CHILDREN FROM the Lagos orphanage spent an enjoyable few days camping at Quinta Linhares in the hills surrounding Silves.
Jason and Kaye Kimpton, and their three children Edward, Jordan and Nicola invited the orphans to their home, Quinta Linhares and The Resident’s Ruth Sharpe joined the group for an entertaining afternoon.
The orphans were accompanied by volunteers, including Sylvia Pona, who works closely with the children at the orphanage and Vanessa Lecointe, who is actively involved with the orphans and the Rosco foundation, a foundation which gives a helping hand to those in need.
As soon as the group arrived, everyone set to the task of putting up tents, but with temperatures reaching 40 degrees, everyone spent a lot of time cooling down in the barragem next to the site or under the covered space on the grounds, which was fully equipped with hammocks, sofas and tables.
On the first night of their stay, the children were taken to Café Inglês in Silves, where owners, David and Suzy served an endless supply of pizza and coke, which kept everyone happy and entertained all night.
The following day, Circo Pequeno Parties came and set up bouncy castles, and provided a varied selection of entertainment for the children, including clowns, jugglers and face painting. After a lot of bouncing, swimming and lunch, everyone sat down to stone painting, which, inevitably, ended up with the bodies and faces of all involved covered in a variety of colours!
Many of the orphans loved the camping trip. Roxanna, aged 10 and her sister Alexandre, aged six, both spoke of how nice it was to get out into the countryside and do different activities.
The two day excursion was finished off in style with a horse riding trip to the Country Riding Center in Silves.
The orphans were treated to introductory lessons on how to handle the horses and enjoyed a trek around the area, exploring the unspoiled natural beauty of the Silves countryside.
The children returned back to Lagos later that day looking exhausted, but extremely content after a memorable two days in the countryside.
