By telling us your country of residence we are able to provide you with the most relevant travel insurance information.
Please note that not all content is translated or available to residents of all countries. Contact us for full details.
Shares
As your typical everyday college girl, my life is full of stressful things. School...work... sleep...repeat. But eventually i couldn't take it anymore, my heart yearned for something new and daring. I needed adventure so much that i even got the word tattooed. With my new ink I made a promise to myself that i would follow my passion for adventure. The next day with my passport burning its picture into my mind i set out to find my path, and path i did find. Bright green letters ran across the screen "Elephant research unit" it said. My heart began racing and my stomach was filled with butterflies. I applied.. hoping to hear back soon. 3 weeks later i was on a plane excitedly long to the far away place of South Africa. With little time to prepare adrenaline fueled my preparations, i figured i would just adapt if i happened to forget anything. Boy oh Boy did South Africa win my heart. 13 hour days following a herd of elephants turned out to be my dream job and that acknowledgment changed my view on life in so many ways. Every minute i stood out in the blazing heat learning the faces of my new friends; Shungu, Sally, Mashudu, Thandi, Nandi, Thato, Amari, Madiwa, Shanti, Keisha. Somehow 10 elephants became my new family as we roamed the open hillsides. Recording their activity every several minutes really forces you to learn their personalities in an incredibly detailed way. I found my nights filled with references to "Keisha being annoyed with Shungu" and "Thandi was so cute with Nandi today" as they slowly but not obliviously crept their way into my heart. Our guides became our mentors teaching us new words in Afrikaans and my fellow researchers became my best friends. I knew traveling would be good for me but i had underestimated just how much good it would do. Sitting on the flight back i was upset.. in part due to leaving my new family behind but also because i wasn't and still am not ready to be returning to the routine of normal life. The trip confirmed to my consciousness that adventure and travel and new things is my real passion. The happiest I've ever been was when i had no idea what to expect, and now i strive for that feeling every moment. My days are filled with wishing i was in a new place and learning new things. My dreams are filled with exotic lands and foreign cultures. All i can think about is how to get back out there. How i can use my passion of traveling to help others.