Challenges, giggles and a goat called Jeremy

To keep you in the loop while I go out on the loop (see what I did there? Yeah, am starting to regret typing  it but hey ho let’s crack on…) we asked all the teams to update us on how they’re getting on by sending through the following gossip:

•  The top five things that have happened in the last week
• Something that has been a real challenge
• The funniest thing that’s happened
• Their best animal sighting, whether it be an elephant or an ant.

So without further ado, here’s what they came back with...

Tango 6 - thanks to Jess Gibbons

Top 5 things

1. The view on the first day of trek as it was almost a vertical hill up and we felt like we were on top of the world!
2. Going into the bat cave and seeing the bats in their natural habitat, incredible.
3. Seeing elephants (plural!) on the first day.
4. Going to the Banasura dam and swimming in the waterfalls
5. Playing cricket with the locals back at camp one night

The challenge – so many! Trekking itself, not washing, the high and low emotions and finally the food!

The funniest thing – The great banter around the camp fire every night and Rob’s new eyebrows campfire game. (We’ll be trying to find out more details about this when they return…)

Best animal spots - elephants, monkeys, snakes, bison and squirrel.

  

Tango 5 - thanks to Guy Scott

 Top 5 things:

1.  All the tea shops they’ve been able to stop at along the way
2. The ‘Animal music’ sounds as we like to call it, coming from the forest
3. The Parle G biscuits!
4. Catching our own fish supper from the lake and cooking it for dinner
5. Some of the local produce we’ve been able to eat along the way has been amazing.

The challenge – tackling the second highest peak in Southern India on the second day of the trek, very tough! Also having to get up at 2:30am to make sure we make it to the next camp in time has been difficult.

The funniest thing – We picked some chilies from a tree in one of the cardamom plantations and used them in our dinner one night. James then bit into one that was massively hot and was rolling around on the floor complaining that his ‘mouth has exploded!’. He wasn’t a happy bunny.

Best animal spots – A giant Indian squirrel, a kingfisher and a mimic bird.

For all you Tango 5 fans out there, Kathryn's album of her time with them can now been seen here - Tango 5 - week 1 photos

Charlie 1 thanks to Kannan

Top 5 things

1.  Playing musical bumps
2.  Playing football against the locals and remaining undefeated
3. Getting Valentines presents from Kannan who bought necklaces for all the girls
4. Having fried eggs and toast for brekky instead of porridge for a change.
5. Will be the wedding happening at 7:15 tonight, exciting…

 The challenge - Keeping up with masons and they’re quick pace of work!

The funniest thing - playing ‘Ben’s genius water game’ where you have to hold water in your mouth and you’re not allowed to laugh at anyone even when they’re trying to make you laugh.  Hilarious!

Best animal spots - four chickens that attack Danielle regularly,  a buffalo, the duck with friends, zachery a little puppy that has now become the group’s pet, the cockerel which is the camp’s enemy, several goats called Greta, Jeffery, Jeremy and Mr. Tunnes. And finally - two prawns.

Charlie 2 thanks to Louis and Sunil

Top 5 things

1. Trying to work out who the ‘demon sitter’ is. Someone blocked the toilet and we’re still trying to find out who the guilty person is!
2. All the posing that the guys keep doing.
3. King Raj, the local forest man as he’s really funny and keeps us entertained.
4. Catherine’s mediation sessions – chillaxing to the max
5. Lucy’s guitar  playing.

The challenge – carrying water from the reservoir on our heads when we had a bit of a water supply problem. 

The funniest thing – trying to catch the ‘demon sitter’ and watching the camp posers in action.

Best animal spots – a huge rat in a local house, a snake around the camp and the ‘demon sitter’ may well be an animal and not one of us?!

Echo 3 thanks to Cat

Top 5 things

1. The camp itself with the reservoir and the sunsets we see every night
2. Celebrating Anne-Romee’s birthday where we had pass the parcel, dancing and banoffee pie!
3. The local headmaster’s housewarming party was totally incredible
4. We went to the Irpu waterfalls which were amazing
5. Getting to milk cows and then using the milk to make chai

The challenge – the extreme weather (really hot in the day and really cold at night) and digging in extreme heat.

The funniest thing –Cat dropping her glasses in the long drop loo, Karla’s beauty regime first thing in the morning to go digging and trying to watch Chris open a can.

Best animal spot – elephants, kites and mating snakes!

Echo 4 thanks to Elliot

 Top 5 things

1. Visiting the local school and teaching hand-washing & tooth brushing
2. Digging holes on Valentine’s day as Kieran walked along singing ‘Tonight’s going to be a good night’ and then proceeded to fall into a hole.
3. The visit to a Buddhist temple
4. Wieger being chased by monkeys in the zoo because he had snacks on him
5. We had a Valentines picnic and made each other anonymous cards, so romantic!

The challenge - Setting up 15 bashers, the long drop and the kitchen on the first day before dark was tough going.

The funniest thing - is a tie between the elephant night watchman who can only say ‘super’ and ‘No’ in English and was picking up each of the valentines cards and saying either supper or no, or Lauren Smith, the day leader on one day, using Celine’s alarm to set for the next morning, didn’t know how to set the alarm properly and it went off at 11pm that night instead and she got up and tried to wake everyone up thinking it was 5am.

Best animal spot – We saw a wild elephant from the camp as it wandered around in the distance. Amazing. 

So it sounds like they're all having a hoot out there on their project sites. Unbelievably there's only a few days left of Phase 1 now as they all return back to field base on Monday 21 February, it's flamin' flown by!

Right, time for the loop teams to depart now along with all your messages from home. We'll be back in about four or five days with more news and photos of everyone.

Cheerybye!