Lovely time in Jaipur!

This program was really great! I spent a month there this past summer and I learned quite a lot about the elephants in Jaipur and Indian culture. The elephants are wonderful to work with. I loved being able to bathe them in the lake and help the mahouts paint them. It can be difficult seeing the elephants work with such heavy chairs and be chained the way they are. However, you definitely gain perspective after you learn about the elephant culture in Jaipur and learn about how other elephants are treated in other projects. I think the elephants are well taken care of and the mahouts genuinely care about them. My host family was really great too! I had a lot of time to myself, but they were really friendly and helped me with shopping. My room was great and I really liked that I had my own bathroom. I also enjoyed the sightseeing that was organized on the weekends - there are a lot of beautiful, interesting places to see in and around Jaipur. The program staff also helped me plan a trip to visit the Taj Mahal, which was stunning.
Overall, this program was amazing and I hope I can go back one day!