Sarah Nichols | Saturday, July 19, 2014
“Conserving Leopards, Monkeys, and More in South Africa!”
The Lajuma Research Center is full of friendly, lovely people. You get such a sense of community and warmth when you meet everybody. They're incredibly willing to help you feel safe and at home, and they're all so knowledgeable about what they're researching.
I went with one of my best friends, and the two of us hadn't really traveled outside of the country prior to this trip. We went on a whim, and we both enjoyed the experience so much. The stories of what we went through and about the people we met are endless. Despite it being only two weeks, I actually felt a little bit sad to leave the staff remaining a Lajuma, as well as a few of the volunteers we had worked alongside for the whole trip.
The involvement they had us experience in preserving the animals was amazing. Although some of the tasks weren't always exciting, there was a sense of fulfillment in knowing that these were small stepping stones to helping the researchers help the animals, environment, and local community on a larger scale.
Not only do you work to help leopards and some of the native monkey species, you also do some tasks that can help brown hyenas and many other species of animals that they have on Lajuma.
I loved the trip. I felt like I learned so much about generally everything, and I feel much, much more enriched after having gone on this expedition. I would highly recommend it to people (seasoned travelers or new travelers like us). I will remember this experience forever. Thank you all!