Day in Cape Town

I had another free day in Cape Town where it rained and was cloudy. But i went to Robben Island which is where Nelson Mandela was imprisioned, eventhough people told me not to go. I did find it cool becuase ex-prisioners give you tours and that was increadable. It took pretty much all day and then i went to have lunch on the water front. Then a cab to Table Moutain and i went up it and STILL was in a cloud at the top but looked around and couldn't really breath at the top. You go up about half the moutain and then take a cable car up to the top. I then came home to catch up on things.....I go on a tour of the wine lands tomorrow and so I am going to get some rest. This vacation thing is tiring! Miss everyone and can't wait to see and talk to you all soon!

SHARKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay again no pictures but i will post pictures to these posts when i get home. I went shark diving and peeing in the Atlantic Ocean. So we went to this sea port that was so beautiful and ate breakfast and then got on the boat. There was a few other people but there was a girl that was definitly not going in the cage and was scared of the Ocean so her and I sat together because i don't like being on the open water like that. So we rode up top though adn enjoyed looking at all the mountain ridges around us. We got out and then put out our "cum line" where you put smashed up fishy water out the back of the boat so that the sharks smell it and come. We have a decoy seal out of wood and a HUGE bait of tuna head to lure them too. FINALLY we got a shark. It was increadable! Then we quickly got in wet suits and that was the end of me. I got in the tank on the side of the boat and never got out. You would just hang out in the cage with 5 others and when the skipper said "DOWN!" you would take a breath and go down to watch the shark swim around you! It was so insane and i think i peed a little. Then we got out and watched the sharks for a little bit. The unfortunate thing was that it is the PERFECT SEASON and we had the PERFECT DAY but for some reason this year there are no sharks...go figure. So we only saw like 6 and they were one or 2 at a time. The water was a bit murky but we all had a GREAT TIME and i survived. We then saw the seals again and then on the way home i felt pretty sea sick as we had been on the water for about 5-6 hours by then and so i don't really remember the way home. Then we rode 1 and a half hours back home. It was a great and adventurous day! Oh yeah and that girl who was pertirfied of the water...she when in the TANK!

Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point

I think people were right when they said "OH MY GOSH YOU HAVE TO GO TO CAPE TOWN IT IS SOOOOOOO BEAUTIFUL!" I realized that today because I went on an all day tour today. We started off driving down the coast and stopped to take a boat tour to see sea lions jumping and playing far out in the water on this speical island that they love in Hout Bay. Then we reloaded the van and headed to see PENGIUNS in Boulders. There are all these pengiuns on the beach and they are just waddling around and i almost died becuase i wanted to squeeze one really badly but obiously you can't touch them. They would dive in for swims adn they had babies and it was amazing to watch. Then we got BACK on the bus and went down to the National Park where the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point are...tips of Africa where they Atlantic Ocean meets. WOWWWWWW! First we drive in then we get on bikes and bike through the national park. The views were unreal and breathtaking although I had to stop on my bike about every 3-4 seconds to take yet ANOTHER picture. Then we stopped for a picnic lunch and then road our bikes again all the way to the point. The views wer just increadable. I can't even describe in words with the water hitting the rocks and cliffs out from the mountians and then more mountians in the distance. Then we got off the bikes and hiked in the heat of the day...people that know me know how much i love hiking...or truthfully don't like it at all. We pretty much hiked the great wall of China. We hiked straight up this mountain and cliff to get views that will take your breath away (you also can't breath from the hike) then we hiked all the way for about an hour through the moutains to a lighthouse. BUT the trick was that the lighthouse climb an hour later was STRAIGHT UPHILL again. I told people i better be prepared with what i am going to say to God because we had climbed up so much I thought we were going to reach him at the top. We made it to the light house and it was brethtaking views AGAIN! Everywhere you turn it was so unbelievable! Then we got in the van and road all the way back home taking pictures and learnign along the way. We had a great group and a lot of fun! I can't wait for my shark diving adventures tomorrow!

RUGBY South African style

The rugby match was the New Zealand Cheifs against the South African Stormers. I was voting for the Chiefs for a friend and also the Stormers have not been good this season...yes i can make statements like that because i have been in Africa for more then a month and watched approximitly 3 games so I am authorized to make blanket statements about rugby. So this guy has an amazing company that he started up where he gets a group together to BBQ or have a Bri (as they say out here) and it is usually by the stadium but this was at his house due to the weather...his house was UNREAL! Then you eat and drink with him for 2 hours and then you go to the game and you all sit together and then he takes you home (although we went to a bar first and then home). We had such a fun time. I loved the Rugby!

Cape Town, South Africa WATCH OUT!

Of course my flight to cape town was delayed until the afternoon so John, the guy that runs the lodge who was going to drop me off ended up having to drage me around with him all day in Harare until my flight left. I got to Cape Town late at night and so came straight to the Ashanti Lodge, where I was staying and went to bed. Nothing too exciting. The lodge is apparently for backpackers (of which i am not since i roll in with my rolling bags and nothing on my back) but it is soooo nice. We all share a communal kitcken and showers and bathrooms. THen i have a room with a bed and a sink and LITERALLY that is it. I really like the place though. The next day i got up after laying in till 7am (big sleep in these days) and then went to the desk and asked what to do. After getting set up I set out in the rain to take an open top bus tour whcih was GREAT (besides the rain and fog). I learned a lot and saw the city. I went to Table Mountian but didn't go all the way up on the cable car because it was ZERO yes ZERO visablity and they were still selling tickets...hummm interesting. So i just went around in a big loop and got off in Camps Bay which is absolutly unreal and walked around and ate lunch. I am sure it is gorgeous when it is not raining but i didn't have that luck...Fischer luck. I still LOVED IT! It reminds me though of the rich quite areas in California with the water adn the moutains. I would love to post pictures but i can't on here. Then I returned home to go to a rugby game!

Zambezi Trip

So the grandson, Reilly, who now runs the volunteer program, of the man who started saving Black Rhinos and two other guys, James Reed and Jamie (and hopefully a fourth) are going to set off soon down the Zambezi. I tell you about this because they are raising money to help educate more people on how the black rhinos are not going to survive without help and to raise money to help protect the ones they have. They breed and raise them and then stories like this happen. One that they donated had a baby and poachers came through and darted the rhino (so it wasn't even dead) then took the horns and skinned the face. The next morning the mom rhino was walking with no face with her abby behind her....they had to put her down as she was in so much pain...OBVIOUSLY. and there are so many other stories like this. It is getting so out of control. The Amimal Planet came and made a documentary called "A Rhino In My House" and it should air may of 2010 but even this film doesn't quite depict the severity of danger that these rhino are in. So these guys are goign to canoe down the Zambezi River from source to sea, which has never been completed becuase of illness or death. They are going to run into a great deal of obsticles but they feel this is something they want to do to show how important this issue is. So i tell you all this so that if anyone wants to donate money or resources for their trip or to save the rhinos PLEASE tell me and we will work something out. I know this is the second time i have asked for donations but i have witnessed how sick and sad the rhinos situation is and it breaks my heart. I donated money for the rhinos and supplies for the guys. ANYTHING would help. They adn I would really appreciate it. I will post thier website when i remember it...which is clearly not now. Thanks everyone for all the help you have given...it does not go unnoticed.

I HAD A BABY....ELEPHANT!!!!!!!

Okay so I had been training with all three elephants and one was pregnant and due at the end of May. So every morning i would tell Mondevu (the pregnant ellie) that i would buy her special treats if she had a baby when i was still here and she had until the 30th of April. THe good thing is that an elephant gift is nothing like the price of a push present in the States because we just bought her a HUGE bag of oranges. So I wake up on my last morning in Zim EXTREMELY sad and i told them that i didn't want to get out of bed becuase i didn't want my last day to start. But i wake up that morning and as soon as we are getting ready to go out and start our day at 6am, Reilly runs around the corner saying "GET IN THE CAR MONDEVU IS HAVING HER BABY!" I almost peed in my pants! We all jumped in the car and RACED to the ellie pens and on our way I asked how we knew it was coming and he said one of the handlers came biking to the house to tell us they saw a FOOT! So at that point we all knew this was happening. We got there and unfortunelty had missed the birth which Bright (our guide but lives with the Ellie and guided the birth) said "it just dropped out" and then four of the handlers had to pull it away and keep it away from the mom becuase mom elephants will stamp the baby to death becuase all they know is that is what caused them pain. So they got it away and when we got there this little tiny morsel of an elephants was wet and trying to stand. OH MY WORD IT IS THE CUTEST THING EVERRRRRRR! They are going to name it Zambezi ( as it is male and they wanted to name it after a river and the guys are canoing down the Zambezi river to raise money for the Rhino so i think that will be the name). I couldn't have had a better last day if i tried. It was so shocking and the whole day we just spent with the baby elephant, although we also did some games with the kids from the compound where all the handlers families live. The last day was hard but that made it unforgetable! You all will soon see Zambezi as I stole him and brought him in my bag.

Life in Zim

Oh i have been busy.  Plowing the ground with a plow that is pulled by an elephant.  So much harder for the people then the elephants though.  We have had SERIOUS issues with the power out here and haven't really had any power for about 5 days now...and it was off and on before that.  The problem with no power is the generator is too expensive to run AND the cell phones dont work without power..i don't get it but it is Africa and some things you just have to say "okay, doesn't make any sense but it still happens."  I deliver hay and food every monday morning with Miceala and it is some serious hard work but it is god exersize.  I will write more later but I unfortunelty have to run all the time and so now is another time.  We are in rush but I wanted to tell all that I have stayed busy and I am living up my last week here and I am EXTREMELY sad to leave here....it is amazing!  Okay i hope all is well and i wish my brother a very HAPPY BIRTHDAYYYYYY!  Lots of love to everyone and i am sorry about the lack of pictures...they will come some time i promise.  

ANIMALS!

So I can't even remember all that i have written but here is the deal at Imire. There are about 11 wil d griaffes that just roam around and no one really works with besides giving them some pellets sometimes to bring them close to the game drive truck. There is a new 3 week old giraffe and i think it is possibly the cutest thing. I would take it home but i have already packed my bag with the cook at our house becuase she is good, nothing like Jason's cooking, but close, and i also am packing a baby zebra and the cook, Liz said she would take care of the baby zebra in my bag. So there are also Zebra here who are wild and just observed. Then there are a few types of antolope...impala, tesebbe (fastest anelope in africa), Blesbok (who sound like they are sneezing all the time bc they get bugs (like magets) that grow in their nasal canal...yes i know so aweful and we have all decided that is NOT what we want to come back as), Kudu, Waterback, and then there are Sable and horses, and they have cattle ALLLL OVER. THe cattle are used because then the people can bring in the cattle and "dip" them (which is a spray to keep off ticks) and then let them loose with the other game and keep down the tick population because ticks kill a lot of animals. Then there are two black rhino that hang out together all day, then two tohers that also hang out with a wharthog (and the two and the warthog live in pens at our house), three elephants who i train with and ride. We had to ride the elephants with manure to bring to the schools garden the other day. THere is also an elephant who lives with the buffalos. THere are a few confused animals on this farm....a wharthog who thinks she is a rhino, an elephant that thinks she is a buffalo, a zebra who thinks he is an impala, and a hyena who thinks he is a dog. The parents of the guy that runs the volunteer program have a hyena, Tsotsi, who they have raised from a baby (the baby hyena, baby rhino (tatinda), and baby warthog (pug) all were raised by Judy and John (the owners) because all these animals were orhphaned at the same time). The hyena does go out and hunt all day and only come in at night adn will attack strangers. I have hung out with him three times and almost pee in my pants everytime....not so enjoyable but the family ABSOLUTLY LOVES HIM! I think that might be all the animals...oh and a crocidile, a lion, 2 wild hyenas, a hippo and some cats and dogs. I have also learned tons of trees, and birds. So for now that is it...oh there are pythons but i just like to think htat they don't exist. So i will update you if I think of any other animals here. Hope everyone is well!

chopping trees and camping out

So I forgot to blog about my AMAZING skills at chopping trees. I have gotten better as I have had to do it a few times in the last few days. So first I have to chop down small gum trees to make sign posts. Then give them to the elephants to bring home...no blisters from that chopping expereince. Then we are going to build a climber for the lions because at the moment there is only a female lion but in a week (possibly a week, a month, a year...it is all the same in africa..it happens when it happens) Irime (the safari Ranch i am working at) are getting a male lion. This climber will be with the lions so they can play but to make the climber we had to cut down BIG trees. You begin to appreciate everything that is electric or gas run...TRUST ME! We chop with axes or these sorry looking knive things. Okay that expereince elicited 2 blisters. THen there was another wedding this weekend and they needed our house so we packed EVERYTHING back up and went camping on the farm end of the safari park. It was absolutly unreal, so peaceful, on the dam, and we had a great time. It was me, the guy (Riley) who runs the volunteer program, his cousin who helps with the volunteer project (Maceala), and our guide who is with us all day from 6 am to 6 pm (Bright). But yesterday we had to make spoons out of a bIG chunk of wood! Mine is amazing (it is actaully a stirring spoon). We worked so hard on them that Maceala said she is putting hers in her will becuase it is so importatnt to her now! I got a nice amount of 3 more blisters from that. We also set up an outside shower and it was so great! But anyways we are back now to head back home as the wedding party has hopefully left!

Daily Routine

Okay again there are no pictures but we have figured a way to get some pictures up so we will hopefully do that soon for all of you that are eagerly anticipating animal pics and me training with elephants. So in the mornings (we are up at 5:45 am and at the elephants but 6:30) I go and watch the elephant handler train the elephants to know the parts of the body and they can also kick a soccer ball, better then me. By the end of my time here the handler said i will be working with them on my own. CRAZYYYY! Isabelle, I know you said you would be jealous if i rode an elephant but i have to tell you about it becuase you wouldn't believe how cool it is. We ride them some days for a bit in the morning to keep them used to having clients ride them and it is so cool because they eat the whole time and just DESTROY trees as they walk. The elephants get a hold of one branch and just RIP it down and take almost the whole tree with them. It is so funny but so destructive. Dad, if you thought deer were bad you should get some elephants and you would have no more trees. We also walked with the rhinos and learned what they eat and what they do and they are so cute becuase they have to take naps in the day. And yes Jason i do smooch their ears and the elephants ears everyday! We had a wedding here this weekend whcih was so fun and crazy and they had the elephants walk in the background and some giraffes walked by...the giraffes are free to roam as most animals on here are and we just cound them each week, but the rhinos and the elephants have handlers with them all day and night due to poachers. Anyways i have to run but wanted to wish everyone a happy easter and hope all is well. Miss everyone, pictures are to come!

Zim is Zimazing!

So the communication here is not that same so i can only post everyone once and a while and i don't know if i will be able to post pictures before i come home but i will try. This place is unreal and so much fun. We have been working hard this week and training the elephants and learning about the Rhinos. We went on a horse ride to find some of the Sables (an animal) because they are pregnant and we had to see how they are doing. It has just been such a hands on amazing expereince. The people are the nicest people i have met and they are so friendly and helpful. We have been having such a good time working and relaxing and all having fun. There are so many things to write but I unfortunetly can not be on any longer and just wanted to write to tell everyone that this is truly unreal. Everyone should come to Imire (this safari) and Zimbabawe..it is a great place. I also will soon be asking for donations because the guy whose parents run this place is taking a trip down the most dangerous river, the Zambize for 3-4 months to raise money to help save the Rhinos from poaching. I will make a whole post about it but if people want to see if they have it in them to donate some money it would be soooo much appreciated. I am going to attach some letters from them and information and all but for now i just wanted to give a heads up. We had docotrs from Cuba come today and treat everyone on the farm which was great. The lion arrives soon and also we have a wedding at the house this saturday so we have to camp out of the house on Sat. It should be interesting. The night before last i slept out in the hammock outside and it was almost a full moon and it was such increadable sounds and sights and it was so great...well until it started to rain. Okay well hope all is well and will write again as soon as i can!

traveled to Zimbabwe and survived!

So i have no pictures up yet of anything i know but the girl with the computer has now gone on to her part of the trip and so i don't know how i am going to do it but i will try. So anyways i was nervous about flying to Zimbabwe (or "Zim" as they call it) because of all that was told to me but i got here fine and got all my stuff here without it getting taken. Then John picked me up and we ran a couple erands and headed to the house i was totally in awe. This is the situation.... The farms around here we mainly like maize and tabacco were mainly white people but the government (that is illegal to speak bably of over here) took them over and gave them to locals. The one that i am working on was one of those forever ago but the guy who works with the volunteers and grew up here (Riley) grandfather changed the farm into a animal reserve and he got Black Rhinos and breeded them (which everyone said he couldn't do but he convinced them he coule). So since they had these rhinos there game reserve wasn't taken over although they tried. So Riley works with the volunteers, his cousin Makeila also helps with the volunteers, then there is John who works with the public lodge and manages that. The reserve is HUGE. 2 rhinos (Tatinda and Shanu) and one warthog (Pug) sleep right by the house, which is on the river and has one hippo in it. None of the animals are caged in besides the lion (only female now becuase the male was bitten mby a snake and died....and yes i asked and the snakes are supposedly in hibernation for their winter which is right now so i don't have to be too scared) BUT the cool thing is that they are bringing a lion male here next week and they are goign to introduce it to the female and i get to help and work with them. THey get you right involved. Every morning at about 6am i have to feed the rhinos in their pens where they sleep (before the go out to graze all day) and then 6:!5-9am we are out training and working hands on with the elephants, then 9-10 is breakfast and 10-12:30 is patroling for poachers, observing the animals, and what else needs to be done, then 2-4:30 we go back out to do things with animals, then i have to feed the rhinos dinner when they get back at 4:30 and yest and the next two days i have to bottle feed the baby rhino and it was the most unreal cooooooooolest thing ever!!!!!!!!!!! SO the poaching of rhinos is insane here and they have a crazy story of four rhinos beign killed. Apparently, people are paid to come in and kill the rhino and cut off thier horns and then the horns can be sold for thousands and the asina culture like it bescasue they think the horns have special healing powers...but the horns are just made of carotin. So anyways the elephants and rhinos have handlers with them ALL day and all night so nothing happens. We also have a guide guy. Bright, with us all day that goes around with us. The house has a cook, Liz, who makes AMAZING food and a lady who cleans and does luandry, Cecelia, who does my laundry 3 times a week...better then a hotel. THe best thing is they get you totally involved in EVERYTHING. There is a school too which i will work out most of next week because then they go on break for a month. But on break they will still come and take care of their garden and play sports so that will be fun. OHHHH also, if parents in NYC think the seperation is bad then they should here this one. In Zim at the age of 6 you start school and since it is far they go to school and board for a month and then come home for a weekend and they go back. They do this all through out their schooling. crazy huh?!?!? I went on a game drive today with some tourists from the lodge so i could see all the land and then tom we are working on a golf fundraiser to bring money to help with ending poachers. There are also 2 weddings, which they never have, at the house two weekends in a row so we will see how that goes. I might fly to Victoria falls for a weekend as they say it is amazing. SOOOOO that is all for now. I get only the internet when i am not working out here so my posts with be less often but i will try. I love it here and i am sad that Zim gets such a bad reputation because it is amazing and the people are increadible. Also the lodge only gets and works with people from with in Africa because oversees tourists don't want to come to ZIm due to what they hear and that is sad becuase this place is GREAT! So until later i hope all is well. Thanks for reading.

SAFARI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So i don't have pictures to post YET but they are AMAZING so be ready. I will have to post them in little bits as the posts can't upload many pictures at a time, and when i say not many i mean it can upload only one. So Mel and I left 3 days ago in the morning and embarked on what we knew would be fun but had NO IDEA what we were doing Safari to the Masi Mara Game park. We stayed in the most amazing campground (kinda fake camping) and we spent three days looking at the most awe inspiring animals. I think the one that I was most stunned by was the Zebra but actaully all of them...i just thought the zebra looked so different then it does when you see it in any zoo or anything. The game drives were amazing and then we stopped by the Masi Warriors Village and wow, what an expereince. I will post a later post just on that. I just wanted to update you all onto where I am now and soon i will post pictures and give more details. I am off tomorrow to Zimbabwe to start my work on the Black Rhino and Elephant Reserve. Apparently i need good luck while trying to survive in Zimbabwe these days. Thanks for reading the blog and I hope this finds everyone well.

The Last Day...sooooo sad!

So we left on sunday eventhough the friday before they had a parents day, which was very interesting to expereince and they had the social services district head and the pastor head come to visit and open the Library for us. They cut a string thing that they taped across the door. The Library turned out AMAZING (although Mel and I are now broke)! So we went back up and visited the children saturday adn sunday but on sunday we had to say goodbye. We had to get in a cab at 3:30am monday morning for the 4 hour drive to the airport and the flight to Nairobi where we were going to take our 3 day safari. So we said goodbyes and it was extremely sad. My two favorite kids (Johna and Franko) were giving me so much attention taht day that it made it even HARDER to say goodbye. We finally had to leave them and they were so sweet and said they would miss us so much. They are wonderful children and I will miss them sooooo much!

Final Goodbyes on Friday

Me, Bridget, and Stacey saying goodbye.
Mel and her team saying goodbye.
Judith, the head of the orphanage, the Pastor, and the Head of Social Services
Guidein eating of course while all the other kids eye his food. He is a good sharer though.
Guidein and Revin at the house because they helped us bring our presents home.

Waiting during the Pastor's talk

So the parents went inside to get snacks and listen to the Pastor (who is supposedly a big pastor and he even has a driver) The rest of us hung out outside and waited till we could go in and enjoy the library too. That is me and Johnas...well before he smacked my camera. The first picture is of Calob and Horace the guys who hung out with us and Horace is holding on to Calob, a kid that they found in the street almost about to die and they took him in. So i called it the "double Calob Horace" picture. I love the picture of the two kids inspecting the Pastor's car license plate it just looks like they are saying "if you come to our hood we are going to check you out."

Cutting of the Library Ribbon

The girls and then all of us held up the "thank you" sign that they made and then we stood around and the head of child services cut the ribbon to the library. It was so fun. Then inside the pastor gave a talk to the parents on their involvement. It was great to see how many people were excited for the library because Mel and I were SOOO excited and we were even going to get to use it. But I have now collected books at home (as this post is backdated) and so we will fill up that library!

Celebration Underway!

At the end of the semester celebrations the top two children in the class get a prize and then the youngest class everyone gets a prize. I was so pleased to see that most of the prizes came from things I brought to donate. It made me happy to see that the children were getting them and loving them. That is a picture of them posing behind my donations. There is a picture of the teacher awarding one of the students. The other pictures are of all the kids sitting for the celebration in one of the classrooms. Since this was mel and my almost last day and the kids were all together they did a "goodbye" celebration for us too. They sang and said nice things about us and gave us some gifts and their notes which i still and will always cherish!

Last Day celebration

So this was Friday and we were heading out at 4:30 AM or something crazy like that on Monday morning. We came around Sat and Sun to hang out with the kids but a lot of kids and adults were leaving this day, Friday, because it was the end of the school semester. I know this is confusing because it is an orphanage and they are supposed to not have anywhere else to go but some children have one parent who can't take care of them or a relative or friend takes them for their little holiday break so that the kids can have a change of scenery. The last picture is of a dad who came (only like 10 dads a a couple moms and a grandmother came not nearly matching the number of children) but some dads are dads and uncles to other children as well and grandfathers to other children so you never really know the family tree situation you just pray that each child is loved. These are pictures of the bustle to set up for the families coming and then also us posing for pictures with the teachers.