#ivhq
Explore tagged Tumblr posts
Text
Exciting Wildlife Volunteering Options To Try
With over 500,000 species of wildlife, one of the world’s most biodiverse nations, hospitable Latino culture and cuisine, and 12 climate zones Costa Rica is a suitable place for any environmentalist or wildlife conservation volunteers. Many studies have confirmed that Volunteer programs in Costa Rica are considered an ideal destination in Central America. It is one of the safest countries for any adventurous spirit and solo traveler.
The Wildlife Volunteering opportunities in Costa Rica are immense and here are some of the suggestions:
1.International Volunteer Head Quarter (IVHQ)
IVHQ is one of the most budget-friendly volunteer programs in Costa Rica. It is the world’s largest and trusted volunteer travel organization with an alumni network of over 138,000 volunteers. It has a portfolio of more than 300 projects as an option to be chosen by the volunteers. One can personalize their volunteering experience in Costa Rica by choosing from orientation sessions to food and accommodation. The program mainly focuses on and around turtle conservation. There are other projects to take on as well and most of the projects are oriented at community service and cultural awareness.
2.Go Eco
The program aims at animal rescue and conservation. Following a thorough study in track recognition and data analysis, volunteers proceed to the jungle to connect with the research group. Acquiring data on local jaguar groupings is the aim of figuring out effective solutions for their survival. This program gives opportunities for the volunteers to work with many experienced biologists. This program has a duration of a maximum of 12 weeks. Volunteers have a great time working in this program saving wildlife.
3.Kaya Responsible Travel
Sea turtles are the subject of Kaya's volunteer opportunities. Kaya is one of the most well-known Wildlife volunteering opportunities in Costa Rica in the world, with a mission to empower volunteers and improve the planet. Regular patrols take place at night, and responsibilities involve tracking down hunters, measuring turtles, and keeping surveillance on eggs. Volunteers are capable of sharing accommodations with other program participants. For this project, learning the Spanish language is not necessary, but it would be beneficial for the program.
4.World Endeavors
One of the easiest and smoothest volunteer programs in Costa Rica. World Endeavors links enthusiastic volunteers to a range of regional community and conservation projects. Participants can work on community development, teaching, and helping orphanages in addition to conserving animals. The program offers volunteers the exceptional chance to reside in Atenas, which offers a variety of free activities including cafe hopping, coffee farm excursions, and hiking amazing trails.
Wildlife conservation is now a need of an hour. To protect the animals from commercial operations, pollution, illegal hunting, habitat destruction, and the adverse effects of climate change. Wildlife volunteer opportunities in Costa Rica are just as numerous as the nation’s bird species. All of the volunteering programs are committed to a sole cause which is to protect wildlife and their habitat.
For more details visit our website natuwa.com
#Wildlife Volunteer program in Costa Rica#Costa rica volunteer programs#Volunteer opportunities in costa Rica#Volunteer Program with wild animals in Costa Rica#Animal volunteer costa rica#Wildlife Volunteer opportunities in Costa Rica#Wildlife volunteer costa rica#Volunteer in costa rica with animals#Volunteer programs in costa rica#Volunteer program with sloths#Volunteer program with macaws in Costa Rica#Volunteer program with tapirs in Costa Rica#Costa rica wildlife volunteer programs#Veterinary internships program in costa rica for international students#Veterinarian internship with wildlife#Veterinary internships with wildlife in Costa Rica#Veterinary internships program in costa rica#Veterinarian internship with wildlife animals
0 notes
Text
study abroad diaries 〜番外編〜
みなさんこんにちは☀️ 人間科学部3年の川嶋健悟こと「けんけん」です!今回はイタリアでの3週間に渡る教育ボランティアとしての���動の日々を少しでも共有できたらなと思います!留学とは一味違ったものになるので海外で働いてみたい!って人は是非とも参考にしてみてください〜!
私は2023年の夏に約3週間、イタリアのローマにボランティアに行ってきました🇮🇹 留学でも良かったのですが、現地のコミュニティに入れる点や海外の子供との交流ができる点が魅力的だったのでボランティアにしました。国はいくつか選択肢があったのですが、「ヨーロッパに行きたい」というエゴと「英語を母語としない国」という2つの観点でイタリアにしました!イタリア語に関しては渡航が決まってから日常会話や汎用表現などは勉強したくらいです。
今回は①イタリア/ローマについて ②ボランティア内容 の2つのセクションに分けてお話しします!
(Fountain di Trevi / 人が多過ぎて、コインを投げる余裕はないです。)
【① イタリア/ローマについて】
イタリアはとにかく日差しが異様に強い!! でも湿度は低めなので日陰は結構快適です。また夏は日照時間がとっても長くて、6:00~20:00で日が昇っています🌞 私は朝型人間なので1番暑い時間帯に行動していましたが、一般的には日が傾き始める16:00くらいから活動を開始するらしいです。なので水の持ち歩きは必須!! もし飲み干してしまったとしても街中には水を汲める場所がたくさんあるので、それを使っていました。ちなみにトレビの泉でも汲めます。
主な交通手段はバス・電車・タクシーでした。でもバスが時間通りに来ないのは日常茶飯事。1つが遅れると乗り換えもスムーズに出来ないのでgoogle mapで立てた全てのプランが崩れます。通常は45分で行けるところが90分かかることはザラにありました笑 しかもたまに予定より早く来るため、時間通りに行ったら次の便まで待たされることも… だから時間通りに行きたい場合はタクシーを使うことをオススメします🚕 ちなみに自分は空港からタクシーでキャンプに向かったのですが、150km/hでハイウェイを飛ばされる上、通常の5倍の金額をぼったくられました。許さん。でもアプリを使って呼べば基本どこでも来てくれる上、先に料金がどれくらいかかるのかを知ることができるので安心でした。
ちなみに裏話ですがイタリアではバスや鉄道の支払い方法がとっても雑で、ほとんどの人は無賃乗車をしています。私も買おうとはしたもののバスでは買えず、見渡しても何もなかったため結局買えませんでした。でもバレませんでした。現にバスでも刻印機にチケットをかざす人は5人くらいしかいませんでした。稀に係員が確認しに来て、もしバレたら56ユーロの罰金らしいです。5日以内に払わないと106ユーロに跳ね上がるので気をつけてください。
治安は本当に場所によりけりですが、観光地にはミサンガや帽子を押し売りする人がいました。一度話しかけられましたが、イヤホンをしていたのでそのまま逃げ切りました。スリも多いと言われているのですが、荷物を前にして持っておいたり南京錠をつけておいたりすることで防げました。夜はその数が増えるみたいなので、不安な人はあまり夜に動かないようにすると良いと思います。また夜は出来るだけ複数人で行動した方が安心です。
泊まるところはこんな感じで、なんと無料で10時間使えるプールもついており、毎日多くの人で賑わっていました🏊 プールでは常にEDMがガンガン流れていて、パリピだなと思いました。他にもボランティアであれば無料で使えるレストラン、食料を確保できるマーケット、ランドリーなどかなり充実してました。よくレストラン前でライブが開かれていて、常に賑やかでした。 ちなみに今もプール近くでフルーツ片手にこの��事を書き進めています。
(こういうロッジ?に2人で泊まりました!
ルームシェアだとより多くの時間英語を話せる一方で、1人の時間を確保しづらいという点があります。)
最初の週はフリーだったため、ローマ市街へ行ってきました!
訪れた場所は以下の通りです!
・Starbucks Montecitorio (東京と同じくらいたくさん並んでました)
・Pantheon/パンテオン
・Fontana di Trevi/トレビの泉 (後ろ向きにコイン投げると人に当たるくらい混んでいました)
・Piazza Navona/ナヴォーナ広場
・Monumento a Vittorio EmanueleⅡ/ヴィットーリオ・エマヌエーレ2世記念堂
・Piazza Venezia/ヴェネツィア広場
・Foro Romano/フォロ・ロマーノ (世界史好きなら絶対行くべき!!)
・Colosseo/コロッセオ
・Arco di Constantino/コンスタンティヌスの凱旋門 (コンスタンティヌス帝懐かしかった)
・Castel Sant’Angelo/サンタンジェロ城
・Piaza di Spagna/スペイン広場 (近くにある Limon'è というマーケットはおすすめ!)
至る所にジェラート屋があって、どこもありえんくらい美味しかったです。基本的にはカード決済が主流だったので、支払いはカードを使っていました。
(激アツすぎたコロッセオ)
(Limon'èの丸ごとレモンジェラートはめちゃくちゃ美味しかったです🍋)
【② ボランティア内容】
私はIVHQという仲介団体を通して、ImpacTripという団体のYouth Supportのプログラムに参加しました。
最初の月曜日にオリエンテーションがあり、活動概要の説明やイタリアの文化に関するレクチャー、他のボランティアとの交流などがありました。ボランティアは自分含めて10人くらいいて、国籍はアメリカ、イギリス、フランス、ジャマイカ、メキシコ、ベネズエラ、イタリア、中国、カナダの人がいました。職業も小学校の先生から放射線技師、高校生まで多岐に渡っていました。Youth supportの場合は「教育に携わっている人」や「子供が好きな人」が多かった印象があります。各国の教育事情や問題意識を共有できたので、とても有意義でした。
最初の週はFerragosto(イタリア版お盆)らしく、この日を含む週は国全体が夏休みとなるので、私はAnimal Careに2日間、Farmingに2日間参加しました。
Animal careのメンバーの国籍はアメリカ、イギリス、フランス、メキシコで、みんなでシェルターに行きました。そこには保護された猫が260匹もいて、彼らの餌替えや部屋の清掃などをさせていただきました🐈 と言っても割と早めに終わり、あとは猫と戯れたりボランティア同士で各国比較の話をしたりしてました。
(Animal Shelterの敷地内にある廃病院探索🏥 血液検査や歯型がまだ残っていました笑)
Farmingは近くにある農場?的なところで植物への水やりや雑草刈りなどをしました。これは2時間くらいで終わりました。めちゃくちゃホワイト企業です。
基本的に自分は朝のシフトに参加していたので8:30前後にキャンプを出て、13:00くらいに帰ってきてた感じです。ボランティア後は完全にフリーだったので廃病院を探索したり、ローマ市内を探索したりしてました。結構自由時間が多くて、気楽でした笑
Animal CareもFarmingもめちゃくちゃ蚊や蜂が多かったこと以外は楽しかったです!全ての指示や会話が英語 (たまにイタリア語)で出されるため、聞き取るのにめちゃくちゃ苦労しました…
[平日の主な活動時程]
6:30 起床
7:30 敷地内のレストランで朝ごはん
9:00 キャンプを出る
10:00 朝のシフト
14:00 ランチ
15:00 午後のシフト
19:30 レストランで夜ご飯
20:00- 自由時間 (部屋でのんびりしたり、洗濯したり…)
22:30 就寝 (イタリアでも健康生活を続けました。)
2週目にYouth Supportに参加しました。学校的なところに行くのかなと思いきや、Summer Campの一環で屋外教室?みたいなところに行きました。小学生くらいが大半で、一緒に遊んであげる感じでした。何かマニュアルがあるのかなと思いきや、ボランティアがなんでもやっていいそうで、一緒にボランティアに来ていたアメリカの音楽の先生は楽器を使って合奏を行なっていました。私は折り紙を持ってきていたので紙飛行機大会を開いてみました。また別の日にはボランティアと協力し、イタリア語-英語-スペイン語-日本語での表現や言語レッスンをしました。みんなにとって「日本」は非常に物珍しかったらしく、興味津々で聞いてくれました。彼らはイタリア語しか話せなかったので、簡単な英語やボディランゲージで意思疎通をとっていました。また思ったこととして、子供の遊びがクリエイティブで身の回りのものを使った遊びをたくさんしていて面白いなと思いました。1週間しかYouth Supportには参加できませんでしたが、かなり仲良くなれたと思います!
(アメリカの音楽の先生と子供たちによる合奏)
(みんな折り紙を気に入ってくれました!!)
(最終日には子供たちがハグしてくれました!!)
キリが良いのでこの辺で終わろうかと思います。
「非英語圏へのボランティア」を通して、その地域のコミュニティに入ることができたのはとても良かったなと思いました。また良い意味で忖度なしの英会話に触れることができたのも非常に有意義な経験でした。その上で自分からも日本のことについて発信する機会がとても多く、学び直しが必要だなと痛感しました。近々仲良くなったボランティアが日本に来るらしいので、もう一度日本のことを学び直そうと思います。
書ききれていないことも多々あるので、もし何かあればいつでも聞いてください!
最後まで読んでくださった方々に感謝申し上げます。
1 note
·
View note
Text
Found a NOLA tree with big Lover vibes
@taylorswift @taylornation
2 notes
·
View notes
Text
I just mentioned in my last post something about the volunteer group IVHQ. It is an amazing, safe company that volunteers all over the world in several different categories. You can teach sports in Europe or South America. Do veterinary work in African National parks. Teach English in Cuba. Lots of different placements in lots of different countries. The most affordable volunteer company as well. If you have ever thought about doing something like this, check them out. Don't wait until the time is right either. If you are worried that you are 30 now and can't go until you are 35 and saved up enough, guess what? Wether you do it or not, in 5 years, you are still going to be 35. There is no "right time" to help someone. Just go. Do it. If you don't go now, you might not ever. What's the bigger regret?
#travel#fun#blog#volunteer#IVHQ#just do it#get out of your comfort zone#be the good#do good#help who you can#affordable#new experiances#gain skills#gain friends#there is never a right time#there is only now
0 notes
Text
SPONSOR A CHILD .
Please feel free to sponsor one of those children.
Their Mom left them
Their father is disabled, unemployed, uneducated 🥲
Struggling to find food , medical, poor shelter, no clothes 🥲
Anyone will to sponsor a child, donating food, clothes , bedsheets, mattress feel free to DM please .
Let us make a world a better place for the hopless, homeless and those who are struggling.
We don't have much ,we are not billionaire but we share the small we have got with those who don't have .
Please Click to our Link for donation, repost, share .
https://gofund.me/0a9a7814
0 notes
Photo
My first night in Ghana. My skin was glowing 12/29/17
2 notes
·
View notes
Text
IVHQ
I am volunteering through International Volunteer HQ or IVHQ. They were established in 2007 and they continue to add more locations and projects to their organization. They partner with other organizations and send their volunteers to those destinations to help out on projects. The categories of projects include childcare, teaching, medical and health, wildlife and animal care, environment and conservation, construction and renovation, arts and music, sports, NGO support, community development, elderly care, and special needs care. They offer so many locations: Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, Belize, Jamaica, Buenos Aires and Cordoba (Argentina), Brazil, Bogota and Cartagena (Colombia), Quito and Santa Elena (Ecuador), Lima and Cusco (Peru), Belgium, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Victoria Falls, Zambia, Ubud and Lovina (Bali), Cambodia, China, Delhi/Dharamsala/Kerala (India), Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, Fiji, Hawaii, and New Zealand. Volunteer programs last 1 week to 24 weeks depending on the location and how long the volunteer wants to stay.
I was drawn to the endless possibilities, affordability, safety, and the overall vibe and benefit of the organization. I choose Cusco because it offered animal care programs and long term placement.
Feel free to message me if you have any questions about IVHQ or my program in particular!
6 notes
·
View notes
Link
Hey everyone, please check out my fundraising page to help me volunteer with disadvantaged children in Argentina! Thanks so much for your time. Lots of love.
#argentina#help#volunteer#buenosaires#cordoba#southamerica#ivhq#international#hq#support#me#fundraise#fundraiser#gofundme#children#childcare#student#graduate#travel#beautiful#country#airport
1 note
·
View note
Photo
Strength does not come from physical capacity, it comes from an indomitable will - Mahatma Gandhi 🙏🏽 . . . #happyfriday #goodmorning #goodmorningpost #morningmotivation #fridayquotes #inspirationalquotes #motivationalquotes #health #healthylifestyle #healthychoices #healthyliving #fitness #mindfulness #mindbodysoul #mindbodyspirit #bali #baliindonesia #ivhq #ivhqbali #greenlionbali #willpower #wheretheresawilltheresaway #tgif #tgifridays (at Tegenungan Waterfall, Bali)
#fitness#happyfriday#mindfulness#bali#inspirationalquotes#healthychoices#greenlionbali#ivhq#tgif#wheretheresawilltheresaway#tgifridays#healthyliving#health#healthylifestyle#baliindonesia#morningmotivation#motivationalquotes#willpower#mindbodysoul#mindbodyspirit#fridayquotes#goodmorningpost#goodmorning#ivhqbali
1 note
·
View note
Photo
说起斯里兰卡就不得不提起锡兰红茶,它是兰卡最具特色的代表之一,也是世界四大名红茶之一。 🌿 君行【斯里兰卡】项目特含茶厂参观,深入茶园及制作车间,品尝不同口味的红茶,从源头深入了解,让你爱上这一味~详情戳http://www.ociva.org/projects/1
0 notes
Photo
Puerto Maldonado, Amazonia. Main square. #travel_easyrider #travelphotographer #amazonia #peru #remoteexpeditions #ivhq (at Puerto Maldonado) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv1h3H9nssI/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=tlu9c4vw546p
0 notes
Link
So this winter I was accepted to volunteer at a hospital in Faridabad, just outside India's capital. It's going to be a little pricey and I'm a broke college kid just trying to help some people out. It would be such an awesome thing if you guys could check out my fundraising page and contribute a few bucks, a few cents, or just words of advice. Thanks so much 💖
#volunteer#volunteering#fundraising#new Delhi#ivhq#faridabad#hospital#hospital volunteer#help#I'm broke#donate#pls#personal#Chattanooga#India
3 notes
·
View notes
Text
Kenya. Known for the Big Five and the Great Wildebeest Migration. Located on the west coast of Africa. Snuggled in below and around some of the most dangerous countries in the world-Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, the DRC. It is very close to Rwanda and just across the channel from Madagascar.
The largest slum-Kibera- in Africa. Closely followed by the one in Cape Town that I visited several years ago.
As intense as that all sounds, they happen to have some of the loveliest people on the planet. I am currently in the process of saving so I can volunteer there just after my 30th birthday. They have a large population dealing with HIV/AIDS and a gross disproportionate number are women. One of my goals is to go there and do some women empowerment work through IVHQ. You stay in a homestead and go to work each day helping bring these women back to some form of "normal". You teach them basic business practice, then things to start a business with like candle making and jewellery making. To help navigate my stay, I have started learning Swahili which is their national language.
They have an impressive, rich culture. Some very interesting food-stay tuned for some examples in the coming weeks.
I can not wait to finally go.
So the coffee. This is probably a tie with a Mexican one I had last year. It was orange and chocolate and just freaking awesome. I regretted not buying another bag. This one, I won't regret it. I have a second on the way 😁😁
As you can see by the pot, it went well. Flavour notes are apple, oatmeal and vanilla bean. Exceptional. If there was ever a coffee I was trying to use to sell someone in signing up for this site, it's this one. You can only order extra while supplies last so seriously use this code and get 10 bucks off Augusts coffee. You won't regret it.
#travel#fun#blog#coffee#atlascoffeeclub#kenya#IVHQ#volunteer option#dreams#be the good#get out of your comfort zone#hiv/aids#women empowerment
0 notes
Text
Well with a title like this, what do you expect? Just this. Rainbow mountain was an experience like no other, for many reasons: the magnificent mountain itself, the amazing people I met along the way, and of course the title of this post.
Rainbow Mountain, or montaña vinicunca in Spanish, is a 3-4 hour hike from 4500m to 5200m in height to the top of a beautiful mountain of colors and many more in the distance.
To be on my way to la montaña de los colores, I had to be awake and ready to go by 330 am. At 315 I was ready and walked down to the Plaza de Armas where I waited for over an hour with another man (who waited longer as we weren’t in the same tour group) until a woman in patterned leggings yelled out my name. I shot up to meet up with her and another couple before boarding our bus to take us to Rainbow Mountain.
Catedral en Plaza de Armas at 330 AM
After stopping for breakfast, getting a talk about the history of the mountain, time limit, and random facts about the area, we were off on our hike. I met a few nice people at breakfast and the bus whom I talked and walked with for a bit. 1 was from San Francisco, 1 from London, 2 from Lima, and one from a small town in Chile. We discussed our travels and lives back home, before myself, and the ladies from Lima and Chile started not being able to breath too well. We trudged on (we were far too gone to turn around and get a horse) but all of a sudden none of could breathe at all, so we sat down. I took a few hits of my rescue inhaler as one of the guides ran to get us oxygen. The 2 guys from San Francisco and London had been all through South America and had done hikes like these frequently throughout the past 6 months. Us ladies, however, had not. Along with the oxygen came some rescue horses for our group and another group of people past the halfway mark.
#gallery-0-21 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-21 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 50%; } #gallery-0-21 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-21 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */
We all mounted the horses, oxygen in hand, and continued up the mountain.
#gallery-0-22 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-22 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-0-22 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-22 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */
The horses can’t take you all the way up the mountain, so for final 200m or so we had to walk up to the top (which happens to be the steepest part of the way).
#gallery-0-23 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-23 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 50%; } #gallery-0-23 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-23 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */
Walking up
Almost to the top
My new friends and I finally made it to the top and with the little breath I had left in my lungs, it had been taken away by the unbelievable sight I witnessed. The colors of the mountains were unlike anything I’d never seen. I know it’s just how the minerals formed, but it was absolutely surreal. I never had seen something so enchanting in my entire life.
#gallery-0-24 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-24 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-0-24 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-24 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */
I spent about 20 minutes up there, recovering from the rest of the hike up, taking pictures, taking other people’s photos, and just enjoying the earth’s creations.
#gallery-0-25 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-25 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 100%; } #gallery-0-25 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-25 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */
I finally started my descent from the mountain and made it as far as I could with no horse until, oh yeah, I couldn’t breathe anymore, so I found a horse, and all of my other rescue horse friends, where we descended the rest of the mountain together.
When we made it back to the start of the hike, there were 10 of us in the bus. Our guide came and told us that we would be waiting a minimum of 2 hours for the rest of the people. We all figured that we would just nap until it was time to leave. Luckily, another guide said that he had an empty van ready for us if we wanted to go now. So, the 10 of us (each friend of mine I’d made that day was on the van with me which I thought was pretty ironic) and our guide started back to Cusco, stopping for lunch and then finally back on the road to Cusco, everyone napping on and off until we were each dropped off at our hostels where we had ample water, ample air, and a nice warm bed for the night.
Alicia
Rescue horses and rescue inhalers
Well with a title like this, what do you expect? Just this. Rainbow mountain was an experience like no other, for many reasons: the magnificent mountain itself, the amazing people I met along the way, and of course the title of this post.
Rescue horses and rescue inhalers Well with a title like this, what do you expect? Just this. Rainbow mountain was an experience like no other, for many reasons: the magnificent mountain itself, the amazing people I met along the way, and of course the title of this post.
#2017#alicia#autumn#blog#buddhism#buddhisttvegann#chicago#college#college blogger#fall#follow me#holiday season#ivhq#ivhq peru#ivhq weekends#journal#lifestyle#lima#lima peru#livepulchritudinously#me#new blogger#peru#rainbow mountain#san diego#selflovinalicia#teen#teen blog#teen blogger#vegan
1 note
·
View note
Link
Hey everyone I'm going to be volunteering in Sri Lanka this August and need some help raising money to go if you could please share or donate, it would really help me out. Thank you!
31 notes
·
View notes
Photo
While I enjoyed many activities, and saw many sights during my time in Ubud, Bali, the most rewarding activity had to be the climb of Mount Batur. I had not initially planned to do a hike on this trip. Sure I was hoping to do some activities, but the most effort I anticipated was maybe climbing some rocks to get a nice picture under a waterfall (never got that by the way). There was no plan to go above and beyond to test my physical capacity. Now that I look back, I don’t think anything could have prepared me for this particular climb. First off, my day had to begin at 2:00 am since the plan was to make it to the top of Mount Batur by sunrise. An idea great in its’ theory and views, but let’s be honest, no one wants to be awoken right when they are about to enter that perfect deep sleep. Nonetheless, me and four other girls (two of which are my friends) got in a cab and by 2:30 am were on our way to our desired location. At the bottom of the mountain we met our guide, whose name escapes me unfortunately, but he was 24 years old and did this climb every morning before sunrise for a living. I do wish I could remember his name or had taken a picture with him because he was incredibly kind to all of us and showed tremendous patience and effort in getting us up that volcano. But with meeting him I thought to myself, “well okay, he does this every day so must be do-able”, not to mention there were many groups of people there of all shapes and sizes. Needless to say, I expected to breeze through this climb. Let me tell you, I could not have been more wrong. Now before it sounds like I am tooting my horn by believing I am so equipped to complete this climb, I would like to share that I have done hikes before. We have a lot of different parks in New Jersey where people can take hikes, sometimes rigorous and long. And on top of that, I am someone who goes to the gym as much as I can, usually 3-4 times a week. So, trust me when I say I did not expect this climb to be oh-so-incredibly challenging. The path was 30% rough rock and 70% loose dirt, at a rather steep elevation. Those three things combined made for a lot of slipping, a wonderful burning sensation within my calves and a whole lot of huffing and puffing. We stopped every fifteen minutes, that is how demanding it felt. And all along the way guides would hold onto those who were struggling, help pull hikers up a particularly difficult rock formation and show the utmost amount of patience when asked to stop as quickly as fifteen minutes on a trail they were clearly not struggling with. With their motivation, and some from our own (thanks Merissa!), we made it to the top two hours later with an hour to spare. Sunrise was at 6:20 am, and every second between 3:30 am and that time I was assuring myself that this climb was not worth it. The pain I had to endure could not be made up with any natural beauty. I promised I would let all those who convinced me to go on this climb know how terrible it was and vowed to let every new volunteer know the same. These were the inner thoughts of my mind, very determined…until 6:20 am rolled around, that is when my inner thoughts were told to shut up. Watching the sun rise, the colors of the sky change every single second right before me like that left me speechless. I have seen many sunrises in my day, some even in beautiful locations, but there was something different about this one. It took your breath away, no writer could put into words the feeling of bliss the sunrise carried, no painter could capture every color that consumed the sky. Slowly, all the contents of the view came into play. We could see the city underneath us alongside a lake, an ocean hidden by the mountains, monkeys that call these hills home. The colors of the earth now joined the colors of the sky, making the view even more unreal. I know this may sound a bit excessive, after all it is just a sunrise it happens every day. But that’s exactly it, there was something extraordinary in the ordinary. And just like that I realized why no one ever mentions how brutal the climb is, because what you experience at the top leaves you so mesmerized you completely forget the pain. I think out of my whole trip, this was my favorite experience. Within the beautiful beaches and islands, this is what I loved the most. That moment when I saw the sun come out and do its’ dance is the single most important view ingrained into my mind when I recollect my trip to Bali. It exposed me, my physical being and my emotional one. It made me work hard and rewarded my labor with the fruits of a breathtaking picture of beauty. It was humbling to be in the presence of something so beautiful that man could not fathom to make. And it was humbling to have to work to get there, and to share the experience with my fellow volunteers. This experience helped me define Bali for what it is, a natural beauty that brings joy in the simplest of ways. In life we have a lot of great moments, some short-lived and some stay with us. That moment on the top of Mount Batur is one that will stay with me forever, this I know.
#mount batur#bali#indonesia#vacation#volunteer#fitness#fitnessmotivation#mental health#health and wellness#personal#blog post#ivhq#new experiences
1 note
·
View note