CAS Trip Koh Chang

The CAS trip was basically an introduction into IB, CAS and year 12. Even though we go to Koh Chang every year, this year especially pushed me far out of my comfort zone, physically and mentally. One of my main objectives of this trip was to complete the hike of Koh Chang’s highest mountain, and I did. I also hoped to make new friendships and to strengthen the friendships I already had.

Koh Chang Port

ACTION

The trip was for four days and the first and last day consisted of long boat and bus rides. So we had two days packed of activities, and we were put into groups of around 10 people. A couple of the people in my group I had never met before or rarely spoke to so it gave me the opportunity to get to know them and vice versa. For our second day my group and I went kayaking and beach cleaning. I don’t like kayaking because I get seasick easily and I thought that we would only be kayaking a short distance like the previous years. But no, we kayaked to the other side of the island to a deserted stretch of beach. We kayaked in partners, so there was a lot of teamwork involved especially since I was sitting in front and apparently that’s the position that leads the direction of the boat. I’m not going to lie, but it was difficult under the hot sun, the occasional sprays of salt water that would irritate my skin and trying to coordinate the strokes of my paddles with my partner. We found that by counting out loud “1,2,1,2…” it made it easier to direct the kayak. However the scenery definitely made it worthwhile for me. We kayaked next to these beautiful cliffs covered with forests and small caves hidden at the bottom.

SERVICE

At the beach we were handed three garbage bags for the different categories of rubbish we would pick up for example plastic, glass and others. We separated into those categories and picked up rubbish for about an hour and then burnt it all on the beach. Although it wasn’t a sustainable or eco-friendly solution it made my group and I discuss on other ways we could have disposed of the rubbish and how important it is to put our rubbish away because it will somehow come back to us, and if it isn’t ours its someone else’s and by taking the responsibility to dispose of our waste properly we’re already taking the first steps into saving our Earth.

Clearing up the beach of rubbish

CREATIVITY

Getting back to the IDEAL center we went on to our next activity, which was making key chains out of coconuts, an activity that that is actually some of the locals jobs. We did this activity to learn how hard the locals have to work in order to make a living. It took us an hour to produce one keychain, a local would be able to produce 50, which we found fascinating since my group, and I found it incredibly challenging to cut out our specific design. It also helped to increase awareness on how we should be buying locally to help our community.

ACTION

The third day was the hike, an activity I and I’m guessing everyone else was fully anticipating. I went in with one aim and that was to get to the top of the mountain. It was probably one of the hardest experiences I have ever gone through, there were times where I felt like I couldn’t push myself to walk anymore and If I did I felt like I was going to faint. That’s where my team mates came in, we all supported and looked out for each other. I would have never got to the top of the mountain or made it back down in one piece if it wasn’t for my group members. Everyone fell at least once but lucky me I must have slipped at least 50 times and I’m not even exaggerating, I even got a scar on my left leg as a souvenir, something to keep the memory of that experience alive. At the end, as exhausted as I was I still had the energy to smile and feel a sense of accomplishment and pride in myself for what I thought was impossible. That experience has shown me that when something looks impossible, you don’t have to tackle it alone and if you go out there with a goal and a positive mindset anything is achievable.

The CAS trip was definitely one I will never forget because I felt like I had achieved so much and gained an awareness of our local community and environment. I’ve learned to go into situations that I’m not so sure of with a positive attitude and to make use of the people I have around me. I have gained an appreciation for different environments (mountains, beaches) appreciated the true beauty of nature and understand how keeping them clean is important if I want my children and their children and so on to also enjoy them. Each night of the trip we would have reflections on our activities, I think this was important to fully understand why we did that activity and the impact it had on us.