Memories of Nepal
From Tuesday, 27 June to Saturday, 15 July, 16 Haileybury students embarked on an 18-day trip to Nepal. Their journey consisted of seven days of trekking through the Annapurna region, and five days of community service at the Nagajuna School in Pokhara.
They were accompanied by Ms Tamsin Visick and Mr Eamonn Johnson, who shared their valuable insight into leadership and resilience throughout the trip.
From Day 4 to Day 10, we completed the Poon Hill trek in the Annapurna region, led by our guide, Birsingh, and his incredible World Expeditions team. This involved navigating impressive mountain views, rushing waterfalls and rural villages and meeting the occasional water buffalo along the way. Despite the adversities we faced in rain, leeches and sickness, we persevered and enjoyed a truly extraordinary experience.
The second section of the trip involved community service at the Nagajuna School in Pokhara, which gives rural children access to quality education. Haileybury has been involved in several projects at the school. During this trip, we painted and organised a library that was funded by the recent initiatives of Haileybury Middle School students.
Our other projects included painting the boys’ and girls’ dormitories and the stairwell and teaching two classes each to the Nagajuna students. There was a wide variety of lessons, such as AFL, bracelet making, reading and art. We created murals for the library and stairwell that featured educational material and Australian iconography.
All 1,700 library books were separated into genres and indexed by hand. On the final day of the community service, the library was formally opened, and students were encouraged to borrow their first library book.
Overall, the experience gave us a sense of purpose and accomplishment and encouraged each of us to reflect on ourselves and our values. A key feature of the trip was the new friendships that we made, with our peers and with the people we met in Nepal.
The Nepal trip supports the Adventurous Journey and Gold Residential Project sections of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, an internationally recognised youth program. All Senior School students are welcome to attend the outdoor experiences offered during Terms 1 and 2 and at end of year term breaks. Trips are advertised through Insight and on the Haileybury Duke of Edinburgh Canvas page — In2Adventure.
If you are interested in completing the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, please contact Tasmin Visick via email.