About Me
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6 weeks barefoot conservation and I leave without shoes but a heart full of great memories. Expecting paradise when I decided to leave Germany to go for some volunteering I found much more than that. For me - Arborek, the village, the barefoot camp and the people have a magical and catching good vibe. It made me feel home and more myself than ever before. Literally I found out diving is the best thing in the whole wide world (in general but even more in Raja Ampat) and being passionate about something is amazing. I had fun diving before but with the help of the barefoot staff I (think) I’m really good at it now. With the help of an amazing instructor I was able to improve my skills and may call myself OWAD and rescue diver now. I learned a lot about the ocean and am super thankful for a science department I couldn’t imagine any better. Being able to understand how things down there working and about animal behavior is super cool. I really enjoyed using the knowledge under water and help with surveys and coral nursery care as well as manta identification. Operations in barefoot are organized well and if there are any issues there is always a lovely project manager having an open door for you.
The staff is amazing and they’re doing a great job - working as a team and make you also feel being part of it (it takes some time until you are able to really help - so I wouldn’t recommend any stay unter 4 weeks but that’s my personal opinion). I would a 100% recommend a stay with barefoot when you want to live a simple but good life, learn about marine science and have a authentic volunteering experience you are really able to work as part of something valuable.
I’m thankful for lovely pencakes for breakfast and delicious food every day, dolphins swimming around me when I try to focus on morning yoga on the jetty, guitar and singing nights, skies full of Shooting-stars and the best sunrises and sunsets I’ve ever seen in my life. And most important diving diving and even more diving! Being realistic - nothing is perfect, everywhere is room for improvement and you should really inform yourself about the camp and not expect a holiday resort. You have to wash your own dishes, have small cleaning duties every day to keep the camp tidy and need to bring yourself in. Your shower is a bucked and a scoop and the toilet gets flushed with ocean water. There are small animals you live together with and sand everywhere. In my opinion it’s beautiful to live this “basic” life but you should know to not be disappointed when arriving. - via 