Brunei: Global Expeditions · Global Voices
Like other citizens around the globe, Brunei is never short of people willing to take the challenge to put the country on the world map. Two sets of expeditions are being carried out.
1. The Polar Girls
The blogger with the Polar Girls. Photo courtesy of <PERSON>
<PERSON> reported on the fund raising walkathon for the two ladies known as the Polar Girls, to raise funds for their trip to Norway for training, where only one of them will be selected to join participants from seven other countries for the Commonwealth Women’s Antarctic Expedition. The women from Brunei, Cyprus, Ghana and Jamaica will be the first person from their nation to ski to the South Pole. They will brave blizzards, crevasses and temperatures below -30C as they ski over 800 kilometres across Antarctica to the Geographic South Pole. The formal launch of the expedition will take place on 10th March 2009.
<PERSON> is currently taking time off from her studies in Bedford High School for the event. 849
The student who aims to be the “Asian lady version of <PERSON>” said that she wanted to participate in the event not only glorify Brunei, but also make history and make the most of the opportunity to participate in the worldwide event.
Dk <PERSON>, 25, is a civil servant at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Previously a secondary school mathematics teacher for three years, <PERSON> hopes that her involvement in the expedition would be able to raise Brunei’s awareness on global warming and climate change.
2. Over the Horizon
As part of their efforts to commemorate 25 years of Brunei Independence, a husband and wife team, <PERSON> and <PERSON> and husband will undertake an epic expedition from March 2009 to October 2010, traversing Siberia/Russia/Mongolia and Kazakhstan/Iran/Syria on their way to Europe, reaching England after 25,000 km. They will continue southbound via France and Spain to Morocco and along the African West coast until Cape Town, South Africa. From there , they will ship the expedition vehicle to Buenos Aires Argentina; drive down to Ushuaia the last town before the Antarctica and cross the Americas on the long haul until Alaska, before returning to Brunei in October 2010.
Photos courtesy of Over the Horizon
<PERSON> and <PERSON> are no strangers to global expeditions as they undertook a Trans Africa Journey from South Africa to Austria in 2007. <PERSON> was the first Bruneian to travel across 13 countries or 21,000km from Europe, Middle East to North Africa in a four-wheel drive in 1999. She also led a team of five local women to conquer Africa's Mt Kilimanjaro, the first Asian team to climb the world's highest volcanic mountain in 2001, to mark ‘Visit Brunei Year.’
Good luck and make your country proud! 849