Our July expedition has begun and our volunteers are off to a great start! Here’s what they’ve been up to for the last week… 

Our first week was focused around training for the rest of the programme – lectures full of information and methodology for data collection. Within this training was a visit to the fisheries along Jangamo Bay, to Guinjata and Pandaine where many of us volunteers saw our first experience of humpback whale breaches! Excitement continued to grow throughout the week as we learnt more about our itinerary to come and got to know each other over mealtimes, beach trips and (cold) pool dips.

The first dive of the programme began with a surf beach launch which got many of our heart rates peaking and fed any adrenalin junky cravings! The underwater surge during the dive was a new experience for most of us, adding an extra thrill to our introduction to Jangamo’s marine sites.

A definite highlight of the week was the cultural tour that marked the end of our training: first we visited the two local primary schools where vibrant murals, many marine-themed, are painted across many of the walls. After that, we were hosted at Pascoal’s family home, playing games of pesce-pesce-goose with the kids, picking matapa leaves from his farm and helping to make the crowd favourite ‘fiosses’. Safe to say everyone was loving the cultural immersion!

Now we’re looking forward to a weekend of diving, exploring the local area and maybe a surf in Jangamo’s waves before our training is put into practise 🙂