Hard to understand as a European … [Day 4]

This was our toughest day so far – both in terms of terrain covered and the work we saw the health workers doing.

94ks and another 6 hours in the saddle all added up to visiting a school where the HIV counsellor tried to hit home the dangers of the virus and a house visit to deliver a mother the results of her 4 month old baby’s HIV results.

The fact that we only took in two places shows the vastness of Lesotho. You literally ride for hours without seeing towns. Every now and again there are a few huts – which in this part of the world constitutes a thriving village – but generally it’s a vast mountainous landscape with people dotted about all over the country.

You’re never really on your own though, every few kilometres you pass locals walking along the roads. They’re miles from anywhere and it’s hard to fathom where they’re going or where they’ve come from but one thing is for sure and that’s the warm welcome you receive.

Lesotho is an incredibly peaceful nation. Everywhere we have been we have been greeted by warmth, handshakes and smiles.

While it’s clearly a very poor country there is no sadness or resentment among the locals. But I think what is most shocking for us as Europeans is trying to understand their acceptance or almost blasé attitude to HIV.

It’s almost as if they have an attitude of what will be will be. Amazingly when we visited the mother in the afternoon it became clear that she hadn’t told her husband that she was HIV positive or that today was the day she was getting the results for her baby.

And that’s why the work of Riders for Health is so vital here and across many parts of Africa. Whether it’s through shame of social stigma or through a lack of knowledge there is a real reluctance by many of the locals to face up to HIV, but with the time and effort from Riders for Health there is hope and a change in the wind.

Don’t forget to follow us and our celebs as we trek across Lesotho on Twitter! Get On Tweets, Gethin Jones, Darren Gough, Jill Halfpenny , Shobna Gulati and Oliver Mellor - and remeber to keep checking back at the Get On Africa Homepage for updates!