Over the past few months I’ve spent a reasonable amount of time emailing people and generally talking to people about this adventure Nick and I are going on. Around January I started the email or conversation something like this:

I’m vaguely thinking about going on a little bike ride…

Then, when things started getting serious, that transitioned to:

I’m probably going on a stupid bike ride/I’m planning on doing a bit of cycling soon…

Yesterday, with only about 60 hours left in Kampala I found myself writing an email beginning with “I’m planning on leaving Kampala in a couple of days before flying to Cape Town on the 10th April…” and it suddenly struck me. “Planning”?! You plan to go out for dinner in a couple of days, not get on a flight you’ve already booked. I guess I’ve been so busy with work, saying goodbye to people and, ironically, preparing for this trip that the full gravity of what we’re about to do hadn’t sunk in. It has now. And somehow, I’m even more excited.

A quick word on charity

Nick has written a very good article on this topic but I felt I should probably address it as well. I’m not ashamed to say we’re not doing this for charity – we’re doing it because it sounds like fun. It’s not that I don’t believe in charity, it’s more that I don’t want to guilt people into feeling they have to donate money. I’m doing something that I want to do and I don’t think that should have any bearing on whether or not anyone else gives any money to any charity.

That being said, if I had decided to do this trip for charity I probably would have chosen to raise money for School for Life. I know first-hand how committed these guys are and that the work they are doing is truly outstanding. You can find out more about them on their website or even donate if you wish.