Hajja Salesjana March April 2017

9 It is very dangerous to spend a long time at the altitude of 5895m, so after a few minutes, we were hurried back down to Stella Point. A triumphant, yet struggling walk back down was about to start. It was not enough that we had walked for over 9 hours, we had to walk another 4 hours back down to camp. Walking down proved to be a great struggle: the body was fatigued and we needed to push it to work, walking, skidding and sliding down, from one ledge to another, concentrating on every step, careful not to fall or twist any ankles. The camps soon come into view, but unfortunately they never seem to get any closer. Finally we stumbled into camp and I managed to crawl into my tent. Taking off my trekking shoes and summit clothes felt like such an arduous task, and finally I allowed myself to gloriously collapse on top of the sleeping bag. That was the most relieving feeling ever. A couple of hours rest, and a hot meal later, we had to pack up and descend for another 3 hours to Millennium Camp as Barafu Hut is still at a very high and quite dangerous altitude. Even though I felt that my knees were still shaking with every step and the emotional turmoil was still going on inside of me, the oxygen made everything seem a little bit easier. We were served dinner, had some warm water to clean ourselves and enjoyed the best sleep in the tent, in a warmer night and without any looming summit thoughts. The 8th Day was our final day on the mountain. We woke up to a much lighter mood, joking, singing and having fun together. We only had one final trek, just a few hours of down-hill till we reach the foot of the mountain. It was actually quite sad as this was officially our last trek as KC9 group. We soon reached Mweka Gate meaning we all managed to walk up and down the highest mountain in Africa! Later that day, back at the hotel, we had the most awaited and heavenly shower followed by our graduation. The simple thing of just having clean running warm water felt like heaven after a whole week of no access to running water, and dressing up for the simple celebration makes you feel so feminine again. We were finally ready to graduate! A small celebration was organised for all of us. We were joined by all the crew members who sang and danced the Kilimanjaro songs for us, then we were each called out and sung to, whilst receiving a truly meaningful and weighty certificate! Quest for the Roof of Africa ( 5 ) by Claire Falzon We are pleased to bring to you the adventure of a lifetime Claire Falzon, a Physiotherapist, a Salesian Animator and SPYSmember, has recently embarked upon for a very noble cause. We will share with you her inspiring story bit by bit. Enjoy the climb to the breathtaking summit.