A short film of our Africa Book Bus Safari Adventure

We hope you enjoy this short film about our Adventure:




Filmed on location by: Kathy Briggs, Hayley Cruikshank and the Heron Rangers
Editor: Andrew Muir
Composer: Steve Porter
With thanks to: Stephanie Whitehead

To enjoy your own Girlguiding adventure visit www.girlguiding.org.uk/seniorsection/
To volunteer with the Book Bus charity visit www.thebookbus.org

Discover more about Girlguiding
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRA3jBUQmlE

Thanks for donations from:
RR Donnelley www.rrdonnelley.com/gds
Jack Petchey Foundation www.jackpetchey.org
Girlguiding London over the Border County www.lobguides.org

...... and a big thanks to all our family, friends and supporters.

Amazing Africa

Many things in Africa had us asking questions like, "How do they do that?" or "What is that?" or "Why is that?"

Here is how to ride a bike which is too big for you….

Presentation Time: An invitation

We are holding a presentation for all our supporters, followers, family and friends in North London on Saturday 28th September 2013.
As one of our blog readers we would love you to join us to discover first hand about our adventure.

For more information including venue details, directions and times please send us a message via africabookbus@gmail.com or fill in the box on the right hand side of the blog.

We look forward to seeing you there.

The Africa Book Bus Safari Adventure 2013 Team

Getting up close and personal to the wildlife in Zambia and Malawi

One of the things that we were delighted about on our African Adventure was seeing so much wildlife. Not just on safari game drives but even on our commute to school and in camp.

Here are some snaps & a video clip to show you how close we got.

This was a small elephant that we saw on our game drive - we ended up seeing loads of elephants over the week

How excited do we look?!

We were so close to the leopard, it was like you could reach out and stroke her

Taking photos of the leopard

The first lion we saw, who was looking out over the Luangwa valley

So special to hang out with this lion family

The pride of lions we saw shading themselves along the banks of the very dry river bed. There were 15 in total.

Saw lots of giraffe - some closer than others

We frequently got close to giraffe - even on our school commute

These guys made us laugh, they are warthogs feeding by bending their knees.

And not so much wildlife but Wild Life..... this goat was alive and strapped to the back of a push bike in Nkopola, Malawi.

Every now and then it would lift its head and go "baaaah".

Well at least you knew it was going to be fresh!

Travelling home to London

It took us 30 hours to make our way from Salima Bay to Redbridge station via Lilongwe, Johannesburg and Heathrow. Lots of people approached us at different times asking about our project in detail and were very supportive and impressed with what we had achieved in a short space of time. The Rangers organised an announcement onboard our flight to London as we were landing thanking the leaders - which was very touching. We said goodbye to 3 members at Heathrow and the rest carried onto East London.
What a journey, but one where we kept smiling - even when there were a few tears - and lots of hugs all round.

What a true adventure! An opportunity for us to reflect....

Today we have had the opportunity to reflect on our journey. From the Look Wider... go further event in March 2012 to spending our last night together on the beach in Malawi at the end of August 2013 - we have all grown as individuals and as a team.

After a day spent relaxing beside the pool at a nearby luxury hotel, our day ended with a African Braai and Buffet on the beach at our campsite in Salima Bay. We then spent time discussing our experiences in Africa and how they have impacted us in different ways. The group identified that for some it has been the opportunity to develop their leadership skills. For others, they were able to reflect on their life at home in comparison to those that we have met on the trip and for some, Africa may even have an influence on their future career choice!

Nkopola, Lake Malawi

We also discussed how they may feel when they return to the UK and how they could support each other in the first few days when it seems odd to not be around 21 others; being on their own and going to the toilet on their own. Anyone who feels particularly down or is not coping with returning home knows that we (the leaders) are only at the end of the phone if needed and they also have each other.

As leaders this is our biggest project we have undertaken to date, we are truly pleased with the outcome, have a great sense of accomplishment and already are considering our next steps and wondering what to do and where to go in 2016. The girls are rightly very proud of their achievements and we have seen changes in each and every one of them. They took up the challenge so well and planned and delivered their own lessons and learnt to be flexible depending on the needs of their classes. Some set homework and others shared photos from their home. They had a unique opportunity to get to know the individuals and got to know them as children - some of whom were of a similar age or older. They also took to overlanding really well. All our training and preparation paid off and they coped with bugs, creepy crawlies, ants, baboons, monkeys, dogs, mosquitos and hygiene routines each and every day. We were very proud when Doc told us he was really impressed with our group at how they simply got on with a task and threw themselves into their duties and overlanding. He said he could tell they were well prepared and knew what was expected of them and enjoyed their company.

The Ulandi School library project was an unexpected bonus and thanks to the pledges of support which came in, we were able to support the local economy and hire a painter and carpenter to help us transform the existing space into a vibrant library. The teachers were motivated to lend a hand and one even painted a small mural as their contribution and the others got involved with cleaning and sweeping. The pupils were genuinely delighted with the end result and were eager to see it and use it ... and were amazed at the books and our decorations. We are delighted the Book Bus will return and get to see the school and are looking forward to hearing about their progress.

Having experienced several safaris in the past we were hoping the few opportunities we had to see the wildlife on this trip might show another side of Africa. Well it certainly did and more.... to have three leopard sightings, hang out with a pride of lions and to be so close to the cats was truly magical. And to see hippo, monkeys, elephants and giraffe on our commutes every day to school was wonderful - talk about a world away from life in East London! We were also delighted to be sharing our campsite with elephants - guide camp will never be the same again - seeing the girls' faces when one walked past a dinner time will stay with us for a long time.

Elephants crossing the Luangwa River at Dawn

  Africa is a truly magical continent, with so much to offer and give us all. We appreciate we have given a lot to Ulande primary school in Malawi and Mfuwe schools in Zambia but we have received so much more in return. Both countries have developed since Sharon and Kathy were last there in 2005 and the change is encouraging to see. Malawi is truly the warm heart of Africa and Zambia has an energy and personality which is infectious. We have a strong bond with South Africa and we were so happy to offer the girls an opportunity to spend a few days here. It has given them another view of Africa and has allowed them to compare and contrast a developed, with a non developed, African country.

Watching the final sunrise over Lake Malawi at Salima Bay on our last day

We hope our adventures have inspired our blog readers to get involved with the Book Bus, either individually or with Girlguiding. The Book Bus is a charity which operates around the world in India, Ecuador, Galapagos, Zambia and Malawi and throughout the year go to a variety of schools. For more information about how you can personally get involved and have a similar experience, visit thebookbus.org

KB, SA & HC

Day 18: Rest, relaxation and reflection

Today was always about rest, relaxation and reflection and we had a wonderful day doing all three.
What an achievement in such a short space of time and definitely a feeling of satisfaction and pride from us all.
Job done!

Day 18: Relaxing by the pool

As part of our day of R&R we are chilling my by the pool in the nearby hotel :) 

Day 18: Chocolate cake

What a treat! 

Day 18: At the bay

At our current campsite is set on the beach and just around the corner there is an AMAZING bay... :)

Day 18: Rest, Relax, Reflect

Today is our final day with the truck until we start our journey back home. The team are having a well earned rest and relaxation day which has started with a later breakfast of scrambled eggs!

Day 17: Farewells and new camp

We had a busy start this morning as we had to have our tents, and as much of our other things, packed up before breakfast at 7am. This meant we could leave earlier than usual to continue working on the final adjustments of the library without affecting the time we had to have lessons and then be able to leave for our next campsite straight after school.

Our last day of teaching and spending time with the children at school was amazing in terms of looking back at everything we had achieved and being able to laugh and joke with our specific groups of kids. EOK and HK felt both excited and sad about our last few hours at the school and this was a shared feeling among everyone else too. Beforehand, we had prepared bags of paper, pencils, random craft materials like pipe cleaners, sequins, beads, an Africa book bus badge and a small book donated by Miles Kelly publishing for each child. To end our lessons we handed them out and it caused much excitement. It shows how much they value things like paper and pencils which we take for granted. AS and MHB were surprised at the children's response to the gift bags being brought out, they went crazy! They obviously aren't used to being given gifts. MG and EOK thought their groups behaved very well and stayed calm. 

KB gave a short speech and officially opened the library, challenging the teachers to continue our work in bringing books to life and encouraging every pupil to read more; and challenging the students to use the library regularly, borrow books and look after them. We concluded our time there by performing songs which had been prepared by each group during the week and getting the chance to show all the children the newly transformed library, (which looks wonderful with beautifully drawn pictures, craft displays made by the students during the week, brand new book shelves and benches made by Bonkey and painted walls by Leveson).

It was great to actually show the kids what we had been doing for them and we hope it will encourage them to read more and improve their English. And we really hope the Book Bus returns very soon to continue what we started and keep the children's energy and enthusiasm for reading alive. Especially now they have a fully functional library of their own

We then went outside to say our final goodbyes to the kids and Kate; as she was leaving us to return home after the two weeks we had spent with her, we also had numerous amounts of hugs from our groups and spent as much time as we could saying goodbye to them. 

We set off for our next campsite swiftly and stopped for lunch at another school and had a standing lunch so we could make just a quick stop then get back to travelling.

On our journey, SA, HC and KB stopped to pick up some groceries and much to our enjoyment also brought back mars bars and coca cola/sprite for us (extreme privileges for us here in Africa)! We arrived at our 5th campsite and set up camp once again, enjoyed our drinks and now have a little while to relax before dinner and our view is brilliant once again as we're still next to Lake Malawi.

EH, EOK & AS 

Day 17 Photos: Last day at Ulandi Primary School

Sunrise from Nkopola Campsite, overlooking Mozambique on the horizon

Shopping stops were frequent in Nkopola to purchase bread, vegetables, paint and material!

Dried cassava

Bonkey, our carpenter, and his brother finishing the last of the benches

Moving the finished shelving from the carpenter's house to the school

Organising moving furniture

Ladder out, shelving in

Everyone had a job, whether that was sign writing, mural painting, sorting books, organising shelves, decorating or drawing characters from our books on the walls

The children were excited to see our progress through the windows

Many hands truly do make light work

Leveson, our painter did a sterling job

Grade 8 students were amazed at the selection of books funded by RR Donnelley

Painting the door

The teaching staff couldn't quite believe what we organised

Final photo opportunities for the pupils

Meeting the former headmaster and his wife Ethel, a teacher, in their home - a true inspiration

Proud of our achievement

The final handover ceremony

Talent Show with the songs the students learnt

Showing the students inside their library for the first time - in small groups 

Our thanks to RR Donnelley for funding the books

Our thanks to our blog followers for their pledges of donations which allowed us to improve
the Ulandi Primary School Library

Saying our final farewells