Our last night in Cairo was interesting. We headed off to our new favorite restaurant with the large white tent. Kai had mentioned that maybe we should take a light jacket. We didn’t. When we arrived at the restaurant it was interesting to see how many people were wearing full winter parkas, gloves, scarf’s and turtleneck sweaters. I was amazed. It was around 14 degrees outside. That night the temperature dropped to 12 degrees. This was winter in Cairo.
In the restaurant we finally decided to participate in the local pastime of smoking Shisha. It was an interesting experience. It involves smoking a molasses tobacco, which has been flavored, through a glass structure which is filled with water. The tobacco is not tasted, only the flavor is noticed.
I, as always, try to watch and learn from the locals. I like to see what customs and traditions they have between each other. I found that it is very interesting that in Cairo men, like in Sudan, walk arm in arm (not hand in hand like Sudan) and that when two men meet, if they know each other, they kiss each other on both cheeks. When I man meets a woman it is customary only to shake the hand. So men kiss men and women kiss women. Men walk arm in arm with men and women with women. The interesting think that shocked me was that Cairo actually has a special police unit whose job it is to find gay Egypt men and arrest them and make their life very difficult. Very interesting for a culture where men walk arm in arm and kiss only other men and not women!
Our host met us the next morning to take us to the airport. He said we are lucky to be flying as the weather reports are calling for a sand storm to hit Cairo in the next 2-3 days. They come about once a year and cover the entire city in a thin layer of dust and sand. I had heard of them in Khartoum and they are known as a Haboob. The storm is being tracked as it traces across the Great Sahara Desert.
I talked to our host about the driving in Cairo which is chaotic at best. I asked about the pedestrians that cross the highways. He said it is no problem. In Cairo if a car strikes a pedestrian on the high way they do not get in trouble. It is considered the pedestrians fault. I did notice that throughout all of Cairo the cars have the right of way NOT the people crossing the street! I have to admit we ran many times to get out of traffic as it sped towards us.
When the plane landed in Khartoum and the captain made an announcement there was cheers and clapping from the passengers. I didn’t know what was said because it was in Arabic. Then it came over in English “Welcome to Khartoum where the local time is 630pm and the Temperature is 41 degrees! Now I know why the people were clapping. When I got off the plane the heat hit me like a wave. My eyes felt like they were melting.
The next morning as I headed to the UN Airport I noticed the sky was grey. As the sun came up I discovered that it was not grey but brown. The sand storm had arrived in Khartoum. Several flights were cancelled but mine got off the ground. As we flew to Damazin I noticed that the sand storm was quite high and was covering most of Sudan. Often you could not see out the plane windows. In Damazin and in Kurmuk the sky was clear and the sun was hot. Kurmuk had been having a little more of a heat wave. Last week they were getting up to 52 degrees.
On Friday morning I woke up to fine the sky very brown and the sun was not visible. The sand storm was here. Everything is being coated in a thin layer of dust much like talcum powder.
I have found out that another Canadian will be coming to Kurmuk to replace me in about a week. I have also counted that I have only 19 days left in Kurmuk before I begin my out clearance procedures.
I am looking forward to home.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Cairo - Final Day
Final Day in Cairo
We decided to take the day off and enjoy our final day in Cairo. I slept in, downloaded some pictures and then went for a walk around town. We had one goal today. For the past 3 days Kai has stated that he wants to try KFC! That’s right the German wants to try Kentucky Fried Chicken! They do not have KFC in Germany and that have hundreds here in Cairo. So we had KFC for lunch and it did taste exactly as it does in Canada. After the meal Kai understood why I said I can only eat it once in a year. We walked around for the next hour trying to burn off the fat and grease we just ate.
So I had forgotten to mention something about my last day in Tanzania. I had forgotten to mention that on the road trip back from the Safari to the hotel in Moshi I had seen about 3 dead people. There was a car accident that we came upon just as the police loaded the bodies in the back of a pickup. That right there was no ambulance in site. I figure that 2-3 people died in that accident. The car looked like a small aircraft crash as it was in the middle of a field and completely crunched up. It reminded us of how vulnerable we were in Africa as there are no seat belts, no real traffic laws, no ambulances and no trauma hospitals. About 30min later we were driving through another town and on the side of the road there was a crowd and sure enough another body with a police officer looking over the crowd. The man was probably about 50-60years old and was laying there dead in the road. I only bring this up because as we were walking today there was a commotion near one of the bridges which involved the police, ambulance and some people. They were searching the water, the Nile, for a body. We stopped for a while to watch the police divers arrive. We decided to move on.
Life is precious….enjoy it!
Tomorrow I am heading back to Sudan for a night in Khartoum. The following day I will be flying back to my team site. I only have a short time remaining in this mission. I hope that I can accomplish a few more things before I depart my team site on the 6th of April.
I won’t be writing for about a week unless something tremendous happens….like someone actually covering my position in Kurmuk and keeping all of the files, I manage, up to date….LOL as if! This is the UN!
Cheers!
Mike…..PS as of today it is approximately 1 month until I fly home!!
See You Soon.
We decided to take the day off and enjoy our final day in Cairo. I slept in, downloaded some pictures and then went for a walk around town. We had one goal today. For the past 3 days Kai has stated that he wants to try KFC! That’s right the German wants to try Kentucky Fried Chicken! They do not have KFC in Germany and that have hundreds here in Cairo. So we had KFC for lunch and it did taste exactly as it does in Canada. After the meal Kai understood why I said I can only eat it once in a year. We walked around for the next hour trying to burn off the fat and grease we just ate.
So I had forgotten to mention something about my last day in Tanzania. I had forgotten to mention that on the road trip back from the Safari to the hotel in Moshi I had seen about 3 dead people. There was a car accident that we came upon just as the police loaded the bodies in the back of a pickup. That right there was no ambulance in site. I figure that 2-3 people died in that accident. The car looked like a small aircraft crash as it was in the middle of a field and completely crunched up. It reminded us of how vulnerable we were in Africa as there are no seat belts, no real traffic laws, no ambulances and no trauma hospitals. About 30min later we were driving through another town and on the side of the road there was a crowd and sure enough another body with a police officer looking over the crowd. The man was probably about 50-60years old and was laying there dead in the road. I only bring this up because as we were walking today there was a commotion near one of the bridges which involved the police, ambulance and some people. They were searching the water, the Nile, for a body. We stopped for a while to watch the police divers arrive. We decided to move on.
Life is precious….enjoy it!
Tomorrow I am heading back to Sudan for a night in Khartoum. The following day I will be flying back to my team site. I only have a short time remaining in this mission. I hope that I can accomplish a few more things before I depart my team site on the 6th of April.
I won’t be writing for about a week unless something tremendous happens….like someone actually covering my position in Kurmuk and keeping all of the files, I manage, up to date….LOL as if! This is the UN!
Cheers!
Mike…..PS as of today it is approximately 1 month until I fly home!!
See You Soon.
Cairo Pictures (Click Here).... Words to follow
My Pics of Cairo can be seen by clicking the title above of by going to this link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/113337861842515615988/CairoEgypt2010?feat=directlink
Cheers
http://picasaweb.google.com/113337861842515615988/CairoEgypt2010?feat=directlink
Cheers
Monday, March 15, 2010
Old Cairo - Day 4
Old Cairo – Day 4
Memphis, no not in the USA, Cairo is also known as the old Cairo. We went to the site of King Rameses II statues. He was one of the most influential kings of Egypt. Memphis was the old capital of Egypt. There have been many capitals over the many years of Egypt’s existence.
We also went into the area called Sakara which is very well known for its Egyptian Carpet Schools. These schools train children from the age of 6 and up to manufacture Egyptian and oriental carpets. These kids live in Sakara which is a very poor area. School is not mandatory in Egypt and families must pay for school uniforms, books and any other fees that the school has. So in this district the families find it easier to send their children to be carpet makers. Some of the children will get some schooling however most are just carpet makers for the rest of their lives. This also helps the children to help support their families when they get older. The pay of course is not great. To me this seems a little like child labour however if they weren’t in these schools they would be receiving no education and never have a possibility for a future job. A hard reality to think about. It’s a shame the country could not improve education in the poorer areas.
We arrived at the next set of pyramids called the Step Pyramids. It was the first of a new style of pyramid that included 5 steps in the slope of the pyramid. There was also a pottery pyramid which was called this because the pyramid was covered and built with broken pottery. This area, in total size, is massive and they think that they have only uncovered the beginning of what will turn out to be a massive ruins area. The excavation is all done by hand and takes a great deal of time. This project much like the one in Italy at Pompeii will be continuing for years.
Tonight we went on a Nile Dinner Cruise. The food was ok. It was a small buffet. There was a belly dancer, live band and an Egyptian twirler. The belly dancer needs to go back for more training…Oh did I say that? LOL. The twirler – a male dancer wearing a colourful Egyptian dress who spins around non-stop for about 15 minutes was awesome. He impressed me and the others on the boat. 98% of which arrived from 4 buses of a Japanese tour.
We cruised around the Nile for 2 hours. It was a nice way to spend the evening in Cairo.
Memphis, no not in the USA, Cairo is also known as the old Cairo. We went to the site of King Rameses II statues. He was one of the most influential kings of Egypt. Memphis was the old capital of Egypt. There have been many capitals over the many years of Egypt’s existence.
We also went into the area called Sakara which is very well known for its Egyptian Carpet Schools. These schools train children from the age of 6 and up to manufacture Egyptian and oriental carpets. These kids live in Sakara which is a very poor area. School is not mandatory in Egypt and families must pay for school uniforms, books and any other fees that the school has. So in this district the families find it easier to send their children to be carpet makers. Some of the children will get some schooling however most are just carpet makers for the rest of their lives. This also helps the children to help support their families when they get older. The pay of course is not great. To me this seems a little like child labour however if they weren’t in these schools they would be receiving no education and never have a possibility for a future job. A hard reality to think about. It’s a shame the country could not improve education in the poorer areas.
We arrived at the next set of pyramids called the Step Pyramids. It was the first of a new style of pyramid that included 5 steps in the slope of the pyramid. There was also a pottery pyramid which was called this because the pyramid was covered and built with broken pottery. This area, in total size, is massive and they think that they have only uncovered the beginning of what will turn out to be a massive ruins area. The excavation is all done by hand and takes a great deal of time. This project much like the one in Italy at Pompeii will be continuing for years.
Tonight we went on a Nile Dinner Cruise. The food was ok. It was a small buffet. There was a belly dancer, live band and an Egyptian twirler. The belly dancer needs to go back for more training…Oh did I say that? LOL. The twirler – a male dancer wearing a colourful Egyptian dress who spins around non-stop for about 15 minutes was awesome. He impressed me and the others on the boat. 98% of which arrived from 4 buses of a Japanese tour.
We cruised around the Nile for 2 hours. It was a nice way to spend the evening in Cairo.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
The GREAT Pyramids -Day 3
Day 3 – The GREAT PYRAMIDS
Wow, what a site. Three pyramids all in great shape considering how old they are. The Nile was once a mightier river then it is now and was wide enough to actually flow very near to the pyramids. Now it is quite a distance away. I learned a great deal about the 3 main pyramids and the other 3 minor ones. I was warned that absolutely NOTHING is free in this area. I also read that you need to guard your camera. Well sure enough as soon as we left our guide and were taking a few pics a police officer approached me and in broken English asked for my camera and then made me pose. This is where I got the funny shots of the pyramids. After he made Kai and I pose the camera became ransom for a tip. So he made some money off of us that day. We had many other people offer to take our picture or offer to pose with us….It was all about offering you something for free and then holding you hostage for the tip. It was also awesome to see the boats that they burry next to the pyramid for easier passage to the afterlife. The boat beside the Great Pyramid was massive!
We also traveled to the Salah El Din Citadel which stands high above Cairo. In the citadel there are 3 mosques including the most important to the Egyptians called the Mohamed Ali Bashir Mosque. We were able to visit and tour the inside of the Mosque. There were 365 lights that used to be candles. This represented the days of the year. There was a beautiful courtyard and the views from the outer wall of the mosque overlooked the city of Cairo.
When we left the Mosque we visited a Papyrus Paper factory and learned how the ancient Egyptians used the Papyrus plant for paper and as a method of recording historical events. I ended up buying a couple of prints.
We spent a couple hours at the Egyptian Museum which is host to hundreds of Mummies and their sarcophaguses. It was also host to thousands of other treasures found all over Egypt. Of course this includes the most famous of them all; the items of King Tutankhamen. King Tut was the king of Egypt from the age of 9 to 18 at which time he died without explanation. He wasn’t a famous king nor any better than any other kings. The only reason he is so famous is due to the fact they found so much in his tomb. We were able to get up close to many of the items found in his tomb. We were 3 inches away from his famous golden head piece. I was great to learn about the various symbolisms used in ancient Egypt and Rome. It was easy to start analyzing different statues and their status in Egypt based on the symbols that were used.
Enjoy the pictures……
Wow, what a site. Three pyramids all in great shape considering how old they are. The Nile was once a mightier river then it is now and was wide enough to actually flow very near to the pyramids. Now it is quite a distance away. I learned a great deal about the 3 main pyramids and the other 3 minor ones. I was warned that absolutely NOTHING is free in this area. I also read that you need to guard your camera. Well sure enough as soon as we left our guide and were taking a few pics a police officer approached me and in broken English asked for my camera and then made me pose. This is where I got the funny shots of the pyramids. After he made Kai and I pose the camera became ransom for a tip. So he made some money off of us that day. We had many other people offer to take our picture or offer to pose with us….It was all about offering you something for free and then holding you hostage for the tip. It was also awesome to see the boats that they burry next to the pyramid for easier passage to the afterlife. The boat beside the Great Pyramid was massive!
We also traveled to the Salah El Din Citadel which stands high above Cairo. In the citadel there are 3 mosques including the most important to the Egyptians called the Mohamed Ali Bashir Mosque. We were able to visit and tour the inside of the Mosque. There were 365 lights that used to be candles. This represented the days of the year. There was a beautiful courtyard and the views from the outer wall of the mosque overlooked the city of Cairo.
When we left the Mosque we visited a Papyrus Paper factory and learned how the ancient Egyptians used the Papyrus plant for paper and as a method of recording historical events. I ended up buying a couple of prints.
We spent a couple hours at the Egyptian Museum which is host to hundreds of Mummies and their sarcophaguses. It was also host to thousands of other treasures found all over Egypt. Of course this includes the most famous of them all; the items of King Tutankhamen. King Tut was the king of Egypt from the age of 9 to 18 at which time he died without explanation. He wasn’t a famous king nor any better than any other kings. The only reason he is so famous is due to the fact they found so much in his tomb. We were able to get up close to many of the items found in his tomb. We were 3 inches away from his famous golden head piece. I was great to learn about the various symbolisms used in ancient Egypt and Rome. It was easy to start analyzing different statues and their status in Egypt based on the symbols that were used.
Enjoy the pictures……
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Alexandria - Day 3
Alexandria – Day 3
Today we went to the Mediterranean city of Alexandria. It has been a famous city throughout history. It was concurred by the Greeks, Romans and Spaniards. It is also where the Nile ends and spills into the Mediterranean ocean. The city has many beaches, oil refineries and large corporations.
I finally figured out that I have been to 4 sides of the Mediterranean Ocean. I have been on the beaches of Spain – west, France – north, Italy – east, and Egypt – south. Our tour included the palace of King Al-Montaza which sits on one side of the coast of Alexandria and the Citadel which sits on the other side of the coast of Alexandria. The palace has been closed for years and is still not open to the public.
We also toured the ruins of a catacomb which was found by accident. The catacombs went down 100 stairs. We were able to see where all of the bodies were buried. It was an interesting tour located in a poorer area of the city of Alexandria. The catacombs showed the overlap, through symbols, of the Greek/Roman and Egyptian eras. From there we went to visit another historical site called Pompey’s Pillar. It was the location of a single free standing pillar that is in excellent shape. The pillar is guarded by a very well preserved Sphinx.
We had lunch by the sea which included fresh fish of course. It was a good meal. After lunch we began the 3 hour trip back to Cairo.
That night we missed our boat cruise. We decided to find another restaurant and maybe to a bar crawl. We found a good Italian restaurant, enjoyed some food and found a couple pubs before we headed home.
Tomorrow we will be visiting the Great Pyramids.
Today we went to the Mediterranean city of Alexandria. It has been a famous city throughout history. It was concurred by the Greeks, Romans and Spaniards. It is also where the Nile ends and spills into the Mediterranean ocean. The city has many beaches, oil refineries and large corporations.
I finally figured out that I have been to 4 sides of the Mediterranean Ocean. I have been on the beaches of Spain – west, France – north, Italy – east, and Egypt – south. Our tour included the palace of King Al-Montaza which sits on one side of the coast of Alexandria and the Citadel which sits on the other side of the coast of Alexandria. The palace has been closed for years and is still not open to the public.
We also toured the ruins of a catacomb which was found by accident. The catacombs went down 100 stairs. We were able to see where all of the bodies were buried. It was an interesting tour located in a poorer area of the city of Alexandria. The catacombs showed the overlap, through symbols, of the Greek/Roman and Egyptian eras. From there we went to visit another historical site called Pompey’s Pillar. It was the location of a single free standing pillar that is in excellent shape. The pillar is guarded by a very well preserved Sphinx.
We had lunch by the sea which included fresh fish of course. It was a good meal. After lunch we began the 3 hour trip back to Cairo.
That night we missed our boat cruise. We decided to find another restaurant and maybe to a bar crawl. We found a good Italian restaurant, enjoyed some food and found a couple pubs before we headed home.
Tomorrow we will be visiting the Great Pyramids.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Cairo - day 2 - cooler out
Forgot to mention how hot is was yesterday! I even had to switch rooms as my AC was broken and I couldn't stop sweating.
Cairo seems very spread out like Toronto. In the areas nearby there is not much to see. When you look at the overall map there are single tourist sites available however they are some distance apart and none are close to me. The city is quoted as being very safe. There is a definite presence of armed police and military and security guards at every second corner. Now I am in the embassy area and there are many armed guards surrounding every embassy.
The driving here is amazing. I was told by many people that the drivers in Cairo are some of the worst and best. The lines on the road mean nothing. Headlights are used at night for flashing other drivers not for having on while driving. During the day everyone honks all of the time. It seems to be a reverse onus that when you are driving it is not the other driver’s responsibility to notice you is it is your responsibility to notify ALL other drivers that you are one the road and driving. Therefore you constantly honk to let everyone know you are in the area. Seat belts are only required for the driver and definitely not required for children. The more people you can fit in a vehicle the more stable the vehicle becomes..LOL. Motorcyclists MUST have a helmet; however they do not have to wear it. These are just a few examples of things that I have noticed…. More to follow…
Cairo is a city of 22million people. To give that perspective Toronto has 3.5 million and Canada has 33 million people. So you could say that Cairo has almost the entire population of Canada within it city borders. Egypt itself has been under the control of many different cultures. Egypt was controlled by the French, Roman, Greek and Turkish. In 1956 it was finally its own republic.
My UNMO mate Kai arrived at 930pm today. Once he got settled in we headed back to the same tented restaurant that I was at last night. He agrees that is was great atmosphere with good food.
Tomorrow we begin our tour of Egypt.
Cairo seems very spread out like Toronto. In the areas nearby there is not much to see. When you look at the overall map there are single tourist sites available however they are some distance apart and none are close to me. The city is quoted as being very safe. There is a definite presence of armed police and military and security guards at every second corner. Now I am in the embassy area and there are many armed guards surrounding every embassy.
The driving here is amazing. I was told by many people that the drivers in Cairo are some of the worst and best. The lines on the road mean nothing. Headlights are used at night for flashing other drivers not for having on while driving. During the day everyone honks all of the time. It seems to be a reverse onus that when you are driving it is not the other driver’s responsibility to notice you is it is your responsibility to notify ALL other drivers that you are one the road and driving. Therefore you constantly honk to let everyone know you are in the area. Seat belts are only required for the driver and definitely not required for children. The more people you can fit in a vehicle the more stable the vehicle becomes..LOL. Motorcyclists MUST have a helmet; however they do not have to wear it. These are just a few examples of things that I have noticed…. More to follow…
Cairo is a city of 22million people. To give that perspective Toronto has 3.5 million and Canada has 33 million people. So you could say that Cairo has almost the entire population of Canada within it city borders. Egypt itself has been under the control of many different cultures. Egypt was controlled by the French, Roman, Greek and Turkish. In 1956 it was finally its own republic.
My UNMO mate Kai arrived at 930pm today. Once he got settled in we headed back to the same tented restaurant that I was at last night. He agrees that is was great atmosphere with good food.
Tomorrow we begin our tour of Egypt.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Day 1 - Cairo
I arrived at the Cairo airport at 200am after landing in 4 other countries. The tour company met me at the airport and was an excellent host. He even gave me a SIM card for my phone so that I could call him at any time if I needed something. At the hotel I was a little shocked at how the room appeared. But I was too tired to care and I finally went to sleep.
I woke that morning at 1030am. I decided to go for a walk around the area to get my bearings and to see what was available. My first impression of Cairo was that it was a dirty, but very upscale Khartoum. It is where Khartoum could be in about 20 years…..maybe. The first thing I noticed was that drivers honking at everyone and everything! Always!
My Hotel is in the Zamalek region of Cairo which is essentially an Island. It is surrounded completely by the Nile River. The Island is considered one of the upscale rich areas of Cairo. The Island is also host to over 20 embassies. The most interesting embassy set up of who is whose neighbor was the threesome of the Swiss embassy then their neighbors the Iraq embassy and their neighbors the Vatican embassy.
I stopped at the Marriot hotel for a bit to eat for lunch. It was beautiful inside, that is once I got past the armed guards, the bomb sniffing dog and the metal detector. They have 9 restaurants and bars. I should have realized that the price was going to be quite high. I think my bill was $25USD for a small chicken wrap and a bottle of beer. When I got back to my room I was shocked at the heat. It was a very hot day in Cairo and the AC in the room was not working at all. I asked for a new room and I got one immediately. The staff here are very accommodating.
I was alone for dinner that night so I ventured out and went to a restaurant that was recommended by the front desk. It was about a 20 min walk. When I arrive it was extremely busy and you required reservations. I sweet talked the hostess and sure enough she got me a table. The place is a very large white tent on the bank of the split in the Nile. It was filled with a very classy crowd. All the tables, chairs and cooks were in white. The food was great, the price was good and the music was perfect. Almost every table had someone smoking sheesha. I had a great dinner.
Enjoyed the people watching and headed home to bed.
I woke that morning at 1030am. I decided to go for a walk around the area to get my bearings and to see what was available. My first impression of Cairo was that it was a dirty, but very upscale Khartoum. It is where Khartoum could be in about 20 years…..maybe. The first thing I noticed was that drivers honking at everyone and everything! Always!
My Hotel is in the Zamalek region of Cairo which is essentially an Island. It is surrounded completely by the Nile River. The Island is considered one of the upscale rich areas of Cairo. The Island is also host to over 20 embassies. The most interesting embassy set up of who is whose neighbor was the threesome of the Swiss embassy then their neighbors the Iraq embassy and their neighbors the Vatican embassy.
I stopped at the Marriot hotel for a bit to eat for lunch. It was beautiful inside, that is once I got past the armed guards, the bomb sniffing dog and the metal detector. They have 9 restaurants and bars. I should have realized that the price was going to be quite high. I think my bill was $25USD for a small chicken wrap and a bottle of beer. When I got back to my room I was shocked at the heat. It was a very hot day in Cairo and the AC in the room was not working at all. I asked for a new room and I got one immediately. The staff here are very accommodating.
I was alone for dinner that night so I ventured out and went to a restaurant that was recommended by the front desk. It was about a 20 min walk. When I arrive it was extremely busy and you required reservations. I sweet talked the hostess and sure enough she got me a table. The place is a very large white tent on the bank of the split in the Nile. It was filled with a very classy crowd. All the tables, chairs and cooks were in white. The food was great, the price was good and the music was perfect. Almost every table had someone smoking sheesha. I had a great dinner.
Enjoyed the people watching and headed home to bed.
Cairo - Egypt
I arrived at the airport at 0230am! I was tired and wanted a bed after flying through 5 countries. The hotel is located in the "wealthy" part of Cairo. I do not see too much as it is early in the morning. The hotel will have to do for now but it is pretty run down.
I have the 11th and 12th off to relax. My friend Kai from Germany arrived on the 12th night from Germany. We will tour for the 13, 14 and 15th. On the 17th we will fly back to Khartoum and on the 18th we will both fly back to the team site in Kurmuk....our home!
More to follow.... I'm off to bed...
Mike
I have the 11th and 12th off to relax. My friend Kai from Germany arrived on the 12th night from Germany. We will tour for the 13, 14 and 15th. On the 17th we will fly back to Khartoum and on the 18th we will both fly back to the team site in Kurmuk....our home!
More to follow.... I'm off to bed...
Mike
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
My SAFARI Pics - Click here!
Click the title to see all of the safari pics. This only shows a few as Margo, Guido and myself combined all of our pics which ended up being over 500 pics!!!
Enjoy!
Mike
Enjoy!
Mike
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
LAKE MANYARA National Park - Day 3
Me with the Termites!
Lake Manyara National park
“The cleavage, known as the Great Rift Valley, can be identified from space as the most distinctive feature of the African continent. The seam of this cleavage has developed a series of fascinating and beautiful lakes. One of these lakes is called Manyara. Lake Manyara is also a national park. Manyara is a fantastic big game park. The variety of habitats parallels its exceptional scenery.
Every imaginable East African animal is found here in abundance. There are great herds of buffalo, zebra, wildebeest and several varieties of gazelle. Mahogany, sausage tree and croton are alive with blue monkeys and vervet monkeys. Some of the most amazingly large pods of hippos congregate at the rivers emerging into the lake, and the birdlife is plentiful. Lake Manyara used to be known for its "tree-climbing" lions however they have all disappeared due to humans.”
By the morning of this third day we were all pretty Safari’d out.
Every imaginable East African animal is found here in abundance. There are great herds of buffalo, zebra, wildebeest and several varieties of gazelle. Mahogany, sausage tree and croton are alive with blue monkeys and vervet monkeys. Some of the most amazingly large pods of hippos congregate at the rivers emerging into the lake, and the birdlife is plentiful. Lake Manyara used to be known for its "tree-climbing" lions however they have all disappeared due to humans.”
By the morning of this third day we were all pretty Safari’d out.
First sighting was the family of Giraffes. This included several baby giraffes. We ended up in between the entire family and this stressed them out. One mother and baby got separated. It was interesting watching them figure out how to get back together with the herd without getting to close to us. I have this on video. It was amazing to see these animals up close and being able to get an appreciation for their height.
We ventured to a Hippo pool/pond. Man these guys are LAZY!! They sit in the water all day and only really move at night to graze. So I have a couple of pics when one adjusted his position as this was the only good view of them. All the other views are only of their back poking out of the water.
We ended up in the middle of a flock/herd/troop/family of baboons. It was fun watching the interaction of the various members and especially the babies as they played tag with one another. Again I have some good video.
I was getting safari’d out as were the other two. So we started taking fun pictures of the animals. I have a few close ups of the Vervet monkeys… Can you guess what part?
We spotted an interesting animal just by chance. It resembles a miniature dear. It is called a Dik Dik by locals. It was the smallest cutest animal, again check my pics.
As we rounded a corner we came across a herd of elephant. This one included about 10-14 elephants and their babies.
As we left the park we were slowed by a family of Baboons on the road. I was able to get some good close up pics of them grooming.
Our guide lied to us and said that he was taking us to a real Maasai village and not a commercial village. As we drove up to this non-commercial village we noticed a sign on the road on the way in that said “MAASAI VILLAGE Dot Com”. Then we were met by a Maasai on a bike with a Manchester United hat on. He told the driver to take his time as he sped away on his bike. Once at the village we noticed another group of tourists being shuffled out of the site. As they left we were welcomed in, after we paid our $10.00 USD each LOL! The only goal from the village was to sell their stuff. All the ladies had tables laid out and all of the tables had the same things on them. I felt obligated to see every table. I bought 2 necklaces just to make them a little happy. They sang the welcome song and performed the male jumping ritual for us and had us get involved. From there we were invited to sit inside a BOMA (like a Tukul) and were told about the Maasai from the Chiefs son. They have a very interesting history and many of their customs (bad and good) are still practiced today.
I did learn a fair bit about their tribal customs and history. Check out Maasai on Wikipedia to learn more about them. The best part is that we could take their pictures without any problems.
The rest of the day was spent driving the 3.5 hours back to Moshi to my other hotel. From there I was invited out for Guido’s B-Day party. He had invited other people that he met during his two weeks in Moshi. There were about 20 of us that arrived at this little restaurant called “El Rancho”. The food was Indian, not Mexican as I would have thought! The food was awesome and the beer was cold. Most of the 20 were volunteers working in Tanzania and Kenya. Some were medical and others were students. I ended up spending most of my time speaking with a Medical student who has taken a year off 3rd year university to volunteer in a labour and delivery ward of a local hospital. She is from Germany. I also met Nick who is a homeopathic practitioner from Montreal. We left the restaurant at 2:30am…the staff left the restaurant at 1:30am! They just left us as it is an outside restaurant. There was only one problem. In Moshi when you want a Taxi you don’t call a company, you call a guy you know. We called 6 taxi’s from the restaurant with no luck.
We headed to Nick’s place to get the numbers of 4 more cab guys. They all failed. I ended up staying at Guido’s guest house. The crappy part was that I had a great new room at my hotel!!
The next day I relaxed and then headed to the airport. I did not realize that I was on a “milk run” from Tanzania to Cairo. I flew the following route: Kilimanjaro (Tanzania) – Nairobi (Kenya) – Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) – Khartoum (Sudan) – Cairo (Egypt). That’s five countries!!
Oh well…. Cairo here I come!
We ventured to a Hippo pool/pond. Man these guys are LAZY!! They sit in the water all day and only really move at night to graze. So I have a couple of pics when one adjusted his position as this was the only good view of them. All the other views are only of their back poking out of the water.
We ended up in the middle of a flock/herd/troop/family of baboons. It was fun watching the interaction of the various members and especially the babies as they played tag with one another. Again I have some good video.
I was getting safari’d out as were the other two. So we started taking fun pictures of the animals. I have a few close ups of the Vervet monkeys… Can you guess what part?
We spotted an interesting animal just by chance. It resembles a miniature dear. It is called a Dik Dik by locals. It was the smallest cutest animal, again check my pics.
As we rounded a corner we came across a herd of elephant. This one included about 10-14 elephants and their babies.
As we left the park we were slowed by a family of Baboons on the road. I was able to get some good close up pics of them grooming.
Just "hanging out" LOL
Our guide lied to us and said that he was taking us to a real Maasai village and not a commercial village. As we drove up to this non-commercial village we noticed a sign on the road on the way in that said “MAASAI VILLAGE Dot Com”. Then we were met by a Maasai on a bike with a Manchester United hat on. He told the driver to take his time as he sped away on his bike. Once at the village we noticed another group of tourists being shuffled out of the site. As they left we were welcomed in, after we paid our $10.00 USD each LOL! The only goal from the village was to sell their stuff. All the ladies had tables laid out and all of the tables had the same things on them. I felt obligated to see every table. I bought 2 necklaces just to make them a little happy. They sang the welcome song and performed the male jumping ritual for us and had us get involved. From there we were invited to sit inside a BOMA (like a Tukul) and were told about the Maasai from the Chiefs son. They have a very interesting history and many of their customs (bad and good) are still practiced today.
I did learn a fair bit about their tribal customs and history. Check out Maasai on Wikipedia to learn more about them. The best part is that we could take their pictures without any problems.
The rest of the day was spent driving the 3.5 hours back to Moshi to my other hotel. From there I was invited out for Guido’s B-Day party. He had invited other people that he met during his two weeks in Moshi. There were about 20 of us that arrived at this little restaurant called “El Rancho”. The food was Indian, not Mexican as I would have thought! The food was awesome and the beer was cold. Most of the 20 were volunteers working in Tanzania and Kenya. Some were medical and others were students. I ended up spending most of my time speaking with a Medical student who has taken a year off 3rd year university to volunteer in a labour and delivery ward of a local hospital. She is from Germany. I also met Nick who is a homeopathic practitioner from Montreal. We left the restaurant at 2:30am…the staff left the restaurant at 1:30am! They just left us as it is an outside restaurant. There was only one problem. In Moshi when you want a Taxi you don’t call a company, you call a guy you know. We called 6 taxi’s from the restaurant with no luck.
We headed to Nick’s place to get the numbers of 4 more cab guys. They all failed. I ended up staying at Guido’s guest house. The crappy part was that I had a great new room at my hotel!!
The next day I relaxed and then headed to the airport. I did not realize that I was on a “milk run” from Tanzania to Cairo. I flew the following route: Kilimanjaro (Tanzania) – Nairobi (Kenya) – Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) – Khartoum (Sudan) – Cairo (Egypt). That’s five countries!!
Oh well…. Cairo here I come!
NGORONGORO CRATER - Day 2
DAY 2 – NGORONGORO CRATER Conservation Area
.jpg)
“Ngorongoro is quite unique as its physical protection from man natural beauty ranks it among the most pristine wildernesses on earth. It is regarded as a natural wonder of the world and has been declared a World Heritage Site. It is the largest intact crater in the world, being 610 meters deep, 16 kilometers across and covering an area of 540 square kilometers. On the crater floor, grassland blends into swamps, lakes, rivers, woodland and mountains - all a haven for wildlife, including the greatest predator population in Africa. The volcanic crater is packed with wildlife, including all the big game. Its pride and joy, however, is that it remains the last great wild refuge for the endangered black rhino.”
After taking some pics we headed down the steep road that lead to the crater floor. Once on the floor we found ourselves right in the middle of a very very large herd of wildebeest. There was probably 200-300 of them cutting across our path! Welcome to Africa. The rest of the day was amazing! There was so much wild life. The view from the crater floor was still creating an optical illusion. This place was so massive and yet so small at the same time. We went hunting for the African BIG FIVE: Lion, Buffalo, Leopard, Rhino and Elephant.
.jpg)
We were able to find everything except the Leopard which is the most elusive animal to find.
The elephants here were different than the ones we had seen at other game parks. The tusks were very long and almost dragged on the ground. This shows how old they are and how they are closer relatives to the Wooly Mammoth. Even their skin was different.
The elephants here were different than the ones we had seen at other game parks. The tusks were very long and almost dragged on the ground. This shows how old they are and how they are closer relatives to the Wooly Mammoth. Even their skin was different.
I can’t say enough about this park. I think the pics speak for themselves. We found a pack of lions. There were 3 female, one male and one teenaged male. They were in short grass (2-3 feet high) near a natural stream. The incredible thing is that when they lay down you couldn’t see them at all. If you happened to be walking through that area the grass didn’t look high at all and you would have walked into 5 hungry lions.
Can you see 5 lions?
.jpg)
We stopped for lunch by a pond. In the distance we could see some humps in the water. This was a herd of Hippos resting. They only come out at night to eat.
We finally found the Black Rhino, an almost extinct animal. There were three however they were quite far away from us. We could not get close to the lake which had about 1,000 pink flamingos on it. What a shame as we missed a good picture opportunity.
.jpg)
The whole day was an awesome experience! What a great location and a great safari!
Sunday, March 7, 2010
TANANGIRE National Park Safari - Day 1
Elephant Skull
This guy got my lunch!
Vervet Monkey
Angry Elephants!
Upon arrival at the park we had to wait while our guide registered us and took care of the payments. We found a group of about 5 small monkeys. They are called the VERVET monkey. They have light brown fur and “Blue Balls” LOL yes they do! (see pictures)
During one of our photo shoots we were watching a herd of elephants on the other side of a river. They seemed like they wanted to cross so we got into position with 3 other vehicles to watch. We watched the herd as it went into the river and then began to play and roll around in the water. It was awesome seeing elephants rolling in a river and spraying water on each other to cool off. As we watched finally three elephants decided it was time to cross the river he3ading towards us! We watched with excitement as the animals grew nearer to us. Only three came across and they were the largest three. As they got closer to us there was something not right. They seemed agitated and not very docile. We started to get a little worried as our guide said it’s no problem. We didn’t have the fullest confidence in the guide yet. We actually felt that they were about to charge. All of a sudden there was a yell from another elephant from the river. The three quickly turned around and ran back across the river to join the others. They kept stopping to look back as if to say “we are watching you!”. What an experience!
Angry Elephants!
Upon arrival at the park we had to wait while our guide registered us and took care of the payments. We found a group of about 5 small monkeys. They are called the VERVET monkey. They have light brown fur and “Blue Balls” LOL yes they do! (see pictures)
I also took some pictures of a skull found in the park. It is of the Elephant! It’s massive! (see pics)
During lunch we were warned to eat our lunches carefully as the Vervet monkeys were very bold and they would run up and grab to food right out of your hand. Sure enough one was moving in on Margo. As I stood up and went to grab my water bottle the monkey shifted from Margo and ran after me. He was so quick I barely had time to respond before I realized he had taken half of my sandwich right out of my hand!!
The park was full of wild life in their natural habitat. At first we had thought there wasn’t much to see. Just then it got busy! That day we were able to see: Wild Boar, Warthog, wildebeest, gazelle, zebra, giraffe, elephant, Impala, River Buck, ostriches, Jackal, and mongoose.
During one of our photo shoots we were watching a herd of elephants on the other side of a river. They seemed like they wanted to cross so we got into position with 3 other vehicles to watch. We watched the herd as it went into the river and then began to play and roll around in the water. It was awesome seeing elephants rolling in a river and spraying water on each other to cool off. As we watched finally three elephants decided it was time to cross the river he3ading towards us! We watched with excitement as the animals grew nearer to us. Only three came across and they were the largest three. As they got closer to us there was something not right. They seemed agitated and not very docile. We started to get a little worried as our guide said it’s no problem. We didn’t have the fullest confidence in the guide yet. We actually felt that they were about to charge. All of a sudden there was a yell from another elephant from the river. The three quickly turned around and ran back across the river to join the others. They kept stopping to look back as if to say “we are watching you!”. What an experience!
That night Margo and Guido were supposed to be staying at a camp site while I was to be staying at a local lodge. The guide made a few phone calls and managed to have us all stay at the lodge together. He said he did it because he said he could see that we had all become very good friends and he figured we would want to be together for the night. He was right, but because it’s Tanzania I figure he saved himself some money somewhere there. LOL.
We all went to the lodge and sorted out rooms, got changed and went swimming while enjoying Kilimanjaro Beer…. What a GREAT DAY!!
Tanzania, Africa
After breakfast I packed by bags and headed to the lobby to meet my tour guide. Along with him was a girl from Peru and a guy from The Hague. Margo was 29 and from Markham Ontario. She quit her job as a tour operator in Peru where she lives with her husband. Guido, I know not what I thought was a Dutch name, is from The Hague Holland and is touring Africa and parts of Asia for 6 months as he just finished university. Our driver is Ricky from Tanzania of course.
Within an hour the three of us are getting along like we have known each other for years. Both Margo and Guido had climbed Mount Kilimanjaro within the last week. They both said it was an incredible experience. I am now thinking that I should have taken the opportunity to do the same. However it would have taken an extra 6-7 days that I didn’t have.
We stopped at a supermarket to pick up snack food for the safaris and then off we went. The drive took about 3.5 hours to get to the safari region. Margo and Guido were scheduled to stay at a camp site at one location and I was staying at a lodge at another location. All three of us booked through 3 different travel/tour companies. I guess when each one only has one person they call each other and that way they save money by only using one car and one driver/guide.
It was amazing to drive through all of the villages. They were much like the ones I had seen and described when I went to Uganda. The big difference is that there were Maasai tribesmen everywhere in their traditional dress. They have been wearing the double blanket Maasai dress for years. They also decorate their ears and necks for both men and women. Even the boys who were Sheppard were wearing the traditional dress of the Maasai. Read about them: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maasai
In Tanzania the people speak Swahili and English. I was very taken back to hear how well the Maasai spoke English. It turns out that only the men are permitted to learn and speak Swahili and English. The women are only permitted to speak the Maasai language. More on them later.
Tanzania is much like Uganda. They both drive on the left side of the road. The laws or lack thereof are similar as is the driving habits.
The rainy season is short, from March to June with the remainder of the year having normal amounts of rain similar to a summer in Vancouver BC. Everything is a lush green here much like Uganda. I am now located on the S/E side of Lake Victoria whereas when I was in Uganda I was on the N/W side of the lake.
Many travelers come here to climb Mount Kilimanjaro as it is the highest mountain in Africa at 5,895 metres or 19,341 feet (the Uhuru Peak).[3] Mount Kilimanjaro is considered to be the tallest freestanding mountain in the world, rising 4600 m (15,100 feet) from the base. I will have to climb it next time I am in Africa!
After the climb many of the travelers will travel to the tropical island of Zanzibar located of the Tanzanian coast in the Indian Ocean. It is known for its white sand beaches and cheap prices. Again this is something I must do on my next visit.
I am staying at the Bristol Cottages Hotel while in Moshi. This hotel is a nice jewel in the middle of a busy little town. The rooms are nice and the meals are quite good.
Tanzania is surrounded by several countries including Kenya to the north, where they share the Serengeti and the annual migration of the wildebeest. To the south is Mozambique Zambia. West is Congo and Rwanda.
Within an hour the three of us are getting along like we have known each other for years. Both Margo and Guido had climbed Mount Kilimanjaro within the last week. They both said it was an incredible experience. I am now thinking that I should have taken the opportunity to do the same. However it would have taken an extra 6-7 days that I didn’t have.
We stopped at a supermarket to pick up snack food for the safaris and then off we went. The drive took about 3.5 hours to get to the safari region. Margo and Guido were scheduled to stay at a camp site at one location and I was staying at a lodge at another location. All three of us booked through 3 different travel/tour companies. I guess when each one only has one person they call each other and that way they save money by only using one car and one driver/guide.
It was amazing to drive through all of the villages. They were much like the ones I had seen and described when I went to Uganda. The big difference is that there were Maasai tribesmen everywhere in their traditional dress. They have been wearing the double blanket Maasai dress for years. They also decorate their ears and necks for both men and women. Even the boys who were Sheppard were wearing the traditional dress of the Maasai. Read about them: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maasai
In Tanzania the people speak Swahili and English. I was very taken back to hear how well the Maasai spoke English. It turns out that only the men are permitted to learn and speak Swahili and English. The women are only permitted to speak the Maasai language. More on them later.
Tanzania is much like Uganda. They both drive on the left side of the road. The laws or lack thereof are similar as is the driving habits.
The rainy season is short, from March to June with the remainder of the year having normal amounts of rain similar to a summer in Vancouver BC. Everything is a lush green here much like Uganda. I am now located on the S/E side of Lake Victoria whereas when I was in Uganda I was on the N/W side of the lake.
Many travelers come here to climb Mount Kilimanjaro as it is the highest mountain in Africa at 5,895 metres or 19,341 feet (the Uhuru Peak).[3] Mount Kilimanjaro is considered to be the tallest freestanding mountain in the world, rising 4600 m (15,100 feet) from the base. I will have to climb it next time I am in Africa!
After the climb many of the travelers will travel to the tropical island of Zanzibar located of the Tanzanian coast in the Indian Ocean. It is known for its white sand beaches and cheap prices. Again this is something I must do on my next visit.
I am staying at the Bristol Cottages Hotel while in Moshi. This hotel is a nice jewel in the middle of a busy little town. The rooms are nice and the meals are quite good.
Tanzania is surrounded by several countries including Kenya to the north, where they share the Serengeti and the annual migration of the wildebeest. To the south is Mozambique Zambia. West is Congo and Rwanda.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
CTO #3 - Heading out for a Safari
I must admit it was nice to be leaving the team site again. It was a steady week and I am starting once again to feel the pressure of working with the international staff of UNMO’s. The last minute confirmations for the trip caused me a little stress, but as I have mentioned before you MUST have a sense of humour here and learn that everything should fall into place.
We have a system here for the UN for booking our movements throughout the UN. It’s called an MOP and it is like a passport and reservation system all on one piece of paper. I booked all my details on 15 Feb for this trip. They post the flight manifests the day before your flight. I started looking and sure enough I was NOT on either of the two flights that I needed to get me to Khartoum for my vacation. The worst part was that the manifest for the 2nd flight was full and there was a standby list of 6 people. This would put me at the bottom! I started making phone calls and sending emails. One of my friends who works in the movements area told me to call a certain person in the headquarters and let them know what is going on. He did this because he is fed up with all the mistakes a certain area was making on a regular basis. So I called and sent copies of all of my documentation. I guess I got a hold of the right guy as I was manifested as number two person on the flight and at each leg there were people meeting me to ensure my bags were being moved properly and that I was being taken care of. Oh… I forgot to mention I did happen to let the person up at the HQ know that I was scheduled to have a meeting that afternoon with the Force Commander (head of the UN military)….. hehe.. What I meant to say is that I was going to meet MY Force Commander (Canadian in command of me in Sudan).. A little different BUT it got me the attention I needed to ensure my travel plans!
Mine Field Day!!!
Before my 1100 flight I had arranged a meeting for my fellow team mates to meet the head of the local Demining Company. He was going to give my guys a briefing on the demining operation in Kurmuk and also show us how they use dogs and machines to find and destroy the mines. It was incredibly interesting especially watching the dogs find the mines and UXO’s. The dogs are trained to search an area in lines and when they find something they sit down and don’t move until told. From there the area is marked and the deminer has to come in a clear it manually. This system is used in the areas that the machines cannot reach. The dogs work from about 0700am – 1100am At this point they are tired and it’s just too hot. I have taken some photos and video of this. I will post it as soon as I can.
The mine destroyer machine - It eats them up and destroys them! Can't be used in rocky areas. Anti-personal mines will still sometimes go off but with no damage to the machine. Anti-tank mines get destroyed in place with no explosion. This thing digs down 13 inches and destroys everything.
The mine finding dogs. They can find anything with a hint of explosive. Even old used bullets.
This is a sample of a destroyed anti-personal mine.
The rock system is used in every mine clearing operation. just have to remember that RED is BAD!!!
Oh, this is a military check point that I was set to investigate. Can you tell who is who? There are UNMO's, North and south army monitors and then there is the Check Point military personal who I am investigating.
KHARTOUM
In Khartoum I ran around trying to get things ready for the trip. The most important was trying to use the bank machine for the first time and not knowing how much money I could withdraw. I had tried our system of sending a check by helicopter to Damazin where one of our fellow officers picks it up and cashes it at the bank in Damazin and then sends the envelope of money back to you with the next helicopter. There was only one problem, the bank in Damazin had NO money and wasn’t going to get any until the following week.
My trip was going to be booked with a company in Tanzania who were friends of my work mates from the same area. I was offering to pay by credit card but the company was waiting for the credit card machine to arrive and it may take about 2 more weeks (African time). The other option was a wire transfer however that takes about 2 weeks and costs me another $40 USD. This all occurred within one week of me leaving for my trip. My Tanzanian work mates spoke to the agent that they knew and worked out a very risky deal. The agent would book everything including my flights on the word of my friends that I was a good guy and would pay in cash upon arrival. I was amazed; once again everything was working out. I had to pay $2,221.00 upon arrival.
Well I could not get the money I needed from Damazin so I would have to try in Khartoum however the banks are closed on Fridays…. I was going to have to try the Bank machine and hope that it has money and hope that I can take out enough. When I arrived at the machine it was being repaired and restocked. I asked the guy about the maximum withdrawal and he said you can take out 2,000 per day in 500 dollar increments. I was very happy and was able to remove the money on that day and then I came back 24 hours later and withdrew the remainder.
All things worked out well.
FLIGHTS
I arrive at the Khartoum airport at 0400am. The flight that was supposed to leave at 630 didn’t board till then. I did not know the whole flight plan and I was sleeping as we flew. I ended up flying from Sudan to Ethiopia then to Kenya and then to Tanzania. On the final leg of the trip there were about 40 Brits who had shirts that said “HOPE FOR HEROS” which is a fund raising organization that helps raise public funds for wounded war vets from the UK. They were all heading to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. It is always interesting at the Khartoum airport as I was in a light pair of pants and a t-shirt and I was sweating other were wearing winter jackets and toques!!
I was nice to see Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, as it was green and looked well developed (compared to Khartoum). When we flew into Mombasa, Kenya we were flying along the Indian Ocean coast line. It was beautiful. Mombasa was my second choice for a place to visit.
I do believe the pilot was either new or just very bad! Both landings were very rough including bouncing the aircraft and not having great control once it was on the ground. Both mistakes made by new or inexperienced pilots.
I do believe the pilot was either new or just very bad! Both landings were very rough including bouncing the aircraft and not having great control once it was on the ground. Both mistakes made by new or inexperienced pilots.
When I arrived in Tanzania at the Kilimanjaro airport we had to go through the usual procedures of getting the Visa ($100 USD!!) and completing the health questionnaire. When I turned in my Green Canadian passport the officer was a little confused. He was stumped by the fact that it is a “Special Passport”. I showed him my UN ID and explained that I am with the UN. He stamped my book and said have a great day. There was NO charge!! I am starting to enjoy this UN ID.
I was met at the airport by a guy holding a sign with my name on it. I have always wanted to be “someone” who looks important with someone holding up my name. LOL. Turns out he wasn’t the guy that I was supposed to meet. My guy’s car had broken down. So this was his friend and I was supposed to go with him….Hmmmmm. But as we walked to the car he called the guy that I was supposed to meet and he said that everything is alright and that he would meet me at the Hotel.
The hotel was nice and was located in the city of MOSHI which is the launching point for anyone who is going to climb Kilimanjaro or going on Safari. That night I enjoyed a good meal and watched some TV as I went to bed early. I think, once again, that I was one of the only guests in the hotel.
I am looking forward to the Safari tomorrow. Hopefully I will be with some good people, as I am sharing the vehicle with another tour group.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Our Pet....
This is our new UN pet. He was giving to a patrol member after a visit with a local Umda who had seen the dog playing with the patrol member during the entire visit. His name is now Don Don which is the same as the patrol leaders name.
This is the kitchen at the UNMO house...
So how is our job difficult? Can you spot the rebel solider who is controlling a check point? He is the one walking towards the car wearing shorts.
Our pet... he is young and very active!
A final farewell party for two of our team members......
This is the kitchen at the UNMO house...
So how is our job difficult? Can you spot the rebel solider who is controlling a check point? He is the one walking towards the car wearing shorts.
Our pet... he is young and very active!
A final farewell party for two of our team members......
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
