Dubai: Those keen to help charities will have more than enough challenges to keep them busy this year to raise money for local charities abroad while taking part in sports and trekking.
Since 2001 Dubai-based charity Gulf for Good (G4G) has taken participants to all corners of the earth to raise money for orphanages, hospitals, and schools in the developing world.
In 2009, the challenges include cycling 450km from Saigon through paddy fields and delta areas, on good rural back roads, to reach the ancient temples and fortresses of Angkor Wat in the Great Asian Cycling Challenge from March 26 to April 4.
In May The Himalayan Panorama Adventure will take place in India and Nepal for five days to trek 70km through the foothills of the Himalayas.
The "Alternative" Inca Trail in July will take challengers through the mountains above the Lares Valley, as well as the lost city of the Incas, Machu Picchu.
In October participants can hike the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal for nine days. For those who want to stay in the country, in late November a cycling challenge through the seven emirates will take you on routes you never knew existed, while raising funds for children in the UAE and Palestine.
Past-participant Nabeel Habbouche, 31, managing quantities surveyor from Australia, remembers the hike up Mount Kinabalu in Borneo two years ago. "It's such a buzz doing something for others and feeling like you achieved something. I'm looking forward to the Peru challenge this year," he said.
G4G operates under the patronage of Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Chairman and Chief Executive of the Emirates Group.
"A lot of effort has gone into identifying a series of challenges for this year and beyond, which it is hoped will allow everyone to find something which inspires them to get up, get fit and have fun. At the same time participants will be doing something really worthwhile to give kids a chance around the world," said founder and G4G Chairman Brian Wilkie.
