South Africa #15: All the Small Things

Bigger doesn't always mean better.  If you keep your eyes open, you can find lots of interesting things above and below you.  Here are some photos of awesome little things from the African Bush.

Snail shell.

South Africa #14: Scream 2

I figured that I would get scared at some point during my trip, and I did.  In fact, there were two times when I screamed.  I was 20 to 30 feet away from a lion and lioness.  I saw big hairy spiders.  A hyena walked right next to me as I slept in my tent.  Bats flew above my head.  And I saw another volunteer almost get bit by a crocodile.  But no, these were not the times that I screamed.

South Africa #13: Where's my elephant?

Two of the volunteer tasks that I chose to do here were to collect data during elephant sightings and to work on elephant ID Kits.  I had no idea what exactly these two tasks entailed when I signed up for them, but I am here to learn.  The "training" here isn't the best, which appears to be due mostly to understaffing, poor planning and organization, and miscommunication.  The research "staff" is also very young, but I suppose they are doing the best they can.  After several days of confusion, I eventually became more confident in my understanding of and ability to do these two tasks.  And I have learned a lot more about elephants.

South Africa #12: Hallucinations

After being here for 2 weeks, I am happy to say that I have become pretty good at spotting animals while we are out on our game drives.  Sometimes I notice things that no one else saw until I pointed it out, which let's me know that my glasses prescription must be just fine.


However, for every good sighting that I have, I would say that I also make two times as many bad sightings...in my head, at least.  It is amazing how much the animals here are adapted to life in the African bush.  The animals come in so many shapes and sizes, but they all blend in perfectly with the landscape.  Even animals like zebras and giraffes, with such distinct coloring and patterns, camouflage perfectly into areas of vegetation.

South Africa #11: You don't have to...

If you've read my previous South Africa posts, then you probably have gotten the impression that there is a general disregard for safety here.  If so, you are not entirely incorrect.  I have been extremely shocked by the lackadaisical attitude here regarding matters involving health and safety.

South Africa #10: Raptors

For one of my data tasks last week, I chose to track raptors.  No, we are not working at Jurassic Park.  Raptors is another word for birds of prey.  It was weird to get used to saying that word at first, but now I can't look at a bird of prey in the sky without shouting "Raptor!"



Do you see it?

South Africa #9: Survival of the Fittest

Bright and early Friday morning one of the guides took us on a "survival drive."  The purpose was for us to have a hands-on lesson about survival in the African bush.

Another beautiful sunrise that morning.

South Africa #8: Get a Little Closer

This past week's overnight research outing almost didn't happen because of the weather. It poured down rain all morning, so the research coordinator said that the trip was cancelled.  But later on in the morning the weather started to clear up.  There was still a chance of rain later that day and the following day, but she decided to let us vote whether or not we should go.  Six of us chose to go...and it turned out that weather ended up being perfect! Just another reason why democracy rules.

Will it rain or not?

South Africa #7: Walk the Line

This past Friday and Saturday I went on an overnight bush walk trip.  The guide for this outing was one of the guides that works with the research program that I am volunteering with.  Five other volunteers also attended along with a guide who is currently interning at the game reserve we visited.

 

After getting settled at our camp site in the middle of the reserve, we headed out for our first walk.  First, we were told the rules.  We had to obey all orders given by the guide, without question.  We also needed to remain quiet.  Both of these rules were for the safety of everyone.

 

When going on a bush walk, everyone walks in a single file line.  This is so we look like only one person and not a huge group of people when approaching animals.  The guide remains in the front and every 15 to 20 minutes, the person behind the guide falls back to become the last person in line.

 

Our two guides.  They carried rifles which they would only use as a last resort if an animal was about to attack us.

South Africa #6: Grammar Lesson

There are so many random things that I am learning while here, some formally and some just by happenstance.  For example, today when asking about a bug that I saw, I learned that there is a difference between poisonous and venomous.  I never really thought about it before, but after it was pointed out, these two words really do mean two separate things.

The bug in question: a millipede.

South Africa #5: Weeding

Volunteering work can be enjoyable but a lot of the time it really is work.  Take Thursday and Friday, for example.  Part of our weekly agenda always includes removal of invasive species, which is a fancy way of saying weeding.  There are a few different kinds of plants that our program focuses on, and on Thursday it was lantana.

South Africa #4: Day & Night, Night & Day

The activities here range from relaxing to intense, and each day seems to be full of surprises.

South Africa #3: First Day of Work

Monday was my first day of volunteer work. I was anxious to get started but also a little nervous. The day began at 8am with an information session for all the new volunteers, which lasted a couple hours. There are five brand new volunteers at the moment, including me. In addition to the two I met on Saturday there is a girl from Canada and an older lady from the US who is Canadian. Three of four other volunteers are with another project that focuses on photography. The Mexican girl and I are both working with the Research and Conservation project. During our introductions, all of us were asked to say what our favorite African animal is. I hadn't really thought about that before, as I didn't come here because of any animal in particular, but I came to the conclusion that mine is the elephant since I would be most upset if I didn't see any elephants on this trip.

South Africa #2: Home Sweet Home

The journey to get to the project's lodge took 6 hours by van.  We traveled from Johannesburg to an area of Greater Kruger Area National Park that is located near the city of Hoedspruit.  There were some interesting sights along the way as we passed through countryside, open lands, mountains, and small towns.  There also were many humongous power plants.  I counted at least 4, though I didn't stay awake for the entire ride.

The landscape, and the buildings for that matter, didn't necessarily look like what I imagined "Africa" looking like in my head.  Even after arriving at our lodge, which has a safari look to it, I still didn't feel like I was actually in Africa.  I'm thinking perhaps that I won't get that feeling until I see giraffes or lions out in the wild.

South Africa #1: Out the Window

My journey from Phoenix to Johannesburg did not go according to plan. Not at all.

Here I go again (Alternate title: WHAT AM I GETTING MYSELF INTO!)

As I continue on this sabbatical, unemployment-on-purpose, gap year, mid-life retirement, or whatever you want to call it, I have been doing a lot of reading in addition to traveling.  And reading can be a dangerous thing...because it broadens your mind and makes you think.  You can learn about horrible and amazing things that take place in the world, which makes you want to learn more, do something to deter the horrible, and help with the amazing.

It has been 5 months since I returned from a volunteering trip/study abroad in Peru, and ever since then I have been fairly certain that I would take at least one more volunteering trip.  But where to?  I was not so certain about that.  The possibilities are almost endless and so many programs and destinations appeal to me.  I searched and evaluated over the past few months.  Coming to a final decision was very, very hard, but once I did (less than 3 weeks ago), the wheels were set in motion very, very quickly.