Students from the British School have just completed the final stage of the International Award Gold Standard.  The Students, aged 17 & 18, took part in an expedition which included four days of activity and a three night camp.  The International Award is the partner organisation to the Duke of Edinburgh Award in Great Britain It is available world wide and includes five components, which are required to be completed to pass the Award: Service to the Community, Physical Recreation, Learning a New Skill, a residential placement, and finally the Expedition.

The Students, through training and guidance from Award Leader Mr Tim Fenton, chose to organise and participate in the four day event within Oman that included activities at the coast, in the mountains and in the desert.  The climax to the trip being the spectacular free-abseil and ascent of the world famous Majlis Al Jinz cave Khoshilat Maqandeli to the locals, the world’s second largest cave chamber with a volume of over 4 million cubic metres.  This particular activity required specialised training and leading through Mr Rob Gardener who runs the Muscat Dive and Adventure Centre (MDAC) and who generously sponsored the students, which enabled them to complete this amazing experience.

The first day involved the trip from Muscat to the coastline, which runs from Bimah to Tiwi.  This first night’s camp also included a beach clean-up operation.  It is a shame to come to these amazing places to enjoy the Oman scenery only to be welcomed by a mass of plastic bottles, polystyrene plates and general rubbish left by visiting parties.  It is beyond belief that these people cannot see the mess they are making and the many green rubbish containers along that particular stretch of road.  The students swept the beach and within half an hour the beach was clear of rubbish.  A little time to create a massive impression!

A number of the students commented on how they had been to this wadi before, but little did they realise that it was not the tourist pools and caves of Mukal, but the long trek through the wadi itself to the village of Seet.  With helmets and life vests on the group took an impressive four hours to reach the village of Seet.  For some of the students it was the first time they had achieved something like this, and even though they finished cold and wet, the smiles and continuous feedback was enough to say how much of an experience it was.  Within an hour of finishing, the group were whisked away from the mountains and found themselves setting up camp on the outer fringes of the Wahiba Sands to complete their final night and following day.

The last evening was a-buzz with the trek down Wadi Bani Khalid and the Cave of Majlis Al Jinz, and even though the group was tired they sat around the camp fire re-telling  their experiences and feelings about the past couple of days.

The final morning and rising sun brought the group from their tents and much needed rest to chilly, still and damp air.  The camp was quiet and the atmosphere contrasted to that of the previous night though the team knew it was nearly all over and the time was fast approaching when they would have to return to reality.  The morning was devoted to navigation exercises and compass work, which saw the teams working together to complete the set tasks, and within moments they were again working together to gain the best results and accomplish the task in hand. 

Once completed, and very well completed it was, it was time to strike camp and head back on the road to Muscat.  Within a couple of hours they were all back at school and heading home to that much awaited shower and good night’s sleep in a proper bed.  Another International Award Expedition was over.

Within four days the students became a team and individually experienced memories they would never forget.  The value and wealth of opportunities that Oman provides is inexhaustible and through initiatives such as the International Award, youngsters can develop personally, socially, culturally and in skills and attributes they never knew they possessed.