The Final Hours

We are leaving Kenya and Africa tomorrow. Today there was all the closing activities, and people are all crying. We are also packing, and I got to sit on my suitcase to make it all fit. Now I just have to worry about the weight. There is a donation pile, and people have so much extra things that the pile is very huge.

Some of us at a hippo pool

 

We are having last volleyball and soccor games soon, and we hope it does not rain. But we plan on staying up very late tonight, and we will be in the airport for 8 hours tomorrow white we wait for the plane. There will be much bonding and card games. But we will have to day good bye at 4 different locations. The camp, Nairobi, London, and Chicago, and we have been saying good bye for the whole week.

Kylie

Directed Research Fieldwork

Directed Research Fieldwork

                For eight of the past nine days, we have been out in the field collecting data. I am in the Wildlife Ecology DR, and we are assessing the vegetation cover and water quality of the Noolturesh River in the Amboseli Ecosystem. For four days, I walked along the river assessing the canopy cover of the riverine vegetation. In some places, there was a path, but in many places not. We crawled under bushes and over fallen trees. We had to climb some cliffs and use logs to cross the river. On three of the other days, I assessed erosion. We had to go up to 200 meters from the river, and there were no trails. We ran into a lot of Acacia malifera, which have tiny thorns that take hold of your skin and when you pull away, the thorn stays under your skin. There is also an irritant, so the skin hurts more than it should and swells. There is a section of the river that goes through what looks like a rain forest. It really neat and I got to go through it four times. If anyone wants to hike the Noolturesh, I am an expert in certain areas.

My DR group. ED, me, Haley, Laura, BG, Julia, Cam, Tally, (Front) D and Kjersten

                During the one day that we were not in the field, we celebrated Thanksgiving. We had a turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, and candied yams. I helped decorate the area, and made many hand turkeys. We also had apple crisp and pumpkin pie. It was very good. There was also a no-talent talent show, and some people performed. That was interesting.

But that is now over, and we are analyzing the data. We start writing our papers in two days, so that will be exciting. At the end we give a presentation, and then we leave for home. Many people do not want to leave and join the real world again. People are worried about jobs and having actual classes again, and we are trying to make the most of our free time here.

Kylie

Maasai Homestay and Field Work

Maasai Homestay and Field Work

Yesterday we had our Maasai homestay. It was very interesting. When we first got there, we made chai, and then we went to go get water. It took us about 45 minutes to get to the river and back. Water is heavy, and carrying it on your head hurts. I lasted for about 3 seconds. The water was also not very clean, and we had to drink and cook from the water that we brought. After that, we went to gather firewood. We saw a giraffe as we worked, and I got to practice using a machete. I am also not very good at that. We then made and ate lunch. After, we got to make bead bracelets, and got to keep one. Mine is black and white, the only two colors they would let us use.

Today we went for fieldwork. We created a 30x30 meter area, and quantified any human or elephant damage done to the trees within. We then went 200m and did it again. We did this 6 times, so at the end we walked 1300m back to our car. That was fun, as it was almost noon and really hot. But we saw a mother and baby giraffe, Tommy gazelles, and an impala skull.

We have just classes for the rest of the day today and tomorrow, so nothing very exciting.

Kylie

Lake Nakuru

Lake Nakuru

                So we went on our 5 day expedition to Lake Nakuru National Park. It turns out; the park is an 8 hour drive away. We had to start packing the Rhino Truck at 5 in the morning, to leave at 6.30. We stopped along the way to go to the bathroom, and arrived in the park at 4.30. We were staying in an old hostel. It was interesting, because all the girls slept in two rooms, so there were 13 girls in my room. There was an actual kitchen and electricity, which was good, but there was also only one working bathroom, which made it interesting getting ready.

                The first night we were kept up by an animal. Some of us thought that it could have been the buffalo outside the fence, but it turns out that it was really a lioness. When we got up for the morning game drive, we saw two lions right outside our fence.

                There was also traveling lectures. We were in our cars, and as we drove along the road the professor would come on the radio and tell us about the vegetation. It reminded me of Jurassic Park, and some of us were expecting dinosaurs to appear out from the trees. We also had a trip out to Nakuru Town. There we learned that they are abusing the water and it is very contaminated. The city has grown beyond what was expected by 1 million people, so all the water is dirty. We went to a waterfall inside the park, and the water coming over the edge was brown. It looked really gross.

                We also got to see many animals. The park is completely fenced in, so there is no migration. It is also small, so some species of animals have died out in the park. This included the elephants, cheetahs, and the reedbuck. But it is a rhino conservation center. We saw so many rhinos. There was even a little baby. And after seeing just one rhino in Tanzania from a large distance, this was really cool. We also got to see a lion in a tree.

                Lake Nakuru is usually 5-40 km², depending on the season. But it had been raining every day for the past year, that the lake is about 60 km². Campsites are flooded and the forests look swamp like. It was very interesting. It also rained a lot. Every afternoon and almost all night. I am so glad that we were not in tents.

                On the drive back, we stopped at an elephant orphanage. We had to be there by a certain time, and were almost late due to traffic. The drivers ended up driving on the wrong side of the road and on the shoulders to get us there in time. The baby elephants were really cute. But to avoid the traffic afterwards, we took some side roads. These roads were not paved at all. Remember the dinosaur ride in Disneyworld? The one where you are in a car and tossed side to side, thrown up out of your seat and have sudden starts and stops? We got to experience that for over an hour. And it was hot so we had the windows open, meaning that we were also very dusty by the end of that trip.

                Yesterday was a day of rest, and I did laundry. And today we had two traveling lectures. I got to climb a hill in my flip-flops, and when we all got back we sat there picking the thorns out of the bottom of our shoes. We also saw more evidence about how people of the area are not using their water well. They have irrigation channel to brink clean water into the city, but unfortunately, people have been using this as a bathroom, so it is not turning out so well.

                Tomorrow is our homestay with the Maasai. It should be quite enlightening.

Kylie

Halloween

Halloween

Yesterday was a community service day. We went to an AID/HIV clinic and learned about what they due there. We were supposed to help with planting their garden, but it still has not rained here, so we could not do that. We also saw a children rehab center.

When we got back, the Halloween fun started. We all had costumes that we creatively designed from random clothes. I had zebra print fabric that I bought, so I went as a zebra. Someone else went as a ghost, and a guy went as an old women. There also was a purple people eater complete with someone else as a purple person.

The night started off with a scavenger hunt, then pumpkin carving. We then got to go trick-or-treating. Our coordinator had brought candy with him for the holiday, so we got all the candy we have been missing. It was a lot of fun.

Today we just have classes and tomorrow we have a traveling lecture and then are getting ready for our 5 day expedition. It should be exciting.

Kylie

Jambo from Kenya!

Jambo from Kenya!

Yesterday we made the switch from Tanzania to Kenya. We left the Moyo Hill site at 6.30 in the morning, and then drove for 2 hours to Arusha, where we did some last-minute shopping. We then drove for another 2 hours to the border. There we switched sides and had our first lunch in Kenya in a lodge at the border. We then drove for another 2 hours to the Kilimanjaro Base site. It is called that because we get a great view of Kili from our bandas. I have the same banda-mates as I did in Tanzania, although now we do not bunk beds. The bathrooms are also not attached. We get to walk through dust to get to them, so your feet are never truly clean. The site here is about 4 times as big as in TZ. The wildlife is also more prevalent; one banda is not used because it is in the middle of baboon territory. The baboons are all over and it is very common to see them around camp. Snakes are also common here. There is just dust on the paths so that there are less places for the snakes to hide.

The staff here also seem awesome. While it will take a time for us to like them better that the ones in Tanzania, I am sure we will be sad to see them go also. The night before we left Tanzania, there were many tears. The staff also liked us so much they did a traditional dance for us; the first time they had ever done that for a group.

The internet here is also worse, so you will not be getting as many updates as you have in the past, unfortunately. There also is not power in the bandas, which will also take some getting used to.

Today we had orientation and then we went to a cultural Maasai boma. There were puppies there, which stole the spotlight from the people. We also went into Kimana. It was market day. I had ice cream for the first time in a while, and it was so good.

We get to go on expedition Saturday, and are all looking forward to that. And Thriller was just playing from somewhere.

Kylie

Days 41-45: Oldapi and Siringet

Days 41-45: Oldapi and Siringet

                Four days ago we packed up and left for our camping trip. I was on cook crew, so I got up at 5 to make breakfast for everyone. We left at 7, and were on our way. We arrived at the gate at 12 and ate lunch, then went to Oldapi Gorge. It is commonly miss-called Oldavi Gorge, the Cradle of Mankind. This is where Australopithicus spps. and Homo habilis fossils were found. I studied it in my archeology class, so this was a great treat for me. We then drove to our camp site via a game drive. We were in the Dik Dik Public Campsite. There were bathrooms there and showers, so that was a happy surprise. We had to set up our tents, which turned out fine. Then we had dinner and got to listen to the rules. As we were in the middle of the Serengeti, there were predators about. This was emphasized by the hyena laugh we then heard. And there were hyena everywhere. Our ascari (guards) had huge flashlights that they would shine around the perimeter. Eyes would shine back at you, and sometimes you could see the whole body. They were really close; it was very scary. When we went to the bathroom after dark, we had to take a guard with us for protection. But the stars at night were awesome. The Milky Way was so clear.

                The next morning we left for another game drive at 6.30. We saw so many animals. One interesting one we saw was a cheetah with four cubs. They were in the distance, but they were still so cute. We came back for lunch, and then went to a lecture on the park. It was interesting. We drove around some more and saw a pride of lions under a tree. Then we went back to camp.

                The following morning we left at 6.15 and did a bird exercise. I can now successfully identify and black-winged stilt and a blacksmith plover, among other birds. We then saw a few more lions. We had lunch, and drove around some more. We were supposed to have another lecture, but the guest lecturer did not show up, as he had to round up some lions in a different part of the park.

                Yesterday was had to get up to leave by 6.00. But it was worth it, as we saw a leopard in a tree eating a Thompson’s gazelle. We also go to see the sunrise, which was truly beautiful. We had the lecture we missed, but then got to go to Serena Lodge for lunch. They had a buffet, and the best food we have eaten this whole trip. We also got to swim and watch zebra from the pool. On the way back to our campsite, we saw a serval. It was small and in the grass, but still cute. When we got back to camp, there were a large number of tents set up. It was and S.I.T. group. They are another study abroad group that stays in Tanzania. We were able to talk to them, and a few people from our group knew people in that group. After hearing about their program, I am so glad I am on mine. I turns our Madison does not support SIT, because there a few safety measures. They kids are given vouchers and have to find their own food and housing, and are often sick because of it. Their research is also not as useful as ours, as theirs is all individual but ours is going towards a huge plan. But, it was interesting to talk to a few of them.

                We had to leave this morning, but on the way out saw a male lion on the road. It was great because he was so close. We had a long drive back, and got all covered in dust. And are now taking showers and feeling truly clean for the first time in days.

We saw many more animals than I listed here; I just gave some of the best examples. Also, the Serengeti is called the Siringet, or the vast endless plain in Masaai. And that is what it truly is. A wonderful place with amazing creatures.

Kylie