. Naturally, after consulting an atlas, I took the "take it" route. Soon afterwards, a package arrived in the mail with literature about my future posting. I was to be employed through TACIS, which was a consulting group formed through the European Union, dealing with establishing small and medium business ventures throughout the country. Specifically, I was to be assigned to a pilot project based in Suhbaatar, a northern Mongolian town at the very northern part of the country. Suhbaatar was the first stop along the famed Trans Siberian Railway, entering Mongolia from Siberia!
