Day 1 (2/12) - What an amazing place! The people who show you around are a good laugh. Started the day at the nature park by been shown around the place and by walking about to see the elephants. All of the elephants roaming around free and happy along with healthy cats and dogs. Wasn't nice hearing what was wrong with some of the elephants and the bad things that had happened to them.

After lunch we watched a sad video about how the elephants are treated elsewhere and also how they become submissive and become a 'domestic' elephant.

After watching the video we then had a talk about what we can and can't do and also the types of jobs we would be doing. At 4pm we then washed the elephants which turned out to be more of a water fight with all the volunteers and some of our guides!!

Next some of us went to the dog sanctuary which holds around 500 dogs. We played and chilled with them for a bit. It was mad how loads of dogs just run up to you as soon as you get in to their pen!

Before dinner we had a ceremony where we were given good luck. After dinner 6 of us played some card games, had deep discussions about religion, shared some jokes and then went to bed (sharing a room with Douglas from USA). Ready for a 6.30am wake up call!!

Day 2 - After been kept up all night by barking dogs and the odd elephant noise, I then woke up to more barking dogs and all sorts of other animals and insects. Once we had breakfast it was time to get in to our groups and begin work. My groups work today was to cut the grass. We each got given a machete and as a group we had to make 250 bundles of grass for the elephants to eat later. The grass was tied up in to bundles and then we had to carry them to a designated area.

As we finished early we got given the afternoon off. My group then took 2 of the elephants up a hill where they were able to eat away. At 4pm it is bath time for the elephants and at 4.30pm we had the owner/founder (Lek) of the Nature Park speak to us.

What an amazing and inspirational woman Lek is!! The stories of how she started to protect the elephants and other animals were unreal and touching. She has been to prison so many times just because she wants animals treated well and told us so many funny stories. She has bought abused elephants off of their owners and has had to fight so hard against police, government and the Thai people themselves to get where she has today. There were loads of sad stories she told us too.

Lek saves not only elephants but all animals. The dogs were saved from the Bangkok floodings and when all the owners of the dogs fled and left them, Lek went in and saved them which is why she has 500 in a dog sanctuary right next to the elephant park. Lek was so appreciative of all the volunteers that come to the park as the money we pay all goes to saving the animals and the work we do helps to run the Nature park.

Not only does Lek save the animals, she helps with local schools, hill tribes and tries to educate as many Thais as possible to show how the way they treat and use elephants is wrong. The other main message Lek wanted to tell us was to spread the word to friends and family about how the elephants are trained to paint, act in shows and the suffering they endure in doing these. The elephants are beaten with sticks with hooks on the end, making them bleed badly until they learn to follow there leader and do what they are told.

After the talk with Lek we all had dinner and then had an optional Thai language lesson which was more like a comedy show from some of the workers!

Day 3 - The week is going too fast!! Had a great day today! Eating breakfast with the elephants roaming around and with the sun rising was like been in a dream land.

Today our job was to load up rice bundles on to a truck. The place we had to go too to do this was quite far away but it was fun standing in the back of the truck taking in the views. When we got to the plantation we formed a line to pass the bundles from one place to the truck. All was going well until the truck driver tried to move the truck but it ended up at an angle (nearly toppling over) and wouldn't move anywhere. Luckily there was a tractor on the next field and the owner came to pull the truck back on to the path.

When we finished packing the truck we then had to sit right on top of all the bundles. I felt like I got a free face lift on the way home with the wind hitting my face at a high speed!

After a late lunch we unloaded the truck. Then we got to witness a baby elephant and her mum rolling about in a mud pit together. Some of us then decided to walk a family of 10 dogs before bathing the elephants.

At 5pm I played football with some of the mahuts and local kids which was good fun! Had a good chat with some of the volunteers over dinner and then we all went for a well deserved massage! As usual when I got back to the bedroom our resident ginger cat was outside but then it got in to the room and I had to get it out again!

Day 4 - My groups task for the day was to prepare food for the elephants but I ended up helping someone else make a play area for a family of 10 dogs. When I finished I went and helped my group finish preparing the food.

In the afternoon we stacked hay and then collected rocks that were to be used to make a wall. After all of this we then went and met Lek where we got to sit under elephants with her!! Such an amazing experience! The way the elephants are with Lek is incredible.

The evening was good fun. We got some drink and had laugh and then some us of played a game called UNO.

Day 5 - Today was more of a chill out day. We started by cleaning up the elephant shelters and shovelling there poo which only took about an hour. When we finished we fed the oldest elephant banana balls which had medicine hidden in the middle of it as the elephant wouldn't eat the medicine on its own.

In the afternoon we got to go for a walk with Lek and the elephants again. It was an eventful walk!

Afterwards I played football again with the mahuts and the local kids and then had dinner and another night of UNO!

Day 6 - This morning my group got to walk around the park to see every single elephant and then got to chill out until lunch.

After lunch we had group photos and then got to go tubing down the stream that runs along the park. We got back in time to unload a truck full of bananas before washing the elephants.

In the evening we had a special Thai dinner but it was so spicy! Then we had an evening of chilling and drinking.

Day 7 - This was probably the hardest morning of work all week! We had to prepare food for the elephants and then unload 2 trucks of pumpkins and water melons.

Before we had lunch it was time to check out of our room, then eat and have one last game of UNO!!

In the evening a few of us met up again in Chiang Mai and had a night out before going our separate ways.