Day 15

Day 15 Mooi River to Pietermaritzburg 70km

Well we once again had rain, but luckily the rain was never so heavy that we were forced to stop walking. A bit wet we stopped in Howick at the wateralls for lunch, before making the final push into Pietermaritzburg. Arriving into town, Rotarians from the Pietermaritzburg Azalea club were there to meet us at City Hall. The evening was then spent presenting and discussing our trip thus far, and enjoying a meal with the local Rotarians.

Day 14

Day 14
Project Day- Khazimula Children’s Home
At 8am we joined the children for breakfast before meeting up with John Tangay, Rotarian from Mooi River Rotary Club. After eating, John, staff and children from Khazimula showed us around. Khazimula aspires to be a large “model” farm, with many animals, and resources for not just the children at the home, but for the children in the surrounding areas. At present there is one dog, one cat, and two pigs. There is an extremely large food garden, with everything from watermelon to squash. The children take pride in showing off their garden, and the “seed bank” which actually gives out seeds to anyone in the local community.
Not too far down the road from Khazimula is a 5 star hotel with Rotary connections, and as a very nice surprise, the hike team was invited for tea. Taking a much deserved break the hike team enjoyed tea, muffins and scones with John before heading back to Khazimula for a soccer match. Brighton scored the winning goal before we all ended the game and washed up for lunch. The afternoon was spent relaxing, visiting a local waterfall and being entertained by a special performance of singing, gum boot dancing, and poetry put on by the children. Rain once again started to pour, and like the night before hikers and children alike spent the evening laughing and playing inside.

Day 13

Day 13
Ladysmith to Mooi River- 100 km
With another big walking day ahead of us we were sure to start out early. Already by 7am the temperatures were reaching 28 degrees, and warmer temperatures were expected by the end of the afternoon. The girls, having stayed with hosts Pier and Glennis from the Rotary Club of Ladysmith, met up with the guys at the Ladysmith Police Station, and it was from there that we were once again escorted out of town. The day was hot and humid, but the mountains and hills of KwaZulu Natal served as beautiful inspiration to keep on going. By early afternoon dark clouds started to form for what was promised to be a big storm. With only 15 km left to Mooi River the rain started to pour. As time passed with no end in sight, trying to wait out the storm became an impossibility. Left with no choice we braved the storm, and while we were all soaked to the bone, it was probably one of the most enjoyable hiking days thus far. The rain was warm and refreshing, and for a moment all the hikers were reduced to little children playing in the rain. Despite being a bit wet we all arrived safely into Mooi River to meet up with one of the local Rotarians.
Our accommodation for the next couple of days was also the site of our project, Khazimula Children’s Home. Khazimula is a farm in Ligetton, that houses 29 children, most of which were street children and/or were left orphaned by HIV/AIDS. Mooi River Rotary sponsors the home, and Rotarian John Tangay has put his heart and soul into Khazimula, often spending his days playing with the children and assisting in the operation of the site. Only having been in existence for a year, Khazimula has been able to accomplish quite a lot, creating a family and a sense of belonging for these children. Tired and wet the hikers showered before sharing supper with the children and staff. In this very remote area of KwaZulu Natal where there is little to no cell phone reception and no cities close by, the hike team stayed inside as the rain continued to fall sharing good conversation and laughs with the children.

HOW TO DONATE!

How to Donate In South Africa:
Name: Rotary Club of Johannesburg
Account: 62022435699
Bank: First National Bank, Main StreetBranch code: 251705
Reference: Hike07
Please email us when you have made a donation at
Rotaryaidshike2007@gmail.com

Internationally:Visit our partner Rotaract Club of San Francisco or contact us at
Rotaryaidshike2007@gmail.com

Day 12

Day 12- Project day around Ladysmith

The Rotary Club of Ladysmith, working together with KwaZulu Natal's East Coast Radio and the Gift of the Givers, has been distributing literally tons of food throughout the rural areas hardest hit by HIV/AIDS.
Visiting Mhlumayo, the hike team helped to distribute food parcels, including nutritional supplements for people infected by HIV/AIDS in 3 communities. The programme is also dependent on local women volunteers who take the food parcels to the sick and needy grandmothers caring for AIDS orphans and vulnerable children. The local tribal chief is also quite involved, giving buildings for children feeding schemes and for office space for the local coordination of volunteers.

After a powerful day in the rural mountains we returned back to Ladysmith to give the Rotary Club a presentation on the hike thus far. Thank you Ladysmith Rotary!

Day 11

Day 11- Walk from Dundee to Ladysmith
This day was our first sunny day in over a week. With temperature reaching 35 C, it was important for us to start early. Estelle, the President of the Dundee Rotary Club joined us for the first couple of kilometres and then wished us on our way. Finishing by 13:00, and with each one of us dripping in sweat, we were greeting by Max, the Ladysmith Rotary President. Max was nice enough to allow us to use his house to relax and clean up, and we were later treated to a braai with local Rotarians and their families.

Day 10

Day 10- Project Day in Dundee Area
Project day was quite exciting as we ended up visiting two Noah projects in Nyanyadu, and area close to Dundee, Inqaba ka Noah and uJabulile ka Noah. As it is the holiday time many of the children do not arrive until midday, and so most of the morning was spent talking to the Noah staff and volunteers. Two local Rotarians joined us, and we were once again able to create a local Rotary partnership with Noah Ark sites. Local caregivers and parents turned out to meet the hikers and it was important for the all of us to be able to talk and understand the reality of the people in the area. We left the Noah sites with promises from the Rotary Club of Dundee to sponsor seeds, sewing machines and other resources to develop more income generating projects in the area. To find out more about more about Noah please visit, http://www.noahorphans.org.za

The hikers had the afternoon "off", and it turned out to be an opportunity to visit a local museum on the Anglo-Boer war (The Great Africa War). We also had a chance to spend more time with our local hosts before going to the Dundee Rotary Christmas party. Spending time with local Rotarians and their families has been an extremely important part of our trip, and all of can say that our lives have been forever changed by the kindness shown to us along our journey. Thanks to Estelle, President of the Rotary Club of Dundee for a great couple of days!