WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I ARRIVE?
You will be met at Bangkok airport (BKK) by a friendly a local staff member before being transferred to your accommodation in Singburi, where you will be based for the culture week. You will then make your way to Kanchanburi, where the elephant sanctuary is located. Volunteers are required to make their own way back to Bangkok, with the assistance of local staff.
The project will finish on a Saturday, so you should either book your flight for Saturday evening or Sunday. You will need to organise your own accommodation in Bangkok if you choose to fly out on the Sunday.
WHERE WILL I BE STAYING?
Volunteers stay in the shared volunteer house, with usually 2 to 4 people per room. The majority of rooms have an attached western style bathroom with hot water. WiFi is available in public areas of the accommodation and bed linen is provided, though you will need to BYO towel. The rooms are equipped with fans, but no air-conditioning and mosquito protection is provided.
WHAT WILL I BE EATING?
Clean water, tea and coffee are included in your project contribution so bring a water bottle to fill up with fresh water as this reduces the amount of plastic you’re using. Breakfast, lunch and dinner on weekdays and brunch and dinner on weekends will be provided by local staff. Meals are typically Thai and vegetarian-friendly. Lunch and dinner, are prepared and served by staff, which is mostly Thai food, with occasional western nights. At all meal times there are meat and vegetarian options. There are storage areas for volunteers who wish to buy their own food.
Thai is one of the world's best known cuisines, and if you're willing to experiment, you'll be richly rewarded. Contrary to popular belief, not all Thai food is fiery hot and there are plenty of tasty dishes suited to the Western palate. This hybrid cuisine has been influenced by soups and noodle dishes from China, curries from India and satays from Indonesia. Most dishes incorporate four elements, sweet, sour, salty and hot flavours, and many of the dishes are rice or noodle based.