Day 2: Soweto Township (Johannesburg) - Vereeniging
Total Distance Covered: 80 km
Distance Remaining: 1,930 km
With the stress of last minute packing and the excitement and nervousness of the hike, we got very little sleep the night before its start. At 7am, we all met at the University of the Witwatersrand, finished packing the vans and headed to Jabavu Clinic in the Soweto Township of Johannesburg.
It was a wonderful surprise to have Mark Doyle, the new Director of ANCHOR (the African Network for Children Orphaned and At Risk) and Mama Hilda, the head of orphan and vulnerable children (OVC) programming at Hope Worldwide there to help send us off.
A group of local children and some of the vulnerable kids receiving assistance were there as well and it was a wonderful surprise to have them sing for us before we left. We said our goodbyes, took some pictures and hit the road.
We didn’t know what to expect in our departure as we planned the hike over the last few months. But, what we got was far greater than we ever imagined and was deeply meaningful. As the six of us began hiking down the road together, we were joined by local Soweto community members, Rotarians, Hope Worldwide staff and local children. A six year old girl grabbed Ikumi’s hand and walked with her for the first few blocks. It was an absolutely beautiful moment and epitomized everything we hope to accomplish with this hike. That precious child holding onto Ikumi’s hand is an image none of us will soon forget.
Amusingly, only 10 km into the hike, we somehow managed to get ourselves lost and it took almost 30 minutes to find our way back to the right road. A bit scary, but mostly amusing…we’re only 10km into the hike (with 2000 to go) and already losing our way!
It took nearly 8 hours, but we finally made it to Vereeniging that evening. A relatively short 60 km day and we’re all still on a high psychologically, but the physical strain is already beginning to be felt. No blisters yet, so we have a lot to be thankful for!
The Three Rivers Rotary Club hosted us this evening in Vereeniging, cooking up a feast (thoughtfully providing mostly pastas and breads to help us carbo-load). It was absolutely delicious and great fun meeting everyone.
Distance Remaining: 1,930 km
With the stress of last minute packing and the excitement and nervousness of the hike, we got very little sleep the night before its start. At 7am, we all met at the University of the Witwatersrand, finished packing the vans and headed to Jabavu Clinic in the Soweto Township of Johannesburg.
It was a wonderful surprise to have Mark Doyle, the new Director of ANCHOR (the African Network for Children Orphaned and At Risk) and Mama Hilda, the head of orphan and vulnerable children (OVC) programming at Hope Worldwide there to help send us off.
A group of local children and some of the vulnerable kids receiving assistance were there as well and it was a wonderful surprise to have them sing for us before we left. We said our goodbyes, took some pictures and hit the road.
We didn’t know what to expect in our departure as we planned the hike over the last few months. But, what we got was far greater than we ever imagined and was deeply meaningful. As the six of us began hiking down the road together, we were joined by local Soweto community members, Rotarians, Hope Worldwide staff and local children. A six year old girl grabbed Ikumi’s hand and walked with her for the first few blocks. It was an absolutely beautiful moment and epitomized everything we hope to accomplish with this hike. That precious child holding onto Ikumi’s hand is an image none of us will soon forget.
It took nearly 8 hours, but we finally made it to Vereeniging that evening. A relatively short 60 km day and we’re all still on a high psychologically, but the physical strain is already beginning to be felt. No blisters yet, so we have a lot to be thankful for!
The Three Rivers Rotary Club hosted us this evening in Vereeniging, cooking up a feast (thoughtfully providing mostly pastas and breads to help us carbo-load). It was absolutely delicious and great fun meeting everyone.
posted by Rotary AIDS Hike 2006 @ 12/03/2006 01:55:00 am
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