Program Reviews

This trip was amazing! I've never had such an experience in my life. Part of this was because Thailand was the prettiest place I've ever been. Part of it was because elephants are awesome! But mostly it was because the people I was surrounded by were so great! All of the cute cute dogs also helped and I learned a lot.

Thailand 101 was an amazing experience to go on. I met so many people that will be friends for life. This trip is great for anyone who loves to travel and loves animals. I would recommend this trip for any college student, you will learn so much.

I have always dreamed of studying abroad and honestly, Loop Abroad exceeded my expectations. Not only did they provide me with a once in a lifetime opportunity, but it was a blast and worth every penny. The Elephant Nature Park is such an amazing place, and I think anyone who has a passion for animals should go there at least once. With Loop Abroad you get an entire week there with experiences not everyone gets to do. Not only that, but you get a second week exploring the city of Chiang Mai, which is gorgeous and full of unique experiences. I'm very happy I was able to learn about Thai culture through this program. The staff is exceptional and they make the program that much more fun. I would recommend this program to anyone who loves animals, and who has a strong desire to get the most out of studying abroad.

This trip is unique because it is a vacation and study abroad experience all in one. These two weeks were stress free and so relaxing, yet I gained veterinary knowledge that I wouldn't learn until vet school. I loved working with the elephant vets at ENP and as well as Dr. D (Dana)! Dr. D gave me responsibilities that my own vet that I have worked for for 2 years has not allowed me to do. This trip will open many doors for me and has strengthened my desire to become a vet!

This experience was a once in a lifetime. I had an amazing two weeks spent with really great staff. Not only is it hands on learning but an eye opener to the rest of the world. As a pre- vet student, it was awesome to work alongside a vet.

This program opened my life up to the world of travel while simoltaniously helping me persue my dream of becoming a veterinarian. It was so hands on with animals during the day and then at night you were emerged into the Thai culture. This honestly is a once in a life time experience and anyone that has a chance needs to take it. I was able to learn how to draw blood, learn the basics of a general check up, how to administer shots and many other veterinary basics. I spent a great deal of my time growing up volunteering at my hometown zoo and I was a very active member of FFA but Loop Abroad gave me a chance to really work one on one with animals. I came home with veterinary experience but even more important I was able to meet two girls who became my best friends and enough stories to last a lifetime.

To this day, I still claim that the two weeks I spent in Thailand were by far the best two weeks of my life. I had never traveled overseas by myself before so having all of us meet in New York and fly out together to Thailand was very helpful. I believe it also gives us a chance to socialize with one another before we get there. Once you arrive in Thailand, the hospitality begins from the start. I think that is one of the most significant things about Loop Abroad. They make you feel at home when you are thousands of miles away from the U.S. The dynamic duo of Spicy Thai and Loop Abroad makes your trip abroad a welcoming experience.

The first week, we volunteered at the ARK Shelter under the supervision of a veterinarian. Throughout the week, you are getting hands on experience every day. You have surgery days, blood drawing days, and a special day to visit the cats at another shelter. Not to mention, everyday spent in Chiang Mai you get some kind of cultural experience. You visit in town for lunch, dinner, and shopping in the markets.

The second week was spent at the ENP where elephants roam freely within the parameters of the sanctuary. There are special feeding times as well as bathing times for the elephants that you can partake in. Throughout the week, we switched off with helping out at the dog shelter on campus and learning medical knowledge from the elephant veterinarian. I can not explain the feeling of being so close to the elephants every day. They are gentle giants and it gives you a sense of ease when you are able to work with something so beautiful and so up close. Over the week, you begin to pick out your favorite elephants and, later, find it hard to leave them behind.

My trip with loop was by far the best summer of my life! I attended the summer in between my Junior and senior year of college, the year I was applying for vet school. Elephants have been my favorite animals for as long as I can remember, so when I found out that I was going to spend the summer with them, it was a dream come true. In the city the mornings start off with a quick instructional lesson of what we'll be doing for the day, vax, blood draws, parasite testing, spay/neuter etc. Then you spend the afternoon actually practicing and doing what you just learned alongside some great vets. I easily god 200 hours of supervised experience! Almost every evening we went to a different market and really got to experience the true culture of Thailand. While at the markets we got to break up into small groups and explore on our own, never once did I feel as though I was in an unsafe situation and we were provided with cell phones to call the staff if we had any concerns (which we never did).

At ENP we worked alongside the American vet we had been working with the whole trip but also the Indian and Thai vets that are on staff at ENP. I was expecting to 'look but not touch' and boy was I wrong! We worked with the vets developing diets, administering medications, performing treatments, cleaning wounds, and helping to diagnose problems with these gentle giants. We got to meet the founder of ENP Lek and spend lots of time with her learning about her dreams and visions for this park. While at ENP we got to treat and learn about a large variety of animals, not just elephants. At the park they have cows, water buffalo, bunnies, monkeys, birds, and a small animal shelter, we definitely had our hands full! However, it wasn't all work, we enjoyed tubing down the river, playing in the monsoon rains and bathing the elephants, which almost always turned into a water fight.
Our weekends were full of sight seeing trips to temples, mountains, waterfalls, a butterfly garden, and even a tiger park where we got to bottle feed baby tigers!

The trip was fantastic, however, the staff made Thailand feel like a home away from home. Our program director helped me edit my personal statement for my VMCAS application and the vet we worked with all summer even wrote me a rec letter. Noom and Aum, the staff and the hostel we stayed at were so great! They taught us so much about thai culture, they were pretty much like walking text books to us! They probably got so tired of hearing us ask...well how do you say this in thai. I became fast friends with all of the staff and the people on my trip, and I stay connected with them on a daily basis thanks to social media!

If you're looking for experience before vet school, a pre vet student, interested in vet med, or just an animal lover, this is definitely the trip to go on!

Going to Thailand through Loop Abroad's EEE program still remains the best decision I've ever made in my life thus far. Growing up, I was never really the kind of person to make any adventurous, out-of-my-comfort-zone decisions, neither for myself nor by myself; adjusting to a life in Japan to one in America, then vice versa, then reversed again, was the only substantial "adventure" I'd ever experienced, and none of those adjustments were really anything I'd brought upon myself. I never even tried summer camp because I always just assumed it wasn't "my thing."

So when I decided to go to Thailand, an exotic foreign country I'd never been to before, with a group of strangers and no family members with me, I was stepping way outside my shell. But I knew an animal- and culture-lover like me should never pass an opportunity like this, and I was right. No two weeks has ever been more influential to my life, in gaining experience and in growing as a person. I was a bum, and looking back now, I recognize I was probably at my lowest my junior year, the year preceding the summer Thailand trip. Somehow, the two weeks spent far from home surrounded by a beautiful country, met with waves and waves of pleasantly overwhelming new experiences, and with a great group of people equally appreciative of the experience left me with a great new group of friends I still have reunions with, loads of pictures, a memorable life experience that I can write papers and resumes on, and last but not least, a much better self.

(Rather than giving a detailed plot outline of my trip I decided to take the more empirical route, so I'm sorry if this turned into too much of a personal ramble.)

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:: TL;DR ::

・ Living with elephants for a week is amazing
・ Helping take care of elephants (et al) and learning about them and the environmental/political struggles they face are incredibly rewarding and enlightening
・ At the same time, you get to experience much more than elephants
・ Chiangmai is so fun and SpicyThai hostel makes sure you have a great time
・ I know you want those balloon pants...!
・ You're not living until you've tried real (Northern) Thai cuisine (s/o to khao soi, the actual love of my life)
・ endless #tbt material
・ I love Loop. You will too.
・ I cannot wait to go back some day

While deciding how to spend last summer, I stumbled upon a Facebook ad. It was advertising a summer with elephants in Thailand! Clearly a little suspicious, my family sent out an email to the Program Director, Jane Cassie , right away. I was applying pretty close to the deadline, so I was worried that I would have to make a rushed decision. Jane responded in no time at all, answering all my questions and providing me with helpful information in the decision making process.

Having never spent time overseas from my family, I was a bit nervous. Once I was accepted into the program, I was blown away at how organized everything was. My worries were quickly washed away as I was provided all the details I could possible want for the trip of a lifetime with Loop! As the time until my program passed by, Jane kept us updated with flight plans our group. Jane's well worded emails from Thailand continued to build up my excitement for the adventure.

Our group and the college group met up at the airport in New York, and led by Kelly, we got on the plane. The plane ride to Thailand is pretty long ( about 20 hours I believe), but time flew by--ahh, airplane puns?!-- as we got to know each other, played games, watched movies and caught up on our summer reading. We transferred flights in China, and before we knew it, we had touched down in Chiang Mai.

When we arrived, Addam, the Executive Director, welcomed us and helped us get our cash exchanged at the Airport. We headed over to the three person tuk tuks and began our journey to the B2 Green, a local hotel where we stayed for the night. When we arrived, Jane greeted us warmly and gave us time to go to our rooms to freshen up. We stayed in rooms with 2 twin beds, electricity and warm running water. On our beds were welcome bags, filled with essentials, such as a Loop Abroad shirt, a day by day schedule, and a rain poncho (trust me, it IS important-- or you can bring a raincoat!).

Once we had gotten cleaned up, we met Jane and the other staff in the lobby for dinner. We were heading over to the market to dive into the Thai culture. Jane and Addam gave us the run down on the cell phone and group policy, giving each of us ample cash for our meals and a cell phone for each group. Although the market was quite busy, even in the pouring rain, I felt safe. We were given about two hours to explore the stalls and dine on whatever we wanted. The options were endless: Pad Thai, calamari, fresh fruit smoothies, and of course, my favorite-- mango sticky rice with coconut milk.

With our bellies and shopping bags full, we headed back to the hotel for a good night's sleep.
Our first week was spent at the Elephant Nature Park. The Park was a bit of a drive from Chiang Mai, but once we got there, it was definitely worth it. Tucked away into the lush forest, the Park is home to all sorts of elephants, old and young, that have been rescued or are recovering from injuries.

Now let's be real-- the Park really is tucked away into the jungle. You aren't going to find luxury accommodations or hot baths waiting for you. Accommodations are simple. Rooms are shared with one or two other people and beds are covered with mosquito nets. You share a fan and a lamp... that's the decoration! The ENP is pretty humid. Once something gets wet, it stays damp for a while. Bathrooms have mostly cold showers and toilets that can't take toilet paper... but that's pretty common. ( I'd recommend bring bug spray, long pants and a raincoat.)

You can't really predict what any specific day is going to be like at the ENP. One day you may find yourself scooping elephant poop in the morning and washing elephants in the afternoon. The next day you may be visiting a nearby school or maybe floating down the river in inner tubes. You might even go into the field to collect food for the elephants! One of my favorite ENP days consisted of sorting watermelons out of the back of a truck in the morning and preparing a snack for the elephants in the afternoon consisting of mashed up bananas. Another ENP highlight was elephant bathing. I don't know who got more of a bath, me or the elephants!

There was always something happening at the Park. One night we had a Thai language lesson, and another we had a movie night. You can always get a Thai massage in the evenings for incredibly cheap! If you get sick of the elephants, which I doubt you will, you can hang out with any of the 100 cats or about 400 dogs. The ENP is the place to be if you love animals! If you feel tired, you can always take a nap, as Loop Abroad gave us plenty of down time to relax if we wanted to.

The food at the park will always fill you up after a long day. Breakfasts are pretty normal with juice, toasts and fruits. Lunch was always my favorite. The assortment of noodles is crazy! Even if you are a picky eater, you can always find something to eat. Dinner always had a wide range of choices. On special evenings, we had Thai specific cuisine.

Our time at the ENP went by fast, but we all came out feeling rich with experience. We headed back into the city and settled in at our home for the next week--The Spicy Thai Hostel.

The Spicy Thai will most likely be your home base for the week you spend in the city of Chiang Mai. Hot showers, along with WiFi and computers, are welcoming. You stay in bunk rooms with the rest of the Loop participants. There are about eight beds in each room, with air conditioning!!

Just like the week at the ENP, it's pretty hard to tell what a day is going to look like in the city.

You may being visiting the market once more shopping for some Thai pants. Or, you may be going zip lining through the jungle canopy. You'll certainly visit several temples, and have the chance to talk with Monks. You'll have the chance to stroll through markets and try mysterious fruits with Noom, and put your cooking skills to the test at a cooking school. You'll leave stuffed, AND with a recipe book so you can showcase your new skills for your family and friends. You may find yourself in a cave with bats looming above, or you may find yourself standing in an orchid garden. With Loop Abroad, the possibilities are endless.

If you are a fan of well organized and adventure filled programs, I highly encourage you to apply for THIS program. I was blown away at how smooth my journey was. Loop Abroad is one of the most well run programs I have ever been a part of! Even if you are just curious, I recommend reaching out to Jane or Addam who are some of the kindest people I have ever met. By traveling with Loop, I feel like I have so much knowledge to share with all of my peers. I made great friends in a short two weeks, and have such a strong urge to travel even more than I did before. It would be such a great opportunity to have the chance to return to Thailand and relive the amazing memories I made last summer. Thank you so much, Loop Abroad!