Completion

So after ten days of hard word, what have we achieved?
We have worked at the centre for about 900 hours which has saved the centre approximately £4,500 in labour costs.
Our expedition encouraged the centre to start the second phase of their project.
Our presence at the centre and the work we were doing helped the fundraisers there to persuade donors to give the centre more money and materials.
We developed the experience and skills of all participants who successfully communicated with the Slovaks even without any knowledge of the Slovak language, successfully travelled around the city on public transport, successfully coped with difficulties such as a lack of hot water, different food and hot weather.
Well done everyone.

Julians message

Hi all
It has been a warm week so far, 35 degrees in the shade, so a good oppurtunity to tan, or in case of alot of people burn on the roof. I have met many people, and we have seen a few celebritys so far including Chuck Norris in the waterpark yesterday, Wayne Rooney on the auto bus, and Father Jack everywhere.
The waterpark was good, the massage was relaxing, but i was slightly dissapointed when it turned out to be a fat man with giant hands as the masseur. But apart from that it was a good day.
Looking forward to returning, hopefully it will be a bit cooler in England, see everyone soon
Julian

LEE

hi all,
it is apso;utly boiling over here today, having to work is a nightmare, we have to stop every 10 mins to take on some water. yesterday was great at the waterpark, it was even hotter yesterday. i had a 45 min massage it was luxary. the work is hard, mainly because of the weather. its really good how everyone has bonded together. ive made sonme great friends, both english and solvakian. thats about it really from me, only a couple days till we come honme.
see you all soon

Alex

Hi all, just thought i would add a few opinions to the blog, however not much news to tell as most stories have already been told. The few trips we have been on have been an amazing experience and I have seen many new and wonderful sights ranging from decorative buildings to underground caves to undescribable mountains. Today has been very hot especially for working conditions and a think a few of us now have sunburn. We have also been to a local lake this evening, which was very enjoyable and a good laugh watching everyone attempt to water ski. I am very much looking foward to the Aqua park tomorrow and the massage that a few of us have opted for. I think the standard of living here is very good and has exceeded my expectations, the room we are sleeping is pleasant and the food made for us by the wonderful Helenka is a good taste of the Slovakian culture. Work has been demanding and a lot of effort has been put in by everyone. Although the expedition is going well and it is an experience like no other (in a good way obviously) it will be nice to come home on friday to see friends and family. Alex

Reece - Working in 40 degrees!

Hi all.



The weather here is fantastic and yesterday the hike to the Tatra mountains was an unbelievable experience. Looking over the edge of a cliff is not for the feint hearted and Sam proved that to be true. The chair lift up was funny for most as Chris James doesn't like heights and this was topped off by the whole lift stopping for a few minutes half way up. His screams were deafening and Mr Taylor's attempt to jump off his chair was quite a picture. I will try to add it later.

Today we have all been put to work in 40 degree heat. I have broken a wheelbarrow, many tools have seen better days and bricks smashed, however, everyone is still as keen as mustard and the work is being completed faster than anyone expected.

We will go swimming in a local lake later and the cool water will be a well needed luxury.

Many of the residents are wearing the Bandvulc T-Shirts which I gave out a few days ago and they all seem very grateful although I'm not sure they understand 'High Speed Humpin'.

So I will return to work once more. I can't believe we only have 4 days left!

Reece x

Planes, trains and automobiles

Sunday did not see a lie in and everyone was up at 0600 as normal. Today we experienced a variety of modes of transport. The first was an electric bus (1) which took us to the railway station. We quickly occupied three compartments on the train (2) and made our way to the city of Poprad where we took a tram (3) to Stary Smokovec. There we boarded a funicular (4) to climb up the High Tatra mountain range.

The Tatras have convenient chalets along walking routes for refreshments and conveniences so before we started on our walk we took advantage of using the toilets. Entertainingly you had to guess how much paper you needed and take those sheets with you into the toilets with you. There was no paper inside the cubicles.

We started our walk going down to another chalet and further down to the bottom of the valley where the water was crystal clear. The rest of the walk was up, up and up.

After passing some waterfalls and lots of climbing we reached Strbske pleso a mountain lake. Unfortunately, swimming was not allowed. The cable car to the top of Lomnicky stit (2634m) was already fully booked so we took a chair lift (4) to Lomnicky saddle (c2400m). Even those with vertigo survived the ride even when the chair lift ground to a halt. We then made our way back down the mountain via cable car (5) where we had dinner in a traditional Slovak restaurant. Once full we trammed it back to Poprad and trained it back to Kosice. Our final mode of transport was the automobile (6) to take us back to the Dorka centre and straight to bed.

Saturday

Having moved onto different work has created much excitement in the team. Sam has been very excited to use the drills to make holes for the foundations for the Extension. Lee can barely stop himself from exploding with excment. Morale has shot up after the change to our work routine.
Together Illya and Flt Lt Aala use their combined Russian and Slovak to communicate with the professional builder helping out today.
Yesterday evening some of the older orphans who are resident at the centre invited us to the local bowling alley. We all seemed to assume that someone else had paid for the bowling so we were quite surprized when the guy came running after us when we left asking for some money.
The weather is improving and time outside is also making the whole project more enjoyable. Sunday will be a day off and we shall be going for a trip to the mountains.