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Just another day in the Serengeti. Watched this mother cheetah teach her 2 cubs to hunt. Earlier saw a kill with a lion, hyena and jackal chasing a baby gazelle. The Lion injured it and the hyena got it in the end. Very dramatic. I watched thru my binocs so dont have photos. P1281343P1271318This photo is a hyena eating a wildebeest.

15
Jan

THANK YOU TO ALL THE BAG LADIES (and 3 men) for collecting so many totes. P1011334Between you all I got about 900 totes and reached my goal of $500 in donations. You guys are THE BEST. AMAZING. Thank you Renee, Carol, Pippa, Chris, Karen, Barbara and Tribal Trust, Nancy, Josee, Judy, Jane Ann, Jackie, Marius, Susan, Danyel, Mikki, Becky, Merrill, Virginia, Elizabeth, Frances, Hildy, Holly, Alex, Sandy, Brittany and Hills of Africa, Michael, Randi, Steve, Connie, Shauna, Trish, Nancy, Amy, Bridget, Grace, Ann, Angie, Kim, Caro, Suzanne, Janey, Denise and Montecito Yoga, Sothebys, Santa Barbara Yoga, Penny, Kathi, Paula and Eco-Nest. I leave on Wednesday to take your collection to the women and kids in Tanzania. They are already thanking you and sending lots of love from Africa. ASANTE SANA (Kiswahili for Thank you very much)

P1011320Thank you. thank you, thank you to all the teachers, and kids who collected totes and wrote notes to the kids in Africa to set up a pen pal. In one week all the notes and totes (300 of them) will be traveling by plane to Tanzania. I am so excited to see the faces of the children there when they see the notes ‘n totes. They will feel all the time and love that went into this project here and i will bring back notes from them full of their love. P1011326THANK YOU AGAIN TO ALL OF YOU WHO MADE THIS HAPPEN. AND THANK YOU FOR THE DONATIONS OF MONEY. Here are a few photos. I hope to have a short video of the entire project when I get back in February. P1011323

Jabdu and Cubs in Buffalo SpringsDuring my August safari to Kenya we will visit these cats with the Ewaso Lion Project. There is one spot left for this journey. Get more information HERE.

 

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On January 23rd I am taking Notes ‘N Totes from 3rd – 6th graders in America to exchange for letters from the same age kids in Tanzania; setting up a pen pal system for children there who have no access to the internet.

More than 300 children who are passionate about sharing their solutions for environmental issues have already signed on.

I am trying to raise $500 for shipping and drivers costs. Small amounts go a long way and you will get a HUGE thank you from me for a $10 contribution or a $100 one. You can donate by  clicking HERE

ASANTE SANA for any help you can provide.

DSC00169 While watching my plastic bag clean up program this child wanted me to see his solution:

A soccer ball made entirely from plastic bag litter. On January 23rd I am taking Notes ‘N Totes from 3rd – 6th graders in America to exchange for letters from the same age kids in Tanzania; setting up a pen pal system for children there who have no access to the internet.

More than 300 children who are passionate about sharing their solutions for environmental issues have already signed on.

I am trying to raise $500 for shipping and drivers costs. Small amounts go a long way and you will get a HUGE thank you from me for a $10 contribution or a $100 one. You can donate by  clicking HERE

ASANTE SANA for any help you can provide.

Category: Kids, Projects  3 Comments

Africa is my source for lessons in simplicity. This photo reminds me of one of those lessons. I’m leading a tour in Uganda and the group is excited by a brochure at our bed and breakfast in Jinja. The advertisement says this town is famous for the ‘Source of the Nile ‘. Our  hour long drive to see the tourist attraction winds through lush tea and coffee plantations, finally turning onto a dirt road that ends atop a grassy knoll. “Where are we?” I ask the driver guide. “At the source of the Nile,” he replies.IMG_0562 I look around for sign boards, other tourists, a path leading to the river. But there is nothing. Then out of the bushes the boy in this photograph appears holding a stick with an attached poster board with large letters that say, “The Source of the Nile”. He jams the stick into the dirt and motions for us to form a semi circle around him and his prop. After a couple of minutes of historical fact telling he apologizes for not having any cokes for us to drink.”When my family gets money we will be serving cold cokes,” he tells us, “and building a proper cement parking lot, and platforms for viewing so more tourists will come see the source.”  When he points to the ripple in the river I imagine John Speke discovering this source back then almost exactly like it remains today. As we drive away the boy yanks his stick out of the ground and disappears into the bushes and I secretly hope his family will never get the money to ‘develop’ this significantly simple spot.

Category: Stories  Leave a Comment

Wangari Maathai died on September 25th at the age of 71.  I met her briefly in 2007 long after she had been a mentor and inspiration to me because she represented what Jane Goodall, my other mentor, always says: “One person can make a difference.” images-1

“It’s the little things citizens do. That’s what will make the difference. My little thing is planting trees,” Wangari said of her Green Belt Movement, which grew into a global reforestation organization. “Environmental degradation and poverty are intimately connected,… the [simple] act of planting a tree is a symbol of revitalizing the community,” said Wangari.

Despite growing up in Kenya – Wangari’s husband divorced her under the grounds that he could not control her, the President called her crazy and a threat to national security, and she was imprisoned, beaten and tear gassed for her various humanitarian and environmental efforts- she never stopped working for what she believed in, winning a Nobel Peace Prize in 2004, the first African Women to do so.

It was a quote from Wangari (at the time she was serving as Assistant Minister of the Environment in Kenya) in a Tanzanian newspaper: “malarial mosquitoes breed in the plastic bag litter,” that helped propel me into action on my plastic bag clean up campaign. She has inspired millions of people, including me, to keep doing our little things.

Thank you Wangari.

 

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Category: Animals  One Comment

IF YOU HAVE ALWAYS WANTED TO GO TO AFRICA –WAIT NO LONGER !

THIS TRIP GOES TO MY FAVORITE PLACES IN KENYA FOR

A NINE DAY EXPERIENCE YOU WILL NEVER FORGET  (ONLY THREE SPOTS LEFT)

lion sleep  KENYA FRIENDS TRIP

AUGUST 21-30, 2012

Trip highlights:

–Maasai Mara National Reserve- the most famous safari destination in Africa.

–Wildebeest Migration in the Mara

–Samburu National Reserve-home to species unique to this region

–Masaii and Samburu tribes – visits to their bomas

–Lions- we will spend time with researchers tracking lion

–Giraffe Center- we will visit this unique manor and giraffe sanctuary

–Sheldrick Center- meet the orphan baby elephants as seen in Sept issue of Nat Geo

–Out of Africa – visit the home of Karen Blixen where the movie was filmed

– Luxury tented camps intimately connected to nature and wildlife

–first class food and service

–Limited to eight, this trip will truly be a once-in-a-life-time experience.

I hope you will join me.

View photos and stories from past trips at:

http://africainside.org/

For the detailed itinerary and costs please contact me at africainside@gmail.com or on (805) 453-1251