April 1
Happy April Fools! The girls started off the day by locking the boys in their room so they would be late to breakfast. It didn’t actually work out the way we planned because one of the members on cook crew unlocked the door and the boys came and locked us in our rooms instead. Luckily we were freed and made it to breakfast on time. So in Kenya April Fools is not as big of a thing as it is in the US. This might explain why the staff was really confused by our lack of excitement when a staff member told us that 2 lionesses had just killed a waterbuck by the side of the road and that they would take us to go see them if we wanted to. So all the students skeptically got into the cars and to go and see the “lions”. You can imagine how surprised we were when there actually were two lionesses eating a waterbuck just around the corner from our campsite!
We ended the day going to a lodge in the park. The food was really good and it was nice to have dome R&R…until it started pouring on us while we were in the pool. Oh well! At least the rainy season has begun:)
April 2
Today we packed up and headed back to NPS. We decided to take the scenic route back to Nairobi. It included a beautiful climb out of the valley. While we were driving up the edge of the valley/cliff there were some pretty neat rock paintings on the rock wall…not much else went on for the rest of the day.
April 3
Today was another Non-Program day! We decided to take it easy and go to an ostrich farm to enjoy some ostrich burgers and ride some ostriches. I did manage to choke down half of the burger but couldn’t bring myself to ride the ostrich because it looked so sad and scared.
April 4
Today we packed up and left NPS and headed back home to KBC. It was nice to see Kili again and run around the trail again (even though it’s a lot smaller than the one at NPS). The rest of the day we spent relaxing because DR intro starts tomorrow! I hope I get a good one:)
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Lake Nakuru (Part I)
March 29
Today we left for our second camping expedition of the semester. This time we went to Lake Nakuru National Park. On the way over we stopped at various sites to have quick lectures about the change in land use practices and land tenure from southern Kenya to central Kenya. Basically, everything that has happened in central Kenya is about to, or already happening, in southern Kenya. Unfortunately, southern Kenya cannot support agriculture as the dominant land use practice and subdivision of the group ranches is speeding up land degradation in the area because it was really only suitable for traditional pastoralism that was originally practiced by the Maasai.
Lake Nakuru National Park is famous for its large concentration of the flamingoes. When we got to Nakuru town, the main road leading to the front gate of the park was lined with streetlamps that were shaped like flamingoes. Nakuru is also famous for having the first rhino sanctuary in Kenya. Nakuru has successfully bred both black and white rhinos. FUN FACT: White rhinos are not originally from Kenya. They are from South Africa and were re-located to Kenya and other countries, like Tanzania. Kenya decided to put the white rhino population under its protection also since whatever threats (i.e. poaching and/or bushmeat) facing white rhinos will eventually affect black rhinos. Extinction of either would be a terrible loss. It should also be noted that I have never seen so many buffalo in my life…and those things are SCARY!
Apparently it is cheaper to stay in a hostel than it to campout in Nakuru NP, so we booked the hostel in Lake Nakuru and now I am a proud member of the Wildlife Clubs of Kenya! Woohoo! My picture is TERRIBLE! If you’ve had a chance to check out the pics of the students on the SFS Kenya website then you’ve already seen my fabulous ID…GROSS! WE moved into our rooms pretty quickly after our arrival. In the middle of the room were three bunk beds in a row. My friends Isobel and Liz joined me on the top and we made a tunnel out of our mosquito nets which made the three single beds into one huge bed! Our friends Val and Anna also joined us up there for a couple of nights. Don’t you just love acting like your in middle school again?!!!!!
March 30
Since we got in so late yesterday, we didn’t get a chance to go on a game drive and really enjoy the park. So at 6 am this morning we all piled into the cars and had an unexpected early morning drive. It was so much fun and SO COLD, but I did see my first RHINO!!!!!! WE also saw lots of pelicans, flamingoes, and maribu storks. Maribu storks are by far one of the ugliest breeds of bird that I have ever seen…the poor things. When we were driving back to camp I spotted a leopard tortoise:)
The rest of the day we had various lectures from a scientist who works for Kenya Wildlife Service. It was really interesting to learn the history of Lake Nakuru and Lake Naivasha. This area is known for its heavy floriculture industry and it was really sad to hear about all the bad things (pollution, lower water levels, increasing human-wildlife conflict) that have come about as a result of this establishment. FUN STORY (more because of how the lecturer told it): Nakuru NP does not have an elephant population because it is fenced in and would be unable to support probably no more than 10 elephants. However, it does lie right beside a migratory corridor utilized by elephants seasonally. Last year, an elephant decided to take a stroll through the slums of Nakuru and caused a quite a commotion. The whole time this story is being told to us I’m looking around and students’ mouths are hanging open but our lecturer is laughing hysterically at the thought of a huge elephant walking through the slums in Nakuru. After the inclass portion of our lecture we went to a couple of sites in the park and were given more insight about the park. Did you know that a major cause of death for birds of Nakuru NP is flying into power lines? Sad.
That afternoon we went on another game drive and saw a BLACK RHINO! We also saw buffalo, white rhinos, flamingoes, black-backed jackals, black and white colobus monkeys, and yellow baboons engaging in a little fornication in the middle of the road (if a Beatles song has popped into your head at this time…don’t worry you’re not alone).
March 31
Today we went to Naivasha town and sat in on a lecture about the problems facing Lake Naivasha. Lake Navaisha is a part of a lake system and is the freshest of all the lakes. It is home to many different species of birds and now different fish. Lake Naivasha was actually stocked with a variety of fish at the urging of Theodore Roosevelt and has now become a hotspot for fishing (this has brought about lots of problems that I we talk about at a later date). Afterwards, our lecturer brought us to the lake…well what was once the lake. Where we were standing had been under water during the previous year. It was weird standing in the middle of a field of papyrus plants listening to various shoat herds “bah” and “bah” and “bah”. We couldn’t even see the water from where we were standing. It was really sad.
After Lake Naivasha we went to Hellsgate National Park where we started off with a really neat tour of the Kengen Geothermal Plant and ended with an invigorating hike through Hells Gate Gorge. Hellsgate National Park was actually built around the geothermal plant. The plant managers claim that it hasn’t had a major impact on the wildlife in the area, but I beg to differ because it is super noisy and if I were an animal I wouldn’t like it.
The hike through the gorge was lots of fun. Apparently scenes from Tomb Raider and Out of Africa were filmed there. I haven’t seen Tomb Raider so I don’t really know if that’s true, but I couldn’t recall a gorge seen from Out of Africa…I’ll have to watch it when I get back to the states (YAY!!!!! Robert Redford in da house…that was for you dad!!!!!) Anyway…it was lots of fun and super adventurous. We even got to jump from a few small cliffs. The only “dangerous” part of it was the slippery rocks from the rain and the super hot water you had to try not to jump into as you jumped down. When we got done with our hike it was really late. We had to rush so we wouldn’t get locked in Hellsgate and get locked out of Nakuru. It was really late when we got to the Nakuru and was sort of scary driving through the park at night because there were lots of buffalo right on the side and if they get mad they could totally knock us over.
Today we left for our second camping expedition of the semester. This time we went to Lake Nakuru National Park. On the way over we stopped at various sites to have quick lectures about the change in land use practices and land tenure from southern Kenya to central Kenya. Basically, everything that has happened in central Kenya is about to, or already happening, in southern Kenya. Unfortunately, southern Kenya cannot support agriculture as the dominant land use practice and subdivision of the group ranches is speeding up land degradation in the area because it was really only suitable for traditional pastoralism that was originally practiced by the Maasai.
Lake Nakuru National Park is famous for its large concentration of the flamingoes. When we got to Nakuru town, the main road leading to the front gate of the park was lined with streetlamps that were shaped like flamingoes. Nakuru is also famous for having the first rhino sanctuary in Kenya. Nakuru has successfully bred both black and white rhinos. FUN FACT: White rhinos are not originally from Kenya. They are from South Africa and were re-located to Kenya and other countries, like Tanzania. Kenya decided to put the white rhino population under its protection also since whatever threats (i.e. poaching and/or bushmeat) facing white rhinos will eventually affect black rhinos. Extinction of either would be a terrible loss. It should also be noted that I have never seen so many buffalo in my life…and those things are SCARY!
Apparently it is cheaper to stay in a hostel than it to campout in Nakuru NP, so we booked the hostel in Lake Nakuru and now I am a proud member of the Wildlife Clubs of Kenya! Woohoo! My picture is TERRIBLE! If you’ve had a chance to check out the pics of the students on the SFS Kenya website then you’ve already seen my fabulous ID…GROSS! WE moved into our rooms pretty quickly after our arrival. In the middle of the room were three bunk beds in a row. My friends Isobel and Liz joined me on the top and we made a tunnel out of our mosquito nets which made the three single beds into one huge bed! Our friends Val and Anna also joined us up there for a couple of nights. Don’t you just love acting like your in middle school again?!!!!!
March 30
Since we got in so late yesterday, we didn’t get a chance to go on a game drive and really enjoy the park. So at 6 am this morning we all piled into the cars and had an unexpected early morning drive. It was so much fun and SO COLD, but I did see my first RHINO!!!!!! WE also saw lots of pelicans, flamingoes, and maribu storks. Maribu storks are by far one of the ugliest breeds of bird that I have ever seen…the poor things. When we were driving back to camp I spotted a leopard tortoise:)
The rest of the day we had various lectures from a scientist who works for Kenya Wildlife Service. It was really interesting to learn the history of Lake Nakuru and Lake Naivasha. This area is known for its heavy floriculture industry and it was really sad to hear about all the bad things (pollution, lower water levels, increasing human-wildlife conflict) that have come about as a result of this establishment. FUN STORY (more because of how the lecturer told it): Nakuru NP does not have an elephant population because it is fenced in and would be unable to support probably no more than 10 elephants. However, it does lie right beside a migratory corridor utilized by elephants seasonally. Last year, an elephant decided to take a stroll through the slums of Nakuru and caused a quite a commotion. The whole time this story is being told to us I’m looking around and students’ mouths are hanging open but our lecturer is laughing hysterically at the thought of a huge elephant walking through the slums in Nakuru. After the inclass portion of our lecture we went to a couple of sites in the park and were given more insight about the park. Did you know that a major cause of death for birds of Nakuru NP is flying into power lines? Sad.
That afternoon we went on another game drive and saw a BLACK RHINO! We also saw buffalo, white rhinos, flamingoes, black-backed jackals, black and white colobus monkeys, and yellow baboons engaging in a little fornication in the middle of the road (if a Beatles song has popped into your head at this time…don’t worry you’re not alone).
March 31
Today we went to Naivasha town and sat in on a lecture about the problems facing Lake Naivasha. Lake Navaisha is a part of a lake system and is the freshest of all the lakes. It is home to many different species of birds and now different fish. Lake Naivasha was actually stocked with a variety of fish at the urging of Theodore Roosevelt and has now become a hotspot for fishing (this has brought about lots of problems that I we talk about at a later date). Afterwards, our lecturer brought us to the lake…well what was once the lake. Where we were standing had been under water during the previous year. It was weird standing in the middle of a field of papyrus plants listening to various shoat herds “bah” and “bah” and “bah”. We couldn’t even see the water from where we were standing. It was really sad.
After Lake Naivasha we went to Hellsgate National Park where we started off with a really neat tour of the Kengen Geothermal Plant and ended with an invigorating hike through Hells Gate Gorge. Hellsgate National Park was actually built around the geothermal plant. The plant managers claim that it hasn’t had a major impact on the wildlife in the area, but I beg to differ because it is super noisy and if I were an animal I wouldn’t like it.
The hike through the gorge was lots of fun. Apparently scenes from Tomb Raider and Out of Africa were filmed there. I haven’t seen Tomb Raider so I don’t really know if that’s true, but I couldn’t recall a gorge seen from Out of Africa…I’ll have to watch it when I get back to the states (YAY!!!!! Robert Redford in da house…that was for you dad!!!!!) Anyway…it was lots of fun and super adventurous. We even got to jump from a few small cliffs. The only “dangerous” part of it was the slippery rocks from the rain and the super hot water you had to try not to jump into as you jumped down. When we got done with our hike it was really late. We had to rush so we wouldn’t get locked in Hellsgate and get locked out of Nakuru. It was really late when we got to the Nakuru and was sort of scary driving through the park at night because there were lots of buffalo right on the side and if they get mad they could totally knock us over.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Update 1 (March 23- March 28)
Hey guys! So I’ll be trying to update little bit by little bit as the week goes on. So here it goes…
March 23
(Duh-na-na-na-na-na today is your birthday. Da-na-na-na-na-na well it’s my birthday too yeah!)
Yay! Today is my 21st birthday and it was all party (PG partying that is). So early this morning I walked into the chumba and found a little birthday present waiting for me in my mailbox. My friend Isobel had bought 3 blackberry yogurt lollipops and some orange cookies for my birthday. Before we packed up the cars and headed to Nairobi, I ran back to my room to get my chapstick and found my splashguard! A splashguard fits in your Nalgene quite nicely and prevents excessive splashing. I thought I had forgotten to pack it and was sad that every time I took a drink in the car and I ended up completely drenched myself. We left to head towards our Nairobi Park Site which, as you can guess, borders Nairobi National Park. On the way there, we saw lots of animals: giraffes, wildebeest, impala, gazelles, and who can forget zebra (punda mlia). When we got to Nairobi we made a very exciting stop…TUSKY’S!!!!!! Tusky’s is this really sweet “everything” store. My mouth dropped when I walked inside…it’s like I had never been in a store before. There was cereal, chips (referred to as crisps here), ICE CREAM, popcorn, fruits, veges, shampoo…you name it they petty much had it. I basically loaded up on ice cream and walked away with a huge smile on my face.
The NPS site is really cool and different from KBC (we have an outdoor shower!!!!!!). It is a little more on the woodsy and a bit smaller. When we got there a few of us noticed this tree that when you break it drips a milky white substance that is really fun to fling on to other people’s dark clothing because it stands out really well. We probably spent a good 15 minutes flinging this sap back and forth at each other. We later found out that if that sap gets in your eyes you will become blind. Lesson to self: things that would be harmless in America are often very harmful in Africa. After we were given a Risk Management lesson on the dangers that “lurk” around NPS (this is where we learned about our lapse in judgment) we went on a tour of the campsite and then on a little hike outside of the fence. At NPS we are allowed outside of the camp to run on the 2-mile running loop (very hilly) and play on the soccer field as long as we have a buddy or 2. When you get to the top of the hill, where the soccer field is, you have the best view of the Ngong Hills. If you’ve ever read, or seen, Out of Africa then you know the Ngong Hills…they’re mentioned in the very first sentence (or second). After the tour, we unpacked our bags and then I went for a little run with Val around the 2 mile loop…we saw so Thomson’s gazelle.
March 24
This morning I went on a nature walk with one of my professors and a small group of students. I couldn’t believe how cold it was outside. I could see my breath! After the walk, we had a full day of classes. My favorite had to have been fire management for my Wildlife Ecology class. My professor took the class outside and we practiced burning a bit of the campsite. I got to even start a little fire with the drip torch…it was my birthday present from my professor. That night we celebrated my birthday with a cake since we couldn’t do it yesterday. It was AMAZING! It was vanilla/lemon with chocolate and vanilla icing. Then I worked on some papers due the next day...a great well to celebrate turning 21:)
March 25
Today was our first non-program day in Nairobi! It was so much fun! Wee spent the day in Karen. Karen is a suburb of Nairobi where Karen Blixon’s book Out of Africa takes place. It looks a lot different from what it looked like when she was managing her coffee farm. We started off the day going to the David Sheldrick Elephant and Black Rhino Orphanage. The David Sheldrick Orphanage takes in abandoned elephants and black rhinos and cares for them as they grow. When the elephants are old enough, they release them in Tsavo West National Park. It was really cute to watch them “booking” it down the hill to where their bottles and keepers were waiting for them. They played in the mud and splashed water everywhere. It was so cute. The second group of elephants was a little older. When they ran down the hill, one of the bigger ones ran up to right where me and a few other students were standing and trumpeted really loudly. She was so excited about getting her bottle. After the big boys and girls made their way back to Nairobi NP to browse the little black rhino came out to play…he was TINY! He reminded me of a puppy that had just gotten a bath and was excitedly running around dodging its owner with the towel. He was rolling around, jumping up and down, and running back and forth. At one time he ran at a dead sprint and covered me and the guy’s legs next to me with mud (the guy next to me was the worse off than me).
After the elephant orphanage we made our way over to the Giraffe Sanctuary. The Giraffe Sanctuary is home to about 5 or 6 Rothschilds giraffes. It was fun to feed and get kisses from them. When they kissed you it felt like sandpaper rubbing, or a kitty-cat licking, your face.
We ended the day at Kazuri bead factory. Kazuri employs lots of single moms to help them earn a living in order to support their families. The beads are beautiful! I honestly couldn’t believe that such beautiful beads had been molded and painted by hand.
March 26
Today we went to Nairobi NP where we had a lecture by the game warden before going on a game drive. The lecture was very interesting and very different from what we had been hearing. I like being able to hear the farmers’ side of the story and then being able to compare it to the side of KWS (Kenya Wildlife Service). On our game drive I saw a black-backed jackal for the first time. They look like small dogs. Other than that, we pretty much just saw the usual animals; however, elephants are not allowed in Nairobi NP because it is too small. Also the wildebeest population has drastically decreased to due human population expansion from Nairobi. It was weird not seeing oodles upon oodles of wildebeest.
To finish the night off on a good night we brought ourselves back to 5th grade and played multiple vigorous rounds of “Ghost in the Graveyard.” It was so much fun! So one person goes and hides and then everybody goes out to find them. The first person who spots the “ghost” shouts “Ghost in the graveyard” and everybody takes off running back to home base.
March 23
(Duh-na-na-na-na-na today is your birthday. Da-na-na-na-na-na well it’s my birthday too yeah!)
Yay! Today is my 21st birthday and it was all party (PG partying that is). So early this morning I walked into the chumba and found a little birthday present waiting for me in my mailbox. My friend Isobel had bought 3 blackberry yogurt lollipops and some orange cookies for my birthday. Before we packed up the cars and headed to Nairobi, I ran back to my room to get my chapstick and found my splashguard! A splashguard fits in your Nalgene quite nicely and prevents excessive splashing. I thought I had forgotten to pack it and was sad that every time I took a drink in the car and I ended up completely drenched myself. We left to head towards our Nairobi Park Site which, as you can guess, borders Nairobi National Park. On the way there, we saw lots of animals: giraffes, wildebeest, impala, gazelles, and who can forget zebra (punda mlia). When we got to Nairobi we made a very exciting stop…TUSKY’S!!!!!! Tusky’s is this really sweet “everything” store. My mouth dropped when I walked inside…it’s like I had never been in a store before. There was cereal, chips (referred to as crisps here), ICE CREAM, popcorn, fruits, veges, shampoo…you name it they petty much had it. I basically loaded up on ice cream and walked away with a huge smile on my face.
The NPS site is really cool and different from KBC (we have an outdoor shower!!!!!!). It is a little more on the woodsy and a bit smaller. When we got there a few of us noticed this tree that when you break it drips a milky white substance that is really fun to fling on to other people’s dark clothing because it stands out really well. We probably spent a good 15 minutes flinging this sap back and forth at each other. We later found out that if that sap gets in your eyes you will become blind. Lesson to self: things that would be harmless in America are often very harmful in Africa. After we were given a Risk Management lesson on the dangers that “lurk” around NPS (this is where we learned about our lapse in judgment) we went on a tour of the campsite and then on a little hike outside of the fence. At NPS we are allowed outside of the camp to run on the 2-mile running loop (very hilly) and play on the soccer field as long as we have a buddy or 2. When you get to the top of the hill, where the soccer field is, you have the best view of the Ngong Hills. If you’ve ever read, or seen, Out of Africa then you know the Ngong Hills…they’re mentioned in the very first sentence (or second). After the tour, we unpacked our bags and then I went for a little run with Val around the 2 mile loop…we saw so Thomson’s gazelle.
March 24
This morning I went on a nature walk with one of my professors and a small group of students. I couldn’t believe how cold it was outside. I could see my breath! After the walk, we had a full day of classes. My favorite had to have been fire management for my Wildlife Ecology class. My professor took the class outside and we practiced burning a bit of the campsite. I got to even start a little fire with the drip torch…it was my birthday present from my professor. That night we celebrated my birthday with a cake since we couldn’t do it yesterday. It was AMAZING! It was vanilla/lemon with chocolate and vanilla icing. Then I worked on some papers due the next day...a great well to celebrate turning 21:)
March 25
Today was our first non-program day in Nairobi! It was so much fun! Wee spent the day in Karen. Karen is a suburb of Nairobi where Karen Blixon’s book Out of Africa takes place. It looks a lot different from what it looked like when she was managing her coffee farm. We started off the day going to the David Sheldrick Elephant and Black Rhino Orphanage. The David Sheldrick Orphanage takes in abandoned elephants and black rhinos and cares for them as they grow. When the elephants are old enough, they release them in Tsavo West National Park. It was really cute to watch them “booking” it down the hill to where their bottles and keepers were waiting for them. They played in the mud and splashed water everywhere. It was so cute. The second group of elephants was a little older. When they ran down the hill, one of the bigger ones ran up to right where me and a few other students were standing and trumpeted really loudly. She was so excited about getting her bottle. After the big boys and girls made their way back to Nairobi NP to browse the little black rhino came out to play…he was TINY! He reminded me of a puppy that had just gotten a bath and was excitedly running around dodging its owner with the towel. He was rolling around, jumping up and down, and running back and forth. At one time he ran at a dead sprint and covered me and the guy’s legs next to me with mud (the guy next to me was the worse off than me).
After the elephant orphanage we made our way over to the Giraffe Sanctuary. The Giraffe Sanctuary is home to about 5 or 6 Rothschilds giraffes. It was fun to feed and get kisses from them. When they kissed you it felt like sandpaper rubbing, or a kitty-cat licking, your face.
We ended the day at Kazuri bead factory. Kazuri employs lots of single moms to help them earn a living in order to support their families. The beads are beautiful! I honestly couldn’t believe that such beautiful beads had been molded and painted by hand.
March 26
Today we went to Nairobi NP where we had a lecture by the game warden before going on a game drive. The lecture was very interesting and very different from what we had been hearing. I like being able to hear the farmers’ side of the story and then being able to compare it to the side of KWS (Kenya Wildlife Service). On our game drive I saw a black-backed jackal for the first time. They look like small dogs. Other than that, we pretty much just saw the usual animals; however, elephants are not allowed in Nairobi NP because it is too small. Also the wildebeest population has drastically decreased to due human population expansion from Nairobi. It was weird not seeing oodles upon oodles of wildebeest.
March 27
This morning we had a really neat travelling lecture. I went to a live quarry which was pretty interesting. Apparently you can set a quarry anywhere you want, without government permission, as long as it’s on your land. That afternoon we went had community service at a local primary school right by the camp that one of the NPS askari’s, Abraham’s, kids goes to. It was really fun. We sang songs…this seems to be a pretty normal “welcome strangers” in Kenya. Afterwards we did the Hokey Pokey and played Duck Duck Goose, but we tweaked it a bit a played Twiga (giraffe) Twiga (giraffe) samba (lion). I had a great time! Then we walked back to camp and played a soccer for a little while. I love going up to the soccer field because you can see the Ngong Hills really well.
This morning we had a really neat travelling lecture. I went to a live quarry which was pretty interesting. Apparently you can set a quarry anywhere you want, without government permission, as long as it’s on your land. That afternoon we went had community service at a local primary school right by the camp that one of the NPS askari’s, Abraham’s, kids goes to. It was really fun. We sang songs…this seems to be a pretty normal “welcome strangers” in Kenya. Afterwards we did the Hokey Pokey and played Duck Duck Goose, but we tweaked it a bit a played Twiga (giraffe) Twiga (giraffe) samba (lion). I had a great time! Then we walked back to camp and played a soccer for a little while. I love going up to the soccer field because you can see the Ngong Hills really well.
March 28
Today all of our classes were cancelled so we had another NON-PROGRAM DAY!!!!!! I mean they would have been really cool because they were all visiting lectures, but I’m not one to complain when I get an extra day off. So (pause) we started off the morning going to Kitengala Glass. Kitengala glass is this really cool place that you would never expect to find in Kenya. I kind of has an Alice in Wonderland feel to it. Not only did they have a really funky set-up, but they had all sorts of different animals walking around (tortoises, guinea foul, Egyptian geese). I swear they had a pig that was 4xs the size of me. As you drive up there are all these really neat sculptures (giraffes, funny faces, wildebeest, cars, African continents, Kenya) that line the drive up to the front of the area. There was this really fun suspension bridge across this gorge that had really pretty glass beads on the sides. It was a really weird sensation as you walked across because it felt like you were standing still while everything around you was moving. After we got a “tour” of the area we got to do a little shopping. I picked up a few fun, funky-shaped glass beads in different colors. I was amazed that the price for 4 beads came to 80 shillings ($1). To finish the day they did a glass-blowing demonstration where they made a really pretty platter. As we were walking out all of these dogs and puppies came out of nowhere and started playing with us:)
Today all of our classes were cancelled so we had another NON-PROGRAM DAY!!!!!! I mean they would have been really cool because they were all visiting lectures, but I’m not one to complain when I get an extra day off. So (pause) we started off the morning going to Kitengala Glass. Kitengala glass is this really cool place that you would never expect to find in Kenya. I kind of has an Alice in Wonderland feel to it. Not only did they have a really funky set-up, but they had all sorts of different animals walking around (tortoises, guinea foul, Egyptian geese). I swear they had a pig that was 4xs the size of me. As you drive up there are all these really neat sculptures (giraffes, funny faces, wildebeest, cars, African continents, Kenya) that line the drive up to the front of the area. There was this really fun suspension bridge across this gorge that had really pretty glass beads on the sides. It was a really weird sensation as you walked across because it felt like you were standing still while everything around you was moving. After we got a “tour” of the area we got to do a little shopping. I picked up a few fun, funky-shaped glass beads in different colors. I was amazed that the price for 4 beads came to 80 shillings ($1). To finish the day they did a glass-blowing demonstration where they made a really pretty platter. As we were walking out all of these dogs and puppies came out of nowhere and started playing with us:)
To finish the night off on a good night we brought ourselves back to 5th grade and played multiple vigorous rounds of “Ghost in the Graveyard.” It was so much fun! So one person goes and hides and then everybody goes out to find them. The first person who spots the “ghost” shouts “Ghost in the graveyard” and everybody takes off running back to home base.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Don't worry! I haven't forgotten about you guys:)
Sorry everybody! These past few weeks have been super crazy with traveling to Nairobi, going to Lake Nakuru for a field expedition, and finishing up classes before beginning my Directed Research for the next month. YAY DR!!!!! I'll try and update the blog in the next couple of days:)
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Kwaheri!!!!!! (Good-bye)
Hi all!
Well I did it! I survived finals!!!!!! Tomorrow we leave for Nairobi early in the morning. While I'm there I will be visiting an elephant orphanage, giraffe sanctuary, ostrich farm, and glass blowing place. We also go on a week-long expedition to Lake Nakuru. I am really excited! Unfortunately, I will not have any internet the whole time that I am there. Don't worry! I'll keep a very detailed journal (at least I'll try my hardest) so you guys don't miss out on any fun things that happen. Take care!
Thanks for all of the birthday greetings!
Well I did it! I survived finals!!!!!! Tomorrow we leave for Nairobi early in the morning. While I'm there I will be visiting an elephant orphanage, giraffe sanctuary, ostrich farm, and glass blowing place. We also go on a week-long expedition to Lake Nakuru. I am really excited! Unfortunately, I will not have any internet the whole time that I am there. Don't worry! I'll keep a very detailed journal (at least I'll try my hardest) so you guys don't miss out on any fun things that happen. Take care!
Thanks for all of the birthday greetings!
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
EXAM TIME:(
Hey everybody! Exam time is in a few days, so I won't be doing anything worth blogging about. I'm going to try and upload a few more pictures from my last trip to Amboseli...so here it goes
Saturday, March 14, 2009
High on a hill was a lonely shoater....
March 14
Today was another community service day. We went to a elementary school in Kuku Group Ranch where we built desks an played with the children all day. We danced, played games, and built soccer goals and desks. I have never been so tired!
March 12
So anyone who knows me knows that I love turtles! Well today was my lucky day! My professor found a baby leopard tortoise and brought it to class for us to see. It was so cute! Other than that...school, school, and more school:/
March 9
Today was a rest day to help everybody rejuvenate after a week out on expedition...and before exams start :/. We took advantage of it by having a BAKE DAY! We made brownies, cookies, and more cookies! They were delicious:)
TSAVO- Land of the Maneaters!
TSAVO!
Hi everybody! Sorry for the long break, but I just got back from the “Land of the Man-Eaters,” Tsavo National Park. If anyone has seen the movie, The Ghost and the Darkness, then you know where I’ve been for the past week. That movie is based on the true story of Colonel Patterson who is famous for killing the two lions that when on a 9-month killing spree of Indian workers who had been brought to Kenya to build the railroad going from Mombasa to Lake Victoria. While I never actually saw a lion while I was in Tsavo, I did fall asleep to them roaring in the not-so-far distance. Also, I know I look like a dweeb in most of these pics, but since we didn’t have access to showers the whole week I hope you can understand.
My story begins on March 3 at 5:00 in the morning…
This morning was my turn for cook crew. Battling the beetles and bats flying at my headlamp, I got ready to cook breakfast with my team, Kikuyu, before the whole camp left for expedition. Since we packed all the food our cook, James, just brought back from Nairobi, we didn’t have much to work with. We managed to whip out a healthy meal of scrambled eggs, toast, oatmeal and freshly sliced watermelon before the sun was up. After shoveling our food into our mouths, we packed our things into the Rhino, the big white truck we carry all of our supplies in, and hit the road. We stopped for a 2 hour wildlife management class on top of a hill just outside of Kimana. Afterwards, we scrambled into the cars once more to continue on our journey to Tsavo. About 45 minutes before getting to Tsavo, we had to stop and pick up a couple of KWS guards to accompany us to the gate. Apparently the road we take to Tsavo has become popular to tourist targeting, but we were absolutely fine:) When we got to the gate, we found out that something had gone wrong with our smart cards (a system used in Kenya to get into all of the national parks and protected areas). After about 30 minutes we were allowed to continue on our way to our campsite. Literally 3 minutes into our drive we saw 7 giraffes browsing by the roadside and startled a huge warthog from where he had been hiding in a bush. We continued on our way to Komboyo campsite where we set up the tents and unpacked the Rhino. Then we ended the day with a nice game drive through the park. We saw elephants drinking water from a watering hole by KWS headquarters, lesser kudus, guinea foul, impala, gazelles, zebra (punda mulia), and more giraffes. After a filling meal, we sat around the campfire telling scary stories and listening to the elephants trumpet and lions roar.
March 4
March 5
Today was an early day! We woke up at 6 to do our animal counts in our different transects. My group saw lots of cool animals: hippos, klipspringers, lesser kudu, impala, warthogs, dik-diks, zebra, giraffes, monkeys, baboons, and lots of pretty birds. At lunchtime we met the rest of the group at an inactive volcano and hiked to the top for a little R&R…and lunch:) The lava rocks are sort of loose so it was funny watching all of us slowly make our way to the top. We ate lunch, took lots of neat pics, and then headed down so we could go to Mzima springs, where the fish give hippos pedicures. On our way down, a bus full of boys from one of the secondary schools in the area came and totally put us to shame as they sprinted up the side of the mountain.
At Mzima Springs we enjoyed seeing all of the hippos, crocs, monkeys, and birds. I was even lucky enough to snap a shot of an African squirrel…whoa! There was a neat underwater observation deck where you could see these really big fish. They looked really tasty. I also saw a crocodile sitting by a waterfall with his mouth open waiting for the fish to come his way.
Word of Caution: When visiting Mzima Springs, beware of monkeys. They like to come up and say hi!
March 7
Today we packed up camp and headed back to KBC. I really miss Tsavo but it feels good to be home.
Hi everybody! Sorry for the long break, but I just got back from the “Land of the Man-Eaters,” Tsavo National Park. If anyone has seen the movie, The Ghost and the Darkness, then you know where I’ve been for the past week. That movie is based on the true story of Colonel Patterson who is famous for killing the two lions that when on a 9-month killing spree of Indian workers who had been brought to Kenya to build the railroad going from Mombasa to Lake Victoria. While I never actually saw a lion while I was in Tsavo, I did fall asleep to them roaring in the not-so-far distance. Also, I know I look like a dweeb in most of these pics, but since we didn’t have access to showers the whole week I hope you can understand.
My story begins on March 3 at 5:00 in the morning…
This morning was my turn for cook crew. Battling the beetles and bats flying at my headlamp, I got ready to cook breakfast with my team, Kikuyu, before the whole camp left for expedition. Since we packed all the food our cook, James, just brought back from Nairobi, we didn’t have much to work with. We managed to whip out a healthy meal of scrambled eggs, toast, oatmeal and freshly sliced watermelon before the sun was up. After shoveling our food into our mouths, we packed our things into the Rhino, the big white truck we carry all of our supplies in, and hit the road. We stopped for a 2 hour wildlife management class on top of a hill just outside of Kimana. Afterwards, we scrambled into the cars once more to continue on our journey to Tsavo. About 45 minutes before getting to Tsavo, we had to stop and pick up a couple of KWS guards to accompany us to the gate. Apparently the road we take to Tsavo has become popular to tourist targeting, but we were absolutely fine:) When we got to the gate, we found out that something had gone wrong with our smart cards (a system used in Kenya to get into all of the national parks and protected areas). After about 30 minutes we were allowed to continue on our way to our campsite. Literally 3 minutes into our drive we saw 7 giraffes browsing by the roadside and startled a huge warthog from where he had been hiding in a bush. We continued on our way to Komboyo campsite where we set up the tents and unpacked the Rhino. Then we ended the day with a nice game drive through the park. We saw elephants drinking water from a watering hole by KWS headquarters, lesser kudus, guinea foul, impala, gazelles, zebra (punda mulia), and more giraffes. After a filling meal, we sat around the campfire telling scary stories and listening to the elephants trumpet and lions roar.
March 4
Today we went to the Chyulu Hills for a lecture and a nice hike. Chyulu is often advertised as the secret of Kenya…and I can see why. It’s gorgeous! The scenery reminded me of the picnic scene in Out of Africa. It makes me sad that my camera can’t capture the beauty…but then again it might be the photographer:/ Anyway…we had a 2 hour long environmental policy class where I managed to get really attractive sock tan lines that are about halfway up my calf. Fall has started to set in where I am, so it’s really funny to see all of our professors basically wearing winter coats and sweaters while all of the students are in shorts and t-shirts, and are still sweating. After class we ate lunch (I imagined I was on a lunch date with Robert Redford) and then, for those who wanted to, went on a hike with some really good-looking KWS escorts. While hiking we saw a herd of Coke’s Hartebeest galloping over the hills. On my way down with Isobel and Anna, some of the boys decided to hide behind a bush a scare us…it worked. Our staff surprised with a visit to the town right outside of Tsavo NP for ice cream! It honestly felt like I was back in the States, because the roads were paved and there was a Shell station on the corner. There was even a flush toilet…weird! On the way back to camp we stopped in at the Visitor’s Center and did a game drive the rest of the way back to camp.
Funny, sort of, instance that happened to me at night. Well I woke up really having to go to the bathroom at night. When we need to go to the choo, we are supposed to flash our flashlights at the eskaris so that they can accompany us to the bathroom and protect us from whatever happens to be lurking in the tall grass nearby. So deciding that I couldn’t wait until morning, I flashed the eskaris and was accompanied to the choo. While I was on my way back, the biggest roar ever came from the darkness. AHHHHHHHH! Actually I wasn’t that scared because the eskari that accompanied me is famous for killing a lion back in the day. The eskari rushed me back to my tent and joined the other 3 guards to assess the situation. In the morning we found out that a male lion had decided to take a stroll by camp and have a quick cat nap in the middle of the road that runs by our campsite.
Funny, sort of, instance that happened to me at night. Well I woke up really having to go to the bathroom at night. When we need to go to the choo, we are supposed to flash our flashlights at the eskaris so that they can accompany us to the bathroom and protect us from whatever happens to be lurking in the tall grass nearby. So deciding that I couldn’t wait until morning, I flashed the eskaris and was accompanied to the choo. While I was on my way back, the biggest roar ever came from the darkness. AHHHHHHHH! Actually I wasn’t that scared because the eskari that accompanied me is famous for killing a lion back in the day. The eskari rushed me back to my tent and joined the other 3 guards to assess the situation. In the morning we found out that a male lion had decided to take a stroll by camp and have a quick cat nap in the middle of the road that runs by our campsite.
March 5
Today we had a low key day in camp. We got to sleep in this morning (6:30 am)…yay! After breakfast we had a preparatory lesson for the animal count we will be doing tomorrow for wildlife ecology. Then we went for a short game drive where our professor showed us the difference between shrubland and bushland. I’m not gonna lie…they look pretty much the same. On the way back from camp we found some honey badger poop! I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before, but my professors (ALL of them) LOVE picking up poop. Fortunately the poop was still fresh, and kinda runny, so they refrained from picking it up and passing it around even though I could totally tell it was killing them to not pick it up. When we got back to camp, a scientist working for Tsavo West came to speak with us about the health of the park and the problems being faced. It’s sad to hear the poaching is still a problem…although it’s not as bad as it once was because KWS has really been able to crack down on the bad guys. We ended the day with a, you guessed it, a game drive!
March 6
Today was an early day! We woke up at 6 to do our animal counts in our different transects. My group saw lots of cool animals: hippos, klipspringers, lesser kudu, impala, warthogs, dik-diks, zebra, giraffes, monkeys, baboons, and lots of pretty birds. At lunchtime we met the rest of the group at an inactive volcano and hiked to the top for a little R&R…and lunch:) The lava rocks are sort of loose so it was funny watching all of us slowly make our way to the top. We ate lunch, took lots of neat pics, and then headed down so we could go to Mzima springs, where the fish give hippos pedicures. On our way down, a bus full of boys from one of the secondary schools in the area came and totally put us to shame as they sprinted up the side of the mountain.
At Mzima Springs we enjoyed seeing all of the hippos, crocs, monkeys, and birds. I was even lucky enough to snap a shot of an African squirrel…whoa! There was a neat underwater observation deck where you could see these really big fish. They looked really tasty. I also saw a crocodile sitting by a waterfall with his mouth open waiting for the fish to come his way.
Word of Caution: When visiting Mzima Springs, beware of monkeys. They like to come up and say hi!
March 7
Today we went and visited the Ngulia Rhino sanctuary where Kenya is in the process of rehabilitating a population of black rhinos. Supposedly there are 69 black rhinos living in this sanctuary…well we were there for 4 hours and never saw one! We did however see the cutest scene of guinea fowl running to this watering hole, getting quick drink of water, and running back into the long grass for protection. We also saw the prettiest giraffes, the ugliest warthogs, and zebra.
After the sanctuary we went to a lodge for another killer buffet and some swim time. This lodge is known for baiting leopards with goats to show the guests. We didn’t stay long enough so we didn’t get to see it (Side note: It is not good to feed wild animals because they lose their natural ability to stalk and kill their prey…so don’t do it).
March 8
After the sanctuary we went to a lodge for another killer buffet and some swim time. This lodge is known for baiting leopards with goats to show the guests. We didn’t stay long enough so we didn’t get to see it (Side note: It is not good to feed wild animals because they lose their natural ability to stalk and kill their prey…so don’t do it).
March 8
Today we packed up camp and headed back to KBC. I really miss Tsavo but it feels good to be home.
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