Rie Jensen's blog - A volunteer's perspective
Before coming to
Karongwe, I tried my best to find out as much as possible about the reserve,
the life the volunteers are living, animals, the town and so on. I had planned
the trip for around 8 months, so I’ve been preparing myself for a long time.
When I first got here, I was blown away by the surroundings, the hot weather,
and how we really live inside the bush. It was very overwhelming to come here
knowing nobody, but very soon we all started to make friends. Life here is very
simple: we don’t have electricity, only once a day to charge computers, cell
phones and cameras. We have drives everyday, unless you are on base duty, or
having an off day. In the beginning I was very confused about the different
duties, but when everybody helps each other, it gets much easier to get used to
everything here.
It is so amazing to
live in the bush. During the nights we hear hyenas, bushbabies, frogs and so
on. The impalas and the baboons walk straight into the driveway, or hang out on
the borderline of our garden. Every day here is different, I have seen so many
amazing things here, and I am so thankful that we go out on drive so often. At
first it was hard to wake up 4:30 in the morning to leave on drive at 5, but
then you learn that it is all worth it. I have been very, very lucky with my
sightings here on Karongwe. I have seen a caracal, pangolin, honeybadger and a
serval in the mountains. I have seen the cheetahs hunt for impala, subadult
lions showing interest in a baby rhino, and I had an amazing leopard sighting
of a young female relaxing in the road in daylight.
Every week we go to
town to shop, use the internet, and relax and have some nice food at one of our
two favourite restaurants. I have also been to the local primary School Diphuti,
where small groups of children were learning about animals in English, and in
the break we all had a good time playing around with all of the kids, which was
amazing, because they were all so extremely happy about seeing us.
During my 8 weeks here
I have been to the mountains of Mariepskop twice. It is very different from the
bush, because the surroundings change all the times. You drive through natural
forest, pine forrest, open savannah and fynbos on top of the mountains. Even at
our cabins the view is stunning, and the weather changes instantly. I had a
good time catching small mammals, because you get close to the animals, to
handle and measure them.
Now that my trip is
coming to an end, it is very hard to believe that I am actually going to leave
this amazing place, these close friends that I have made, and who come from
places far, far away from where I live. At Karongwe, a lot of different
cultures meet (especially different opinions on food!) and get along with each
other. Not only have I learned about the South African nature and animals, but
I learned a lot about people as well, because we are all so different from each
other. I will remember these 2 incredible months for the rest of my life, and
cherish all those special moments, I shared with all my fantastic new friends.
Rie Jensen,
Volunteer January – March
2012
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