Hiya!!
I’m Vicky, sixteen years old from England, and still excited about my first proper expedition last summer. I went to Malawi in south east Africa, for a month, with fifteen others, and while we were there I experienced the most thought-provoking and awe-inspiring things I could have ever imagined.
Malawi is a very poor country with more than 70% of its adults infected with HIV or AIDS, a figure that is astonishing even to think about. Travelling to Limbe and staying for a few nights at the country club there (not inside it – we were in our tents 
was a great way to acclimatise, and really gave the team a taste for the culture of the place. The people are so friendly it immediately became apparent why it is called ‘the warm heart of Africa’, though some of the men in the towns can be… lets say, a little unpleasant to a group of white girls. A guy tried to buy me and another girl, Debz, which we realised was not a joke, thankfully not too late!! Some of the experiences were shocking and made me realise my naivety: seeing police beat our bus driver, severely malnutritioned children with no shoes, and their clothing half ripped off their backs following you down the road, begging for anything you can give them, and a man lying on the side of the road, his head smashed in, dying slowly, with no one willing to take him to the hospital round the corner for fear of catching the deadly AIDS virus.
There were good times to balance the sights that shocked you to your core: swimming in mountain pools, feeling the pride as you realised you had lead your team for the day through the mountains successfully, riding stood up in the back of a pick-up, swimming in the beautiful clear lake and sleeping on the beach, and just generally learning to love and appreciate life and all the advantages we have.
We also worked in an AIDS awareness centre in Likulezi with some of the friendliest, warmest children I have ever met. We restored the centre, then moved on to Mulanje, where the trekking began. We were living in tents all the time, which was great by me, and travelling with heavy full packs due to safety equipment as the mountain range Mulanje can be a very dangerous place. The team were unable to summit due to illness, very disappointing though the entire experience was astounding and I cannot wait to travel to different locations and live simply with the best, most exciting people on the planet!
I would love to get in touch with anyone who has travelled a lot before and anyone who can give me any advice!
