Update from Brisbane Girls Grammar School in Borneo

Hi all, Its been a while since our last update and we have had a very busy week and a half with the project and the climb. We set off for the project not knowing what to expect however were very pleased at the end of the five days, The work was gruelling - lugging wood and concrete bags of up to 25kg's up a massive hill, sawing, hammering, shovelling, you name it. At the time we were all very tired and the heat didnt help but the experience was so rewarding as we could physcially see our progress as the walls of the pre-school appeared and the area of concrete floor expanded.

The people at the project were warm, welcoming and lovely. They made every effort to make sure we were comfortable and the food was divine. On the first and last day the villagers threw ceremonys for us, the first of which was a welcoming and "stay safe" ceremony and the latter a goodbye ceremony. On the last night all of us dressed up in traditional clothing and learnt the Iban dances and then followed to teach the children some "traditional" western dance including the macarina, twist, chicken dance and krumping. This was a particularly special night as we later learnt that the adult villagers, who got up to dance with us as the night progressed, are typically very modest and would normally never get up and get their groove on.

On the last day the chiefs son and Gary - the spiritual leader - said a farewell speech and we gave the villagers small presents which they were delighted to recieve. Upon leaving the chief's son and Gary hugged us which is also something they have never done before and the women of the tribe wept whilst the children held our hands down to the longboat and waved us off. It was amazing to experience this minimalist lifestyle and heartwarming to see the impact we made on the tribe. We hope they will be hugging all day long and dancing to western beats for as long as they live.

From here we went to embark on the dreaded ascent up Mt Kinabalu. We began the day at 6.30 with a buffet breakfast to ensure we hd enough energy for the day. We only climbed the first 6 kilometers to Laban Rata - a halfway resthouse. It took the group between 6 and 8 torturous hourse to make it here and at around 3.00 it began to rain cats and dogs and girls found themselves clambering up rocky hills which turned into waterfalls in desperation to get to shelter or Laban Rata. All girls and teachers made it to Laban Rata which was a fantastic and admirable effort however not everyone summited due to illness and injury. The next morning was a very early start indeed at 2.00 for the girls to begin the summit. The girls found this particularly challenging however made it up to the summit in around 4 hours, just in time for sunrise.

Two days later and many of us cannot sit down without groaning and walking down stairs is a particulary funny site - 19 robust individuals grappling for the railing to or slowly lowering themselves down one set at a time moeaning the whole way. Today we have been exploring Sepilok and will be travelling Sandakan tomorrow to see the War Memorial and other sites before beginning our trip home.

Hope everyone is well and we are counting down the days till we can see you all again. If we don't speak again then we will see you on monday night at the airport. Miss and Love you all,

Team Kebersamaan Brisbane Girls Grammar School