YEAR 7 RESIDENTIAL 2020: KHAO YAI

Our Year 7 residential trip was terrific!. After getting on the bus at school at about 8:30am we made our way to the ‘Wild Lodge’ in Khao Yai National Park; everybody was so excited to see what was in store for them. The ride itself was boisterous, and full of positive energy as the boys typically made most of the noise!

We arrived at Khao Yai National Park at about 12:00pm, and after eating lunch, Year 7 went straight into our first activity of bushcraft. We first tried to create makeshift tents that could withstand rain and wind. After that, we made a fire using flint and steel by striking the flint to spark. Protecting the spark by shielding it from the wind, we started with a small amount of tinder and eventually built it up to the point where we could cook instant noodles on it! It was far more delicious after working for it! As it was a shorter first day, we then returned to the lodge, ate dinner, played some board games and retired to our beds to settle in for the night.

Day two started with a great breakfast and lively conversation about what was in store for us; we knew what activities were coming but not the groups that we would be experiencing them with.

Once we had been divided into our activity groups, it transpired that archery was our opening activity, which was surprisingly tricky! The aim was to shoot the arrow into the bullseye and gain as many points as we could. After practising for a while, we then competed in three separate rounds to win Oreos as a prize. Ten points equated to a bullseye, three points for the inside circle and the outside circle resulted in only two points. Hitting the bullseye was super-hard though!

On the third day, we went to a Thai cooking class in the Wild Lodge kitchen. We got to see the cooks explain to us about cooking techniques, tasting for flavour balance and preparation of ingredients. Then, we realised we would be judged on these factors in a cook-off making ‘Laab Gai’ (Thai minced chicken). Students were asked to explain to the judges about our choice of flavours. Teamwork played a big part in the success of each team, and it was no coincidence that the teams were more successful, cooperated the best together. In fact, the whole week revolved around teamwork and it brought us closer together.

On the fourth day, kayaking was on the cards! It was a sweltering day with beautiful blue skies and little shade on offer, so we had to wear extra sunscreen to avoid getting scorched. The Camp leaders had set up a many challenges to complete such as: standing on boats, collecting balls from the water while paddling in the canoe, and standing while paddling – which was undoubtedly the hardest. The final evening was really special as we had a campfire and toasted marshmallows on the glowing embers of the campfire to make smores. It was a great ending to a great week.

In the morning we had breakfast and returned to Bangkok. Although we were disappointed to be leaving behind Wild Lodge and all of the fun we had over the past week - everyone was exhausted and looking forward to their own beds. Khao Yai and Wild Lodge was a residential that was both unforgettable and hugely entertaining. We are now looking forward to what next year holds!