Can you imagine walking for hours just to get water? How about washing the soiled clothes of more than 20 people with only one bucket of water?
These were things Toby Chiu Yim-tung experienced during her 1998 African desert journey, which was part of the expedition programme organised by England-based youth development charity Raleigh International.
Now there is a chance for you to learn more about the charity and the programme. Its Hong Kong branch is recruiting volunteers for it fund-raising competition Raleigh Challenge - Wilson Trail, to be held on October 9 and 10.
Ms Chiu was 21 when she took part in the programme. She had just graduated from City University and was encouraged by her sister to join the 11-week self-exploration volunteer programme for young people aged 17 to 25.
'It was my childhood dream to go to Africa. But I never thought I would go as a volunteer,' said Ms Chiu, a conservation education worker. 'I thought it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me to live in a developing country completely different from Hong Kong.
'It's something I can share with my children in the future.'