This Is An Essential!

From the moment I was handed a flyer for ISV in my Political Science class I knew it was something I wanted to do. I took it into my own hands to go to an information session about ISV and the different programs it offers and I was blown away. They offer so many different countries and many types of volunteer work. Of course, I chose Thailand. I have an immense love for elephants and have wanted to visit Thailand for years, and going through ISV seemed like the best way to do it. Throughout my two weeks working elephant conservation, I learned more about not only myself, but about elephants, thai culture and thai language. The village people even took us out to places we would have never seen or known about without their friendship and kindness. I worked at Ran Tong Save & Rescue Centre, and loved every second of it. They aren't funded by the government so people that come to volunteer, or pay for a whole day with elephants makes a huge difference for the site. That's how the fund everything. Our main task was to build a bamboo fence along the entrance of the centre so that the elephants may roam wherever they please without disturbing the nearby villagers. While the work was hard and strenuous, I wouldn't have traded that opportunity for anything. Getting to know the elephants and the mahouts on a personal level was unbelievable. We even got a day off from the elephant conservation (who would want that?) & we got to teach English at the local elementary school! That was an amazing experience, I purchased things at a local store to donate to the class and they absolutely loved it. The students already knew so much English it was hard to actually teach them! We ended up just playing games. That was really cool, and I feel lucky that they through something like that into our work. The people at Ran Tong have so much kindness and generosity it is absolutely amazing. My group and I didn't even want to leave Ran Tong at the end of the Project Tour! We would have been easily happy working there for the whole month. Yet, moving on to the Adventure Tour was insane! We got to experience things together that I've never experienced before. From white water rafting in Northern Thailand to Snorkeling at the Phi Phi Islands. We adventured our butts off! This experience was actually mind blowing, and it still amazes me that I've done all the things I've done in such a small amount of time. I did not want to leave Thailand and all the wonderful friends I made through the ISV program. I definitely recommend it, and I would encourage everyone to choose elephant conservation in hopes that they get Ran Tong Save & Rescue Centre, because they deserve so much more attention and gratitude.