Oi! Where did the canal go?
It seems only yesterday that Jamie Parker, Brady Roberts, Pete Griffiths and I (we few, we happy few etc) were stomping, hobbling and dragging ourselves along the 147 miles of the Grand Union Canal from London to Birmingham in pursuit of cash for Project: Itete. Six and a half days of pain and hundred of Compeed blister plasters later we were successful as the sun shone to welcome us to Birmingham’s Gas Street Basin and a welcome fit for heroes. Oh the Guinness tasted sweet that day. Curiously our success was down not to peak physical fitness, determination and strength, but Mars bars and show tunes and half remembered soul. In the end, it was Labi Siffre who got us through.Project: Itete
But work waits for no man. Although the glory of achievement added a cushion to one’s office chair for a while, we were soon back into the swing of things as much is going on in the world of African Space. On the weekend of 22 to 23 October we will be exhibiting at stand 620 at the Dive Show 2011 at the NEC Birmingham with our new partners, South African Airways and the KwaZuluNatal Tourism Authority. We are very excited to be working with such prestigious partners, so please come along to say hi and see what else we can interest you in the beautiful land that is South Africa. But don’t forget Tanzania is very much still in our hearts along with the new African destinations that will be announced shortly.
This ol’ website will also be getting a facelift soon, making it easier for you, our dear customers, have a better website experience. The deadline for completion isn’t set, but keep your eyes peeled for announcements.
Kitesurfers are out in Egypt, Zanzibar and Egypt really pushing the boundaries of African Space. The guys pull some amazing tricks and we are extremely proud of our association with Lewis Crathern (the Brighton Pier jumper), who leads one of our trips to Egypt later this month.
And then word is spreading overseas as to the African Space experience. We are working with prospective partners to offer our take on Africa to our friends overseas. It looks like people want to hear good news stories from Africa and though times are hard, still want to travel to the continent that never really lets you go.
In essence, this should all keep us out of trouble, but we can’t promise anything. Winter holds Egyptian adventures and Tanzanian mountain recces and then another year of African discovery. Happy days! Right, where did I put that spreadsheet. Oh, hang on, it’s Friday – surely spreadsheets are banned?
