An amazing 10 weeks on the Leap!

My name is Max and I was one of the 14 person team that went on the Cambodia 'Leap' adventure this April. The placement lasted for 10 weeks and I loved every moment of it. The first 6 weeks helping local villages around the ancient town of Siem Reap really showed how much we as volunteers could give. We built pumping wells, toilet facilities and renovated their houses, plus the children always needed a game of football to finish the days work! For the next 2 weeks we were positioned on the Cambodia-Vietnam border in a jungle town called Mondulkuri. Here, we helped the Elephant Valley Project team in rehabilitating hurt or abused elephants, an absolutely wonderful experience. We were allowed to feed and wash the elephants and get extremely close to these majestic animals. The final 2 weeks was spent on the coast in a town called SIhnoukville, where, in conjunction with the Let Us Create painting project, we helped getting homeless children off the street and getting them involved in arts and crafts, something they would never normally have the opportunity to do. Overall ever single member of the 14 person team was very sad to leave this wonderful place after the 10 weeks and I can confidently say that I have made friends for life. A massive thank you must of course go to team on the ground in Cambodia but also to Guy and Milly Whitehead, who are the husband and wife team who run the amazing Leap Gap Year Company. in my opinion there is no better way to spend your year out from school than this. Incredible!