So here I am. I made it back in one piece and this is my video blog of the first Blood, Sweat and Compassion challenge.

 5,895 metres. Walk up. Walk down. Don’t die – that’s the plan!

Going into this, I really wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew it would be hard and the main challenge would probably come from coping with the altitude, but other than that I really didn’t know much about it. I drew my strength from knowing that so many people had done it before me and that kept any lingering doubts at bay.

We landed in Nairobi airport on the evening of Thursday 12th January. The team met eight hours earlier at the check-in desk at Terminal 5. Everyone seemed so prepared, with all the latest climbing gear. Clearly, everyone else had thought every detail through, gathered as much advice as they could and spent the last few months planning and visualising this once in a lifetime opportunity. I, on the other hand, had scrambled together all of my kit at the last minute, borrowing important items from friends and family in the hope that it will be alright on the day. Not the best preparation!

The following day we had a blessed time at a Child Survival Programme project in Nairobi. The church who ran the project gave us a warm welcome, introduced us to the mothers and sent us on a home visit . In the video below you’ll see the moment we stepped into the slum house of a CSP mother and she told us how Compassion had impacted her family’s life.

We spent the whole of the next day driving south into Tanzania, to the hotel buried deep within the foothills of Kilimanjaro. Before going up for my last night in a proper bed, I decided to record my thoughts and feelings…

 In this video we visit a Child Survival Programme and then we all pack into a mini bus and drive over to a slum where one of the mothers lives. She invites us into her home to tell us about her life and how Compassion is helping.

Click here to read day 2

Author: Joe

I live in south London and am passionate about the Church. I love Compassion because it is so kingdom orientated and Christ-centred. Keep your eye out for my video blogs. I have one of when I climbed Mount KIlimanjaro in January 2012 to raise money for some Leadership Development Programme students. I also recorded a video blog of when I met my sponsored child, Wisdom in Kenya.

Tags: blood sweat and compassion, child sponsorship, compassion, kenya, kilimanjaro, nairobi, tanzania