We had an amazing time volunteering at Millennium Elephant Foundation. The staff were so friendly and supportive and the mahouts were a lot of fun. Obviously our time with the elephants was just magical and we have taken with us some of our best memories and moments. Everything ran smoothly in the lead up to our stay and we were in communication before, during and after our experience. Would recommend for everyone. Great for anyone - couples, singles or families. Comfortable accommodation and delicious meals

As a couple we had a great experience teaching english to the young monks. Our stay was short (one week) but already enough to get to know the kids we teached.

We stayed at Michael's house which was very close (less than 10 minutes away by scooter) from the temple. Overall great conditions and a lovely family welcoming us.

We had a profoundly human experience at the temple. You will also have enough time to go exploring the beautiful city of Galle.

The area is also great for surfing and relaxing at the beach. A trip full of adventures, cultural discoveries and the kids... joyful and always smiling.

I have visited Sri Lanka for two weeks with my family. And made an internship in hospital. And i can clearly say that everyday in Sri Lanka was awesome thanks to Michael. He helped us in everything and everyday. He arranged our trips in Sri Lanka and also the internship in hospital. And he was very kind and helpfull. I met new cultures, students from many countries and cultures came, I met them and learned new things from them. I tasted the cuisine of a different country. I loved Sri Lankan food.

This experience allowed me to see elephants close up - feeding them, cleaning their 'beds', washing them in the river, or just having fun with them. At the end of one week we felt we knew them personally - we knew their history, we knew who was sick, who needed extra nutition and so on. I don't think this close connection could have been achieved in a larger organisation. Even better than this though was the chance to interact with the amazing and very friendly staff - to learn about their lives and get to know them in the short time we had. The lovely Dhamli, photographer's assistant, acted as interpreter on some occasions so I could ask the mahouts many questions. This was something I hadn't expected. All in all, it was an experience I would like to repeat.

This was my first time visiting this beautiful country and my trip and experience was well facilitated by the IFRE staff. The sceneries and beaches in Galle were breath taking. The people were welcoming and respectful. The food was really good. On one weekend, the country coordinator, Michael took us to the 'Elephant Orphanage' where we learnt about the Asian elephants and their life cycle. We also go to ride the elephant, feed her and give her a bath and in return the elephant showered us with water from her trunk. It was a great memorable experience. On the contrary, the hospital experience wasn't as 'Hands On' as expected. It was more of an 'observation' rather than actually being assigned tasks to perform.

I have had the privilege to do a medical volunteering experience in Galle, Srilanka. Firstly, we stayed with the host family which were very nice and hospitable, made sure we felt comfortable during our stay.
Secondly, the medical exposure was a bit of a let down. Due to the main reason being the language barrier between me and the patients as well as some of the healthcare workers, which made me shift my program from the pediatrics department to the emergency medicine department which was a much better decision, the cases I saw were much more interesting and the doctors their were more engaging. However, the overall medical volunteering experience felt more of a medical elective rather than a hands on experience.

Overall my experience in this program was a good one. With the help of this program I feel like I have grown so much. Sri Lanka is a beautiful country with some of the most amazing people I have ever met.

My partner and I stayed with Michael and his family, which were all just incredible. Michael was an amazing host, he guided us throughout the entire two weeks of our program and even after we left to travel around the country, he was always ready to help through Whatsapp. Michael organised our daily transport to and from the hospital which was great. He also organised trips for us which were also so much fun. They prepared food for us every day which was delicious. He and his family are very caring and always with a smile on their face. They thought us so much about their culture. We will definitely stay in touch with them.

The actual medical exposure was also eye-opening. We could see how the medical team makes use of little resources to provide the best health care that they can. Nonetheless, my partner and I were a bit disappointed in the fact that the program was not a voluntary type but a more of a medical elective. We did not participate in any medical procedures, something which we both thought we will do.

Sri Lanka Medical experience was an eye opening experience I was able to observe and see medical pathologies and conditions that we do not really get in the western world. During my 2 weeks placement at the hospital I was able to appreciate the art of clinical diagnosis via examination, something that again in the western world is being lost due to the increase accessibility to radiological and laboratory investigations.

The host family that we were living with in Sri Lanka have been amazing, they made us (my partner and I) feel at home. Michael (Host), is an amazing guy, he used to help us and guide us through everything we wanted to do in Sri Lanka both throughout those 2 week while doing our medical placement and even after since we decided to travel around Sri Lanka after finishing the placement.

The only disappointment that both my partner and myself have expressed is that this is not a volunteering project but instead this is a medical elective, but none the less we still made the most out of it and we were still able to obtain some medical knowledge both from the doctors themselves and even from the other medical students.