I came into this trip hesitant that I wouldn’t be able to push myself to try new things or break out of my quiet little shell. Looking back on the last three weeks of travel, volunteering, and fun I am glad to say that I have been happily proven wrong.
Spending time with elephants was surreal. Hiking in the rainforest was exhilarating. But I have to say that the shining moment for me on this trip was visiting the schools. The joy that was brought into my day when I saw the smiling kids waving hello to me on the first day brought me such a good feeling. I wasn’t sure how the day would go, just with such a language barrier. I got to work with the Grade 1 class and it ended up being a super fun yet sometimes tiring day. The kids were so eager for us to come into their classroom and teach them some English. I think it is such an amazing feeling to be able to teach a child something. They are so thrilled that we are devoting all our attention to them, and in turn they do the same to us.
After the lesson was finished I really loved the chance to interact with the kids and see them have so much fun. It was great to be able to just let loose with the kids and let their energy pump me up to be even more outgoing. These kids are just the same as any other kids; they want to have fun. I am glad that we were able to take an afternoon off from teaching and just provide the kids with some fun games and dancing.
Once we were settling down to end the day, I went over to a group of my students and saw they were reading a book. I sat down beside them and started to point out all the pictures and their English meanings. I would say one of my favourite parts of the day was having one of my little Thai students sit in my lap and give his full attention to my reading him a book. It was truly amazing and honestly I never wanted to finish reading that book. The school gave me so much joy that it didn’t matter how tired I was at the end of the day. I knew that the kids were enjoying themselves and I was having the time of my life as well.
Getting to do so many new things with EDventure has been such a positive experience for me. I never thought that I would be given the opportunity to work right alongside elephants or walk into a school where I didn’t speak more than five words of their language and teach a lesson. I had always dreamed that I would travel the world and see all the different people, lifestyles, and cultures there are out there. EDventure has made me realize that this is still something that I want to be a huge part of my life.
The people I have met on this trip have made such an impact on my life. The first day that we all sat together in the back of the guesthouse shows me how far we have come as a group. Coming into this I didn’t know a single person. I was ready to meet new people from across the world while building new friendships that I hoped would last. I can definitely say that everyone here has made this such a worthwhile experience for me. Going from not knowing one another three weeks ago to laughing at ourselves, at each other, and at the memories we have made has been one of the best things I will take from this trip.
Through this trip my confidence in myself has grown. This group of people have shown me that you don’t have to be afraid to put yourself out there because we all make mistakes but can make greater successes when we support one another. I have loved the times we have spent together and am sad that it is so quickly coming to an end. I want to say a huge thank you to everyone on this trip for such a life changing and rewarding experience. It has been so much fun and I can’t wait until we can all meet back up again in the future.
Alex Blaine
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