Giving Back: Travel the World and Make a Difference

Last year Dave and I cycled from Cairo Egypt to Cape Town South Africa.  It was an experience of a lifetime to travel through some of the most remote countries in the world. Unfortunately, some of these countries were also some of the poorest and unstable in the world.

A Charity Built Well

That was why we decided to ride for a cause. Formerly Foster Parents Plan, Plan Canada is an international organization that works at a grassroots level to help communities in Africa develop a long term plan to improve their living conditions. They give them the means to become self sufficient and to no longer rely on foreign aid.

We are blessed and lucky to live in a country that is so rich.  We have the opportunity to travel to different parts of the world and to see different ways of life.

Cycling in The Tour d’Afrique was the perfect opportunity to raise awareness about our cause. It was a large international race that already had followers and a fan base. We easily gained exposure through their website and through media to talk about not only the race, but to raise awareness for our Cause and to direct them to our site and to Plan to find information on how to help.

Poor Community, being helped by Plan

It was an extraordinary experience. Plan is a well run organization. We left for Egypt a couple of weeks before the race started and we had the opportunity to visit a project in Cairo.  Plan picked us up at our guesthouse and we were off to the poorest part of the city. It was an eye opener. There is no possible way we would have been safe to travel to this part of town on our own.  It really was an entirely different world than the rest of the city.We were most definitely in the slums of Cairo.

You can read about our Plan visit in depth at our post Our Plan Project Visit

In 3 months we will be leaving Canada again to travel through Central Asia. Once again, we will be visiting countries that are in desperate need of help. We have not decided yet as to how we are going to give back to these communities, but we do know that we are going to in one way or another.

A School we visited in Malawi

There are so many ways for travelers to give back to communities.

We find that the simplest and easiest way is to write about it. We don’t have the luxury of having instant followers through Plan or the Tour d’Afriques website, but we have worked hard to build our own following with our own travel blog. Hopefully as we grow, we will be able to reach a larger audience and let them know about the social and environmental struggles of the countries that we are about to visit.

Being adventure travelers, we can raise a lot of awareness and gain publicity easily. We can climb for a cause, ride for a cause, cycle for a cause. The list goes on. Newspapers and magazines enjoy hearing about people that have conquered something extraordinary while at the same time supported an organization that is making change in the world.

An Inner City School in Cairo

Travelers can volunteer. Many organizations are looking for volunteers and you have a good chance of being able to help out if you are already in the country.

Teaching English is another way to help. English is becoming a universal language and it opens the door to a world of possibilities for employment. Dave and I volunteered for a night in Cambodia in a small town to help a teacher out. He was from Cambodia himself so his pronunciation of words was off. He stopped us in the street and asked us if we would be willing to lead the class so that they could mimic our pronunciation. Helping out in these remote villages where they don’t have the money or the means for organized western TESL can be a great contribution to the community.

A Child Thrives with the help of Charity

Another easy way to give back to communities is to add a button to your website.  It doesn’t have to be an in your face, give money to my cause hard sell. Simply add an icon in your sidebar linking to a cause that you believe in. It doesn’t cost a thing and you don’t have to do anything else. Visitors will come to your site, read your posts and explore. They may get the urge to click on your charity of choice and investigate or they may not. But no matter what, you will reach a few people and that is all it takes.

There are many ways to help out this world. We are so fortunate to live in a rich country and to have the opportunity to travel the world.  This world brings us a great deal of joy and we feel that the least we can do is to help the communities that enrich our lives so much by giving back to them.

Right now, we are investigating our options for our next trip.

To let people know what is going on can ignite a spark in someone to give. It doesn’t have to be money it could be time. It might not even be fore the cause that you are writing about, it could inspire a person to help in their own community.

Children Welcome us to their Playground

There is definitely no shortage in this world of people that need help.

Do you have any ideas of ways to give back while traveling. Have you volunteered overseas or raised money for a cause? What were your experiences? We are hoping to start a series involving guest writers to talk about their experiences involving ethical travel. If you would like to contribute, send us an email at theplanetd@gmail.com

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Inspiration Through the Eyes of Two Travelers

Recently we were invited to write a post for Velvet Escape regarding people that have inspired us on our travels. We have another post coming out today at CheapOair about our time in Bali, and it brought back memories of our instructor Ronald who was also an inspiration.

It was a topic that really made me think about all of the people that I have met on the road and how I have taken so much for granted while I am at home. In an earlier post this week, I touched on the subject, and now, in honor of our post appearing at VelvetEscape and at cheapOair’s blog today, I have been thinking again about the people that have inspired me.

Hard Roads in Ethiopia

Africa was one of our toughest travels to date. We cycled through some of the most brutal conditions the world could throw at us for 120 days.  We would cycle through the desert for 6 days in a row without showering, without cold water and without a comfortable soft bed. We cycled through some of the poorest countries in the world and since we were riding for a charity, we had the opportunity to visit developmental projects to see the work that is being done to help.  We also witnessed first hand the hardships that many people face and the want and need to make a better life.

Upon my return home, I was amazed with the little things.  When I opened my fully stocked refrigerator to to make a meal I thought of the people that I met that don’t even have a refrigerator. As I rinsed my fresh vegetables under my cold running water, I thought about the people of Ethiopia and Malawi that have to walk for kilometres on end to fetch water from the local well; the only source of fresh clean water around.  I think of the people that work in the backbreaking heat tending their crops and the people that can’t just go to the corner store because they don’t feel like cooking dinner this evening.

I can’t deny that I have guilt.  I am not special, I was just born in a rich country given everything that I could need from the day I was born.  I am not a rich person, but living in Canada, you do not have to be rich, to live a rich life.

Dave and I often discuss this idea. Who “up there” decides who will be born in luxury and who will be born in poverty.  When we were in Cambodia, we had a hard time accepting ourselves and felt guilty for being who we are.  The world is not a fair place and travel opens our eyes to it on a very real and deep level.

I am not saying that all people that we meet on our travels suffer.  Many are happy and healthier than people here. We have ended up meeting truly inspiring people through our travels and here are some of the  moments that have touched us the most while we have been on the road.

An artist works at his craft funded through Microfinance

1. In Cairo’s poorest neighborhood Plan Canada took us to see what was being done to help. The people of the inner city were so proud to show us the progress they have made. We visited a micro-finance shop. Talented craftsmen showed us their businesses that they built from the ground up and were now making a living carving beautiful pieces of art and furniture. They had big plans and I am sure that they will fulfill all of their goals.

Gate to Cambodia

2. In Cambodia, we stopped in Kampot and taught English for an evening. The teacher was so proud of his accomplishment. A local villager, he earned 2 dollars for the evening and asked us if we could help him because some of his pronunciations were not good because English was his second language. All we did was help people pronounce words properly, he did all of the teaching, but it was a moving experience.  The pride that everyone felt that evening was unshakable. The students were proud to show off their grasp of the English Language, the Teacher was proud of his important job that was making a difference and their joy and determination rubbed off of us as we felt a certain pride in being able to help in our own small way.

Tea at Inle Lake

3. At Inle lake in Myanmar, we met an extraordinary girl. She invited us into her house and showed us photographs of her mother as as we sipped tea with her grandmother. We talked the afternoon away and she asked for nothing in return.  We were just two people walking along the canal that she happened to want to talk to and our hearts were lifted as we listened to the hardships of her life, but also the dreams that she has and what she has accomplished already.

A quiet moment in Wadi Halfa

4. Wadi Halfa Sudan- we weren’t supposed to be here.  We were simply supposed to get off the ferry from Egypt and move on the next day. But as luck would have it, our support truck was stuck at customs and we had to spend another day in this dried up town on the edge of lake Nassar. It was the next morning when we were walking through the streets that a man invited us to have breakfast with him.  He fed us a hearty meal and kept the sweet tea coming.  As we ate he talked to us of the town. How it was once lush and green and beautiful, but when the Egyptians built the Aswan Dam, they cut off all of the water coming in from the Nile and people ended up moving away.  He was a retired professor in Khartoum and had now moved home to rebuild his life here in Wadi Halfa, people are slowly coming back, but there is a long way to go.  When we tried to pay for our breakfast, he waved us off and that was the first of many experiences in Sudan where people have so little to give, and yet they give so much without a thought.

Dave with students in Malawi

5. Malawi- One of the poorest nations in Africa made famous by Madonna of late. We had the chance to visit a school.  We were greeted with music and singing and smiling faces. This school was a success story in a land that needs so much and the community was so proud to show us their accomplishments.  Their was a well, a soy bean field a playground and several buildings for classrooms.  Teachers and students came out on their day off to give us a tour and talk to us about what was going on.  Children from the village have gone on to university, recieved scholarships and jobs.  Children are monitored for malnourishment and they are not only taught lessons in school, they are taught how to tend the soy bean field and take care of crops. I saw pure joy in the faces of everyone and the success of the community could be felt in the energy all around us.

Check out this wonderful series that has had incredible contributors and we are honored to be included alongside such great writers as journeywoman, MyFolieaDeux and WildJunket, SoloTraveler, Travelogged and AfricaFreak

And find out about travel destinations from other great guest bloggers at CheapOair.

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Safaga, Egypt

4 Days in the desert and 544km later and we have arrived in Safaga, Egypt. No it is not a rest day, we just rode our butt’s off to get here early to enjoy this little scenic town on the Red Sea. It caused a little bit of excitement to finally be able to take a shower and wash some clothes. The past few days have been very sandy, windy and quite cold at night. We splurged on the $32 U.S. for a hotel room and it is heaven.

So let me update you on our week, because we haven’t spoken to you in a little while….

We left Cairo on January 12th, from the pyramids with our police escort. It was beautiful approaching them during sunrise with the camels in the foreground. It was another brisk morning, so we only stopped for a few minutes for photo’s at the start line and then we were off like a heard of turtles (as my dad would say). It wasn’t exactly a fast pace, we were in a convoy for the first 15km until we hit the highway and that was when we could really let loose. Cars were racing past as we all biked on the side of the road and it was pretty thrilling. Dave almost was hit by a car, thank God I wasn’t there to see it or I would have had a heart attack. We were making pretty good time until we turned off the highway and started our climb into a head wind. We had heard that previous years have been tail winds all the way, but of course the year we do it, it is straight in to the wind. To give and idea, the racers did this stage in 3 hours last year, this year they finished in 6hrs. Ugh. It was a long and difficult day that took me two days to recover from. Only today am I feeling back to my old self.

As for our riding, we both managed to finish day one which ended up being pretty cool. Apparently a lot of people had to take the bus after lunch, or were picked up as it was getting to dark to ride. We made it in in 8 hrs and 3 minutes. But, like I said it took its toll and I had a couple of rough days ahead of me. Dave has managed to do amazingly well, he is making the riding look easy. On day 2, he came in only 20 minutes behind the lead racers. Considering there is a mountain bike champion from Austria, an elite rider who is only one step away from the Tour de France, the Egyptian National Team as well as the other incredible riders that we will tell you more about as we go, it is just cool to be riding along side them.

I have been suffering from terrible chest congestion, and it is a real challenge to get myself out of my warm sleeping bag to ride 100k plus each day, but things are looking up. We had a nice tail wind today and managed to ride 110km in 4.04 hours. Dave has been hanging back with me to keep my spirits high. What an amazing man I have married. Yesterday I had my worst day ever cycling with congestion, sore knees, and of course a really sore bum. But he chatted away and stayed beside me the whole time, I couldn’t believe how much I complained, but he just smiled and said, I love you and made everything better.

I have to say, we have been pretty far in to the interior of Egypt and now we have road from Cairo to the Suez and all along the Red Sea and I can’t get over how much sand is in this country. It really is a country of sand, I can’t imagine what it is like to live here. It was so great to pull up to Safaga today just to see some greenery.

We start climbing hills tomorrow and from what I hear, it is tough. Janet Alexander is back again this year and she is awesome. She is racing ahead with the guys and is amazing. She was winning the race last year, when she fell while walking, not cycling and broke her wrist. She decided to come back and ride the parts that she didn’t get to ride last year and it is great to get the inside scoop of what lies ahead for us. If the wind is at our back, all will be well. Lets hope for the best.

Everyone on this trip is wicked. Great riders and friendly people that are really inspiring me to pull up my pants and ride hard. We have a rest day in two days in Luxor and are looking forward to seeing the Valley of the Kings and taking a Felucca ride on the Nile. Oh life is tough.

We are writing an article for the Toronto Star, so look out for that. We are submitting it in Luxor, so I don’t know when it is going to be published, we will keep you posted. Juggling the internet, articles, photography and video is a little tough at the moment, since all we want to do when we get to camp is sleep, but as soon as our legs are stronger and our seats are broken in, I am sure that we will get better at putting it all together.

Talk to you in Luxor.

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Our Plan Project Visit, Cairo

Today is the first day of our tour through Plan projects in Africa. We are grateful and honoured to be able to show Canada the wonderful work that this organization is doing.

We were picked up promptly at our guest house at 9:30 this morning and greeted kindly by Ahmed, Mohamed, and Youmna. During our drive to our first destination, Youmna translated as Mohamed told us of the success that each project has had. We were impressed to hear about the progress that they have made in Egypt.

The population of Cairo alone is 20 million and with so many people, countries like Egypt must rely on outside foreign aid. What draws us to Plan even more is how they not only offer a solution, but make sure that it is sustainable. Before deciding to ride for Plan, (formerly Foster Parent’s Plan) we had always thought of them as strictly helping one child at a time. This is not the case. When a person sponsors a child, they are actually sponsoring projects most needed in the community. Whether it be clean water, a playground or a school. They look for where the aid is needed most and provide it. In the case of Egypt we visited 5 destinations.

Our fist stop was a youth community center. What used to be a polluted pool of water surrounded by garbage and full of disease is now a clean tiled playground where children can safely play football and ping pong while interacting with other children in the community. Inside, there are computers, a gymnasium and a hall for community celebrations. It truly is a success story.

Our next stop was located in the poorest neighbourhood of Cairo. The streets were made of dirt, littered with garbage and the buildings were falling down. But as we approached the school, we were greeted by smiling, playful children who definitely give hope for the future. Plan has built the only school in the neighbourhood. A refuge that tries to keep children from dropping out by creating a positive environment. Plan has provided computers, cassette recorders, school desks and a playground as well as training programs for teachers. They also act as a liason between families and the school board, and educate the community about children’s rights.

This city is gigantic and many of the children never get out of their neighbourhood. The school offers them a chance through field trips to see other parts of Cairo. It can be a real inspiration for them. The head minister of the school was so proud and we were so very grateful to them for letting us visit. Plus we were treated to a stanza of his beautiful poetry. The students were extremely excited to see us and I must say that I think that we disrupted their exams. Everyone wanted to shake our hands and say hello and our spirits were lifted by meeting them. When it was time to leave, all of the children ran down the street following our van, but we had to move on to our next destination.

The CBR – The Community Based Rehabilitation Project is a project that truly touches our heart.

Up until 5 years ago, children with disabilities were shunned by their community. Mothers were struggling with heartbreak and little hope. But the CBR changed all that. Plan started this program and now the people have learned to sustain it for themselves. Plan taught the board members how to write proposals to obtain funding, and with the help of the government, the community and Plan, they will be expanding throughout the country.

At this building, mothers can drop in with their baby’s and toddlers anytime to work on motor skills and speech therapy. As they grow older, they move to a group where 3 days a week, they play games, sports and work on crafts. Because of this project, they are now accepted into the community and are able to help out at home. They are even taught trades.

Last year one child went to the Special Olympics and won gold, something to be very proud of.

The older children play games and we were allowed to watch them play a game of bowling. You could tell by their smiles and laughter that they were having a wonderful time. By playing these games they are learning important skills without even knowing it.

Next we moved on to see some houses and communities that Plan has helped. They have provided plumbing, clean running water and toilets to an area where they used to have to travel great distances just to have a drink of water. Now they have a legal sanitation system. We met a family that gave us pastries and they were so proud of their child who is sponsored by a man from Holland. We reiterate again, this sponsorship is for the community, but the child has the added bonus of being able to correspond with his sponsor.

Our final stop was a business set up through Plan’s micro-finance programs. Struggling families can apply for a loan to start their own business and Plan gives them 24 months at a very low interest rate to pay that back. People who otherwise would never be able to finance a project themselves are now given the opportunity to fulfill their dreams. Once they have paid off their debt, Plan takes that money and refinances another entrepreneur.

The project we visited today was a furniture making business. These craftsman were friendly and proud of their family business. They take their beautiful hand made furniture to the market and sell it to tourists. So the next time you are haggling over a few dollars, remember, many of these crafts are hand made over 15 days by talented and hard working families. We know we will think of it next time.

Our trip today was an incredible experience, we are so lucky as Canadians to have all of the opportunities that we have. People face enormous problems in this world and by doing our own small part, we are hoping that we can at least bring awareness to more people about how much help is actually needed.

We have all heard the rumours that Aid money never gets to where it is supposed to go, but today we saw first hand, the difference that Plan is making in a community that would otherwise have little hope.

Many thanks to Plan and everyone involved who sacrificed their holiday today to bring around to these destinations. The hospitality that we were shown today will stay with us.

We will be online again, on the 11th to give and update of our Nile cruise and Riders meeting. Unfortunately we have to leave our Dahab Guesthouse and go back to the tourist trappings of the Cataract Resort where the internet costs $13 per hour. Here we have wireless for free and we have made good friends with Mohamed and Amir at the front desk. We will miss this place, but we know that we are going to meet amazing people along the way.

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The White Desert of Egypt, Don’t Miss it!

White Desert Egpt

About 2 weeks before we left Toronto, we read an article in Mountain Life Magazine about the White Desert in Egypt. It looked like a fascinating place and we decided that we have to go there. Our bike route however, didn’t go near the place because it is situated in the centre of the country. For sure this would be one expensive and long trip, so it was doubtful that we would make it there during the short time that we had before the race.

However, along Dahab Hostel who asked us if we would like to do a 3 day trip to the White Desert for a bargain price of 450e ($80) per person for 2 nights, 3 days, all meals and transfers included, camping in the White Desert, a visit to the hot springs and a 4X4 ride in the sand dunes that we won’t soon forget. How could we pass it up?

It turned out to be a great trip.

We hopped on our coach for the 5 hour ride into the desert. I knew that Egypt was a dry country, but I didn’t realize just how much of it is desert. The entire country (so far) is sand, sand and more sand.

We made it to Bahariya by 2:30 in the afternoon, we were fed a traditional Bedouin meal of red sauce and potato, with rice, pita and sweet tea. Delicious. Then we were promptly off, right after the guys bought a Bedouin head dress. We travelled through the black desert and climbed a high peak overlooking the amazing desert vista. Black pebbles caused by erosion in the mountains covered the entire desert, turning it to an ominous dark shade. We carried on through a couple of security check points and once we passed through the second one, we instantly entered the white terrain that looked as if a blanket of snow had landed on the ground.

White monoliths jutted out of the landscape, but nothing compared to our final destination…Our campsite was surrounded by the most amazing rock formations I have ever seen resembling mushrooms, camels and hawks. These pure white and smooth shapes were scattered throughout the area. We were surprised to see that when we touched the rock, it was actually chalk. We climbed atop one of the formations and watched the sun go down.

All this time, our guides were preparing dinner and putting our camp together. Once the sun had set, it was nice to have a warm fire to sit beside until dinner was served at our Bedouin style camp. All that was protecting us was 3 walls of material to block the wind, the front was open to the fire and our roofless shelter revealed the starry sky. Awesome.

We ate our red sauce and potato with rice plus the added bonus of a delicious fire roasted chicken But that was the end of the hospitality. Our guides were done with us, they sat by the fire drinking tea and smoking sheesha while we all sat around the table slowly chilling to the bone.

Our Guide, White Desert

More guides arrived and they had a grand old time drinking more tea and blocking us from the fire until finally we asked them for blankets so we could go to bed. Surprisingly, it wasn’t a bad sleep. Heavy blankets and sleeping bags kept us fairly warm until a nose, ear or hand popped out from underneath the covers, but to fall asleep under a clear desert sky while being entertained by shooting stars made it all worth while.

We all awoke cold and achy in the dark to witness the sun rise over the white stones. Beautiful.

After a quick breakfast, we packed up camp and made our way back to Bahariya, stopping at sights along the way and by mid-afternoon, we were off 4X4ing in the desert on our way to the hot springs. Our driver was insane, but a lot of fun. He had a brilliant smile and kind eyes and gave us a thrill as we raced through the dunes. At one point we became stuck on a steep incline and I was sure that we were going to roll. After what seemed like forever, he finally figured out his path, and we went tearing off again. The ride was long and full of excitement as people were tossed about and sometimes hitting their heads on the roof. I thought Peru was scary and we were strapped in to a dune buggy, this was crazy sitting in the back of a 4X4 with no seat belts. We made it safe and sound though, laughing from the adrenaline rush and ready to relax in the springs.

Our Jeep in the White Desert, Egypt

That however, was not an option. It makes me laugh to think that this is actually an attraction. A concrete vat with luke warm water running through pipes into a dirty pool. There was not a chance that any of us were going into that. Eww! Instead, we had some tea with the gatekeeper and ate some fresh dates, while one of the drivers fixed his front tire. Then it was back to the 4X4 stopping to climb a mountain, seeing some more sights and then home in time for dinner.

It is now 3 days later and we are back in Cairo, sipping beer on the rooftop patio again working at our free wireless internet in Dahab Hostel. Not bad for $6 a night.

Tomorrow we are off to several Plan Projects, bright and early. We can’t wait to show you the great work that they are doing as we travel down through Africa. Watch for our update tomorrow night.

The White Desert, Egypt

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Hello Cairo

The call to prayers are playing in the distance as I write my first entry from Cairo enjoying a local beer on the rooftop patio of the Dahab Hostel. The mystical city that tops almost everyones must see list has finally revealed itself to us.

We arrived 1 1/2 hours late on January 3rd, but our driver was waiting patiently to pick us up at the airport. We cannot tell you what a great feeling it was to see our names written on cardboard after 12 hours of travelling. I don’t think that we could have handled trying to find a taxi, haggle over a price and make our way to our hotel with our backpacks and giant bike boxes in tow.

The Cataract Pyramid Hotel was pleasant enough with swimming pool, a couple of restaurants and close to the pyramids, but quite isolated from everything. We made our way downtown to a small guest house in the heart of the city and we feel more at home experiencing the real Cairo, eating local food and chatting with local people.

But before I go on, I have to tell you about our day at the “Main Event,” here in Egypt. The Pyramids.

We have been to Machu Picchu, Tikal, Angkor Wat and Chitzen itza, but there has always been a draw to see the mother of all temple and ruins, the Pyramids of Giza. And they have delivered.

We rode around the massive desert grounds on camel and horseback, checking out the Sphinx and the 3 main pyramids, Cheops, Chephren and Mycerinus. It was magical. We were so happy that our driver, Iman talked us into seeing them by camel. We mounted our rides at a small shop several blocks from the sight and made our way through the labyrinth of alley ways where we entered the sight through the back door. Three hours exploring the grounds stopping for photos and learning about the history gave us our fill and we topped it off with a nice shot of Turkish Coffee while we were treated to a display of fragrances with hopes that we would buy. Little did they know that we may have smiles on our faces, but we had no intention of buying a thing! Our pyramid tour was now over and on to the rest of the attractions.

Our day today consisted of checking out of the Cataract who is storing our bikes and moving to the Dahab. I highly recommend this place. Quiet, friendly and a fantastic location We walked to the Egyptian Antiquities Museum just a couple of blacks away and had a great lunch a the El Tahir restaurant trying the local dish Kushani, a noodle, rice lentil and onion dish in a spicy tomato sauce. Mmm Mmm Good and even better that it was less than a dollar per person.

We are off to the white desert tomorrow for 3 days, so we will be off line for a little bit, but back with more pictures on the evening of the 8th. On the 9th, we are visiting a Plan Canada Project which we are really looking forward to and we will be posting our photos from the experience that evening. The 11th is our riders meeting and can you believe it, we leave the next day for our 12,000 km odyssey. Man we are psyched.

Be sure to check out our photos in our gallery. We have the pyramids added!

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