Adventure in Africa!

Landing in Africa was quite a shock, never thought I'd have this once in a lifetime opportunity to set my feet in the world of Africa. I was there to volunteer for a month to do conversational work, bonding with the animals, observing their animals and much other activities. 

It was night and other volunteers and I were driving to the lodge where the volunteers stay and the first animal i saw was a Giraffe. He was there just eating and walking by, as I have observed my time in Africa, they are very curious animals and look at you with deep dark eyes wondering what kind of creature you are to them. We arrived at the lodge and went to bed right away due to the long flight that we had to take (Dublin - Dubai (7 hours) then Dubai - Harare (7 hours) plus a 2 hour drive).  

The next early morning we all had to wake up at 6 and be ready by 6:30, starting from that time we do work with animals whereas we bond with them, teach them new tricks and walk with them back to the lodge. Walking and touching them so close is an experience that can be life changing, showing me that there's so much more adventure and excitement to life than what i'm used to in this world. After this activity we have breakfast, the locals made us a lot of carbs in the morning plus the common kind of protein which is needed for the amount of work we needed to be doing. Afterwards we do some kind of conservation work whether it has to do with fixing fences, collecting barb wires or find traps that poachers place that's invisible to animals. Imagine doing these non stop working activities in the heat, it's crazy and tolerable but that heat going down my spine felt very good like a nice hot shower in the cold morning. Everywhere I went I took my camera with me and I took breathtaking scenery pictures.









While my stay there I had the opportunity to go to Victoria Falls and of course I took it because it is one of the 7 wonder of the world and it is supposed to be completely heart - stirring. There were flea markets selling polished and handmade objects like wooden chairs/animals or animals made out of different types of stone. My favorite time was doing the activities I signed up for such as; Crocodile cage diving, Bungee Jumping and Zip lining over the Victoria Falls. The crocodile cage Diving was astonishing, there was a medium sized crocodile right in my face when I turned my head around and he was smiling at me as they like to have that evil smile and the other was was a huge albino Nile crocodile that was under my feet and I kept my feet up just in case. I fed them food and they have such a strong grip where it was jerking the stick like a dog playing tug a war with you. The other activity which was Bungee Jumping was an activity that I'd recommend to anyone who loved adventures and craziness like I do. This activity allows you to breathe, let go and just jump as this can help you in everyday life. Everyone was telling me to clear my mind, look out in the horizon (don't look down) and just dive and jump! It is easier said than done but next time I plan on doing it again, I'll try not looking down and do it properly. Zip lining was also a beautiful scenic view over the Falls. If you don't mind heights then I am sure you would enjoy this!









The last 2 weeks were about savoring every minute in the quite, drama less, stress free environment. Meeting the new volunteers and saying goodbye to the old was quite an experience. I bonded with a few my age who were non judgmental and just as crazy and open minded as I am which is something i can't find much nowadays. on Sundays we went on our own adventure because Sunday is the day where we are free to do whatever we please. So one Sunday before I had to go, we went on a nice walk even if the temperature was quite hot and took pictures and then we went to this look out where the handlers go to watch the hippos. We sat there and just sat in silence. I have never met such peace and quietness, even now I can remember every feeling of every second I had felt at that time. I could have stayed there for the whole day. And at night I finally saw one shooting star and the night sky was absolutely out of this world. So many things I saw that i can't put down just because I couldn't explain just how beautiful every part of that world meant to me. Leaving that place and returning to the real world was a bit disappointing because going back to reality and leaving the fantasy world is sometimes a bummer but that's life. What I just experienced and wrote down is a SHOT OF LIFE. The traveling, meeting new people, getting out my comfort zone and encountering new experiences, all of it together is what makes life more worthwhile. All you need is one life, if you do it right then one chance is all you need.