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THE ART OF DISCOVERING THE BEAUTY IN YOURSELF
– My unforgettable gap year

Alumni Interview VICTORIA THALLER, HLT 2019

The successful graduation from school does also mean a feeling of unlimited freedom. Finally you can do whatever you want, wherever you want and with whomever you want and you are ready to fulfil your own dreams and start your career

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More and more graduates though decide to do a gap year before dedicating themselves to further studies or to a new professional challenge. These gap years are ranging from a round the world trip to a voluntary social year.
Victoria Thaller spent the last months in Nepal to complete such a voluntary year of social work until the worldwide corona crisis forced her to come back to Austria.

Dear Vici, when did you actually get the idea to do a social year in Nepal?

In my final year at the TSBG like many others I have been thinking more and more about what I want to do after my school career. Soon it became clear to me that I did not want to continue with my studies or start working right away, but that it was important for me to get socially involved first. At the same time, however, I wanted to get to know new people and new cultures. The destination in itself was not that important to me at first. So, I focused much more on the project itself rather than on the country.

How can one apply for it?

In Austria there are some organisations dealing with it, with numerous projects all over the world. Some work together with partner organisations on site. Applying for it is quite easy. You just need to hand in your curriculum and a letter of motivation. Anyone who is interested in a social project abroad, I am always ready to help and happy to support!

Where are you exactly in Nepal and what is your job?

Here in Nepal I am in a small village called Phutung close to the main town Kathmandu in a children’s home. The project “Light for Nepal’s Children” was re-launched after the earthquake in 2015 by Kumari and her daughter Rita and houses 14 children aged 6 to 18.

Could you briefly describe your daily routine?

 My day normally starts at 7 o’clock in the morning. Before the school starts, I study with the children, prepare the breakfast and help them to get dressed and prepare for school. At 9.30 a.m. I accompany the younger ones to school, at 3.00 p.m. I pick them from school again. While the children are at school, I help washing clothes or cleaning the house, doing garden work or sometimes I also have time to discover the surroundings. As soon as I am back home with the children, we first do the homework together and later we play. In the evening, I often cook dinner together with the children.

Which expectations did you have when you first came to Nepal and did the expectations get fulfilled?

 From the very beginning it was very important to me to get an insight into the culture during my stay in Nepal and get to know the people there. This expectation was fulfilled at 100%. Already on my first day I was fully accepted and was already participating at a Hindu festival. Many start this voluntary social work with the idea that they want to help, like me. By now I think that this is the wrong approach. Of course, you support the project, give the children important things to take with them, but in retrospect I can say that the people there helped me at least as much as I helped them.

How have your experiences shaped you for the future and for your further professional decisions?

Thanks to my stay in Nepal I have learnt to live under the simplest conditions. I have learnt to appreciate things again that we take for granted. I think that this experience has taught me to focus again on the most essential things in life. Cohesion, support, community are lived differently in Nepal than here. In any case, I would like to include these attributes in my further career. Especially the insight into a new culture and the broadening of my own horizon that came along with it, showed me that I still want to get to know many other countries. And which industry gives you more opportunities to do this than tourism?

It is said that every journey you make takes you to a place unknown within yourself. What have you learnt about yourself through your work?

 I have experienced even more intensely how important the people are with whom you surround yourself and how important your experiences and values are, and how unimportant material abundance really is. In Nepal I was much happier with far less!

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic you had to interrupt your stay prematurely. Will you make up the rest of the time?

 Unfortunately, I had to leave earlier than planned. At the moment it is difficult to say when it will be possible to return. In any case, I definitely plan to travel to Nepal again in the next few years to visit my “second family” and I will try to continue to support the project from Austria.

The best way to learn is from the errors and success stories of other, as is well known. So, do you finally have some recommendations for our TSBG family?

I can only recommend everyone to get to know other cultures, religions, people and to leave their familiar surroundings. We take so much for granted, including me. In doing so, we often overlook how well we are doing, and we sometimes do not even notice that we bother too much about unnecessary sensitivities. Let’s take the risk! We can discover so many new, so many beautiful things!

If you want to know more about the children’s home project “LIGHT FOR NEPAL’S CHILDREN” you can follow their instagram page.

If you want to donate money to support the children, please contact Victoria Thaller personally
via e-mail victoria.thaller@gmx.at.