Really happy to be part of something meaningful and awesome again! I remember the time we did something together for a good cause is during the sale of #BenRanAway tee previously. where we donated everything we raised from the sales of the tees to charity! Thank you everyone for the support!

And this time round, there's no sales of anything! It's really simple which all of us can just spare a few seconds to help! We just need to simply "pledge" or "like" for a good cause.... and by that, we are already helping the less privileged people! Pledging for a good cause through the #SIWWPledge!!




In conjunction with the Singapore International Water Week 2014, SIWW and seven of its founding sponsors are raising money for Water.org through #SIWWPledge!! Awesome!!

So for every Like/Pledge made by all of us, the
#SIWWPledge sponsors will donate S$1 to Water.org!

I'm so glad that this movement was introduced as part of SIWW's goal to rally the global community towards finding innovative and sustainable technological and financial solutions to meet safe water and sanitation needs globally! Because little as you know, about one in nine people in the world lack access to clean water - which is about 780 million people worldwide. It's actually a serious issue omg!!!


Take a look at this infographic:



Do you guys know that, more than 3.4 million people die each year from water, sanitation, and hygiene-related causes? And nearly all deaths, 99 percent, occur in the developing world! (source)
I think not many of us know, and not many of us bother because it's not happening to us?

We are really really fortunate to live here in Singapore, where clean and safe water is readily available to us everywhere! All we have to do is just to turn on our tap, and water will just flows out right in front of you. We can even drink the water from the tap even! But that doesn't mean the people from other developing country has the privilege too! We tend to take safe and clean water for granted isn't it! It's really sad because apart of that, about 2.5 billion people in the world don’t have access to a toilet even!

But thanks to Water.org, a non-profit organisation that has transformed hundreds of communities in Africa, South Asia and Central America by providing access to safe water and sanitation! Matt Damon, co-founder, was awarded the World Economic Forum Crystal Award earlier this year for the organisation’s efforts to solve the global water crisis! And so we can play our part to help this every moment! :D

Remember what I said earlier about pledging for a good cause? There are a few ways!


1. Like my Instagram #SIWWPledge photo

Partnering with SIWW, my Instagram #SIWWPledge photo will be used as one of the official channel for pledging! So by liking my #SIWWPledge photo, SIWW sponsors will donate $1 to water.org!

Which literally means, 1 Like = 1 Pledge = S$1 Donated!

So please take a few seconds of your time to go like this photo (below) on my Instagram (@typicalben) because it's really easy and simple! You can just do a good cause in a few seconds! Why not right!




So ask all your family and friends to like this photo if you can! Do help to spread the word cause I wish to raise as much money as I could for them! It's not a challenge or competition or anything, it's just something that we can do to help! Don't like my other photos nevermind, but this one must like k! :)


2. Post your very own selfie for the pledge
After liking my photo (which I deem you guys will like hahaha), you can also go post your own selfie or any pictures up on www.campaign.com/SIWWPledge to help too! Which also the same as mentioned earlier, 1 Pledge = S$1 Donated to water.org! You all can go post a selfie like..........




.....this? Hahahaha!


But if you wanna take selfie with me and post it up there also can!!!
Cause this Saturday, me and Qiuqiu jiejie will be over at Bugis Junction (fountain area) to help spread the awareness and garner as much pledges as possible from the public!!! I'll be rushing down from my cousin's wedding!! So if you guys wanna come find us to take selfie, you can!!!!! Details as follow:




Location: Bugis Junction - Fountain
Date: 14 June 2014
Time: 2pm - 5pm

Please take note that we will be pledging for a good cause in order to donate to Water.org and not there to play with the fountain water ah hahahaha! Thank you so much for reading and helping out! Please also take some time to go to www.campaign.com/SIWWPledge to understand more about this campaign and the details! Hope to see some of you guys on Saturday! Can't wait! :D


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Hello everyone!!! I'm so excited to share with you guys what I did earlier this week!!!!! :D

I feel so happy and lucky that I had this rare opportunity to go behind the scene and be an animal keeper for a night over at Night Safari!!!! How cool is that omg????!!!!

You know, when I was first told about it, I was really excited because I always wanted to go to Night Safari (cause everyone have been telling me how awesome it is) but I just didn't really had the chance to. And seriously, just few weeks back, I was only telling my friends and planning with them to visit Night Safari this month!!! So you can understand how excited I was when I first heard this news! Super!!!

Because now, not only I can go to Night Safari but I also get to be an animal keeper.... which is like a total dream come true!! I think all of us when we were young as a child, we once had this dream to become a zoo keeper when we are visiting the zoo etc. Like we really admire them and find it very cool as they get to take care of the animals, feed the animals and to even have very close contact with all the animals which we do not have the chance to! So having this chance now to be an animal keeper for the day, was definitely an eye-opener for me and also, a once in a life time experience that I'll never forget!!


Thank you Night Safari for this opportunity!!! :') Anyway, back to the topic on planning to go with my friends earlier... I'll definitely still go together with them as planned because I didn't get the chance to explore the whole Night Safari cause it's really quite big omg. There are several trails and I'm just attached to one of it that night, so of course I'll want to go back to see all the animals at the other trails too!

As usual, I took quite a number of pictures during my time as an animal keeper (or even more than usual lah hahaha) and I'm going to share with you all now!!! Do continue to read till the end cause you might also get a chance to be an animal keeper (like me) for a night at Night Safari too! ^_^




I was the first few to reach Night Safari even before their opening time, cause I think I was too excited? Hahaha! And the crowd slowly starts to form up pretty early too, guess everyone is as excited as I am!




Since I'm early, I took some pictures at the entrance of Night Safari while waiting for the rest!




Oh hey, elephants! I love elephants, although these are statue but it's still cute!




Selfie with the statue elephants at the back! :p




Before entering Night Safari, we got to see this beauty. Great horn owl.




Why are you so beautiful omg! We were all so fascinated by the look of it.




And of course, a picture with it! :D

After entering Night Safari, we were given a short briefing by the management on what we are going to do for the night, the area (trails) that we will be taking care of and also the animal keeper that we will be attached to. Basically the animal keeper will be guiding us throughout the night, demonstrating and teaching us on how to be an animal keeper! So we don't have to worry at all cause we will be taken care by them since they are very experienced, we are in safe hands people!!!! At the same time, we can also get to understand their job scope, learn more from them and get hands-on experience!




Off off, and here we go!!!!!




The trail that I'll be in charge of, is the Leopard Trail!
So we have to walk past the Fishing Cat Trail to reach Leopard Trail!




Walking past a pod of pelicans!




Took some selfie while walking to the Leopard Trail! With Amantha, who was there to accompany that day to help me take pictures, carry my bag, hold umbrella for me omg. Thank you so much!!!
I actually feel quite bad cause she's like sweating herself yet need to help me take pictures, sometimes carry my bags, shelter me with umbrella when it rains and she did it all without any complain hahaha! Although she keep saying that it's her job (cause she's our manager), but I still really appreciate it one eh! :D





Another seflie with Amantha and Elly, the animal keeper!
Elly is super friendly and nice to us and she keeps on feeding us with information and knowledge that she know about the animals! She told us that she already had 5 years of experience working as animal keeper omg. I seriously learn so much from her in just a night and I've to really thank her for that!!





After a short walk, we finally reach Leopard Trail!!!




Can't wait to check out all the animals that are inside this trail!!







I guess I was too excited and once we reached the trail, I was about to barge in to see the flying squirrel that I almost forgotten that I'm there to be animal keeper and not as a visitor lolololol. :x
Luckily Elly stopped me in time eh, if not I think I already inside to see all the cute flying squirrel liao hahahaha! She told me that we have to quickly go prepare the food and also, some other preparation for the night before they open the gate to let the visitors come in! We got a real job to do man! Let's go!




Walking past the cute asian otters!




As the animal keeper of the day, it's time to do some serious work!
Walking to different areas to prepare the food for the animals!




Going in.... where all the behind the scene work is done!




Elly preparing and getting the food ready for feeding!




Okay done!




Then it is time for feeding yay!! Elly told me specifically what food to feed which animals and why are they feeding them the food, like because of the nutrients etc. I really get to learn a lot from her!




Feeding the ducks first!




Here you go!!







The duck really swam over to eat the food! So cute!

After feeding the ducks, Elly came over and asked me whether I'm okay to touch any food that will be fed to the animals.... I then replied to her, "Of course okay lah!". Then she showed me this........




Mealwormssssssss!




At first, I still thought what! Luckily it's just mealworms which I'm not really scared of hahahaha! Also, as the animal keeper for the night, how can I be scared of such things! *flips hair*




Elly teaching me how to feed the birds with mealworms! It's not just anyhow pour the mealworms anywhere okay! Have to spread it evenly in different areas on dry surface!




And now it's my turn! Hahahahaha!




Next, is hanging up all the fruits on the tree branches for the bats!




She again show me how it is done!




Just like this! Looks simple!




And now it's my turn hahahaha! Which turns out to be not really simple because it's quite hard to reach even with the pole and we also don't know which brunches are strong enough to hang them!




Slowly hanging them all up! *proud*




All the bats are still sleeping! When they wake up later at night, they can have their food already!




See both of us look so happy hahaha! Really had a good time eh! Anyway, Elly quickly finish hanging up the rest of the fruits (am I too slow oops!) because we still have other areas to got to!




Me playing my part, hanging the last apple on one of the brunch and we are done!




Went to prepare more food for the animals and also to feed them!




While walking to other area, I got to see the giraffe upclose omg!!!!!!




I think the giraffe spotted us and turned around to look at us!!!!




Quickly snapped a picture with it! Elly was telling me that only animal keeper can get so close because normally we can only get to see the giraffe while sitting on the tram! #perksofbeinganimalkeeper




Walk past the Zebra Cafe which is located inside the Leopard Trail!
So cute look at all the seats, it's all zebras hahahaha!




Soon the sky turns dark and it's already night time! Time past so fast, we didn't even notice as we were going around making sure all animals are fine and feeding them their food!




Amazing experience at night because we get to see all the animals are most naturally active side!




Back to see the Flying Squirrel! Time to feed them too!





Doing my work in the dark! Feels so different but amazing, really!




Right after I placed their food, all the flying squirrel glides down from the top of the various trees to this one and eat them omg! What a sight that we won't usually get to see!!!
And I use the word glide because I was saying that they 'fly' at first but then Elly educated me telling me that they don't fly literally, but they glide hahahaha! See I really learn a lot of things from her!





We get to feed the cute otters too!




We also went back to see the fruits that we hanged up earlier! All the bats are eating them when we were back there! And they are flying around, on top of you while you're in there wow!!




Gonna feed the porcupine!!!!!







Nom nom nom.....




Then we visited the leopard!!!! So unclose!!! *.*
Everyone can get to see it so unclose as it's part of the walking trail!
We got to see every single animals in our trail with Elly right next to us telling and explaining to us some of the facts and stuff that is related to the animals! So thankful for her, we really get to know a lot of things that day! Didn't manage to take much pictures at night because we (or basically all the visitors) are not allowed to use flash photography. I think Night Safari is really a place enjoy the experience rather than taking photos. Trust me, you guys will sure be awe by the atmosphere and the experience there.




Came across this, while we are leaving the Leopard Trail!
Will come back to see lion feeding for sure! Should be super cool! :O
I also heard that Night Safari is the world’s very first wildlife night park to also feature a 20-minute animal extravaganza that is Creatures of the Night Show! I'll wanna come back to watch that too! Exciting!




Took the guided tram tour at the end of the day and it was a delightful 40-minute ride!
I didn't expect it to be so fascinating because you get to see animals so close to you, roaming freely around and some are even walking past right next to you! The tram guide will also fill us in with all the information as we pass by the all the 7 geographical zones with all the different animals! I really love it!!!

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I just wanna say I'm really glad to have this chance to experience something so different and it's such a fruitful day being an animal keeper! It's something we don't get to experience in our normal daily life or from watching videos/tv of the animals etc. I really get a chance to get a glimpse into the wild lives of the animals when they are most naturally active and even get close to them. I'm really happy tbh!

For those who also want to experience and be an animal keeper for the night like me, good news is that you might have the chance too! As Night Safari celebrates their 20th anniversary, they came up with this simple contest to allow all of us to have a chance to be an animal keeper for a night!!!


All you have to do is to......



Yes, take a picture with their anniversary wall at the entrance of Night Safari!




Like this!




Or like this! Or any pose you want! Then you upload it onto your public Instagram account with the hashtag #NS20 and tag them @nightsafarioffical and you are done!! So easy!!!

I really hope one of you guys who are reading this will get to win to experience this once in a life time experience, so you guys can understand how I feel! Good luck okay! :D
http://www.nightsafari.com.sg/

-o-"