June sees the annual arrival at Borderlands of a lively and excited bunch of students who attend the British School of Colombo - a tradition which is entering its 4th year now.
For many it represents their first time away from home without parents, certainly their first time sleeping in a tent and the first time that a sleep over with friends doesn't consist of a comfy bed, fluffy pillows and air conditioning, wide screen TV's to watch their movies on or getting online and playing on the X Box.
This is a real back to nature, back to (almost) basics experience for these children who hail from not only Sri Lanka, but Denmark, India, Maldives, Pakistan, Korea and Australia. A truly diverse student body, and a really fun, energetic and up-for-anything group.
Having met the children at the school at 7:15am this morning it became apparent very quickly that it was the parents who would be suffering most from separation anxiety - there were a few tears as they bid their children farewell, and off we travelled to Kithulgala. A 3 hour journey got us safely to Kithulgala where the kids were introduced to the Borderlands team, their tents (home for the next 3 days) as well as the do's and don'ts at camp.
A few games quickly establishes how it's very easy to throw about a term like "teamwork," but the challenges presented to the kids really got them working hard, initially to very little success, but by listening, learning and eventually working as a team it came together.
Hungry bellies meant a hearty and welcome lunch before heading for a hike to Belilena Cave. It was less Man vs Wild, and more Kids vs Leeches.
The heavy rains had brought out the pesky blood suckers in the hundreds, and not one child went without at least a couple of leeches making a beeline for their feet. Some were less fortunate and apparently have very sweet blood, as on their return there was an hour queue for the leech triage team!
Despite many screams and a few hysterics, by the time dinner was served, followed by a camp fire with marshmallow roasting and a bit of a boogie c/o DJ Kenny, all was forgotten, and bed came as a welcomed end to an evening for an exhausted group of kids, and teachers!
Tomorrow brings the canyoning - always one of the absolute highlights of the BSC Year 6 programme - much rain means the canyon will be pretty full, so we hope that the early morning recce team will come back with good news and the kids will be set to head to their water based adventure in the morning.
More tomorrow!
For many it represents their first time away from home without parents, certainly their first time sleeping in a tent and the first time that a sleep over with friends doesn't consist of a comfy bed, fluffy pillows and air conditioning, wide screen TV's to watch their movies on or getting online and playing on the X Box.
Having met the children at the school at 7:15am this morning it became apparent very quickly that it was the parents who would be suffering most from separation anxiety - there were a few tears as they bid their children farewell, and off we travelled to Kithulgala. A 3 hour journey got us safely to Kithulgala where the kids were introduced to the Borderlands team, their tents (home for the next 3 days) as well as the do's and don'ts at camp.
A few games quickly establishes how it's very easy to throw about a term like "teamwork," but the challenges presented to the kids really got them working hard, initially to very little success, but by listening, learning and eventually working as a team it came together.
The heavy rains had brought out the pesky blood suckers in the hundreds, and not one child went without at least a couple of leeches making a beeline for their feet. Some were less fortunate and apparently have very sweet blood, as on their return there was an hour queue for the leech triage team!
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| Making friends with the Wildlife |
Despite many screams and a few hysterics, by the time dinner was served, followed by a camp fire with marshmallow roasting and a bit of a boogie c/o DJ Kenny, all was forgotten, and bed came as a welcomed end to an evening for an exhausted group of kids, and teachers!
Tomorrow brings the canyoning - always one of the absolute highlights of the BSC Year 6 programme - much rain means the canyon will be pretty full, so we hope that the early morning recce team will come back with good news and the kids will be set to head to their water based adventure in the morning.
More tomorrow!
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