Here and There Blog

And I forgot my camera! Summer weather at the beach, no clouds, no smog. Happy tourists milling about the sand doing crazy tourist things. Really, I saw the dumbest sand castle ever today, being constructed by guys in their 20's. The little kids do better work than this moat stricken, wave washed deal. Will bring camera down later this week.

March madness has nothing to do with basketball but instead this time of year brings people in by the busload to Carsbad. The Flower Fields have started to bloom and the show goes on for the next few weeks. Best viewing place for free - up on the hill behind the fields, before 11:00 am. Forget the bus, some of the tourists prefer tractor-trailer tours!

Dubai Ski World - the ski slope inside Mall of the Emirates. I didn't go in and ski but it looked like fun! Snowmen keep you company And fake penguins keep watch!

Wow, 7 days since I blogged. Let me blame it on the weeds that had to be faced in the backyard. Hours of work to get that small patch of ice plant and cactus back in acceptable order! I think 20 more bags of bark are needed to even cover the damage. I sent off my passport today to get a Vietnam Visa. Yup, next country will happen....well it will eventually happen. I should post a guessing poll. And how great is it to live in the obsessive take care of yourself Carlsbad. I managed to squeeze in a quick spa visit on Sunday and have another one tomorrow!

The last two of giraffes, I promise! Above: we feed the giraffes breakfast before sitting down to ours. Below, out on the Maasai, a family enjoys a sunny afternoon.

Kenya is often in a state of drought and in need of water. The week we were there, the rains came down and swelled the rivers higher than normal. No crocs in this picture but I'm sure they were in the water somewhere. The animals were easy to photograph but the lighting never seemed to work for the landscape. The trees were so cool looking and it was relaxing to ride along in the jeep staring at the land even when no animals were around. Below, the view from the airplane as we flew back to Nairobi.

The Giraffe Center in Nairobi exists to provide a safe haven for the Rothschild Giraffe and to educate and promote wildlife conservation for the youth of Kenya. From: http://www.giraffecenter.org/ The African Fund for Endangered Wildlife Kenya (A.F.E.W Kenya Ltd) also known as the Giraffe Centre is a non profit making organisation, which was founded by the late Betty and Jock Lesilie Melville in 1979. The late Betty, Jock's American born wife, had earlier discovered the sad plight of the Rothschild giraffe and there were only 120 left on an 18,000 acre ranch in Western Kenya that was scheduled for sub-division and settlement. The first effort to save this sub-species was to bring two young giraffes to their property in Langata and later Betty founded AFEW USA.

Giraffe life at the sanctuary involves lots of eating. The breakfast window is open in the morning so you can hand feed the giraffes. At other times, tasty shrubbery does the trick Warthogs and giraffes co-exist peacefully for the most part Even eating side by side at times Nothing satisfies like some green ivy!

Warthogs eat by bending their front knees and happily scoot around for food. I have to say it looks silly but you get used to it after a while and they are sure fast when it's time to run away. My only regret was not taking the time to video them in action. One sequence would have been a utube winner for sure!

This weekend I'll finish up the Kenya photos of giraffes and warthogs. Really I must show the amusing side of the warthogs but this my be my only other picture. My bad. My first full week at home since mid-January has kept me busy with work and getting caught up on normal life. Do you know that if you get a $278 tax refund from the state that it is guaranteed to go to the $251 windshield replacement? Hey and that extra $27 - straight to the gas tank! I guess it's a break even this year.

Lunch at Giraffe Manor. Cheers! There's never enough lunch for a giraffe! Hey! Sausage wants some snacks too!

After 48 hours of eating dust, we were ready to relax at Giraffe Manor in Nairobi. This sanctuary was set-up to protect the Rothschild Giraffes. Giles showed us where the pellets are kept and Lynn was more than willing to eat from our hands. Jean is so happy to be near the giraffes at last!

I'm not a bird fan but I do like the above photo. Below, the ostrich that we were lucky enough to spot at the end of the safari. Later, at the Giraffe Sanctuary Nature Trail in Nairobi, we went with a guide as he set out corn for the birds. The birds showed up right away. And even some non-birds! Hey - March 3rd, Happy Birthday Sherry Sumner!

An airstrip so small, it doesn't even have an airport code. But this place was busy with charter planes coming and going through out the day. We flew in one similar to this. All the trucks ready to drop-off and pick-up tourists. Above: Ticket office and shopping. Below: First and last stop!

Plenty of hippos were in the water but hippos have a stubborn way of staying under water when they sense a camera is aimed their way. This one decided to strike a pose! And crocs have a way of looking like logs and logs always looked like crocs!