Alex Stuerke is our student writer today and you will enjoy the adventure the group had today in discovering Botswana.
“Today was a perfect combination of peaceful relaxation and strenuous physical endurance. We were able to sleep in for the first time in two weeks (until 9:45 am – yay!), before heading out for a hike. I’ll admit that when I heard the word “hike,” I was thinking that it would really just consist of a semi-challenging walk up one of the rolling hills of Botswana. Well, let’s just say that the so-called “hill” was slightly more intense than I had anticipated.”
“Fortunately, the hill-mountain was located very close to a mall, so a few people ended up walking over there and spending their afternoon relaxing in a familiar way. They went to see the movie “Slumdog Millionaire.” I have wanted to see that for months now, so I was a little disappointed that I missed out on seeing it with them. On the other hand, the experience that the rest of us shared was nothing less than extraordinary.”
“After hiking for 30 minutes or so, we made it! That might not sound like a strenuous hike, but when you’re going straight up the incline of the hill, using a staircase of sometimes unsteady rocks while dodging all kinds of prickly plants…it becomes much more intense. A few of us decided to challenge ourselves even more by hiking a little higher up the hill. The view from the top was absolutely breathtaking, and the camaraderie that we built in hiking to that point made every step of the journey so worth it.”
“Tonight we’re looking forward to relaxing and spending time with Dr. Musa Dube, a professor from the University of Botswana who previously was at Vanderbilt. We read three of her brilliantly-written articles, and I know that we are all very much looking forward to gleaning as much wisdom from her as we possibly can. Love to everyone back in the U.S.!”
Thanks Alex, I thought our readers would enjoy your entry about our adventure today. Okay everyone, I just want you to know that no student or faculty member was in danger on the hike. Just continue thinking and praying for us and we will see you in one week.
Until next time.
Bernard