A group of convention attendees participated in Not Just Tourists bag stuffing during the IGLTA Annual Global Convention in Toronto in May 2018. (iglta.org) I was the staff person from IGLTA who joined the group and love what you do. I asked permission to take a bag with me for a future unspecified trip because my partner and I travel so much and because I’m not based in Canada and wouldn’t have the opportunity later.
In June 2019 we planned to send the bag with my partner on a work trip to Nepal, so we took it from Florida (IGLTA HQ) to London where my partner is from. Her assistant carried it with her to the airport and when she arrived at bag drop, they wanted to charge an excessive fee for her to travel with it. Her friend that dropped her off at Heathrow came back and picked it up. I returned to London later that summer and brought the bag back to Florida in September.
In November, I flew with it to Cusco when I went to hike the Inca Trail. Despite speaking minimal Spanish, we identified a NJT location in Cusco and delivered the bag. It was listed online as open 24-7 but that wasn’t the case. Still, we managed to get someone to let us in and with broken Spanish and sign language, explained the bag was a donation. With my off-white raincoat, I match the doctor in the photo! (see attached pics of the delivery as well as a photo of the sheet listing who accepted the bag.)
You don’t have to speak the same language to understand appreciation. When we stepped into the medical supply area to unload the bag, I could see the shelves didn’t have that much on them. Keep up the good work. I’m so glad my bag went to a good home, even if it did take multiple international flights and 18 months!
Best regards,
Loann [NJT Toronto]
