N e w s l e t t e R - Radley College

Tanzania
Over the Summer holidays, organised parties of Radleians travelled to far-flung
places and continents, with the aim of stretching their horizons and, at the same
time, benefiting the diverse communities there. One such trip was to Tanzania.
As the sun rose over Heathrow,
a steady trickle of bleary-eyed
Radleains arrived for the journey to
Tanzania. Our destination – Nairobi –
was eventually reached at the unholy
hour of 2am.
The next day, a cramped, bumpy twoday
bus journey led us to the foot of
Africa’s highest mountain (5895m),
Kilimanjaro. We took the picturesque
Rongai route, scheduled to take seven
days. Our climbing entourage was
impressive: three guides, five assistant
guides, one cook, two waiters, four
tent crew, one camp manager, nearly
forty porters. To the battle cry of “Pole!
Pole!” (“Slowly! Slowly!”) this small
army embarked on the dusty climb.
Enthusiasm and spirits ran high. This
energy was quashed however, with
our first casualty to altitude sickness at
3400m. Temperatures plummeted to
-15°C, making the midnight toilet dash
a particularly unpleasant experience.
The arrival at Base Camp at the
Kibo hut (4700 m) saw nerves and
excitement move up a notch, as boys
and staff geared up for the final push.
At this elevation, even getting out of
the sleeping bag was an energy-sapping
endeavour and a number of the boys
were struggling. The remaining 1200m
climb to the tip of the granite titan
seemed daunting.
“The Big Push” started at midnight.
The head-lamps from our group
lit up the mountain like fireflies.
Despite the positive mood, the 5000m
boundary proved critical for many:
stomach-cramps, headaches, dizziness,
nausea, vomiting and the extreme
cold (temperatures dropped to a
low of around -25°C) resulted in six
more ‘casualties’. Of the 21 starters,
only twelve made it to the top,
demonstrating the extreme physical
demands of this expedition. Those
that did make it were justifiably
elated; those that didn’t still felt
extremely proud of their efforts.
Before long the group was swept
off on another lengthy journey over
bumpy African roads. After a brief
encounter with some serpents at
Meserani Snake Park, we arrived at
our partnership school, Gehandu
Secondary School in remote Mbulu.
Set in spectacularly dusty and
scrubby mountains, Gehandu is
a government-funded secondary
school with the same number of
students as Radley, but with only
twenty-two teaching staff and no
ground staff. Students and staff spend
two hours per day collecting water
from a hand pump at the bottom of
a valley, harvesting beans and maize
from local fields, cleaning classrooms
and toilets; all of these tasks were
essential to ensure the school remains
self-sufficient. Everyone from Radley
noted the great sense of community.
Most of our week was focused
on teaching the students, but the
Radleians also dutifully took part
in the aforementioned chores. The
boys rose to the challenge heroically:
teaching a total of 57 periods in the
space of five school days. Lessons
were a great hit with the students
and staff of Gehandu: these ranged
from writing Japanese haikus, to
understanding irony and sarcasm.
Our student-led approach excited the
Gehandu crowds and left their mark.
A huge success was the visit to the
10 The Radley Newsletter
10 THE RADLEY NEWSLETTER