White Water Rafting and Soft Power Education

Everyone who was able to participate would agree that our White Water Rafting Trip was an experience that we will never forget. From the moment we arrived at the rafting company’s office, we knew we would enjoy ourselves, as we were greeted by the friendly rafting guides and a hearty breakfast. Then, we traveled about an hour through the village to our start point on the Nile River–a place most of us had only learned about in history courses. Our guide, Brett, made us very comfortable in the raft, as he was knowledgeable and skilled at his job. To add to that sense of comfort, he was a near twin to Matthew McCaughnehey, which had us six girls drooling. Together, we all made quite the team paddling through level five rapids without a problem. We even went down a small waterfall!

After our rafting adventure, we spent the night at the River Camp, which was provided in our rafting fee. There, we lounged out by the pool overlooking the Nile River, played cards, and swooned over Brett some more. Our very relaxing evening at the River Camp will be followed by two more next week during free travel, which we are looking forward to!

The morning after rafting, we started our volunteer project with Soft Power Education. Sophie, our contact, gave us a tour of their Education Center and an overview about what their organization is all about. Their work involves empowering schools in the community, building and revamping classrooms and providing general education to the community members. We have been living in a classroom at one of the village’s schools, toiling away at painting three large classrooms. Though the days are long and the sun hot, we have been able to keep quite a positive attitude at the work site, thanks to Michael Jackson’s beats blasting in the background. We can’t wait to see the finished product of our painting!

Until next time,
Carpe Diem East  Africa