A big Swim for orphans in Haiti and raising money for a charity that helps! http://www.justgiving.com/Dirk-Gewert

1. Coconut break
Living in Haiti
View over Port-au-
Prince in better
times…
My room
Mardi Gras
Our house in Petionville, not far
from Port-au-Prince (that’s my
sister and I!)
The Citadel, built to stop
Napoleon from Invading (he didn't!)

2. Getting ready for a 10 kilometre swim…the training schedule
Breaking in new goggles:
peeling onions (it really works!!) Bournemouth pier-to-pier in July: a 2.5k stroll

3. Down to Devon and the River Dart.
The day before the event...lots of
mud (low tide)!

4. Happy Birthday, swimmer number 38…..1 hour to go

5. Race day is beautiful and sunny…
And the rescue teams get ready…

6. Meeting the other swimmers…
what a nice bunch of people…
Just wait ‘till we have our rubber suits on!

7. Slap on lots of shark-repelling cream Rehearse the route

8. Suit on, last minute advice from the coaching staff…

9. Let’s not forget what its all about: Raising money for
SOS Children’s Villages to support 2 orphanages in Haiti
http://www.sos-childrensvillages.org/pages/default.aspx
Not sure if yellow is
any better than the
pink!...

10. Minutes to go, and spirits are high

11. And we are off…
Notice the near-perfect arm movement…(yes, It is me!)

12. Off into the distance under the watchful
eyes of the rescue crews

13. Going round the bend….
(Compare with low tide picture earlier)

14. …including several gallons of tea and
Frenetic activity at the finish line in
hot soup…
preparation for the first arrivals….

15. Swimmer 38 appears out of the murky waters 2 hours 38 minutes after the start…

16. How was it? Wet!….

17. Did the swim, got the shirt…

18. The secret of a good swim?...Feed
the ground support crew!…
AND…

19. A small snack to regain strength….…

20. And finally, Dirks says…Mesi Anpil
(that’s Haitian Creole for Thank You) for
supporting by Big Swim for Haiti.
Donations came in from far and wide: Professors in Australia, film makers
in California, owners of a shellfish restaurant in Devon (UK), friends and family
from Canada to Spain via Brazil, Germany and the UK, neighbours from today
and the distant past, school friends I haven't seen in decades, colleagues I work with
every day…my life history in a nutshell. In total, we raised £1200, and with
some post-event publicity might notch up a bit more.
I had a wonderful experience, and I am grateful to everyone for donating.
With that kind of support, I was never going to quit!
Link to make donations to Dirk’s Haiti fundraiser:
http://www.justgiving.com/Dirk-Gewert