Reach Out Volunteers

Every part of the trip was something that was on my bucket list, and for me to check off a whole lot of points says it all. Between going on trail walks through the game reserve, completing the foundation of a schoolhouse, and riding horseback through the wetlands I experienced all my life dreams in two weeks! I do not regret any decision or moment!
One story that makes me laugh is one night on the game park when my tent mate had to go to the restroom but I was too tired to walk all the way to there so I told her to go at the back of the tent. Two seconds after she went to the back of the tent, she runs back in telling me to turn my flashlight on. As I turn on my flashlight, we hear ruffling through the tall grass behind the tent. I start to feel a rush running through my body, it made me realize how close to nature we actually were. I was so tired that night, that I told her to go to sleep and forget this ever happened. But it was a cool experience.

In the Khmer language lesson, I learned the word arkoun, meaning thank you. I didn't realize how important and constantly used this word would become.

In Cambodia the people are the sweetest and happiest I have ever met. The joy in their eyes from a simple high five is unbelievable. Even with so little they are willing to give so much. It's a kindness that makes my heart all warm and left me saying arkoun to everyone.

With only a couple nights left in the village, I got to spend the whole day fully immersing myself in the stories and culture of Cambodia. It was an experience that was at times hard to see but at the same time I was inspired by the strength and positivity of the people. Every minute of hard work was worth helping these amazing kids and beautiful elephants.

I loved teaching the children on the Wednesday at the Elephant Sanctuary, I was kind of thrown in the deep end, trying to teach a class English and there is a huge language barrier but once I got comfortable I was really into it.

I loved the night life and the fact the team leader came out with us to help us feel safe.

It was a good variety of activities, you were never bored and you felt like you were achieving something and having fun whilst doing it.

It was my first time traveling to another country on my own, I was nervous at first but meeting other volunteers from around the world made me felt less nervous. At the end, we became really close with each other. It was an experience I will never forget, volunteering at an orphanage, going on game reserves while I learned many new interesting things, feeding and petting elephants, riding horses and the best part was doing all of these things with great friends I've met during this trip. I will definitely do this again, again and again!

The school I was working at had a few dogs as well as a litter of puppies which needed some simple veterinary treatment. During one lunch break, a few friends and I decided to give the dogs a dirt scrub to get rid of the fleas, and also to remove all the ticks (many of which were on their faces). After cleaning up the first puppy we brought some of the local kids in and taught them how to use dirt as an exfoliant for the dogs coats. This was a great experience for the local kids and a really nice teaching moment for us!