About School of Hope

School of Hope, part of the Thembalitsha Foundation, is a registered special-needs school for Grades 9 to 12 students based in Cape Town, South Africa. They have 80 students, all with varying degrees of abuse, trauma and neglect. Whether they have spent time on the streets, been caught up in drugs, gangs and prostitution from a young age, or whether their home environments have exposed them to alcohol, sexual and physical abuse, they are all in need of a special focussed form of education and counselling.

They may be two or three years older than the other learners in their grade and therefore unsuitable for mainstream schooling in government. The School of Hope is their only chance of completing their education. They are in great need of funds to employ more specialised teachers and general costs such as food for the students.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Day 5 Lava tower, baby steps


Lava tower, baby steps…

We went up to 4600 meters above sea level to Lava Tower today. We took it extremely slow: taking only one step per second!!! And yes, that is at a pace of: 1001... 1002... 1003...

Lava Tower at 4,600m


We have by now spent a day in the rain forest, a day in the moorland, a day on the Shira plateau, and today we walked through a somewhat "moon landscape" area with grey-ish sand and small rocks scattered around. But unlike the moon astronauts, we did not fly through the air but were instead gasping for breath.

One can actually feel the air become thinner and thinner as you go up, and it also gets colder and colder. You think you are taking deep breaths, but not much oxygen gets to your lungs. The moment you go down in altitude, you can immediately feel it because you breath easier again. Which is the reason why, like today, we walk all the way up to 4600m, then down to 3900 to sleep at a lower altitude. From tomorrow it will just be up, up, up.

All four of us expected the worst, but we all felt absolutely fine! We were hugely relieved as the way your body handles today is a good indication of the way your body will react for the rest of the trip. All in all we had a very easy day!!! We realise that we are lucky as there are many others around us complaining of headaches, being nauseous etc. One of our "neighbours" was so sick this morning at Shira 2 that he didn't even want to come out of his tent.

Barranco camp

We arrived at Barranco Camp and this is by far the most beautiful camp we have been at. It is set between the mountains, floating above the clouds, and if it wasn't for all the tents, you might think you are close to heaven. 

I think now is also the time when we start missing our families. I am so grateful to be here and to have this amazing experience, and wish I can bottle it and share it with others and especially Jan, the kids and my mom, who made this trip possible for me. I feel that even if something happens and I don't summit, I will be leaving here, having had a most amazing experience. 
Posted by at

3 comments:

  1. AnonymousSeptember 22, 2010 at 12:04 PM

    From Sharon: So glad you're having a good time! Thinking of you often.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AmandaSeptember 22, 2010 at 2:02 PM

    Your description of your journey is so vivid I feel like Im doing it with you !!!

    Just remember every step you take is a step closer to home!

    xx

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousSeptember 22, 2010 at 2:42 PM

    Hakuna matata! Go well! This time, too, shall come to pass - ENJOY!!!! It's not always the goal that counts, sometimes it's the road to getting there! Mwah S

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)