Hi, I am still here…

I’ve been terrible at keeping my blog updated over the past couple of months.  Things at work are extremely busy and my Earthwatch season is coming to an end quite soon.  I currently have my last Earthwatch group and are looking forward to a good end to a great season.  There’s only been a few absolutely terrible moments with Earthwatch, but just because some of these people expect 5-star treatment and don’t realise that this is a research station.  I have also decided to extend my contract for another year, so I will be staying at the meerkat project until the beginning of 2011.

By letting all my friends and family know about my plans for next year, my boyfriend decided to end our relationship.  It was extremely hard for me to hear and I’m still struggling to except it.

Other than that has life on the farm been great.  I’ve made a lot of new friends, not only volunteers but also local farmers.  I’ve been on some great adventures, capturing springboks as well as more gemsbok captures.  Did quad biking and 4×4 driving on dunes, went on my first hunt ever (and didn’t like it at all), ran around in the rain with lightning striking all around us.  And then there’s some nice adventures awaiting in November.  I’m going to the Kgalagadi transfrontier park with some friends and will hopefully see some cheetah and leopard.  Our volunteer trip is also around the corner and are we going to the Augrabies park.

Hope to keep in contact more often…

work work work

My first group of tourist arrived and are now luckily gone again. It was two weeks of really hard work, and in between I got a terrible virus that had me in bed for three days. It’s some bug that attacks all your organs and one by one they start shutting down and you feel like a living zombie. But all is good now. We also had some excitement with two snakes. First we had a cape cobra in a tree getting mobbed by cape glossy starlings and then we had a puff adder lurking at our bathrooms. Which I was instructed to eventually catch. It was a super terrifying experience. Loads of adrenaline pumping through my veins. We eventually had to kill it after struggling for 20 minutes to catch it. It just got too dangerous. Well, now everyone is gone, and still I’m not able to just chill out for a day or two. Work, work and some more work. I’m heading off to do a first aid course this week and hopefully I’ll be able to switch off from work for a few days. Hopefully I’ll be able to tell you more on what’s happening in the kalahari soon!

Chased

I’m working on a nature reserve with various game roaming the area. We are well aware that they are wild animals. But they still don’t seem bothered when we walk around in the field, except for 8 bachelor wildebeests.

Earlier this week I was at the group Aztecs doing the normal stuff, walking with them and doing weights. I was busy with lunch weights when my meerkats all of a sudden decided to run off. I thought their might be a raptor in the area, but as soon as I looked up I looked right into a lone male wildebeest. He seemed quite agitated with my presence. He started swaying his head sideways and grunted at me. Seven other males joined him and they charged me. I just grabbed all of my things and ran like the wind. They chased me for about 300 meters before deciding to leave me alone. I had to run through three torn bushes to get away and only after catching my breath realized that I ran through thorny bushes and that my legs are bleeding. My radio didn’t work either, so I couldn’t call for help and had to walk back to the farmhouse. What a terrifying experience. I officially do not like the wildebeests on the farm anymore.

That surely was an eventful morning and one that I won’t forget for a very long time.

A glimpse of life in the Kalahari

The Kalahari is a semi-arid area, loads of sand and not much vegetation.  The main trees around here is the very big camelthorn tree, the smaller grey camelthorn tree and then the shepherds tree which gives you a lovely shade and escape from the scorching sun.  After the rain sourgrass can be seen everywhere and is also there because of overgrazing.  The flats are all white sand and then you walk over to the dunes and you get the most beautiful red dunes.  Wild life is abundant, and you get to see loads and loads of Eland, Wildebeest, Springbucks, Hartebeest and when you are lucky the occasional Gemsbok.  Reptiles can be seen underneath every rock or fallen tree and one must be extremely careful to not step on a puff adder or walk past a cape cobra.  Temperatures in the summer range from a cool 30 degrees Celsius to the every so often 45 degrees Celsius (and that’s in the shade).  The rainstorms are amazing and lightning fills the heavens with bright flashes. 

I can now finally say that the field is my office.  Ever since I can remember I always knew that I will never be able to sit behind a desk and work a 9 – 5 job.  It’s just absolutely great to get up at 5am (never thought I’ll ever say that), see the most beautiful sunrise and spend the whole morning walking with meerkats.  Sunsets in the Kalahari are just as beautiful, the whole sky turns from blue to orange to pink to purple.  Not one day do you see the same sunset or sunrise. 

Walking with the meerkats is another great experience.  You get to know each and every individual, and each and everyone has its own personality.  The pups are too adorable and you just want to pick them up and cuddle them.  Learning their behaviors gives you a little bit more of an insight into their social structure.  They truly are an amazing species.  When you’re in the field, it’s just you and nature and that’s how I like it.  There’s a sort of calmness in the Kalahari that makes you fall in love with the place.

I hope to keep all of you more up to date on what’s happening in the Kalahari more often.

flying, soaring, falling?

I have this perfect picture painted in my head of what my life should be like.  But now the painter is going crazy and painting all over my perfect picture and making it very unclear. 

I came to Malaysia with the idea of taking a break this year and just enjoy Malaysia and all the new things that cross my path.  It’s been fun so far, but the end of the year is getting closer and my plans for next year is in a total state of chaos.  I was suppose to study next year.  It’s all very simple.  Find the perfect course to study, apply, hopefully get accepted and then just study hard.  It can still happen IF i throw myself into some major debt, and I don’t feel like doing that right now.  So I guess that pretty picture was set on fire and all that remains is the ashes. 

Now reality is kicking in and am I applying for jobs all over with one setback after the other.  Everybody requires applicants to have some sort of experience and I guess my 3 months voluntary work doesn’t really count for anything.  I need to gain experience but no one wants to appoint you without it.  So how do you get any then?

Returning to South Africa is an option.  A rather good option seeing that there I don’t have the problem of trying to get a working visa.  But going back to SA is not going to make any of my decisions any easier.  Jacques is in South Africa, but living in Harrismith.  There’s no future for me in Harrismith career-wise unless I decide to do something I’m going to hate every step of the way.  I’m probably going to dread getting up every day and going to work, making myself and everyone around me miserable.  All the years of studying would be a total waste.  Am I selfish if I don’t want to stay in Harrismith because it’s a dead-end for me?  But the fact that Jacques is there waiting for me shouldn’t make me think twice about making a move there.  Does it mean I don’t love him enough to be willing to sacrifice my dreams for him? 

I was flying, and just as I thought I was soaring I started falling…..

alive and kicking

I cannot believe the stories people make up which just upset everyone in the process.  People hear something and then add some tags to it or even just make their own conclusions.  Well, this is the best I’ve heard in a very long time.

About 3 weeks ago their was an accident in Harrismith (the town where I used to live).  A girl named Melissa was killed in a car accident….another girl, not me.  My boyfriend got a phone call the next day from some people in Harrismith asking whether it’s true and if he is okay.  This girl’s funeral was about two weeks ago.  Today my mom got a text message from a friend in South Africa asking her if they’re alright and if there’s anything they need.  Completely confused, my mom text back and says we couldn’t be better.  Totally shocked by the response, the friend replies that someone told her that I am dead.  Oh my gosh!!  What the heck! 

I always knew Harrismith is famous for their gossip, but seriously!  So no, I am not dead for anyone that might have been wondering.