DoE India - DIA April 2008

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award - Incredible India!

Early morning on Tuesday 3rd April, 20 high-school students from Years 10-12 began their journey to Incredible India, embarking on a Himalayan mountain trek for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. We were accompanied by Mrs. Sunita Dias and Ms. Helen Dowse. The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme is an award for personal achievement that seeks to empower an individual by setting personal goals to improve themselves. It is divided into four components: a service, skill, physical recreation and expeditions. The program is offered at three different levels: Bronze, Silver and Gold.

We travelled to many different important sites such as the Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Haridwar, the Holy Ganges, Qutab Minar and Humayun’s Tomb. Going to these places itself exposed us to many different modes of transportation, from planes to trains and from buses to rafts.

After sightseeing in Delhi and Agra, we arrived at Snow Leopard Adventure’s Tuscar Campsite in a national park home to wild elephants. Due to torrential rains, we had to cancel our trekking session for the first day. Nothing could dampen our spirits, so we switched over to yoga and an easy session of afternoon rafting on the Ganges. We had even befriended our campsite insects and lived with no luxury washroom facilities or running water. Despite all of this, we loved it! Our camp instructors, Mr. Marty and Mr. Negi, were kind enough to organize a stimulating biking session for us in the hills, a treat for all nature enthusiasts. . On our route back, we visited an orphanage run by the Divya Prem Sewa Mission for children whose parents were victims of leprosy. 20 out of the 140 children here were orphans. DIA’s Duke of Edinburgh group made a monetary contribution and looks forward to supporting this orphanage in the future.

The two-day trek covered 35 km and over 3000-3200 feet in the Himalayan foothills. It brought out the group’s team spirit, a sense of adventure, caring for each other and required us to share our supplies. It was a relief rafting in the chilly waters of the Ganges after our tiring trek. We cruised along some rapids, however some of us were seen floating along the river after the rapids.

During our stay along the Beach Camp-site on the Ganges, we had the opportunity to experience an evening aarti (traditional evening prayers) along the banks of the picturesque Ganges. We were surprised to see many foreigners, as it seemed that this was a very popular tourist destination known for its religious significance. We spent a pleasant evening shopping in the nearby town of Rishikesh and even learned how to bargain, a handy skill to have here in Dubai. We explored New Delhi’s most cultural market, Dilli Haat. It gathers some of the many different ethnicities in India and provides a place for them to sell handmade goods and crafts. We purchased traditional Indian clothes which we were all clad in on the plane back to Dubai.
The whole experience gave us a sense of achievement and made us truly value all that the luxuries that we take for granted (such as the toilet!). The trip will long be remembered for all that we have learned. We strongly recommend the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award not only for the worth it carries on university applications but for the lifelong skills, values and experiences it comes with.

This trip would not have been possible without our instructors Mr. Marty and Mr Negi from Snow Leopard Adventures-India and our supervising teacher Ms. Helen Dowse, and Mrs. Sunita Dias (DoE Coordiantor) for coordinating such a challenging and successful trip! Thank you all! It was so appreciated that the plans for the next trip are already well underway...

By Aahan Bhojani, 11C

DoE article Year Book 2008

Negotiating steep Himalayan trails, battling through the ruthless rapids in the river Ganga, yes I am talking about the Duke of Edinburg’s Award (International Award for Young People) expedition to India which took place in April.
It was a physically challenging experience which helped us, a group of 20 students, develops into more responsible individuals and fostered values such as companionship, co-operation and mutual respect amongst us. We learned to work together and put aside personal differences to achieve success in group activities such as river rafting.

The tough living conditions drew us closer together as a group and we enjoyed this trying experience thousands of miles away from the luxury of our homes. Our will to go on and determination were tested on a 7 hour trek, we pushed forward as group, the sense of achievement and accomplishment was uplifting.

All of us will have fond memories of this trip and will cherish the moments we spent together and the experiences that changed us. To our DoE coordinator Mrs. Sunita Dias, who was behind it all and Ms. Helen Dowse our chaperon teacher a sincere thank you from the 20 of us.

Hardik Goel
Grade 12A

Opening Adventure Gateways at Orchha!

Snow Leopard Adventures, is notching up with the launch of its sixth camp extending adventure tourism to the heart of India. The five Snow Leopard Adventures campsites located at the foothills of the mighty Himalayas promote minimum impact tourism and this is the concept that is being extended to the upcoming campsite at Orchha in Madhya Pradesh.

The name Orccha literally translates to, “hidden”. True to its name, Orccha lies obscured from sight amidst lush green dark woods along the River Betwa. The Betwa River and the picturesque terrain, along with the magnificent ruins make it an adventurer’s paradise. The river is wide and its placid flow is intermittently broken by Grade I to Grade II rapids. The river is good for easy Kayaking and rafting. An adventure Island, formed between the Betwa and the Jamini rivers is waiting to be explored. The rock faces at the island are ideal for easy to moderate rock climbing and rappelling while the forest trails are a nature lover’s heaven. The Orccha Nature Reserve, offers great trails for jeep safaris and cycling.

Snow Leopard Adventures has set up Camp Blue Bull with 16 safari tents on the banks of the Betwa River. The camp offers guests an opportunity to combine the thrill of adventure with the rich cultural heritage of the region making it an exciting getaway out of doors in the heart of India!!

Activities Possible
• Trekking
• Wilderness Orientation hikes
• Cycling on forest trails
• Nature Walk & Bird watching
• Rock Climbing/ Rappelling
• Kayaking
• Rafting (depending on the water level)
• Sightseeing of Orchha (by foot/ on bicycles)
• Light & sound show