On the afternoon of May 25, HiVOOC welcomed some special guests to Son Tra — 28 students of different ages from the Seedlings Mentorship scholarship program by the Banyan Global Foundation.
The experience was organized by Laguna Lăng Cô — one of Banyan Group’s resorts — in collaboration with HiVOOC to celebrate the International Day for Biological Diversity.
The group spent the afternoon walking, exploring, and learning about the plants and animals in Son Tra. Divided into two groups with two HiVOOC guides, the students learned about the meaning behind the name “Son Tra” and watched monkeys swinging through the trees to pick figs.
HiVOOC’s experts organized a fun review game to check what the students had learned, and the participants joined in with great enthusiasm.
Some of the students shared that they had heard about the red-shanked douc langur before and were excited about the chance to see one in the wild. HiVOOC’s primate expert gave a detailed talk about this species’ features and behavior. Through this, the students gained new and fascinating scientific knowledge about this primate, often called the “Queen of Primates.” For example, despite walking more than 3 kilometers, the group still wasn’t able to spot any doucs — a reminder of how rare and shy these animals can be.
According to the experts, there are eight groups of red-shanked douc langurs living in the area where the students were walking. To have a chance at spotting these beautiful but rare animals, the group had to walk quietly, listen carefully, stay alert, and be both patient and persistent. By applying these lessons, the group was rewarded. After walking just a few hundred meters, one student suddenly spotted a group of red-shanked doucs high up in a tree.
Huyền, one of the students in the group, shared: “Getting closer to nature helped me feel really relaxed, and listening to the information shared by the guides made me even more excited to learn about different plants and animals. I especially liked the ‘douc bridge’ here — such a great idea to help doucs, monkeys, and squirrels cross the road safely. It shows that many people truly care about protecting wildlife.”
The students learned and reflected on four important values — perseverance, patience, resilience, and determination — which are key to success in anything, just like in their efforts to find the Queen’s families.
Looking back at the young participants of today’s Son Tra journey, each of them comes from a different background. But no matter the challenges they’ve faced, they’ve always worked hard in their studies and seized opportunities to pursue their dreams — like being part of the Seedlings Mentorship scholarship program. This experience will surely become an unforgettable memory on their path to becoming responsible and caring citizens in the future.
THÙY TRANG
PICTURE: NHẬT QUANG