My name is Alex Wright. From August to October 2010 I spent some of the greatest times of my life in Nepal for the Platform2 volunteering project. Here's my story...

When I found out I'd secured a place on the trip, my first feelings were ones of excitement, exhilaration and a sense of agitation - I wanted to get involved and make a difference immediately. On the other hand I was also nervous and a little uneasy, because I genuinely did not know what to expect.

My trip into Nepal can be summed up as an experience of expectation versus realisation. It allowed me to appreciate the issue of poverty first hand.

'I met people who brought home what poverty, conflict and inequality really meant'

Arriving in Nepal

Stepping out of the plane a wall of hot humid air hit me. The many pictures I'd seen of Kathmandu were no comparison to the vibrant bustling streets, festooned with street traders, selling every knick-knack going.

Scenes like this, standard in any description of a poor country, are no match for the reality of the disfigured poor, lone mothers and their children fighting for survival - an initial sight that was a painful sign of things to come. The few days at the hotel were well needed, I met great people both from platform2 and IDF. Settling into the spicy food, cold showers and intense heat was certainly needed!

The village of Sirutar

The village of Sirutar, where I was based, was surrounded by mist-covered mountains and endless paddy fields. Our work involved building a school and teaching English, as well as becoming engaged within the community.

Throughout our time there I met people who brought home what poverty, conflict and inequality really meant.

I stayed with my 'adopted family' in Sirutar. Bishnu, my adopted mother had been forced to marry and was unhappy in her relationship. She worked tirelessly all day in the paddy fields to earn the right merely to eat, never mind sell a fraction of her produce. Plus, she cooked all our meals for dinner when we were at the building site - no easy job!

Benita, an 18-year-old girl who lived next door, wanted to either be an airline hostess (to provide money and food for her family and to study), or become a journalist. Her dream of becoming a journalist was born out of more than the basic need to survive and support her family. Like so many of her friends, who wanted to become journalists or politicians, she wanted to help and change her country for the better - an attitude I would regularly see in the children at the local school.

However, due to her sex and low caste placement, the chances to succeed in these dreams were slim - a fact Benita knew, but she would never give up.

These human stories show the daily battles and issues faced, but also the hope and resolve to change things. Nepal showed me, and undoubtedly others, that whatever expectations we had nothing compared to seeing the people first hand. The community's resolve to maintain faith and hope for something better - that is something truly special and an experience you can never substitute.

Words: Alex Wright