Final Post

Mbokomu

Tanga

Meru Camp and Mount Meru

We were given a warm welcome by the locals at this camp as we were taken down to the river to be shown how to wash clothes in the traditional African way, which was rather impressive. It was good to see so many people had come to watch and help, the children were really enthusiastic at helping us and exchanging songs and clapping games etc.

The first morning at Meru Camp my half of the group were invited to be shown the process of making coffee. The owner of the coffee and banana plantation also owned the land the camp is on, and was very keen to show us his traditional way of making money. We started by picking the red berries and washing them to soften their skins, this allowed for them to be 'peeled' by the machine shown below.                                    

The machine removed the skins of the berries allowing for  the beans to be separated. Before the beans were ready for roasting they are dried for 1 week to 1 month (however the ones we used had to be dried for almost 6 months as it had been a 'dull and cold' winter by Tanzanian standards). The ore-dried beans were then pounded in a giant wooden mortar and pestle to crack the now brittle hard coating off, this coating was then separated by throwing it up in the air as shown to the right. Now the fun could begin!


 A fire was then lit and the beans slowly roasted in a pan. To cool the beans quickly they were thrown around on this wicker tray again. The beans now could be smashed up into a fine powder for us to sample. Many of us bought some coffee but unfortunately the price was very high due to the longer then usual drying times.

 
For the rest of the day and the next day we worked on the nearby school preparing the ground for a veranda to the classroom and sanding the window frames for glass to be replaced. This involved breaking up rocks from behind the classroom, digging the trench, filling the trench with the rocks and filling it back in with soil and water. We were really pleased to get the preparation job completely finished and the pupils even turned up to see what we were doing even though it was a Saturday.

 

Packing was next on the agenda, ready for our 'adventure' aspect of our expedition which was climbing Mount Meru (4566m). We were dropped off at Momella Gate (1500m) met our guides and set off slowly up to Miriakamba Hut at 2500m taking in the beautiful scenery that keeps on drawing people to this area near Kilimanjaro. The second day of climbing took us up through the clouds and rainforest layer absolutely brimming with life. After a light dinner at Saddle Hut (3500m) we climbed Little Meru (3820m) at sunset as seen in the picture on the right.

Back From Tanzania: 1st Pictures: Ndarakwai

     After an overnight flight from Heathrow to Nairobi, and then in the morning onto Kilimanjaro Airport, we arrived at Ndarakwai Camp just in time for lunch. After lunch we were shown the place where we were going to be doing our first project of the environmental section which would be waterhole maintenance. The picture to the left was taken on this recce walk on the first day showing Kilimanjaro behind the acacia trees of the savannah.

     The first day of project work consisted of getting very muddy from the splashing from the hoes, forks and spades removing sediment and grasses from the bottom also and widening the channel.  This meant that in the dry season more water volume would be allowed to get though the channel and therefore get to the drinking places on the watering hole. Also in the rainy season the water would be more likely to  run better 

 and not flood and block the flow in places. The picture above shows a section of the channel after we had done half a day's work on it, the picture to the left shows some zebra who probably weren't that grateful at the time from the amount of sediment we were stirring up, but probably appreciated the water levels going up. We spend the morning of the first and second days there, and the afternoon of the first day clearing vegetation from a nearby stream and the second afternoon clearing poppies.

     The picture on the right shows us clearing an area by a small river of the invasive Canadian Poppy. This plant is taking over from established plants in the ecosystem which is causing a problem for the animals who eat the threatens plants. Not only do the animals have fewer plants to eat but also eating the poppy by mistake leads to illness.

     

On the third day we further helped the animals in the national park by making paper from elephant dung we had collected earlier to be sold at a tourist office to make revenue for anti-poaching measures. To make the paper we first began to mash up the boiled dung as well as some used paper pulp. We then squeezed the water out of the dung a few times to remove the excess water and then combined it with the paper pulp. This was then added to PVA glue and water in an oil barrel which was scooped up in trays and flipped over to onto a table and sponged the excess water off (seen in the picture above right) and left to dry as seen in the picture to the left.

 

 

Later that day we set off to see the Maasai a 45 minute trek away. There we were introduced to the wives of the chief of the 'boma' (or village).  We asked them some questions such as the roles of wives and husbands food etc. The answers were that husbands look after the money and the cattle and the wives are left to do everything else at the boma that their husbands have delegated. After the questions we were grabbed by the arm by some of the women and led to various areas to shown how to make their famous jewellery. We all made a small bracelet with wire and a string, and then were given the opportunity to buy some of their proper necklaces and models. That concluded out activities in Ndarakwai Camp, we all had a good night's sleep ready for the early start the following morning.

    The next day we went on Safari starting from Arusha. From there we travelled through the villages and towns where we saw scenes such as that pictured on the right where you can see a market with a Maasai person in the background. We then passed through Tarangire National Park seeing some of the wildlife that Tanzania is famous for and the locals are so proud of such as elephant and wildebeests as you can see below.

The next day we  climbed up to the crater rim of the ancient Nogrongoro caldera, and descended into the crater itself. We were told by our driver that the occupation of safari guide was one of the most sought-after jobs in the country. It wasn't hard to see why the country's scenery and wildlife was such a good tourist attraction and source of employment.  The Ngorongoro crater is also a wondrous display of biodiversity which is valued and treated with respect. The famous elephant, rhino, giraffe, buffalo and lion are all located in this one national park and we were lucky enough to see elephants, buffalo and even a few lions on our day there! It was an amazing experience and one which made the whole group appreciate Tanzania's natural environment and its value to the local people.

Piano Marathon Review and Thanks

     

     Tuesday 5th June started for me at 08:00 in Leamington, we arrived at Evesham Tesco just before 10:00. We had a nice chat with the friendly Tesco staff and were assured that the enormous quantity of charcoal not sold during the Jubilee weekend was going to be moved out of the way of where the piano was going, which it was, only leaving a few racks of flowers to contend with (as seen in the last picture). Just as this obstacle was being moved out the way Vale Pianos turned up and offloaded their wonderful Kawai digital piano. It then took us just over an hour to set up the area with all the signs and the infamous computer with its webcam and dongle, more on that later....

      Everything was set up by 12:00, the piano was working, the information was displayed, I was fed by the Costa Coffe shop, the only thing not ready was the computer which took over half an hour to reboot after not turning on properly. So I started anyway and about half an hour later I was told I was being streamed live to this blog.....it was not to last, unfortunately. We had been misinformed from the dongle company that uploading did not count towards out download usage of 0.25 GB, so after just over 1 hour of streaming we were cut off. Still I ploughed on, 'egged' on not least by my egg mayo sandwich but also by the support of the Tesco customers. Hours 1, 2 and 3 flew past as I was constantly hearing money clink into one of the collection jugs expertly held by my committed parents.

     Hours 4 to 11 slowed down a bit and I had started to ache, require breaks and, most importantly, I had finished all the custard creams we had brought! As the rain began once again and hour 12 approached it was encouraging to see somewhat unlikely groups of teenagers giving so generously. 12 completed hours passed (seen in the photo) and thus I was into new territory, passing my previous 12 hour length of piano marathon, and it had turned into Wednesday 6th June. Of the hours that followed between midnight and the 04:00 sunrise were the most difficult. The bright lights of the foyer should have been enough to keep anyone awake, but if it hadn't been for my father constantly talking to me and buying me bits of food from the shop I think I would have fallen asleep. Hours went by with no donations, the most interesting thing at about 02:30 was two policemen going into Tesco to buy some food, then returning at about 03:30 to buy milk and kindly give a donation.

     

     As the sun rose on the second day I realised that there seemed to be even fewer people coming into the shop and how most were so groggy and disoriented. By 06:00 I had gotten through eighteen hours, or 3/4 of the total...and roughly the same proportion of a box of millionaire's shortbread squares. Customer numbers picked up, the sun shone strongly, and I was reinvigorated, if a little cold, playing once more with some conviction. It seemed to work as by about hour 20 (08:00) a large proportion of the customers were donating and offering words of encouragement. As the hours slowly approached 24 the donations seemed to rise exponentially and my lack of sleep seemed to be unimportant. Once the final hour came to pass Tesco kindly announced on behalf of me thanking them, Vale Pianos and the Tesco customers. 

     

     Then it was finally over! Vale Pianos swiftly took the piano before the rain once again started, my parents helped me to pack everything away and we were in the car before 13:00, where I could nap after 29 hours of being awake...and the car journey was followed by 13 hours' sleep that night. Resulting in me, today, the day after the 24 hours before, being refreshed but still feeling the pains affecting my shoulders, back of my hands, knees, back and wrists, reminding me of my struggles not so long ago. The donations have helped me to almost reach my final goal of raising the whole cost of the trip, and not a moment too soon as I depart in under 1 month's time!!!

     I would like to thank everyone who helped me along the fundraising journey, not only this event but for all the other events in the last 18 months. Without you I could never have gone on this charitable trip. Not only for the money but for the stories strangers and friends have told me, the encouragement I have been given and the phenomenal experience. During the long 24 hours the kind words from fellow piano players complimenting my playing (even offering me a job in a band!) or appreciative customers who enjoyed the music, kept my spirits up and helped me to look back on the event as being truly worthwhile and meaningful rather than simply a struggle of endurance.

     Finally I would like to say a special thank you once again to Vale Pianos for providing the wonderful digital piano, to Tesco for providing the venue, for all the kind donors during the 24 hours, the newspapers for taking an interest in the cause and finally to my parents who endured those 24 hours, helped with logistics and stuck with me in every effort to make this a successful event. Without these kind people the piano marathon could not have happened.     

Last Two Hours!

Chris is now coming down the home stretch! Counting it down in minutes now. Everyone has been so kind and generous, we can't thank them enough. And thanks again to Vale Pianos for the brilliant instrument they've lent Chris.

There will be photos of the finale, and I will attempt a video.

This has been an amazing experience for all of us.

Diana, Alun and the still playing Chris

The support team has been sleeping in shifts, but Chris is still playing in hour 18, wow. Tesco's is perking up after a long and relatively quiet night. The cafe opens soon!

Diana

Hour Ten and Counting!

Checking in again at nearly hour ten! Still going strong and having a lot of fun with the different settings on the digital piano that Vale Pianos so generously donated for the piano marathon.

Reaching the halfway mark soon, it seems to be going by quite quickly!

Diana

Nearly to Hour Seven!

Chris is holding up well, playing nicely and the response from the shoppers and the store employees has been great. The rain is bucketting down here, and the flow of shoppers is slowing, but everyone is in a fine mood.

The evening will be interesting, see what happens...

Diana

Four Hours In!

It's been four hours since the piano marathon started and Chris is doing so well. Lovely people in Evesham and he even got a job offer!

Bit chilly here, but there is hot coffee and lots of nice people being very generous, so...all is well!

Back in a while...

Diana

Diana here... It was all working so well. The nice man at T-Mobile sold me a mobile broadband dongle and checked and said that there was no limit on uploads. Evidently not. Oh well, we got an hour's worth before fair usage kicked in. So, I will be updating here and on my Facebook page. I will attempt to take photos and upload them to the blog and will post every hour or so.

Thanks for your support!!

Chris (with Alun and Diana - the roadies).

Piano Marathon Livestream

The Live Streaming widget for the Piano Marathon is located at the bottom of the page

One Day To Go!

Just a quick reminder of all the times, rules etc. for the 24 Hour Piano Marathon:

Venue: Evesham Tesco, and streamed live to this blog!

Start:  12 Noon, Tuesday 5th June

Finish: 12 Noon, Wednesday 6th June 

Breaks: 2.5 minutes per hour = 1/24 hours in total, to be used for toilet breaks and the occasional rest. Bites to eat and sips to drink will be taken in as short a time as possible between pieces.

Now all that needs to be done is practice, wish me luck!!

24 Hour Piano Marathon Update

     Only 3 days to go! Today I went to Vale Pianos to finalise the arrangements for Tuesday, you can see a photo of me playing one of their pianos below, unfortunately space requires a smaller electric piano to be the one I play at Tesco...

    

 In the last few days there has been a steady trickle of publicity, first was the Coventry Telegraph last Tuesday, which was followed by the Evesham Journal on Thursday, and most recently was the Leamington Courier yesterday (photo, right). Hopefully there will be more to come!

     Now all that need to be done is to make signs and prepare all the other little things such as nibbles. If everything goes to plan the marathon should be streamed straight to the blog, watch this space!

24 Hour Piano Marathon Progress

     Things  are definitely moving on, I have started fundraising and have already got over £300 worth of pledges, many thanks to everyone who has sponsored me so far! Now with under just over a week left I'd better get practising...

     The piano marathon also marks a significant time regarding the trip as 5th June is exactly one month until the group departs and also is the day after the Queen's Diamond Jubilee I hope you'll keep in mind my comparatively modest feat of endurance. The plan is to stream the piano marathon online (probably just audio) but unfortunately the only way that seems to work is through my desktop, so hopefully between now and then we will have got it working, fingers crossed! Either way I'm sure it's going to be exciting and memorable, for te right reasons hopefully....More updates soon!

24 Hour Piano Marathon

      As you may remember last April I successfully completed my 12 hour piano marathon from my home through a web cam link to this blog. I would just like to thank everyone again who helped me then for making it such a success! It was a really challenge and I was glad to have finished it. But this year from 12:00 on 5th June to 12:00 on 6th June I will be attempting to not only keep my concentration for 24 hours (something we teenagers are not particularity well known for) whilst also staying awake (something perhaps teenagers are more infamous for). That is...a 24 hour piano marathon! The location this time will be at Tesco in Evesham, hopefully it will be streamed online again but I'm not sure how logistics would work at the moment. Arrangements have changed so much in the last two months and with just under two months to go I'm hoping that they won't change much from now but if they do, I'll keep you posted!
      Things are moving very quickly at the moment with exams, preparations for the trip and other time consuming things life no doubt will bring up. This doesn't leave me with much time between now and the Piano Marathon so wish me luck!.........

Rotary Club Presentation Sucess

     Last Thursday, 23rd February, I attended a meeting of Southam 2000 Rotary Club to give them a presentation about what I am going to be doing in Tanzania this July. I learned a lot from them about their charitable efforts such as their recent drive to eradicate polio with vaccinations in India. I hope they leaned a lot about my plans for the trip, the questions asked by the Rotarians were thought provoking and engaging. 
      On the subject of vaccinations I had my last two yesterday. The trip does seem to be well and truly closing in, as too does the fundraising. With the kind donation from the Rotary club I now have raised almost £2,000 since I started almost exactly a year ago. Not that much further to go, and with my upcoming Piano Marathon II, hopefully running for 24 hours, I will be able to make another large step towards my final payment. The arrangements for this piano marathon are being finalised at the moment and I will post updates as this develops.

     Many thanks to Southam 2000 Rotary Club once again, I'll now have to ensure I bring back enough memories and photos to show how their kind donation has gone towards this trip.

Upcoming Rotary Club Presenation

     To start the new fund-raising year off I will be presenting the trip and it's objectives to the Rotary Club of Southam 2000 and hopefully generating much needed find-raising. This will be on 23rd February, so exactly one month away! Here is a link to their website's programme of events. At school there is a pre-expedition meeting tomorrow too where I can get some more up-to-date information of the projects and what we will be doing there. Things are moving along quite quickly now, especially as the blog's title now matches the year...

Anyway I must get back to my revision now, GCSE exam tomorrow!  

I'll keep you posted...