Half Way - Already!

In keeping with the quarterly review - we thought it was time to update to the half way mark! There is more than one thing on some entries as we have differing opinions.

Turkey -
Best Food - Soups
Best Attraction - Cappadocia, fire breathing rocks, Turkish Dance night
Biggest Challenge - getting dropped at Kavashek as the sun was setting ( hwy junction)


Egypt
Best Food - Koshari
Best Attraction -Dahab Snorkeling, Pyramids of Giza, big market in Cairo
Biggest Challenge - the horrendous 8 hour ferry wait in the smoke filled cattle hold with wooden benches, crossing streets in Cairo

Jordan
Best Food - Bedouin breakfast and Bedouin whiskey (aka tea)
Best Attraction - Bedouin camp, camel riding, Petra Treasury
Biggest Challenge - finding a decent backpackers in Petra

Tanzania
Best Food - Damien's safari food, African fried bananas, fresh fruit
Best Attraction - Swimming with the dolphins, Lion kill
Biggest Challenge - always being on guard in populated areas ( safety first.)


And South Africa is not done yet - though this one will be hard!

On Being Wild

First of all, my apologies if the title is misleading... sorry to disappoint. (Also sorry for the lack images below. Slow internet connectivity is a bit of an obstacle here in Africa.)

One of the things that we as a family gravitate toward is wild places and so it was no surprise that the safari we did in Tanzania was one of the highlights of our trip so far. For me it solidified the importance of wild places for wild things to be wild in. Equally vital, as with so many things, is the need for me to experience the wildness first hand; observing nature unfold as it has for tens of thousands of years.

I love wild places and sometimes when you are traveling around the world it’s hard to get what we often take for granted in Canada. Namely, some open space without much in the form of human interference dramatically altering a place. In many cases the wild places in other parts of the world just do not exist. Population density and generations of human activity have all but annihilated or tamed whatever natural balance had existed. Iceland has wild places owing to the harshness of much of the land that simply is not conducive to a lot of people living there. Tanzania also has it, though it has had humans as part of the mix for as long as we as a species have existed. Humans, for most of that time, lived as part of the balance. Recent history has necessitated large tracts being left for conservation. It is in one such place - the unfenced Serengeti/ Ngorongoro, that we juiced our wild batteries.

Of course, here enters that age old debate as to whether the presence of “unwild” (namely people, trucks and roads) negates the wildness. I don’t think it is simply a case of yes or no, but a matter of degree that depends on each place. If the presence of those factors changes the essential balance of place, then it begins to no longer be wild. The Serengeti, despite the scale of tourism, seems to keep the wildness intact. The animals go about their business as usual. Likely a result of generations of humans observing, only some of the elephants would likely recall a time when humans meant something else. We were no more (and likely less) of a presence than flies.

And so we were able to watch the drama of nature unfold before us. Elephants browsing and wandering at will, millions of Wildebeest and Zebra migrating to the calving grounds, Lions and Cheetah hunting... The list goes on for at every moment some story is being told and we were always reading to learn.

Yes, there is the risk of loving a place to death and so the need for management of these sacred places is important. The Tanzanians seem to have figured that out for most of the parks that we saw which is no small task when considering the level of development in their country as a whole. Certainly there will  always be room to improve no matter where you are, but the effort needs to be made

The being there is the critical piece for the continuation and creation of wild places. When we have these deeper experiences we are far more able to learn, relate, and fight for their preservation. I feel it in myself and I see it in Mattias and Emilia. Long live the wild places!

Poaching

Hi everyone
Remember in my last blog, I told you I would write a blog about poaching? Well, here it is.  Poaching usually happens to the animals considered the big 5. Rhino, elephant, leopard, cape buffalo, and lion. They are hunted for trophies. The rhino for its horn, elephant for its ivory tusk, leopard for its skin, cape buffalo for its head, and lion for its claws and teeth. They are also hunted because they are big and the most dangerous to hunt.

Rhinos and elephants are the most hunted/poached nowadays. The rhino horn is used for aphrodisiac. Since it gets turned into dust, it is easy to sneak out of the country. A few weeks ago 5 rhinos were given to Tanzania from South Africa. This was a gift and while we were on safari, one of the gifted rhinos was poached in the Serengeti. Since it is such a large area, it's almost impossible to keep it patrolled. 

In 2007, there were three men in the Ngorongoro who poached three elephants.  Eight rangers found the camp of the poachers so the poachers shot at the rangers killing 2 and injuring one of them. The rangers shot back and killed 2 of the poachers and injured one. They interviewed the one who was injured, and found out that he was from Somalia. The three poachers had disguised themselves as Masaai so that no one would suspect them.

Poaching doesn't happen very often any more, but it still happens. Some of the international laws forbidding the export of ivory has helped decrease elephant poaching. I hope everyone who wants to will do their share to help stop poaching.  There is a good kids book on this topic called Akimbo and the Elephants. Emilia and I both liked it.

Good bye for now.....