I've been volunteering at WFFT (Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand) set up in 2001 by a guy named Edwin Wiek. A huge enclosure it's home to 11 rescue Elephants and hundreds of other animals including Monkeys, Bears, Birds, Otters and even a Crocodile. However my time was dedicated to the Elephants, being up so close and personal with them makes you realise what magnificent creatures they truly are.
Accommodation is pretty basic as I was told to expect and the work can be hard (I would advise you to get physically fit to volunteer here) but it is soooo worth it.
I was placed in what is known as one of the VIP cabins, which is 3 to a room (only me and another lovely lady named Nicole shared for one week) with a porch over looking the lake which has some of the most beautiful sunrises I have ever seen. The bathroom is pretty grim but we did have hot showers unlike others.
A usual day would start with waking up at 6am to be ready for work at 6:30 and meet your team for the day. Each day you would be given a different Elephant and team to work with, however my favourite Elephant was Pai Lin whom I worked with on my first and last day.
You'd then feed and compost, come back for breakfast then meet again at 9 or be given a special task such as harvest which is HARD work, especially in the heat. Harvest is when you collect all the banana trees which the elephants love to munch on.
Working with Pai Lin in the afternoons was my favourite as that's when you got to shower and walk with her.
Pai Lin is over 60 years old, and like many of the Elephants she has been badly mistreated by humans in the past so the fact that she is so gentle and trusting around us still is pretty special.
The majority of Elephants at the centre have either been rescued from the Tourist Trek Trade (You know when you see people come back from their holiday in Thailand and upload the photos of their elephant ride through the forest? DONT DO IT) or from street begging and logging.
Pai Lin is also on her last set of teeth, in the wild once elephants loose all their teeth they die of starvation which is really sad. She has also lost the tip of her trunk so finds it hard to grab food so sometimes we feed smaller bits of food directly into her mouth.
For anyone thinking about this project I cannot recommend it enough. However it is hard work (so get fit) and can be emotional. Personally I think a week was enough for me, but it has been an absolutely heart-warming, beautiful experience that I'll never forget.
It also serves as the perfect detox/rehab. There's no wifi and only one tempremental computer but being cut off from the world and having something else to focus on is really therapeutic. (You can walk into the village which is about 10 minutes and use the wifi at the local Internet cafe). If you get the chance I would also recommend going to the Spa on your day off. It's so peaceful and the perfect way to relax, especially after a harvest day.
Worse bits;
- Cleaning elephant shit in the heat (which weighs a tonne if you were wondering)
- Having no wifi connection (but my mum said it'd do me good to get back to basics)
Best bits;
- Working with such beautiful animals
- Waking up to the sound of wild animals all around such as the wild gibbons (monkeys) living on the islands in the lakes.
- Meeting new people, some of the people I met in that short week I'll never forget
- Having no internet (mentioned again because sometimes it's nice to be cut off from the outside world)
I write as I sit in Bangkok airport waiting for my flight to Phuket, looking forward to my next project at the Children's Orphanage.
If I was worried about my decision to travel before then I shouldn't have been. I know it's only been a week but I can honestly say it's one of the best decisions I've ever made. X
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