I am now back from my travels from the Zugspitze and also the Oktoberfest, of which more later. This is a brief dedication to Paul and Darina, who for those of you who have followed this page for some time, will know were away last week on a trip to attempt to summit the world’s highest free standing mountain, a certain Mount Kilimanjaro.

Well I was the happiest person alive (apart from them, I am sure) last Saturday morning, to get the following text:

“We made it, summited today. Tired. Catch up later. Darina”

If I told you that I was choked with happiness to receive this, then it would be a huge understatement. I told Heather at the time (we were sat in a mountain hut watching the weather in Germany) and I could hardly get the words out of my mouth. It more than made up for my disappointment of not being able to climb up the Zugspitze that very same day (of which more in a later post too, it can wait).

So please go and see their blog (http://mykilimanjarotrek.blogspot.com), donate some money to multiple sclerosis, or just enjoy the fact that they did it. It is wonderful, it really is.

I consider myself very very lucky to have come across two people as lovely as Darina and Paul. And I did so via this blog. They are simply two of the nicest, most genuine people you could ever meet.

I just knew that they would summit, and I hoped and prayed for them and their safe travels. To get that message was fantastic, and I look forward to hear more about their adventures when they return – they are right now I believe enjoying a very well earned safari, somewhere in the Serengeti.

So to Paul and Darina – well done my friends. You have been to a sacred place, where few will ever tread. It is the roof of Africa, and one of the ‘seven summits’ (representing the highest peaks on the seven continents). At just short of 20,000 feet (and 45% of sea level oxygen) a place where you rely on all of your senses and strength at once to get you to succeed in an atmosphere which tells you that you shouldn’t.

I am massively massively happy for you.

To Paul and Darina: Hakuna Matata, you are both ‘Poa K’chisi Kama N’Dizi’! (that’s the limit of my Swahili I am afraid:))

Can’t wait to see a picture of the certificates.

Happy happy days:):):):)