New Arrivals

Hello it is Jo here. I have arrived! I am the communications officer and I have the role of keeping you entertained with the up to date news from the projects and field base throughout the expedition. I am also joined at field base by Sophie Cragg who is the finance officer on the expedition.

Sophie Cragg hard at work as our finance officer

Both of us are new to Raleigh and newcomers to India so we are both understandably excited as to what our adventure is going to bring and the last 24 hours have not disappointed us. The trip from the airport to field base is packed with fairly overwhelming sights to an inexperienced visitor to India. Cows roam the streets, the smell in the air is not unpleasant but indefinable at this stage and the Indian driving can only be described as madness although that said there appears to be a system that everyone understands and everyone races about their business without crashing or drama.

First stop is breakfast and it is our first chance to experience authentic Indian cuisine. I am if I am honest a bit out of my depth with the menu but I am helped out by our driver Manju who recommends the Masala Dosala; a scrumptious South Indian dish which is essentially a light crispy pancake stuffed with spicy potato. The idea of curry for breakfast is, for me anyway, a bizarre concept but I have to say I am pleasantly surprised.

On arrival at field base I am shown our new home for the next 3 months and I am delighted at how welcome I am made to feel and how green and picturesque my surroundings are.

Our new home

We chat and plans are formulated to keep fit at field base. Anna who is a keen runner discusses the possibility of a daily 6am run through the local village and we are all keenly awaiting the arrival of Claire who we understand is a yoga teacher. We are all hoping that she will have us maneuvering through the downward dog in no time at all. It is of course a possibility that we are all talk especially taking into our account our demanding schedules and the imminent arrival of the venturers but I will let you know how we get on.

Now to work! The music is turned up and with the sun on our faces we set to putting up the tents to ensure that they are in full working order. Hard work but after the twentieth tent goes up we decide that’s enough hard graft for one day.

Mark (Country Director) fiddling with pole again!

  Jo Burton (communications officer) putting up the last tent of the day