I found a new photography challenge tonight (thanks to Cee for leading me to it). Nancy Merrill’s Photography blog is running the Photo a Week challenge. This week the challenge is to come up with a post using ‘crowd‘.
Here’s how it works:
Each week, I’ll come up with a theme and post a photo that I think fits. You take photographs based on your interpretation of the theme, and post them on your blog (a new post!) anytime before the following Thursday, when the next photo theme will be announced.
To make it easy for others to check out your photos, title your blog post “A Photo a Week Challenge: (theme of the week)” and be sure to use the “postaday″ tag.
Come back here and post a link to your image in the comments for this challenge.
A ‘dazzle’ of zebras. I was very lucky to travel to Tanzania on a photography safari last year. The scenery, the amazing animals and the beautiful people we met made the trip unforgettable.
I wish I could go back. I’m doing what I can to save up for another trip to Africa. I don’t know when I’ll be able to go, but hoping by the end of the year.
I posted yesterday on Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge (where the post should be about a word starting with C of at least 4 letters). After I finally got it to post (very frustrating internet situation here), I was flipping through some photos and realized just how many I have that fit this particular challenge. So…
Here’s another one, I took these on a recent trip to Africa. I went on a photography safari in Tanzania with GEP. I had a great time tracking down the wildlife with a great group of fellow photographers and our local guides. Some of these photos were with on the safari. Some were afterwards, when I went solo over to Zanzibar.
Cooks!
Cats! BIG Cats!
A Cowrie (shell)
A Canoe! Catching Catfish? Or maybe Cobia? On the Coral
A #Catastrophe
Cute Canines
Cattle
I had a good time picking out a few of my photos for this challenge. So much, I might even come back again for more. If you want to join in the fun, just click the link at the top. Be sure to share. 🙂
“Z” is for Zanzibar. And the last post in this year’s A to Z Challenge! I can’t believe I managed to finish and post for every letter. Usually, in these long challenges, I get so far behind I just give up. I’m glad it’s over tho. It’s hard to find time to post every day.
I have to say I loved Zanzibar! I was there on vacation last November. I took a long trip for a photography safari with Great Escape Publishing. I really enjoyed the safari. We went all over the Northwest area of Tanzania. From Arusha to Lake Eyasi, the Ngorongoro Crater, the Serengeti…
It was fantastic! We got to see all kinds of animals from our jeeps. The drivers were great at finding the game. We would sit quietly and watch them do their thing while we furiously took thousands of photos. 🙂
It was a week of amazing experiences, but a week of early mornings and late nights. I was exhausted at the end of it. I was glad to have scheduled some extra time before flying all the way home to Texas.
I had thought about climbing Mt Kilimanjaro. It is on my bucket list. I just didn’t think I was up to it at that point. I wanted some rest and relaxation. I decided to head over to the nearby island of Zanzibar for a few days.
Wow! Such a gorgeous island. Stone Town is intriguing. It has an interesting history, it’s easy to imagine yourself back in the days of the Sultans as you wander the winding lanes of the old town. The people were friendly and eager to show you around town, or entice you to buy their specialty spices or colorful paintings.
The food was cooked with exotic local spices and served with a smile. The night market near the docks and the fort was a great place to hang out. I liked to grab a fruity drink and watch the sun go down before wandering around and choosing a cook for my dinner.
After a couple of days in the city, I headed up North to relax on the beautiful white sand beaches. I spent a few blissful days relaxing under the casuarina trees, wading in the ocean, sailing on sunset cruises and SCUBA diving around the area.
The diving was excellent! Best I’ve seen in quite a while. I saw lots of colorful coral and all kinds of sea life. I brought my camera, but only one dive was shallow enough for me to use it. 🙁
It’s a long, long way from Texas, but if I ever get the chance to visit Zanzibar again, I will definitely take it!
“L” is for Lion. I was lucky to be able to see some of these amazing animals in the wild. I went on a photography safari with Great Escape Publishing (GEP) in November. We spent a week exploring Northwest Tanzania. We saw lots of lions and their cubs. I could have spent hours watching them, but we had to move on. So much more to see.
“H” is for the ‘Hadzabe’, an African tribe of friendly people who have chosen to retain their traditional lifestyle. On a photography safari with Great Escape Publishing (GEP) last November, I was able to spend the day learning about how they managed to survive in today’s world.
A very early morning wakeup brought our group of photographers to spend the day with a couple of the traditional tribes of the area. First the Hadzabe, the hunters, next the Datogas, the blacksmiths. We had to meet the Hadzabe very early for a special treat, we would go on a hunt with their men!
We left the beautiful Lake Eyasi Safari Lodge at 0545 and drove about 45 minutes to the Hadzabe camp. They still live a nomadic life, so we met them at one of their temporary camps. They had built scattered domed huts out of thin, flexible branches tied together in addition to their ‘rooms’ in a rocky outcrop atop a high hill.
When we arrived, we met the chief and through our interpreter, Joseph, we got an explanation of the basics of their lifestyle. The men brought us up to a large overhang of the rock where they had a fire going. They explained the different types of arrows they used for hunting (some were poisonous).
A couple of them showed us how they started a fire (no, not with a Bic lighter), the old fashioned way of twisting a stick until it gets hot enough to light the tinder. The Hadzabe men used the spark to light their pipes for a good long toke. A few of our troop tried it too- (lighting the fire, not smoking the weed)- but only one succeeded (just barely). It looked a lot harder when our group tried to do it. The Hadzabe made it look so easy.
Similar to the Maasai, they were nomadic. But the Hadzabe were hunters, not herders. The chief also had more than 1 wife. The men spent their days hunting and preparing to hunt. They made their bows and arrows, sharpened their knives, kept the fire going, and smoked a lot of weed while they were at it. They offered some to us, but nobody was brave enough to accept.
After the demonstration, we left with the men on their daily hunt. I followed along for about 20 minutes, up and down the rocky hillsides, surrounded by thorny plants in the hot sun. The hunters were already so far ahead of me I couldn’t see what good it was doing to try to keep up with them. I was rushing- huffing and puffing- and not able to really pay attention to my surroundings and thought better about continuing on.
I turned around and went back to camp. Joseph escorted me and a couple of others who also wanted to return, just to make sure we made it back safely.
Joseph brought us back to camp, introduced us to the women and then returned to the hunt.
Like the Maasai women, the Hadzabe women stay in camp and tend to the household chores. They take care of the children, do whatever needs doing around the camp, and make items for trade. I watched as all the women and children sat together creating beautiful beadwork items (which they later showed our group- just in case anyone wanted to buy).
It took a couple of hours for the men to return to camp- along with our group who stuck it out with them. Sorry to say, they didn’t catch anything. They’ll have to try again later. In preparation for heading out again, they practiced with their bow and arrows and a target stump a couple hundred feet down the slope. We watched as all the men (even the young boys) took their shots at the stump. They even offered to teach us how to do it.
A couple of our group decided to take them up on it and took a couple of shots at the stump. No one managed to hit the target. I tried to pull the string of one of the small boys’ bow. No, I couldn’t pull it even halfway back. We all had fun, the Hadzabe had a good laugh at how awful we were.
Before we left, the tribe got together and gave us a farewell present. They put on a dance show for us and even invited us into the dance. It was a fun ending to our visit.
For this weeks photo challenge from the Daily Post, the theme is: dense. I have some great shots of the wildlife I got to see recently in Africa. I went on a photo safari in Tanzania with Great Escape Publishing (GEP) and had a fantastic trip!
We went all around Tanzania, from Arusha to Tarangire National Park, to Lake Eyasi to the Central Serengeti. We met the most interesting people and saw amazing scenery and so many (totally wild) animals every day!
We saw lion prides enjoying their kill with their cute little cubs after a hunt and herds of elephants walking slowly across the plains. It was the time of the ‘great migration’, so we saw huge herds of grazing animals- gazelles, wildebeest, giraffes, and zebras.
Here’s a good example of the density of the herds.
I loved watching those zebras! They sound almost like donkeys. That’s another one of our jeeps on the right edge of the photo. I really wish I hadn’t been so cheap! I should have brought a better camera (lens)! This is what comes from worrying about money! Skimp and save and manage to pay for the trip, but then can’t make the most out of it due to trying to cut corners. If I ever get another chance for a trip like this, I will be damn sure to get something with more than 210 mm lens!
Another very early morning wakeup brought us to spending the day with a couple of the traditional tribes of the area. First the Hadzabe, the hunters, next the Datogas, the blacksmiths. We had to meet the Hadzabe very early for a special treat, we would go on a hunt with their men!
We left the beautiful Lake Eyasi Safari Lodge at 0545 and drove about 45 minutes to the Hadzabe camp. They still live a nomadic life, so we met them at one of their temporary camps. They had built scattered domed huts out of thin, flexible branches tied together in addition to their ‘rooms’ in a rocky outcrop atop a high hill.
When we arrived, we met the chief and through our interpreter, Joseph, he explained the basics of their lifestyle. The men brought us up to a large overhang of the rock where they had a fire going. They explained the different types of arrows they used for hunting (some were poisonous).
A couple of them showed us how they started a fire (no, not with a Bic lighter), the old fashioned way of twisting a stick until it gets hot enough to light the tinder. The Hadzabe men used the spark to light their pipes for a good long toke. A few of our troop tried it too- (lighting the fire, not smoking the weed)- but only one succeeded (just barely). It looked a lot harder when our group tried to do it. The Hadzabe made it look so easy.
Similar to the Maasai, they were nomadic. But the Hadzabe were hunters, not herders. The chief also had more than 1 wife. The men spent their days hunting and preparing to hunt. They made their bows and arrows, sharpened their knives, kept the fire going, and smoked a lot of weed while they were at it. They offered some to us, but nobody was brave enough to accept.
After the demonstration, we left with the men on their daily hunt. I followed along for about 20 minutes, up and down the rocky hillsides, surrounded by thorny plants in the hot sun. The hunters were already so far ahead of me I couldn’t see what good it was doing to try to keep up with them. I was rushing- huffing and puffing- and not able to really pay attention to my surroundings and thought better about continuing on.
I turned around and went back to camp. Joseph escorted me and a couple of others who also wanted to return, just to make sure we made it back safely.
Joseph brought us back to camp, introduced us to the women and then returned to the hunt.
Like the Maasai, the Hadzabe women stay in camp and tend to the household chores. They take care of the children, do whatever needs doing around the camp, and make items for trade. I watched as all the women and children sat together creating beautiful beadwork items (which they later showed our group- just in case anyone wanted to buy).
It took a couple of hours for the men to return to camp- along with our group who stuck it out with them. Sorry to say, they didn’t catch anything. They’ll have to try again later. In preparation for heading out again, they practiced with their bow and arrows and a target stump a couple hundred feet down the slope. We watched as all the men (even the young boys) took their shots at the stump. They even offered to teach us how to do it.
A couple of our group decided to take them up on it and took a couple of shots at the stump. No one managed to hit the target. I tried to pull the string of one of the small boys’ bow. No, I couldn’t pull it even halfway back. We all had fun, the Hadzabe had a good laugh at how awful we were.
Before we left, the tribe got together and gave us a farewell present. They put on a dance show for us and even invited us into the dance. It was a fun ending to our visit.
I’ll update this post with the video as soon as I can get somewhere with decent internet.
I have so many great stories to share from this safari. Tons of great photos too. Too bad the internet is so horrible here and I can’t get anything posted. I can’t even open my mail on yahoo.
I’ve spent the last week on safari in Tanzania with Great Escape Publishing. There were about 20 of us altogether- 16 ‘students’ and 4 teachers- in 4 jeeps (or land rovers).
We started and ended our safari from the African Tulip in Arusha. We had a lucky week. The weather was great, hardly any rain. We saw all of the big 5- even a rhino at the very end (but it was so far away I could hardly see it).
We saw lions, cheetahs, leopards, elephants, hippos, buffalos, gazelles, giraffes, zebras and more. What was really fantastic was seeing so many of the babies. I’ve got some fantastic photos! Not as many as I’d like, but enough that I’m still thrilled. 🙂
Even tho I bought a new lens especially for this trip, it wasn’t really what I needed and so I missed out on a lot of really great shots I could have gotten if I had spent the money for the proper equipment.
I bought a 70-300mm lens with an adapter for my Sony camera. The adapter was manual tho, so it was really hard to get it to focus. Almost all of my shots were blurry when I used that lens. I finally gave up and went back to using my old 70-210 lens where the auto focus worked.
The other problem I had was that my camera does not have an eyepiece to look through. I had to use the screen on the back of the camera and since it was so bright out, I couldn’t really see anything to focus on and just had to guess half the time.
I’m glad I got to make the trip, but it’s a shame I was so concerned about money that I skimped on the camera gear. If I ever get a chance to come back over here, I’ll try to get a better lens. It makes so much of a difference.
This afternoon, after our last visit to Tarangire National Park, we got to visit with the Maasai tribe. A real highlight of our safari so far.
The chief met us on arrival at his village. A tall man, dressed in the traditional red robes of his tribe, he spoke very good English as he explained daily life in his village.
We watched as a couple of ladies built a new house out of long, thin sticks. They had stuck them in the ground to make a circle about 8-10 ft in diameter. When we arrived, they were circling the structure with more thin sticks and then tying them together every few inches.
The chief explained that they would cover this framework with cow dung mixed with mud and water to insulate the home (and keep the termites out). Then they would roof it with palm fronds.
He explained how his family functioned. He had 3 wives. The first one got to pick the rest of them out. They all had to get along. He had to have so many head of cattle before he could marry. The more cows, the more wives he could have.
The men spent their days tending their herds, the women were responsible for everything else: raising the children, cooking, taking care of the house (and even building it). The women also spent time making items to trade (and sell to any tourists that came by).
After the chief answered our questions, he brought us to the corral where they kept their animals at night. Built of thorny branches in a thick layer, it kept out the predators. Inside, we were treated to a dance put on by most of the tribe. The women on one side and the men on the other.
The women wore large beaded collars around their necks. One or two would move from the ends towards each other in the center of their line- bowing their upper bodies and chanting. The men stayed on their side of the corral, humming and chanting in low voices. Every so often they would jump straight up with their spears, as high as they could.
When the dance finished up to a round of applause, the women spread out their creations for our inspection (and hopefully a sale).
It was a little gross, walking through all the cow patties, etc. But when it comes to shopping (and getting good photos), nothing would stop us. 😉
They made beautiful beaded jewelry- necklaces, rings, bracelets and earrings. They made carved and painted animal figures, bowls and boxes. They had a pretty good day by the time we left.
Yes we contributed to their commercialization. Their lives have already been corrupted by modernity no matter how much they try to retain their traditional culture. I’m glad I got to meet them, before they get too homogenized. I hope they can improve their lives and somehow keep their culture strong too.
This is the first halfway decent internet we’ve had since we left the African Tulip on Monday. We’ve been covering a lot of ground since then.
Tonight we’re staying at the beautiful Sopa Lodge on the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater. This place is really something! I only wish they had internet available in the rooms, but actually happy to have it even in the main lodge. 🙂
Here’s a little preview of the sort of things I’ve been seeing the last couple of days.
Hopefully, I’ll have a chance to post again tomorrow night. If not, hang in there, I’ll get to it as soon as I can get decent internet again. 🙂
I’ve been on the move the last couple of days and too tired to post. I spent all day yesterday traveling- flew out of Istanbul and arrived at the Kilimanjaro airport around 2 am.
We got to the beautiful African Tulip hotel in Arusha at around 5:30 am and all I could do was pass out in bed. I woke up around noon for lunch, walked down the street to an ATM, then took a nap.
Woke up in time to sit out by the pool for a little bit before dinner. Met most of the group I’ll be spending the next week with over dinner and now falling asleep again.
We will get up early for breakfast by 0730. We need to have our bags packed and be checked out by the time class starts at 0800. We leave here for the start of our safari right after class.
Straight from the emailed schedule…
Following your first presentation, we’ll make our way to Tarangire National Park, which boasts an amazing array of diverse wildlife, but is best known for its incredible concentration of elephants. In the late afternoon we’ll head back to our lodge and rest before tomorrow’s visit with the Maasai tribe.
I’m really looking forward to it! I’ll try to keep you posted and hoping to have some great photos to add. I’m not sure about internet access once we leave here in the morning. I may not be able to get online again for a week. 🙁
I went to see the latest Tarzan movie, “The Legend of Tarzan“, the other day. I liked it. I pretty much always like Tarzan movies. I used to watch Tarzan every Saturday morning when I was growing up. I used to wish I could live like that- wild, in the jungle, friends with all the animals.
I’ve always loved animals. All kinds. Growing up we had cats, dogs, lizards, turtles, gerbils, hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits, birds (parakeets, cockatiels, myna birds), fish and even a kinkajou for a while.
I got an animal encyclopedia one year for a present and read through each book, cover to cover. I was fascinated by all the beautiful creatures, all the glorious diversity. I wanted to be a scientist, studying how to save the animals. Or a vet.
My grandparents were pharmacists and wanted me to be a doctor, but I didn’t really like people that much. Especially not sick people! I think I would have made a great vet tho!
I still think we have too many people running around. I thought that way back then and of course since we have WAY more people (and all the problems that causes), I think it much more strongly now. Even with all the improvements we’ve made and increased standards of living for so many, we’re still destroying the planet and wiping out other species at increasing rates.
I think everything on this planet has just as much ‘right’ to be here as we do. I really object to the position so many people take that we have the right to do whatever the hell we want to with whatever we can. Still acting like cave men (which might have been alright back then with only a few hundred thousand people on the planet), it’s definitely not OK now with over 7 BILLION people here (projected to be over 11 BILLION by 2100)!
I don’t think it’s a good idea to just cover the planet with people. More and more and more people! Our cities, our towns, our farms, OURS, to use and abuse as we see fit. What about all the OTHER species we’re supposed to SHARE this planet with?
I love how Tarzan was able to co-exist with the animals. He was always a protector of the land. He lived in the jungle and knew how to use it’s resources without abusing them. He didn’t have a bunch of kids (who would each have a bunch more, etc).
I love how he was always able to keep ‘his’ forests safe from the greedy men who came to rape the wilderness. For diamonds, for oil, for hides, for tusks, for whatever they could take.
This latest movie sets the scene in the Congo during the time of King Leopold II of Belgium. He was really awful, you should check out the book “King Leopold’s Ghost“. I read it a while ago and it’s a pretty good story (tho pretty sad history).
Leopold has basically been raping the Congo. Gobbling up resources and enslaving the people. His henchman- slick, suited Mr Rom (Christoph Waltz) makes a deal to trade diamonds for Tarzan with a tribal leader with a major grudge.
Tarzan gets lured back to Africa by American George Washington Williams (Samuel L. Jackson), who convinces him to accept the Kings invitation- to verify rumors of slavery and destruction of his beloved home in the jungle.
I loved watching Tarzan swing through the trees (do gorillas really do that?). Such a great way to travel! He always finds such freedom, joy and wonder to share. Alexander Skarsgard plays the part well. He doesn’t say much, but he does a great job with the character (and he’s nice to watch with his shirt off). In this movie version Jane (Margot Robbie) plays a pretty big part. She does a good job as a ‘damsel in distress’, you really wind up rooting for Tarzan to come and save her.
The Legend of Tarzan was a fun way to spend a couple of hours. The movie had it all- adventure, gorgeous scenery, great looking actors, romance, action, wildlife, history. I was cheering for the animals in a few places and hoping the despicable Mr Rom got ripped apart in a few more. I really enjoyed it. I might even go see it again. Or hope for a sequel.
If you go for a matinee and skip the popcorn, it’s only $5.51!
In case you’re wondering, this is not a repeat of my earlier post(s) about my lost luggage. 🙁
This trip to work was also totally screwed up. It started in Houston. The original flight was so late getting to London that I missed all my connections. I had tried to make arrangements while still in Houston to make the rest of the trip go smoothly but that effort did not bear fruit.
You can read more about that disastrous trip to get here in an earlier post here.
I arrived in Luanda early in the morning of August 14. I was promised that my luggage would arrive on the next Air France flight into Luanda and the latest would be Tuesday the 19th. I have had a claim out since I arrived. I have been checking online every day for a week now and STILL no trace of my bag!
It’s been missing for a total of 2 weeks now. I really would like to see it again before I have to leave here to go home again in 2 more weeks.
I have been trying for the last couple of days to find a phone number to call so I can talk to a real person (rather than file a form on the computer that refuses to accept the information I need to input).
I finally succeeded in finding a phone number last night and tried to call but the first time there was an estimated waiting period of 20 minutes. The second time the waiting period was 30 minutes. Since I am at work on the ship, I really can not sit on the phone and WAIT for 20+ minutes.
Tonight the wait was ‘only’ estimated at 13 minutes so I took a chance and hung on the line. After listening to the same insipid elevator music repeat for 18 minutes a real live person finally came on the line. 🙂
Unfortunately, since my luggage has now been missing for almost 2 weeks, she could not help me at all since it didn’t show up in her system any more. 🙁
All I could get out of her was that my luggage was ‘scheduled’ to go on a Lufthansa flight on August 14th. WHY Lufthansa? It was supposed to follow me on the next Air France flight!
She couldn’t even tell me where that Lufthansa flight was going to, or where my luggage was supposed to go after it got there, or if it was eventually going to go to Luanda, or even if they had put a new baggage tag on it so I could trace it or if everyone was looking for a no longer in existence baggage tag?
I have no idea what these are meant for. I took this photo at the Houston International Fest. I always try to make it if I happen to be home. They have different themes each year. They had a pretty good representation of African vendors last year.
This is an interesting article (with lots of cool photos) of a deadly lake in Africa. I’ve never been to Africa but I would love to go. I always thought about taking a safari or climbing Mt Kilimanjaro, I didn’t know anything about this lake. It sounds like an interesting place. Just seeing pictures stirs up my wanderlust. 🙂
The Mercy ships are really doing such wonderful work around the world. I wish I could afford to work on one of them for a while. I haven’t been able to manage that (so far).
If anyone is interested in a fantastic experience and has some sort of sponsorship or can live without an income for a few months, this would be a great place to do something useful.
They don’t just need ships crew, they need all kinds of health care workers too. Maybe some other kinds of things would get you a spot on board. Worth checking them out if you’re at all interested. 🙂
Its way past time we cracked down on these pirates. What the hell is wrong with our priorities these days. We go around the world bombing people all over the place who haven’t done anything and yet we can’t manage to do ANYTHING about these pirates???? What the hell? Pirates were one of the first things we attacked back in the early days of our country and if we had good enough reason then, we have good enough reason now. Stop droning the people of Iraq and Afghanistan and go drone some pirates instead!
