2011 continues to be a very exciting year for all Quivertree families! After recently adding Thailand, Morocco and Turkey to our growing list of terrific destinations, we will next focus on Europe. France and Spain will be on offer in March and Greece and Italy are set to follow in the next few months. But these will not be 'regular' or 'traditional' European vacations. Instead, we will create interesting, fun and adventurous family trips. Whether it be off the beaten path adventures in Corsica (France), hiking and cycling in Italy, or staying in castles or on farms in Spain, Europe for families is amazing!  

Then, in the second half of the year, after some research trips, we will most likely be adding Peru and Ecuador. Add the mystery of Machu Picchu, the color and excitement of Cuzco and the fantastic markets of Ecuador, and you have a trip of a lifetime.

Watch this space...

Fabulous Spain for families

First up this month we have Jonas, Adrienne and their kids who recently went on a Quivertree trip to India. Here is their report of a great trip!

What's in it for the kids?

India!

We recently came back from a 2 week vacation in Rhajasthan, India with our 3 children, ages 8, 6 and 3 years. What a fascinating, enriching experience it was. We did the more touristy palaces and fortresses in the big cities (Jaipur, Udaipur, Agra), which were really impressive. However it was the smaller, out-of-the-way villages and our meetings with the local people that truly made a special and more long lasting impression.

We stopped spontaneously at a Primary school in the village of Deogarh Mahal. The head teacher was delighted to welcome us and warmly took us through the classrooms. " But they don't have lockers, mommy" said Alice (8 years). Nor did they have desks or chairs. In the grade 1 class, a tiny boy ran

to the front on his teacher's orders and started belting out - what we slowly understood was the ABC. The children were so proud of what they knew. I went to the front of the class with Emily (6 years) and we sang our ABC version for them. What excitement and appreciation. Alice insisted on going straight to the market thereafter to buy pencils for all the children- a small gift she was delighted to give out to them.

India!

We made a visit to a center run by an NGO in Jaipur called LADLI. They rescue street children and teach them crafts and jewellery making (www.ladli.org ). We spent 2 hours chatting, playing and interacting with the children. Alice helped me choose 2 beautiful necklaces they had made that I bought for myself. The questions my children asked before and after our visit were astounding: What happened to them? What will they do? Where will they live? And many more. They were able to relate to these children after meeting them, and empathize with them.

In Ranakpur we visited a Jain temple, where a priest came over to us and offered to pray for us. We sat close together in this beautiful temple in the forest, he crossed his legs, closed his eyes and proceeded to sing/chant in his language, all apparently on our behalf. This was our closest spiritual experience on this trip - hopefully we will have more on future trips. The children were extremely interested in his beliefs, his clothes, his customs etc.

Yes our children are certainly young for such a trip. These are just 3 instances we had that show how children are exposed to another culture, customs, way of life,that form an invaluable life experience for them. When they are older this type of experience could be extended - I think of pen-friends, socialinvolvement in favourite projects and more. We definitely intend to continue doing these kinds of amazing trips with our children.

At Quivertree, adventure and exploration is in our blood. We love exploring new destinations, and part of our mission is to introduce the same thrill of adventure and discovery to families from all over the world.

We are thrilled this month to have a famous and distinguished explorer contribute to our newsletter. Les Jickling, together with fellow adventurer, Mark Tanner, became the first person to paddle the entire length of the Nile River in 2005. Braving the elements, local conflicts, wild animals and sometimes unsympathetic locals, Jickling and Tanner achieved a feat that had been unobtainable since the arrival of the first European explorers in the area in 1613! Their voyage of discovery took 148 days and they covered over 5000 kilometers, paddling their rafts without any power source apart from their own strength. Les Jickling asserts his copyright over the article and the photography.

Les' piece is titled "A Night in the Bell Tower". Enjoy!

"I'd better go have a look," I said.

That was the fall of 2003 and I was heading to Ethiopia to assess the viability of paddling the Blue Nile. At that time, the river hadn't been paddled from source to sea and my friend Mark Tanner and I wanted to be the first. The trouble was, neither of us had any paddling experience.

I was no expert and wasn't sure what I'd be looking for, but it seemed like a good idea to take a look before making any further plans. The Blue Nile empties out of one of Africa's largest lakes so that seemed like a good place to start.

Just getting out to the lake was no small adventure. I decided to go overland and hitched a ride with 5 young Ethiopian men on their way home from Addis Ababa. They tried to overcharge me so I told them I'd pay full fare if they could show me 3 interesting things. On the way they showed me a remote mountaintop monastery, wild marmots, and a collection of burned out tanks. At Lake Tana I paid them in full. Fair enough.

Getting onto the lake proved to be more difficult. It was late afternoon and boats don't venture onto the lake unless they have sufficient time to get back. The lake is so big that in the middle it's sometimes impossible to see land in any direction. Getting stuck on Lake Tana at night is known to be a bad idea. But sometimes that's how it goes.

We got caught in a ferocious storm with blue sheets of lightening sweeping across the lake, rain bucketing down and water spilling over the sides of the boat. To survive, we decided to hide out in one of the island monasteries. When we reached shore our boatman jumped out, kissed the earth, and began praying. The monks we so terrified by our arrival that they locked the monastery and we were forced to sleep in the bell tower. Lightening cracked overhead and the rain was so heavy it was like we were being shelled. That night I lay down and felt like I was a long, long way from home.

But there is something about adventure travel that gets into your blood. In the morning I was overcome with a sense of exhilaration. A week later I flew home to Canada and reported to Mark that I hadn't seen much of the river but that the lake had been exciting. The taste for adventure seemed to be contagious.

Tank outside Bahir Dar

"But did you see anything that would actually stop us from paddling the river?"

"Well, the river isn't Blue," I reported, "It's actually thick brown and full of silt."

Mark didn't seem to think that was any reason to change the plans. I explained that during the monsoon the Blue Nile is one of the most ferocious rivers in the world. In its storied 100 year history of exploration the river has claimed at least one life for every 2 attempts on the river.

"So what do we do?" he asked.

"What do we do?" I intoned, "I can't wait to get back there."

The following year we became the first to paddle the river from source to sea.

Follow Les' adventures at http://www.NileFlood.com