Finally began the day to start my stint at ADDO elephant national park. I had signed up for a month of volunteering at the park and was to be picked up at the Port Elizabeth Airport. I had stayed at Lungile Lodge the previous night and this was only 10 minutes away from the airport. The airport pickup arrived punctually and our driver Farnie was rather funny and animated. There were 4 of us in the taxi, 3 others from Germany and myself. The ride to the park took about an hour and it was nice to see the waves crashing on the beach as we sped along to ADDO main camp.
The place was just as it was said to be on the information brochure and I loved the hut we had to stay in. Cozy and with enough space for 2, the huts were set close to where the rangers were living in and had an open clearing with a bench to sit on. There were 4 other volunteers there and one of them, Henning was nice enough the take us on a tour around the park, showing us the souvenir shop, the restaurant, park museum as well as the swimming pool and kitchen. It truly was a home away from home.
I was to share a hut with Phillipp from Germany and was rather thankful that we got along rather well from day one. We met up with Salomia, our volunteer co-ordinator who told us that if time permitted, we could go shopping for groceries so as to cook our meals. The plan didn't work out however and the day was spent just settling in and getting to know the place.
Phillipe and I visited the pool in the evening but it was rather cold for us after sundown and we returned back quickly for a warm shower and an early night's rest. We were to meet at 7 am the next day and a good night's rest was needed.So ended the first day.
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