A solo trip to Borneo sealed the deal on a dream job for John Trybus. Not too shabby for a few weeks away.
After college, John, 22, was searching for a full-time job. He didn't get the one he expected to. But rather than feel sorry for himself, he took it as a sign. And an opportunity to travel for awhile.
He learned of a "trip of a lifetime" to Borneo, and signed up to go orangutan trekking with Dr. Birute Galdikas. She's the world's leading expert on orangutans. She has spent more than three decades living with and studying them at a reserve called Tanjung Puting Reserve.
John's trip to Borneo, sponsored by the Orangutan Foundation International, was not out of the blue. He had worked at National Geographic and had always been fascinated by the culture of Asia. And he's been interested in primates and their natural world since he was a child. Ever since seeing "Gorillas in the Mist," the movie about Dian Fossey.
The Borneo group was fantastic, he says. He was younger than the dozen other people on it, but everyone was nice. And intriguing. "You would expect a trip like this to bring an unusual type of person and it did."
Some had gone mountain gorilla trekking on previous trips. Others were less well traveled. But everyone got along really well. Many, like John, had arrived alone. Most of them were from the United States.
While in Borneo, John saw wild orangutans, proboscis monkeys, hornbills, crocodiles and more. He visited with the more than 300 orangutan orphans at the reserve and the many local villages involved in orangutan work.
So how did his adventure lead to a dream job? John had met Jane Goodall, the primatologist and anthropologist, in March in Washington, DC,where he lives. He then found out about a job opening at the Jane Goodall Institute. He sent a resume, but since he had no background in primate issues, he never expected to hear back.
But he did. And ended up paying about $60 for a 10-minute phone call from Singapore, to arrange for an interview. When he went for the in-person interview, he brought along trip photos.
He thinks his interviewers were impressed by the fact that he took his own time and money to go to Borneo to trek with the Dr. Baldikas and the orangutans.
And now? Now, John has a job as Goodall's public relations and outreach coordinator, and will accompany her on her travels.
He's over the moon about it. He had worked in public relations before, on several different issues. But he didn't expect to be able to combine his work with his passion. "It's really funny how it has all worked out like this."
Borneo was a life-changing experience for other reasons, as well. "I truly had a renewed sense of who I was, what was important to me and where I saw my life going." That's not something that's as likely to happen when one travels with friends from home, and doesn't allow the time and space for introspection.
Photos by or of John Trybus. The first two and the fourth were taken at the reserve. The third photo is of an Indonesian boy.
Borneo will change the way you look at a lot of things. It is changing fast for people and animals. Come to Malaysia or Indonesia and experience this fascinating island for yourself, like John T.
Posted by: Rick | December 20, 2009 at 02:11 AM
Rick,
It's on my bucket list!
Posted by: Ellen | December 20, 2009 at 01:08 PM