A Little Piece Of Africa, Forever

During the Australians’ volunteer journey at Cango Wildlife, the group decided to commemorate their time together by getting tattoos, turning an ordinary day at Zindagos into one of the more memorable chapters of their South African experience.

The idea started with the Australian volunteers wanting something meaningful to remember their journey through Africa.

“The girls from Australia wanted to do something to commemorate their trip in Africa. All of the tattoos have really special meanings behind them, and it was just a bonding experience for all of us.”

Rather than everyone choosing the same design, the tattoos reflected individual memories, personalities and connections. Among the designs were a Bat-Eared Fox face, an Elephant, a Lion head, a Meerkat, two daisies, a meaningful quote and matching paw prints.

For Jamie and Jess, those paw prints held an especially close connection to their time at Cango Wildlife.

During their stay, the Australian volunteers had formed strong connections with the animals and people around them. Their journey also saw them adopt Cheetahs, Darcie and Ezra through BOA Foundation, creating a way for their connection with Cango to continue long after they returned home. The matching Cheetah paw tattoos became another reminder of that bond and of an experience that had helped them grow both personally and within the wildlife industry.

As they shared at the end of their volunteer experience, Cango Wildlife had become their “home and family” during their weeks in South Africa.

The tattoo day itself was every bit as memorable.

Tattoo artist Lushian from Pureprophecy Tattoo Studio travelled from George to Zindagos, bringing his equipment with him and setting up on site. With beautiful weather and plenty of natural light, the group decided to make the most of the day and set up outside.

A professional tattoo bed formed the centre of the temporary studio, while chairs were arranged nearby so everyone could sit together, chat and support each other while waiting for their turn.

The group was particularly impressed by the care taken throughout the process. All the necessary sanitisation equipment was brought along, and between every tattoo the workspace and equipment were sanitised and rewrapped, with used materials safely disposed of.

“The tattoo artist was very helpful and very sweet, talking us through the whole process. For all of us, the process was basically painless, other than being a little spicy!”

Over approximately four hours, Jamie, Hayley, Jess and Zenny took their turns in the chair, while the others watched on.

But the afternoon became about much more than the tattoos themselves.

For the Australian volunteers, travelling across the world to South Africa had originally been an opportunity to learn, contribute to animal care and gain experience within the wildlife industry. Along the way, however, the experience became equally defined by the people they met, the friendships they formed and the moments they shared outside of their daily work.

Including Zenny in this final adventure made the tattoo session a celebration of those unexpected friendships.

Soon, the Australian volunteers would be heading thousands of kilometres back home, each taking different memories from their time in the Klein Karoo with them.

Some of those memories will live in photographs. Some will live in stories told back home.

And a few will now be carried on their skin.

A Bat-Eared Fox. An Elephant. A Lion. A Meerkat. Daisies. A few carefully chosen words. And two little paw prints connecting Australia, South Africa and a very special chapter at Cango Wildlife.

A little piece of Africa, forever.