We're here at the end of the year and I'm going through a lot of travel journals from our volunteers in 2011. There are a lot of great journals in our Community Pages.

So you've joined The Conversation Corps! Next item on the "Things To Do" list is write a "Host Family" letter.  Here is one recently submitted to us.  Yes, this is real:

Go to Italy, live with a family and help them with their conversational English skills.  Sounds pretty straight forward.  Until you find out the family you're living with has a child that is very famous and very successful.  And...you're his English tutor.

Guest blogger Dale Fox graduated from the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford in 2009, at the age of 54. Her major was history and political science, with a focus on Middle Eastern ancient history. She is the co-founder of the Ridgway Heritage Council in Ridgway, Pennsylvania and was active in community and economic development in western Pennsylvania for many years. In addition to developing the Towers Victorian Inn, a historic landmark of Pennsylvania. Dale also served as a Director for the Pennsylvania Downtown Center for six years. In 2009 she received a special award for Inspiration in Tourism from Governor Edward Rendell.  

Over at Social Edge, Saul Garlick wrote a Blog post entitled The Voluntourism Debate.  It's a great post.  And so are the comments, which I highly encourage you to read.  A couple of "super stars" in the world of volunteer abroad have commented there in fact.