Hi Jillian,

I am the Director of Kaya and very concerned to hear these stories. I assure you that our operations in Bolivia are working with great projects and I can put you in touch with past volunteers for you to speak to.

Moreover, if you are already in Cochabamba, we would be very happy for you to come and visit the accommodation and meet our coordinator before you signed up, if that would help.

The have had a couple of incidents at the airport where the flight information we have been provided has been incorrect and the coordinator was there at a different time, but I assure you of the many of volunteer that visit each year, these have been isolated incidents.

We had one homestay family we worked with whose toddler started the get a bit of a handful and did throw some items out of a window one evening. Following that incident, we spoke with the family and agreed that until the child was out of his ‘terrible twos’ and a little older they would not host volunteers.

As for the bike chain....we have certainly received no reports of this (I am going to look into whether this might have been some Bolivian-style child-lock for that same unruly toddler, which is the only possible explanation - I’ll let you know) Food wise, I assure you that Bolivians are so very hospitable that volunteers tend to come away a few pounds heavier from their stays, so I hope you will give us a chance to show you around, as you are already out there, so you can see for yourself before you make up your mind.

Best wishes.
Heilwig