Dubai International Academy’s (DIA) trip of Tanzania!

From the sand dunes of sunny United Arab Emirates to the muddy foothills of rainy Kilimanjaro.

I have never witnessed a group so excited about rain like DIA. We have been hosting many School expeditions over the years and one almost expects them to ask “where is the sun” when they arrive and the skies are grey. Well, it all came clear that this lot do not experience much rain, if at all any. It was great to see them celebrating with a little rain dance.

Immediately after exchanging pleasantries and the group had settled in, we took them on a familiarization tour of Mbokomu village and the school that they’ d be working at.
As the Swahili saying goes “Be a good host to your visitor on their first day, the next day give them a hoe to plough”. And so we did. Honeymoon was over, the Team was taken to Kiboriloni School to literally get their hands, shorts, t-shirts and faces dirty. They painted and drew murals on two classrooms in two days. With the short trips, students realize that they have very little time on projects and have targets to meet so what they tend to do is work their socks off on every activity that is thrown their way.

We changed the pace and engaged them in a typical Chagga (local tribe) cultural tour. The tour included helping a local lady with her daily chores such as; tending to her goats, fetching  water from the stream, and farming. Basically the students get to experience a day to day life of the locals. The tour is not considered complete unless everyone is wrapped in kanga’s (sarongs) and put in the mama’s smoky little kitchen to prepare lunch for themselves. Nothing could stop them from their cookery lesson, they were brave enough to stick around the kitchen despite smoke from burning firewood causing tears and sweat dripping from their eyes and faces!  Once in the village, you are considered one of them and you are expected to do what local people do including having your food while seated on a mat and using your hands to eat.

As we still had a bit of time left on our schedule, we  organized a football match with a group of local boys. Although the locals are used to playing all boys teams, they did not mind playing a mixed school and it was awesome to see boys and girls sharing the same playing field, which is a rarity in these parts of the world.

The day that needed everyone to be well prepared was here. The Kidia waterfall trek. It had rained through out the night and morning so the Team woke up thinking they had got away with it. You should have seen their faces when I announced to them that the trek was still on. Whilst we waited it off, they enjoyed a trip into town and spoiled themselves with Pizza’s at Indoitaliano restaurant followed by a supermarket run to get a few goodies before heading off to Kidia. In the meantime, the staff, and especially the local guide, were doing some Chagga rituals to the gods so that they could blow away the grey cloud that was hanging  over Moshi town. All the prayers and traditional chants worked. By the time the students had finished munching on their Pizza’s, the skies had cleared up and the sun was shinning.

The adventure ensued. The team had to take it slow and easy as the ground was still a bit wet and slippery and the trek was steep. With the help of the local guides, the entire Team managed to get down to the falls. Such an achievement and great feeling for the students as it was both fun and a challenge as some of them used their bottoms to climb down and the heavy rains made the waterfalls drop with such force. It was not just the trek down to the falls that took their breath away but the gauges, little farms, the beautiful, plentiful flora and fauna, greenery and the ever friendly locals who smiled and waved at the students whilst going about their daily chores.

   
The next day the group left bright and early to go to Tarangire National park for their safari. They saw loads of wildlife and enjoyed the game drives in their entirety.

On their return to camp, we had prepared a barbecue dinner for everyone as their last meal in Camp Tanzania. The group appreciated it very much as it was a great way to end their expedition. After dinner, the speeches ensued and we had a chance to ask the volunteers to sum up their entire trip in just one word. This is what they had to say;

It was great to see all the activities that we’d organized completed and the students and Teachers taking on all the tasks with a positive attitude and enthusiasm.

We were honored to host you and thank you for a great effort!

The results of laborious conservation work never show immediately. So many volunteers have worked hours digging away at trenches on Rukinga Wildlife Sanctuary and probably wondering what’s the point. If only you could see the waterholes filled, I am sure you will know just how much it was all worth. Steve Mwasi, our Wildlife Program [...]

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Camp Tsavo continues to buzz over December with school groups from Australia and Kenya as well as families from the UK. Steve Mwasi and Peter Kai share a brief report on this little melting pot of cultures in the heart of the Tsavo ecosystem…

Camp Tsavo receives volunteers and school group from different all over the world and once the teams arrive they participate on various areas of our ongoing sustainable community and habitat conservation projects in and around Rukinga Wildlife Sanctuary. And of course what makes this place one of a kind is that everyone has a chance to spot wildlife on safari in Tsavo East National Park and just about everyday on the sanctuary where the camp is based. This month, Camp Tsavo was the meeting point for two schools from two different continents: Melbourne School from Southern Australia and Brookhouse International School from Nairobi, Kenya…

The first school to arrive was Melbourne from Camp Makongeni, a group composed of 17 pax who worked so hard in some of our youth projects in the Makongeni community in the last two days before they made their way to Camp Tsavo. After briefing, the group relaxed and enjoyed watching the stars in the evening across the beautiful Tsavo sky.

The following day the team got their hand dirty working on Elephant Dung Paper, one of our sustainable income generating projects which benefits the local community and is always a lot of fun. In the afternoon the group headed out to the bush for tracking and monitoring wildlife within the sanctuary.

The next day, we headed off to Buguta Primary School and managed to complete the floor for the new school kitchen which we started during the summer and is now successfully completed and ready for us when school opens in January! The third day was spent at Sasenyi Primary School mixing cement and ballast to lay the foundation floor of a new class which was also started earlier this year.

Brookhouse arrived a day after Melbourne and was a group of 32 pax comprised of 29 students (year 13), 2 teachers and 2 Assessors fully dedicated to Community Service. The main aim of this short trip was to complete the Presidential Service (PS) award training Gold Class (the Kenyan equivalent of the Duke of Edinburgh Award). For any participants to attain the Gold award, one has to complete 4 full days supporting sustainable environmental projects and offer services to less fortunate communities.

In addition to the solid hours of community and environmental service, Brookhouse also had a chance to participate in our basic Bushcraft skills course and of course making some paper from poop which left a lot of students smiling ear to ear. Some of the students even sang and turned the place into a  dancing floor!

On their third day, the group helped digging a drainage system which collects water in one of the most utilized elephant water holes just close to the camp. The ground was sticky and muddy due to the recent rains but this lot found their rhythm and literally stuck with it to the end.

Usually our school groups focus on their own projects and will then socialize together in the evenings around a camp fire or over dinner. It was a real pleasure to see Melbourne and Brookhouse take this one step further and decided on one day to mix project teams…

One group went to Imani Women’s Group to support the women in soil erosion control by planting vetiver grass within Imani camp compound. They also learned to how to make jewellery from beads and learn about the challenges that women face in the community. The second group went to Sasenyi primary school where they got involved in making gabions to secure the school from soil erosion. This was great a combination that has never been done before, the teams worked so well and the rate of motivation between themselves was high which led to great project impact in both teams.

A big congratulations to both schools and a big thank you from all of us at Camp Kenya. It was a real pleasure to work alongside such focused young people and feel so much more confident knowing who our future leaders will be…

Tis’ the season to be diving and Vics has just come back from leading a small team of students through their Scuba Diving adventure at our Ocean Camp. Great results and well done Peponi School!

Year 9 and 10 students from Peponi School, Nairobi have been having a fantastic underwater adventure this week. The six student and teacher stepped right out of their comfort zones when learning how to scuba dive in the beautiful Indian Ocean waters of Shimoni and neighbouring island, Wasini, just one hour from the Camp Kenya office.

Outdoor adventure sports are often associated with speed and height, however, scuba diving is quite the opposite. Diving offers a great opportunity to discover a side of the world we rarely see. The underwater world.

The incredible marine life is quite breathtaking and the Peponi students witnessed a vast array of beautifully coloured fish and coral as well as being lucky enough to swim alongside a turtle. We also saw dolphins leaping alongside our boat which was magical.

The PADI Open Water Course engages students in both theoretical and practical modules culminating in putting all their new knowledge into practice in the ocean. Once a certified Open Water Diver, you can dive all over the world alongside another diver certified to the same level or above.

It is well documented how beneficial outdoor education is for young people to gain a greater understanding of their environment and the world around them and this experience has certainly opened their eyes to issues that affect marine life and equipping them with a new skill that they can continue to develop.

Whilst staying at our ocean camp in Shimoni, the students also participated in a Flip Flop Recycling Workshop whereby they learnt how to make bracelets, keyrings and juggling balls out of discarded flip flops. They also assisted with making a life size Whale Shark out of flip flops that will be on display at the jetty in Shimoni to create awareness as to how leaving waste on the beach, such as flip flops, can negatively impact marine life.

All in all, a great time was had by all and Karaan Dave, a year 10 pupil, summed his experience up perfectly “It was surreal. I felt like I was in a whole new world. It felt peaceful and calm, it was the best experience of my life.”

Peter Kai and the Camp Makongeni team are on a roll right now…

All eyes are now on Melbourne school from Southern Australia. The 17 pax comprised of 15 boys and 2 Teachers (Year 11 and 12) arrived in Kenya on 3rd December on their first school trip abroad with the aim of supporting sustainable and community development programs through Camp Kenya. Being the first school from Australia to visit Kenya through Camps International, the Makongeni community gave a special warm welcome to the team. Women and Youth groups who work closely with Camp Kenya created a good bond from the first day which made the group feel accepted in the community.

The team seemed to be so excited to participate in every single activity to support the community. In the first four days they have been working hard on the mangrove conservation projects with the Baraka Conservation group, and have been involved in harvesting mangrove seeds and potting for reforestation.

They have also completed reinforcing three fish pond walls and replanted 50 Mangrove seedlings within degraded areas as well as learnt a thing or two about local sustainable fishing methods!

Starting from 8th until 10th they will be working with one of the youth groups on their poultry project. Over the last couple of years, Camp Kenya has been putting a lot of emphasis on assisting youth and women groups with income generating projects. The Makongeni Youth Group are a dynamic and determined group of boys from the area who we have helped set up a small poultry project as well helping them set up a small kerosene business (fuel used for lighting lamps) and more recently thanks to Matt, the group is learning more basic business skills such as book keeping, business development planning and basic business principals.

It’s a privilege to have Melbourne School with us. They have an insatiable appetite for work, so much interest in our country and people and we hope they have found a second home in Kenya. They are still around for a week so more updates coming from Camp Tsavo…

(Report by Peter Kai)

Year 5 from The Aga Khan Academy in Mombasa recently visited Camp Tsavo with Camp Kenya. This article was published on their school website last week.

Year 5 Field Trip to Tsavo National Park
Posted on 15 May 2012

The Year 5 students from the Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa went to Tsavo National Park, one of Kenya’s beautiful national parks, on a field trip from 20-23 March 2012.

The trip was organised to complement the Year 5 unit on “Responsible Tourism.” Through this unit of inquiry, the students examined how natural resources can be used sustainably both to promote tourism and care for the environment.

While at Tsavo, the students stayed at Camp Kenya. The basic but comfortable accommodation in bandas provided an environment in which they could appreciate and enjoy the natural surroundings together with their friends.

The students learned about tree conservation and bush survival skills such as shelter making, fire making and archery. They tried out crafts such as basket, bead and rope making. They also made paper using a method that conserves trees by mixing recycled paper with elephant dung, giving it a uniquely African quality.

To mark World Water Day on 22 March, the Camp Kenya staff showed the group various water conservation methods used at the camp, and the students played quiz games to help them appreciate the importance of water.

During the trip, the students had an opportunity to work on farms that provide a sustainable food source for local residents. They also participated in rural women groups that aim at improving the lives of local women. When the students visited the Imani women’s group at Maungu in Taita county, they developed an action plan to raise money to help build bandas(rooms) so the women can hire them out for additional income.

The students also had the opportunity to go on a safari. They were fortunate to spot a variety of wildlife, and seeing the big African cats was a real highlight.

JAMBO! Mark Outing from the UK operations team Headed to Kenya with a group of 20 teachers who are planning school expeditions to Kenya for 2013 The teacher recce is all about risk assessments and preparing teachers for bringing their school teams out the following summer. We had a whirlwind of a tour around Kenya [...]

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Apologies, this is going to be a wordy and long blog, but we have reached a milestone and we’ve got some things to say -  we’re a year old. It is difficult to say exactly when our birthday is: 25th July 2011 we arrived to set up the business, 11th November 2011 is the official [...]

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Thank you Klaire Dale…

“Well I’m home and hating it! Can’t adjust to being back in gloomy England. Was great to see you (albeit briefly,) at Camp Imani and when we popped into the Diani office. Just wanted to say a huge thank you really. Genuinely. It was an incredible month…tough, but incredible. I’m an Ethics teacher – I spend every day trying to get students to think inside a stuffy classroom with damp creeping up the walls and an exam agenda to stick too. Never before in my whole career have I seen my students learning so actively and intensely as I did in Kenya. And not just learning the facts by rote, but processing information, feeling it, and forming their own opinions or modifying their worldview.

I teach Buddhism mostly and drone on and on about ‘enlightenment’ … occasionally in the classroom you get that lightbulb moment when a student suddenly gets something…but in Kenya it happened virtually every day. Someone would feel something, spontaneously, and it would be written all over their faces; sometimes a smile, sometimes a whole face sagging in despair, sometimes tears (real unplanned, unforced, ugly tears,) but everyday there was an enlightenment of some kind. I love my students, I want to shelter them from despair if at all possible, but I learnt that occasionally the curtain has to be lifted and they have to suffer through those bittersweet revelations that life is often terrible…and sometimes the terrible is beautiful and empowering too.

Anyway, I’m waffling. I just wanted to honestly state that what you do is life altering and the Camps teams in Kenya have sincerely changed the lives of 19 South Wirral/Devizes/Oaks Parks students and a small Wiltshire based Ethics teacher. It was a privilege to be out there and to spend time with some truly courageous individuals (Mama Mercy being a prime example,) and if you’re ever in need of a UK teacher then for goodness sake please shout. I would join you out there in a heartbeat.

Please pass on my sincerest thanks to all the Camp managers (Gladys, Mama M and Sammy K especially) and all the project managers and staff that were involved. I’m not the same teacher I was before I left, and I have all of you to thank for that, both professionally and personally.”

Klaire.x

Jordey Logan is travelling to Tanzania in the summer of 2013 and began his fundraising in November last year. Since then he has managed to raise all the money for his expedition and is continuing to fundraise to help the other members of his team reach their goal too…

So far I have done a couple fundraising events, some with my school and other students going on the trip, such as a carwash which we in total managed to raise £200 earning me about £30, a year 7 stay awake raising about £400, raising me about £100. Things like this are a good idea as you don’t have to do it on your own and it will provide you with some money. But doing an event by myself has allowed me to raise a lot more money for my trip.

The first thing I did by myself was a sponsored head shave since I had been growing my hair for about 6 years, all the way through secondary school , changing it from big curly hair into dreadlocks. Resulting in most of my friends to have never seen me with short hair, helping me raise a total of £450, as so many people where determined to see me with short hair.

The best way of drumming up a considerable amount of money which I realised, are events that include the following two things; something that nobody else has done or something not many do, and things that make people question if you are able to complete it or not.

One event that I have recently done which included both of these things is something called the Everest Challenge, which involved me climbing 997 feet (304m) from Lynmouth to the highest point of Countisbury hill, 29 (and a bit) times continuously to make up the 29028 feet (8848m) to the summit of Everest, which I managed to complete in 26hours 47minutes. And as this event was something nobody has ever done, I managed to raise £3521.51. Meaning I have practically raised all the money required for my trip to Tanzania in 2013.

So from all of the events that I have done so far, I have managed to raise around £4101.51, meaning that I have raised over my target amount of £4000, £3840 for the trip and £160 for anything I require e.g. jabs. But as I still have just under a year left till my trip, I’m going to help as many of my friends going on the trip as best I can to make raising the money required that little bit easier.

One of the main reasons to how I managed to raise such a considerable amount wasn’t just because it was a remarkable challenge, but because of how well I advertised it/let people know what I was doing. A good way of doing this is to create a Facebook page, even though creating a website looks good, nearly everybody will check Facebook regularly unlike a website. Another good way is to put a write up about the event in your local paper and place posters and fliers around where you live. Anything that grabs someone’s attention while informing them what’s happening.

In case you are thinking that you wouldn’t be able to easily go up to people asking for sponsorship, or going into places and asking for them to put up posters and possible sponsor you. Don’t be ashamed as that was my biggest problem while fundraising, but what allowed me to overcome that problem was since I was determined to raise the money for my trip, even if it resulted in my going out of my comfort zone to achieve it. But I promise you now that even if the first time is hard it does get easier the more times you try.

The best advice I can give to anyone is; don’t set challenges which you know you can’t complete, make sure you let as many people as possible know what you’re doing (not just the event/challenge but what the money’s for and what you’ll be doing during your trip). Last thing I will say, which many people have told me, is that you won’t succeed if you don’t try.

I wish everyone else who is fundraising for a trip all the best and hope what I have said helps.