Location: Kanchanaburi

The first activity of the day involved elephants! The group traveled to a place that housed elephants and was able to ride and take photos with the gigantic animals. The elephants performed tricks such as dancing to music and sitting on their hind legs. The group traversed up a large hill on elephants and viewed the spectacular mountains nearby. It was so much fun! Next, we all got in the vans and went to a museum nearby that documents the construction of railroads in Thailand and Myanmar/ Burma enforced by the Japanese in WWII. The purpose of the railroads through the country was originally to transport supplies for the Japanese more efficiently during the war, but now it’s used by the Thai government. The museum also hosted a path that people can walk on to explore nature in the mountains. On the way to our next destination, it started to pour. This led the Lifeworks team to get drenched while exploring a cave near the railroad. To get to the cave, people needed to walk on the tracks of the railroad, which are still in use and on a high bridge. The cave smelled of incense and had a large golden Buddha in its center. The final adventure away from the New Life Project for the day was a water park. It was less of a water park and more of a Wipe-out course. Everyone had a blast climbing on the obstacles and getting thrown into the refreshing water of the River Kwai. The day ended with a dance party at the New Life Project. The kids loved the American music played and went crazy. Today, in my opinion, proved to be one of the best days of the entire trip.