By Olivia 2-week intern –

For the last two weeks, I’ve spent my time at Kindred Spirt Elephant Sanctuary and, not to be dramatic, it was life changing. I’ve never been to Southeast Asia, never traveled internationally alone, and never spent more than two days away from a typical Western life.

Everything in the Karen village was different from my life at home; the food, the people, the routine, the animals, the housing, the clothing. We started our mornings about 6:45am for breakfast. Usually I would have toast with strawberry jam and an Americano from Nee’s Corner (a small coffee shop run by an amazing lady in the village). This was my first challenge in village life, the limited availability of coffee which now I so-depend on to function. After breakfast, we would hike to see the elephants, usually 2-4 elephants at a time. After an hour or hour and half hike, uphill, in the blazing sun, we would reach these animals. Although difficult, the end of the hike was so rewarding to see these creatures in the wild.

As a research intern, I would get my research phone KSES provided and begin collecting data. Data collected would include elephants behavior and elephant association, or how the elephants are grouped in a particular day. We would follow the elephants for 90 minutes each day before heading back to base for lunch. This was my second challenge, hiking in the heat for several hours each day, only to return to my homestay or base camp that has no AC. Upon returning to base camp, we would eat lunch, packed for us by our homestay. This was my next challenge, eating rice, cooked veggies, fried egg or noodles, in the heat, something my body and stomach had to adapt to. After lunch, a cold shower was typically in store, something I thought would be a challenge but actually ended up being so refreshing and needed after a long and hot morning hike. Then, I would take a nap and around 3pm would meet up with others interns to participate in village activities (teaching English to kids, litter pick up, learning Karen, or project work). During my time here, my project was to update the elephant biography posters that were hung at base camp. These hadn’t been updated for a few years, so I was able to make them look a bit prettier and update the outdated information. This was a really easy project to participate in and made me feel more connected and part of the overall mission of KSES. At 6pm, the interns and guests would have dinner together, rotating which homestay we would eat at. This was another challenge, eating similar foods (rice and veggies) for each meal as well as eating on the floor, without any tables. After dinner, we would feed the village dogs any leftovers and spend times playing games at base camp. Our favorites were Uno Flip and True Colors. Bed time was around 9pm in which I showered again (the heat and humidity required multiple showers per day). I got into bed, ensuring my windows were open to allow a breeze, setting up my mosquito net to keep the bugs out, and setting my fan on full speed to keep myself cool throughout the night. Rinse and repeat, for 9 more days.

My time here has been eye opening. First, obviously to the elephants and the problematic tourism industry, but probably even more so, to the Karen life and culture. My biggest takeaway from this experience is the power of an open-mind, being willing to adapt to the lifestyle, including no internet and wearing long pants through the blazing heat. Being able to live this lifestyle for two weeks has changed my perspective on the way I live back home, but also what is truly needed to live a fulfilling life.