PAWS

I have very bad cell reception so havent been able to update my blog frequently. For this reason its kind of lacking in detail.

Basically im working at Okonjima with 10 others. We have a bush camp with 2 person tents where we are based, there are nice toilet/shower blocks with hot water, an electricity point and a dining area. We cook on an open fire on a rotational basis. I cooked yesterday with my tent-mate, Patrick, a swedish guy.

Okonjima is a very famous reserve almost twice as big as Mundulea. The Africat foundation is based here, so there are many rescued Cheetah's in enclosures and most of the leopards and other predators on the reserve are very tame due to having been rehabilitated. This rehabilitation sometimes works, as is the case with Tongs, a female cheetah who is succesfully hunting for herself. We found her yesterday with an impala kill. An example of it not working is with a pack of 4 wild dogs who are living in the wild here but have to occasionally be fed because they 'forget' to hunt. Yesterday, another Cheetah was actually found dead, skull crushed by hyenas, fur high in a tree, and eland footprints all on the floor - a bit of a puzzle, but definitely proof that the programme doesnt always work. Africat recognises this, however, and so is shifting the focuse to education and working with farmers to protect predators.

We work in the mornings doing various physical as well as interesting tasks, and then in the afternoon we basically can do the same activities that guests at the expensive lodges get to do (I was there last year). Bush cutting to clear encroached bush and then piling up the remains for burning and fixing and removing fences are two tasks Ive done so far. In the afternoons we've tracked wild dogs and cheetah on foot, able to stand 10m from them, and leopard by car.

Im enjoying it so far. I get along very well with everyone. The reserve isnt quite as beautiful as Mundulea, and I miss knowing where I am at times in the wilderness, but at least its great to be back in the familiar ecosystem.

This morning Im in Otjiwarongo with 5 others. We spent some time in a German cafe, but the others have left to see the town a bit while I sit here and relax.

On a side-note. I was feeling a little ill for a few days so went to the Otjiwarongo Medical centre where a Dr. Maas examined me. I had a malaria test, which was negative, but I do have a throat infection for which I now have antibiotics. Also they found something in my urine (the nurse said, 'there is obviously something there'), so its being tested and Ill heard about it in a week. It was just like being back at home, the quality and standard of the practice.