Staff Trek Training

Today is the first day of the Dasara Festival in Mysore and the city is buzzing with energy as are the staff team as they have departed for their first day of trek training. As the staff headed off from Field Base towards Chamundi Hills on the outskirts of the city the inauguration of Dasara Festival has been taking place at the top of the hill.

The origin of Dasara goes way back to the Vijayanagar dynasty in 15th Century. The Wodeyars of Mysore continued this colourful & religious celebration under the leadership of Raja Wodeyar in the year 1610. Dasara is also known as the 'Navarathri', where nine days of worship & celebration culminate on the 10th day, known as 'Vijaydashami'. This has been declared as ‘Naada Habba’ or the State festival.

The staff packed up their bellies and their rucksacks to test their strength on a climb around the base of Chamundi Hill, up to see the famous Nandi Bull, towards Lalitha Mahal Palace and carry on to pass temples and villages until they reach their evening campsite.

Alpha 2 ready to set off this morning.

Alpha 1 looking bright and chirpy first thing as they leave Field Base

A quick wave from Dr Zoe

Qathab and Jerry - 2 of our trek guides from Kalypso Adventures.

Adventure company Kalypso Adventures, our project partners support and guide our participants along with Raleigh staff through the adventure phase. We are delighted to have Qathab - who as a Host Country Venturer paricipated in our first expedition in India, and Jerry - who has supported Raleigh on the first 2 expeditions earlier this year can join our staff in the staff induction training.

Main Staff Arrival

Field Base is now alive and buzzing since the arrival of our main staff team.

After an epic journey for most - an 8 hour flight delay! - the staff team were welcomed into Field Base with the traditional Hindu celebration of Aarthi. After a tour of Field Base and an inspiring speech from Country Director Gavin, adorned in their flower garlands all the team were treated to their first Indian curry. The staff induction course lead by Mark and Robin is progressing well and everyone is preparing for the next 2 days of trek training.

Our new family additions are: Dr Zoe, Dr Emma, and Dr Antje; Project Managers Hamish, Ivan, Julia, Rosalind, Joanna, Nicola, Zoe, Administrator Helen, Photographer Sam

Below Zoe, Julia and Helen sill manage to look fresh and bubbly getting off the plane...

Advanced Staff 08I

The Advanced staff arrived at Field Base in Mysore to a very warm welcome. The staff were greeted by a traditional Hindu ritual called Aarthi in which the Aarthi plate is lighted with oil and circulated around each person. Then our Country Director Gavin Shelton adorned each new-comer with a flower garland which are hand made in the local flower market.

The team are now busy preparing for the forth coming arrival of the main staff team and venturers.

Robin Cashmore - Deputy Programme Manager (DPM) out and about planning the trek training route with the Country Programme Manager (CPM) Mark Ashby.

Pat Jenner - Administrator getting to grips with the office & computer systems.

"Yes I am working - and not on a holiday" (for all Pats friends & family!)


Anna Grieve - Logistics Assistant busy in the Logs store getting all the food ready for the expedition ahead.
"Field Base has exceeded all my expectations - Fantastic!!"


Me - Suze Leamy - Press Relations Officer (PRO) - escaping the office for a quick photo.


Robin getting some much needed cricket practice in!
"I got sunburnt in my swim test - bring suncream"


Pat with new member of the team - Aane
(Aane is the Kannada - local language - word for elephant - the team are brushing up on their language skills for the expedition ahead & trips to the markets...


Vijay teaching some of the team a new game - Jungle Speed - on our lunch break!

Anna, Robin and Pat at the Maharaja's Palace in Mysore.

Each Sunday evening the palace lights up the skyline with over 97,000 light bulbs.

Message to all of you due to arrive soon from Anna & Pat:

"Whatever you do don't forget your longs & long socks and mozzy repellent - they are big and hungary - although so far the mozzy's are only biting Anna & Pat!"

"We'll have Field Base ship shape and ready for you all arriving in the coming weeks - we are all very excited!"

Welcome to Raleigh India 08I

A very warm welcome to Raleigh India’s blogsite! With expedition 08I about to get underway we are now eagerly awaiting the arrival of our main staff team and then venturers for what promises to be a great expedition.

This is still Raleigh’s first year in India and it’s already been an extraordinary journey for everyone involved – venturers, volunteer managers and permanent staff – not to mention our project partners and the communities in which we’ve been living and working.

This expedition builds on the excellent relationships we’ve established with all of our project partners and also takes us into new communities and areas we have not operated in before as the journey continues and we prepare for the joys and challenges ahead.

We hope that you’ll enjoy the blog and find it a useful way to get a flavour of what your friends and loved ones are experiencing.

Warm regards,
Gavin Shelton
Country Director

It's not the end...

Stay involved with Raleigh

Fill in the Alumni Registration Form online at:

www.raleighinternational.org/raleigh_alumni

Final Farewells

By PRO Rosie Palliser

It was a close competition, but well done to Alpha Three, who after a fantastic Bravo pull and a highly amusing skit were declared the Adventure Challenge champions. Their prize...a massive chocolate cake!

Despite the tiredness and aching muscles, venturers and staff managed to keep the music and dancing going as long as was physically possible (when the electricity was turned off) before an early start the next day and mad rush to get everything packed and cleared up before jumping on the buses up to Bangalore.

While our venturers had a two day journey ahead of them, most of the staff headed back to Mysore Fieldbase, where we've been busy with our "staff wash-up": a mass of paperwork and cleaning Fieldbase ready for the next expedition!

It's the final day of India 08F tomorrow; a chance to finish all final jobs before our staff party in Ooty in the evening. Looking back on the past two months since the first staff arrived mid-June, it seems amazing what has been achieved in such a short space of time - Raleigh India's first 5 week expedition has been a huge success and I for one can't believe we've come to the end!

I hope you've all enjoyed keeping an eye on how everything has been going here and thanks again for all your blog messages during the expedition. Check out our Raleigh website http://www.raleigh.org.uk/ for up-to-date information about all our expeditions and events.

Don't forget, it doesn't end here! Raleigh is not just about an expedition, it's about being a part of a community of like-minded people. Stay involved with Raleigh through the alumni section on the website where you can keep in touch with your expedition friends, share memories and photos and learn about Raleigh societies and other volunteering opportunities.

Check it out at www.raleighinternational.org/raleigh_alumni

And I look forward to hearing from all our India 08F staff and venturers soon. You've all been fantastic and should be really proud of everything achieved both on Project Phase and during the Adventure Challenge. Myself and Jess, our 08F Expedition Coordinator, will be in touch soon about events and the all important expedition reunion - watch this space.

Bye for now and keep in touch!

Rosie

The Adventure Phase

Alpha One – Ice Tang

The Adventure Phase in India is full of challenges, combining activities of cycling, trekking and rafting. It was full of sweat and tears but eventually our whole group made it through.

Throughout the phase it was not only physically challenging but also mentally a challenge too – we had to overcome heavy rucksacks, muddy roads, hot weather and leeches in our trek. At Top Station and Central Station we could see the beautiful scenery of Tamil Nadu and the life of some tribal people.

Rafting is combined Bamboo and River rafting. Because of a still current we spent five and half hours getting back to Hornbill Camp which is twice the time that the other groups took.

During the cycling activity, we came across a series of mountains that everyone was amazed and fascinated by.

To my family and friends,
I have finally finished the trekking and was bitten by leeches at some points! It was tough and full of challenges. I missed you all and especially my girlfriend Maggie

With love,
Ice

End of Adventure Challenge

The challenges are over; the scores are in; all Alpha groups are already on their way back to our Hornbill Fieldbase and staff here are getting ready for a mammoth day ahead of equipment cleaning, sorting and packing; feedback and review sessions; administration and of course, party preparations!

At 12.45 today we will hold the final challenge – an alpha group “Bravo pull” where each team will pull one of our Raleigh vehicles down the track using a tow rope in the fastest time possible...it’s all left to play for.

By the evening, all will have scrubbed up and dressed up in honour of our Black and White Ball, complete with a traditional Raleigh skit competition, mega barbeque and music into the night.

With our venturers heading off to Bangalore tomorrow and Fieldbase packing up and returning to Mysore, it all seems to be coming to an end very quickly. Everyone has achieved so much and has so many great stories and experiences to share, it seems impossible that it was only five weeks ago that it all began.

I’ll be revealing our winning Alpha team and all the news from the final day at Hornbill on return to Mysore, but for now, it’s back to base to get ready for the day ahead and put on the dancing shoes!

Below are some pictures of Alpha One and Three on their trekking and river rafting events:

Alpha Three

Trekking

Alpha One
River Rafting

Adventure Challenge Day 6

I can't believe we're into the final days of the Adventure Challenge already! All the groups are doing amazingly well; still some eggs intact and challenge points on the increase after building basha beds, completing physical challenges and putting together some fantastic creative projects.

Here's a quick round-up:

Alpha One are on their second day of bamboo rafting today and have a very exciting day ahead on the river again tomorrow... not that they know it yet! Having cycled 26 kilometres in a day and then trekked through some of Kerala's highest, and toughest terrain, a cooling swim in the river was just what the group needed.

Alpha Two have been learning some great new skills after 22 hours of the "survival challenge" which included a GPS treasure hunt, night elephant watch, cooking an amazing meal for some special guests and sleeping in basha beds they had to construct from scratch during the day. Today's challenge: Trekking!

Alpha Three have taken to their bikes this morning after a relaxing couple of days drifting down the river. The route will take them uphill (mostly) through some of the most beautiful scenery of Kerala before arriving into Lakeside campsite early evening. Keep an eye out for those elephants!

Our photographer is racing round the groups trying to catch them in action whenever she can, so we'll get some photos up on the blog as soon as we can.

Adventure Challenge

The competition is on! The game was set, the first challenge: to carry 6 eggs per alpha group throughout the next seven days and return as many in one piece as possible to Fieldbase Hornbill. Within a few hours Alpha Two and One discovered that already a few of their brood had been smashed and Alpha three, who left first on Thursday afternoon to begin their trek were the suspects…now it’s serious.

The groups will follow a route over an area of one hundred square miles; from the backwaters to the second highest mountain in Southern India. It will include trekking, cycling, river rafting and bamboo rafting and a full 24 hours of “survival camp”. Along the way the teams will be presented with a variety of “secret agent tasks” which will all count towards their final alpha group score when they return to Hornbill camp on the 8th.

So, who are the new Alpha Teams? Read on, read on…

Alpha One
Project Managers:
Gill
Madoc
Alice

Claire
Jean-Paul
Mariyan
Katie
Rosie
Hannah
Sundar
Vicki
Nick
Leisha
Ian
Gary
Ice

Alpha Two
Project Managers:
Rich
Sharon
Yvette

Mark Pryde
Mhari
Bill
Alistair MacLeod
Amelia
Mark Barrie
Gurunath
Holly
Fanny
Elisha
Jess
Sanjaya

Alpha Three
Project Managers:
Sophie
Vijay
Jane

Arun
Iona

Alistair Johnston
Ronald
Ella
Alex
Charlotte
Nikita
Sarah
Carl
Danielle
Alyx

All the groups have been having a fantastic time so far, working brilliantly together in their new teams and stepping up to each task thrown at them! I caught up with Alpha Two for their bamboo rafting…

Here are a few messages from the Alpha Two gang:

Mark Pryde
Hey Guys,
Still having an ace time in India. Going river rafting at the weekend. Looking forward to seeing you all in 11 days! So important message:
Dad – can you book my flight from London to Edinburgh on the 11th. Any time after 2:30 pm. Can you then email me at 06003394@napier.ac.uk with the itinerary, so I can go to an internet café at Heathrow and print it off. Can you reply to this message as well please, just to confirm!
Cheers, Mark. X

Mhari:
Lee, hope you had a good birthday and enjoy your birthday drinks at the weekend! Could you please take my mum to the airport with you on the 11th? (Mum and Lee please text eachother)
Mum, hope you had a good time down south.
Kirsty, hope the job is going well.
Lots of love
Mhari. x

More news and photos soon!