I have the itch to go away, some place new.  Ever since my first independent traveling experience, a few months will pass by and then I start feeling restless, pining for some of that exciting energy that comes with being somewhere foreign, unexpected, and beautiful. Whether on my own or accompanied by friends, discovering new landscapes, architecture, food, people, or whatever, it is the new discoveries that, and as corny as it may sound, make me feel really alive.  I always feel this sense of rejuvenation when I return home from a trip, as little and short as it may have been.  It’s as if a reset button was pushed, and I can now carry on with responsibilities with a fresh and more focused head.  Perhaps I need to start making my regular, daily life a little more exciting, by making sure to go somewhere new (or not new) that will stimulate those excited feelings, but of course going on a big or little trip seems a little more adventurous.

I was fortunate enough to be able to take a trip for 3 weeks two summers ago to Europe, and I was hoping to be able to go somewhere again this summer but alas, summer school takes over.  That is not to say that little local trips and camping will not occur, but a grander experience is what I dream of.  But something may work out in the end if timing and financials go in my favour; a short trip to South Africa at the end of August.  My brother is soon leaving for South Africa to do an internship for 4 months, and has invited me to join him to travel at the end of the internship.  I, of course, cannot say no, although going to such a vast country with so much to offer for just a couple weeks and having to go on such a long flight is a bit of a deterrent, but a trip is a trip I suppose.  I dream of being able to experience some of Africa, visit some parks and go on a safari.  So I will have to wait and see when final exams will be scheduled, and what flight prices will be like, because I know that this is an opportunity not to be missed.

I mentioned in my previous post about summer school, but studying is not (thankfully) the only thing I have to look forward to.  Beginning the second week of May, I will begin/resume volunteering with Wildlife Rescue (WRA) in Burnaby, where I completed a 2 month full-time internship last summer.  This summer, I will only be volunteering once a week at least, perhaps more, depending on how much time I end up having.  I am really excited to be returning to WRA after almost one year.  My experience there last summer was a huge learning experience; in just the span of 2 months I was able to be involved in the feedings and medication administering to nestlings and fledglings primarily, but to older birds and some mammals as well.  I started to learn how to do in-takes of injured animals, although 2 months was definitely not enough time for me to become comfortable in accurately examining a bird as I had no previous knowledge of avian anatomy or any trauma experience with birds.  It was distressing at times to witness just how many injured birds (most of them ultimately succumbing to their injuries or the stress) would arrive daily at the centre, but also uplifting when an injured or sick animal was able to be released back into the wild, especially when I had a little part in the process.

Something that somewhat surprised me during my internship was how much I came to care about and see the individual personalities of so many of the birds.  I never thought that I would see that in common “pesky” birds such as gulls and pigeons,but they really took me by surprise.  I’m excited to be able to interact again with so many different species of birds, and to hopefully be able to continue with and expand on the skills that I acquired last summer.

I seem to be procrastinating worse and worse as my ‘academic career’ carries on, but hopefully I can just pull it off for the next 2 (and hopefully last 2) semesters.  It seems like I’ve been at college/university for so long (about 6 years) that I am never going to finish and move on with the next chapter in my life; and even though the end-point is quite near, it is difficult to realize.

This term seemed to go by at super speed.  I was registered in 3 courses, APBI 495 (Wildlife management and implications), PSYCH 306a (Animal behaviour), and BIO 306 (advanced ecology).  I was pretty excited for these courses due to them being all animal-related, but unfortunately did not enjoy them (with the exception of APBI 495) as much as I was hoping for.  I think the presentation of the material and structure of the classes had a large part to do with the slight underwhelming feeling I had, along with realizing that maybe ecology is just not for me.  APBI 495 however, was really a thought-provoking, eye-opening, and engaging course.  Admittedly, I missed one too many classes, which is a great loss for me, but I still feel like I got so much out of the course.  The course made me realize that I really had no idea what ‘wildlife management’ actually was and what it entails and how it is often carried out.  I did not realize just how much money and politics determines new laws or guidelines relating to wildlife, when one would hope that management plans would be based mainly on valid science, species ecology, natural history, guidelines from wildlife professionals etc., which is often not the case.  It is no wonder that so much of what is referred to as ‘wildlife management’ has proven to be a failure.  By the end of the course, I think that I am probably now opposed to most ‘wildlife management’.  Overall, I highly recommend this course and the professor (Tom Sullivan).

Summer is just around the corner, and so is summer school.  3 courses for me (FRST 231, calculus, and EOSC 315).   Calculus will be brutal I know, I’ve avoided it for years which also means I have not done math for quite some time, but hopefully having it be a go-at-your-pace independent study course, I may just get through it.

One more semester has ended, only 2 more to go (plus one summer course)! Now that I finally  can see the end of my undergrad coming in the near future, I feel a sense of relief and glad that I can really start making tentative plans for after.  It has been a long haul (6 years) and I am ready to begin on something new. I did enjoy this semester, largely due to being in Dr. Fraser’s APBI 490: Animal welfare and global issues.  This is the 3rd class I have taken with him and unfortunately the last, in my undergrad at least.  Dr. Fraser is one of the most inspiring, kind, intelligent, and humble human beings that I have had the honor of being a student of, and I greatly wish that he taught more classes.  I recommend any of his animal welfare courses, regardless of one’s academic background or interests; it will be inevitably be one of the best courses ever taken with much to take from.

So back to the almost coming of end of my undergrad. The one thing I know almost positively that I wish to happen once I finish at the end of 2013, is to take a year off to work lots, save, and go travel South America and Mexico.  In particular, I want to spend at least a couple months at a wildlife refuge/rehabilitation center in Bolivia called Inti Wara Yassi (http://www.intiwarayassi.org/articles/volunteer_animal_refuge/home.html).  I have been very interested in visiting this center for several years now, and after meeting someone from Vancouver that actually spent some time there and is planning on going back, I know that I have to visit.

Hopefully things continue on this track!

So the semester is finally almost over (last exam tomorrow!) and I am ready as ever for the summer!  All in all, the semester went OK, but not great, so I think the 4 months coming up will be the much needed time to breathe and gather some energy and motivation for the next school year.  This past semester I took 4 courses; CONS 330 (conservation science and sustainability), BIO 304 (ecology), ANTH 326 (primatology), and APBI 315 (animal welfare and ethics).  As expected, after having taken APBI 314, APBI 315 surpassed my expectations and I looked forward to class each and every time.  ANYBODY who has the opportunity to take this course should, whether you have a passion for animals or not.  It really makes the difference in classroom quality when what is being taught is also part of the professors’ current career so you get a first-hand account and real stories on the subject matter.

As I finish up my last exam, I am also thinking about my summer plans.  For the first time in what seems like a long time, I have no concrete plans!  For the past many years, I have been fortunate enough to be able to travel abroad, but for this summer I decided I wanted to stay in Vancouver and enjoy it until the last days of sun.  I hope to volunteer  (hopefully both) with the Stanley Park Ecology Society and the Burnaby Wildlife Rescue Association.  At Stanley Park, I would like to get experience learning about/monitoring the local wildlife, and at the Burnaby WRA I want to get the experience of working in a wildlife rehabilitation center to narrow down whether or not that is the career path I want to go down.   As mentioned, nothing is finalized yet so hopefully by May I will know!

Hello fellow GRSers,

I have finally created my blog!  Although I used to keep a journal, this is the first time for me doing a blog so it is somewhat strange having my posts more public.  Anyhow, I will begin with a little introduction about myself.

I am a first year UBC student, having just transferred from the Environmental Studies program at Langara.  I heard about the GRS program from my brother who graduated in it a few years ago.  I was jealous and admired what he was learning and the opportunitiesthat he had, so this program seemed like a great fit for me.  As well, after I was fortunate to be able to travel in 2009 for a year, I caught the travel bug and am eager to go on my next trip.  I intend to specialize in animal welfare and behaviour, and have chosen my region of specialization to be Latin America.  My family is from Mexico City and so I grew up half knowing Spanish, and loving the culture.  I am so excited to be able to mix myinterest in Latin culture and becoming fluent in Spanish with my love for animals in one degree.

As mentioned above, I did some travelling after about 2 years at Langara.  I went to Spain for 2 weeks with my sister, and then settled in Israel for about 8 months (where I also visited Petra in Jordan) and went around Thailand for just under a month.  While in Israel, I was on a very casual program that helped me with accommodations, little trips, meeting other people, etc.  It was my 3rd time in Israel but I wanted to get the experience of living there for a time.  I did some volunteering at the SPCA in Tel Aviv, on the ambulances (it is very popular for youth to take a course, for Israeli’s and internationals, to become certified to volunteer with the paramedics), and then lastly on an animal reserve in the south of Israel.  The whole experience was amazing.  I had very uplifting times and some very rough and sad times, having to witness humans and dogs/other animals in bad situations.  I think it is very important and humbling to have experiences of both kinds so as to open one’s eyes to some harsh realities, but also to see positive and great things.

I have been thinking a lot about where exactly I will go for my exchange/volunteeringabroad, and have come across a few options.  Before I had decided to go to Israel, I was also debating on whether to go to Bolivia to volunteer at an animal refuge called Inti WaraYassi. http://www.intiwarayassi.org/articles/volunteer_animal_refuge/home.html

I have been keeping up with this sanctuary ever since I discovered it in 2009 and I will almost most definitely be spending some time there next year.  As well, I want to do a semester abroad in Mexico or another Spanish-speaking country, but preferably Mexico.  There is much much planning and decision making to do!

That is all for now!

Hasta luego…