Vietnam: Volunteering with Go East

While travelling in Vietnam I had come across the beautiful Cat Tiien national park and was particularly impressed with the work that the organisation Go East were doing there. The project was one of a kind in Vietnam, one whose aim is both to act as a rescue centre for four types of endangered primates but also to work to rehabilitate them as well. As such I decided that it was well worth returning to in order to volunteer there.

The island itself was exceptionally green and lush and was surrounded on all sides by a river that splits to form on one side calmly flowing water and on the other rocks and rapids. I spent the afternoon getting to know the island team, seeing the gibbons in their enclosures and familiarising myself with material on the nature of the project.

I woke to the lovely but very loud song of the gibbons, which is used primarily as a means of declaring that this is in fact their territory and that any other gibbons in the area should immediately clear off. My first week was mainly spent following staff members around on tour (with the eventual aim of giving them myself), learning how to make enrichment packages with the aim of keeping the gibbons busy while staff cleaned their cages and working on photographing the island. Oh and since it was right after tet occasionally drinking copious amounts of rice wine and beer (boy the Vietnamese know how to party).

Unfortunately due to the sensitive nature of rehabilitating the gibbons (and the fact I didn't have the right photographic equipment) I wasn't able to take a great many pictures of them, but the island proved to be a stunning enough subject in its own right.

Overall my first week of volunteering proved to be interesting, informative and hugely enjoyable.