Excess Baggage - 25/07/2009

Explorer Robin Hanbury-Tenison has often made his journeys on horseback and chose Albania for a recent trek. Although situated in the middle of Europe, this little known nation offers unspoilt countryside, great hospitality from locals and a glimpse into a time and place before tourism development takes hold. An award from the citizenship charity, Giving Nation, enabled pupils from Rushcliffe School in Nottingham to travel to Cameroon to learn about the Baka people and the work of the Rainforest Foundation. They stayed in a Baka village - seeing how they build huts, how the local school is run and even helped villagers with fishing. Journalist Jane Owen, who accompanied them, and pupil Bex Bailey say the trip gave an insight into how life is changing for the indigenous people.