Indonesia Conservation Expedition

I began my journey with a group of 12 people from New Zealand as part of a Biology Conservation Trip with Westlake Boys High School.

After a long trip of three flights, we finally arrived in the Labundo Village and met our local hosts for our home stay experience in the village. We were introduced to everyday village life and looked around the village at the schools and housing.

We left this behind and headed into the depth of the Lambusango Rainforest situated in the Labundo Village in Buton, South East Sulawesi. Our accommodation was the Bala Camp, hidden deep in the forest. We saw a mixture of frogs, insects, bats, snakes and skinks as we trekked around the rainforest with the scientists on a daily basis. We had a planned weeks worth of adventures which was presented on a whiteboard at the camp. The highlight of this week was touching a snake, especially the red mock viper! Worst part ... the leeches. We were joined by a group from St Albans school from the U.K and we were introduced to a life of river showers, long hikes, camp life and hammocks.

We set off from this adventure, heading to Bau Bau Marine Reserve to explore the ocean and learn more about the marine life and conservation efforts to preserve vulnerable species. I spent this week completing my PADI dive certificate followed by open diving. Highlights, apart from passing my certificate was seeing clown fish, stingrays, sea life around the coral, Moray eels, lion and frog fish. Our accommodation was shared rooms and this time, with flushing toilets, beds and the bonus of a shower.

Our food on the trip consisted mainly of rice and noodles, so this was off the menu for a while once I arrived back home.

Overall, this was an amazing adventure pushing me out of my comfort level and experiencing life far different to one I live in New Zealand. I have lasting memories of this trip, the people, the places and the adventures.