Signing Off

This is it, the final blog entry...

The 26 hour journey home doesn't bear thinking about, let alone writing about. It was grim. That rickety seven hour bus journey that was so engrossing and exciting 10 days ago is nothing more than a uncomfortable nuisance on the way back.

The only other significant thing to note is that our plane hit such bad turbulence (people were literally crying with fear) I honestly thought I was going to be sucked out of a window at 20,000ft and I wouldn't get an opportunity to tell anyone about my little adventure. I actually chuckled at the irony of this as I grasped my armrests for dear life.

Life back home has been... odd. After the initial joy and excitement of being reunited with my family and my pets finally wore off I've been left feeling mildly depressed. If I'm honest, I've been using this blog as an excuse to extend the experience for as long as possible. When I hit the 'post' button in a few minutes time, it'll finally all be over...

Climbing Kilimanjaro was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life but it was also the most rewarding. People told me that it would change my life and they've been proved right. All I want to do now is have adventures, climb mountains and make new friends. Real life feels mundane in comparison and I want to push myself even further next time. I miss the sense of adventure, I miss the comradeship and I even miss the bloody thermarest. I don't want Kilimanjaro to be "a once in a lifetime experience", I want it to be the start of many more life-changing experiences to come.

So, just to warn you, I intend to sign up for another trek in either 2010 or early 2011. It's currently a toss-up between Everest Base Camp, Stok Kangri in India, or Aconcagua in the Andes. I need another goal. Soon. Besides, what else am I going to do with all of this equipment?

Hey, perhaps Charity Challenge can employ me as an official blogger and videographer and I could give up my full-time job and do this for a living? No? Oh well, you can't blame a man for trying...

Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed these blog entries and videos. If you are planning to climb Kili and you stumbled across my ramblings then I hope you've found them useful and I haven't put you off. You'll have the time of your life, I swear. And to anyone seriously thinking about taking on a challenge like this: do it. You won't regret it. And forget Chris Moyles. If I can do it...

If you have enjoyed this blog then please show your appreciation (if you haven't already) by making a small donation to our charity, UNICEF. Our donation page will be open for another six months so please give what you can. It was the whole point of the exercise, after all.

And finally, I'd like to sign off by thanking Palma and Paul for being the perfect companions on this adventure. They put up my moods, my bad jokes, my video camera shenanigans and my paranoia. I couldn't have done it without them.

So how about it, guys. Fancy another one?

Cheers

Neil

Comments

[Jane Moneypenny]

I stumbled across your blog while looking for people's experiences. I'm going in late September and incredibly terrified, but reading this has helped a little. Thanks!!

[Nick Pellatt]

Hi .. not sure if you still check here, but great blog. I leave a week today for Kili, and have shared your blog with one of my trip mates and she enjoyed it too!

Great reading, congrats, and best of luck for any future adventures!

nick

[Climb Kilimanjaro]

Just watched all your videos and read your blog. It was a great series and a very good summary of what it is like to climb kilimanjaro.

[sales christian louboutin]

stumbled across your blog while looking for people's experiences. I'm going in late September and incredibly

[Kilimanjaro Treks]

Amazing to climb for charity! Hopefully you climb kilimanjaro again to do more good!

[B]

Hello :)
I climbed Kili earlier this summer having read your blog beforehand, and I've just re-read it. In a strange way it has brought back so many memories for me, and our experiences were incredibly similar in places. I guess what I'm saying is nice job, and I hope you're off having similar adventures as I type this...