Even by the adventurous standards of Whickham School’s programme of international visits, this summer’s World Expedition to India established a new level of challenge.
Eight students accompanied by Mr Golightly flew to Delhi and then continued their journey by bus to Manail in the north of India, before continuing on to Leh in the Himalayas. A vital few days were spent acclimatising to the altitude and heat, before travelling by jeep to a small primary school in Shay village.
Once there, they spent a week painting the school and adding educational murals to the walls. Their contributions were greatly appreciated and they received formal thanks from local politicians and community leaders.
The team then progressed to the Zanskar mountain range, coping with altitude sickness and tiredness as they scaled heights of some 16.900ft over a ten-day trek. Their exertions were rewarded with some memorable views and a remarkable sense of personal achievement.
At the end of the expedition, the students enjoyed a well-deserved period of rest and recreation in Delhi, including a trip to the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort.
Comments (3)
Trips to India, fantastic! The furthest I got while at the school was Paris. How times have changed.
Posted by Andrew | October 17, 2007 2:09 PM
Wow. I went to Paris too. It was fun! Disneyland Rocks!!
Posted by Erica | December 3, 2007 7:08 PM
The trip to India was by far the most memorable and challenging thing I have ever done. From day one we all had to be constantly aware of our surrounding as well as how our bodies were coping with the ever changing environments.
Delhi and Agra are total sensory overloads - the smells, sounds and contrasting scenery are overwhelming, and so are the people! They mean well, but for a western visitor not used to eastern culture - the bustling streets and desperate poverty that scatters them - can feel quite hostile.
The grueling 18 hour long coach ride to Manali was immediately forgiven once we reached our destination. The rolling, jungle-covered foot hills of the himilayas are breath-taking. If we were to turn back then and go home I would have been satisfied. After a few days aclimatising to the extra 3000 meters, It was time to move on to our main destination.
After an even more intense 23 hour long coach ride, some altitude sickness and a driver with a death wish we finally reached Leh. We visited the largest Stupa in the region, shopped and took a few easy days to get used to being at such high altitude. Then we set off to the small, two-classroom primary school where we spent the next week repainting and repairing it. We got to know the local children well as they came to visit us every day. We Spent about 6 hours a day in the school, and played games with the children in our rest time. we wer sad to leave and were given honourary scarves by the local politicians and elders.
The next phase was the trek, 11 days walking through the Markha Valley. It was tiring, strenuous and really put our will power and team skills to the test, but it was immensely rewarding at the end of each day. The majority of the trek was baron, mountainous, wilderness and our only source of water was the glacier stream that we drank from and bathed in. It was great fun living without modern conveniences, although carrying a months worth of kit around got incredibly tedious.
The most unforgettable bit of the trip was the people we met. From the kids we made friends with like Stanzin and Sankit, to our cooks and guides Ali, Shiva and Jitman, Sunny, Dawa and Mia. Povery in India is rife and coming back home to England made me feel guilty that we live in such a wasteful society when the majority of the world has nothing. It has been a real eye opener and I'd like to thank Whickham School and World Challenge for giving us this oportunity.
Posted by David | March 5, 2008 7:57 PM