On July 19th 2008, two students from the University of Bristol-Tom Putnam and Peter Stephens will leave the Central Obelisk in Buenos Aires, hoping to travel more than 8500 miles overland-finishing at Liberty Island, and the Statue of Liberty-New York City. Their trip will take them over mountain ranges, through deserts and across pretty much every climate imaginable.

The only catch is that they are unable to spend a single penny/cent/peso on travel. Instead having to use their basic Spanish and instead rely on the kindness and generosity of total strangers.

The hope of this trip is two-fold, on the one hand hoping to prove that this World is genuinely full of good people despite press ideas of declining morals and countless atrocities worldwide in this new Millenium.

However, the main aim of this trip is to raise a great deal of money for the Order of Malta Volunteers (OMV), who are an incredible catholic charity. The OMV orgnaise and fund trips for a group of terminally ill patients to travel to the Lourdes pilgrimage site in France. Where they will be tended to in the hospitals by a group of young volunteers. For the young people-this is a real chance to broaden their horizons, and for the hospital pilgrims (HPs) this is once-in-a year chance to leave their hopsice/care home and travel abroad. You can really see the incredible gratitude of the pilgrims and that really makes the whole trip worthwhile.

Pete Stephens volunteered with the OMV in 2005 and 2006, and hopes that this will raise as much money as possible. It costs around £500 to send a pilgrim to Lourdes, and it really is a case of "every little helps".

Thank you.

Pete and Tom.

(Donating through Justgiving is quick, easy and totally secure. It’s also the most efficient way to sponsor me: The Order of Malta Volunteers (Hospitaller Ltd) gets your money faster and, if you’re a UK taxpayer, Justgiving makes sure 25% in Gift Aid, plus a 3% supplement, are added to your donation).