Raleigh in India –Life Changing Experience

Natalie Dilloway took a gap year after college and joined Raleigh's ten week expedition to India working on community, environmental and adventure projects.

I wanted to take a gap year after finishing college to gain some life experience and to get some self-confidence and independence. I was first attracted to Raleigh over other organisations as it offers destinations that interested me. I then looked into the charity further and also liked how Raleigh offers you the chance to try lots of different things, it seemed challenging and you would be thrown in with a wide range of people.

I managed to fundraise all the money for my expedition by doing a range of different things such as:

• A charity disco charging £10 a ticket and having a raffle at the disco with donated prizes.
• My father swam two miles and got sponsored by his work colleagues.
• I did a sponsored 34 mile bike ride in Cornwall with friends.
• I collected friends and family's old phones and sent them to Enviro Phone.
• I also contacted the local newspaper and radio station who I had an interview with and gave them my JustGiving donation page details.

I found it challenging to deal with so much at one time, but I loved the excitement it gave me and the achievement I felt once I had raised the total amount.

The expedition phase that I found the most challenging, enjoyed the most and as a result got the most from was the trekking phase. We had a great atmosphere in our group and we picked each other up when we were down. Even though we were trekking, we passed through villages and got the opportunity to chat to the locals. When we spent the night with families along the way we sat and spoke to them. One family even cooked us a meal. The trek puts you through many emotions but there is no better feeling than the feeling of knowing what you have achieved. The views are the most incredible things you could possibly see in your lifetime and at the end of the day it's a wonderful feeling to know that you have walked 12km, 19km, or even 26km that day.

One of the best moments on expedition for me was the last evening of the community expedition phase. The local villagers held a party for us, gave each one of us a shawl and told us how grateful they were, explaining to us the benefits of having the school we had help build and the different things it would be used for. That evening made all the challenges and hard work so worthwhile.

Every day you learn something new on Raleigh. I personally learnt that I can boost people's morale; I learnt what stresses me out and how to control my temper. I learnt to try and always smile when times were hard and above all I learnt how in life having patience is important. I feel I have gained all of this to become a better person. I plan to change my lifestyle for the better and do charity work while looking into the best way to use my new life skills.

My Raleigh adventure has changed my life forever and I will never forget the people, my time on expedition and everything I learnt.

Learn more about an expedition with Raleigh.