The days are going fast...

I have now been here for 3 1/2 months and I can't believe how fast time has flown by. I am very lucky to have come when I did because in just 9 days we are releasing 6 our our female lions for good. It will be sad not to be able to go up to their enclosure and touch them but this is so good for them and the project too. The 6 girls being released are Temi, Kela, Kwandi, Loma, Leya, and Rusha. These girls have become skilled hunters and hopefully once we release one of our boys great mothers. It will be their cubs that will progress further in the program in stage 3 and 4 in the future.

With this impending release right around the corner, everyone at Lion Encounter has been working feverishly to get everything in place for the big event. There are government officials, agencies, staff, business associates that will be there for the opening of the gate. I have been working on the marketing side quite a bit for the event. Nicola and I have developed a new banner and flags for displays at the event and for afterwards. I put together the invitation and newsflash to all of our supports which ended up on the website and Facebook. We also have designed t-shirts, sweaters, and new staff shirts for everyone for the special day. It's very tense for everyone but things are working out great. This is so special as it's the first stage 2 to happen in Zambia...who am I kidding I will probably cry!!



I also can't believe it's already been 2 weeks since Dad and Jordan left. It's great to know that they had such a great time and are still telling stories at home. Jordan even told me tonight he is still in contact with some of the volunteers...that's what it's all about. My friend Suzanne that I met last year in Zimbabwe will be here in a few weeks which is going to be awesome. I'm sure we won't get into any trouble at all!! Anybody else wanting to come to Livingstone please do so!!

One of the staff members is leaving in a few weeks to move back to the UK....sad for him but I'm getting a room upgrade!! I will now have a sink in my room....oh the little glories! I get extra storage space as well. I'm not sure how I am going to adapt after by 7 x 7 room I have now.

Well I will share with you a few pics of our release pride....you can follow them on the ALERT page under Dambwa Pride or become a member on Facebook.

As I wrap up this entry know that I think of all of you very much at home and miss you. Please keep in touch either by blog, e-mail, Skype or an old fashion phone call!! Hearing from home simply makes me smile.

Cheers...Vick
xoxo

The Fire....

I have seen forest fires in my life having lived in Labrador but what happened last Saturday was nothing that I have ever experienced before in my life.

Nix (general manager) received a call around lunch hour the our release site was on fire and out of control. The release site is attached to our enclosures for our 12 older lions. Immediately we had to gather people to go help fight the fire but we didn't know exactly how serious it was. Jordan, my Dad and a few other guys were asked to go. We ended up having 2 trucks to I hopped in as well along with some of our staff. It was going to take us about 15 minutes to get there and as we looked on the horizon in the direction of Dambwa we saw the smoke and we knew it wasn't good. The heart rate started to rise and as we approached and then we saw the wall of flames right at the entrance just about 50 meters away from the lions. There were flames to the right and flames to the left and about 7 feet tall. We all jumped out of the truck and received our instructions to go to the left because the right side was under control and the lions were fine. We ran into the bushes with only branches from trees to fight the fire. By smacking the flames and the ground to push dirt onto the fire you can manage to put some of the flames out. Sometimes it takes quite a bit of effort to do so and sometimes it's a lost cause and you just have to wait for it to get to a point in the grass where it's low. I felt like I was in a movie and every once in a while I screamed out Jordan and my Dad's name to make sure they were o.k.

Once that was ok we moved on to another part of the site to try to do a controlled burn to save part of the release site. As we got down there and lit some of the grass the wind changed directions and we were in trouble...it jumped the road and went in the wrong direction. At this point we had to run away from the flames they were so hot. You could feel your skin tingling from the heat. We ended up splitting up unintentionally and now I was with two other guys Cephis and Bernard. I didn't like the feeling of not seeing Jordan and my Dad but I know they were with a bigger group and they would be o.k. but I still worried. The 3 of us tried to beat the fire and control it from jumping another road. It felt like such a losing battle and it was getting us down. At this point we hadn't had any water and we were starting to fade quickly. Cephis and Bernard had also been there a few hours before us so I really don't know how they kept going. I guess it came down to passion...they wanted to save the release site. There were many times where tears started to well up in my eyes just seeing the destruction happing and you felt like it was such a losing battle. There were also 2 of our lions out in the site that we couldn't find which was worrisome seeing that it was burning quickly. We weren't worried about them harming us because there was no way they were going to come close to the fire.

Water finally arrived both for us to drink and try to use some to fight the flames. It was basically a drum of water on the back of a pick-up truck with a hose attached. There are no fire trucks that could get to the site and there are no water bombers that would be helping us. Once we were a little hydrated we started to beat the fire and things seem to start getting under control. By this time I was also back with Jordan and Dad which gave me a sense of relief that everyone was o.k. All of sudden a call came in that a fire was right beside the lion enclosures and only about 10 meters away from them. I have never in my life seen such an amazing example of team work! At one point Richard (other GM) said if we wanted to leave we could but of course everyone stayed. 6 hours later as the sun started to set and things started to seem controlled.

It a weird way it looked beautiful as the sun set and the glowing embers twinkling through the grounds. We found out that about 40% of the site burned down. It was going to be o.k. though and by next year those areas will be back to life again filled with grass and food for the wildlife. We have about 65 wildebeests, 5 zebras, 70 impala and 7 puku and of course our 12 beautiful lions and they all seemed fine. The lions had been found as well and they were enjoying themselves at another end of the site.

There were definitely some scary moments and at times I felt like I was in a movie. You would see people just standing in the middle of black or us on our knees trying to catch our breath with flames just a few meters away from us. I would do it all over again though because we all know as a team we saved that site, those animals and also the neighbouring farms that it could have spread to very quickly. I am very proud of everyone that day!

If you are interested in finding out more about the release coming up you can visit ALERT - African Lion Environmental Trust. You can even made a donation to support the project.

Thanks....:)

Dad's Day & Cultural Day

Well I have a lot to write about but I don't want to put it all in one entry because I can't fit all the pics at one time that I want to show you. So I will start with Dad's big day. We had bought some excursions for my Dad's birthday in June that included breakfast by the Falls and a helicopter ride. Now when I say "breakfast by the Falls" I mean it!! We actually took a 5 minute boat ride heading directly at Victoria Falls....one of the 7 wonders of the world. Where were heading towards is a 110m drop over the edge. It seemed a bit risky but felt comfort in that they do this everyday so we should be fine. When we got to the island they brought us on a tour where we literally stood on the edge of the Falls. I would like to add here that there are no barriers between you and let's just say heaven. We actually walked in our bare feet as well because it's too slippery and wet to be in shoes. I have to say that it was one of the most amazing and yet scariest things that I think I have ever done! They gave us some history of the area and and we stood on the edge of 3 different places. After that they washed our feet for us (felt like I walked out of a spa) and then served us a beautiful eggs benedict breakfast.

Next we went for some market shopping where I intervened with my..."No no no...that's too expensive" for the boys and we slipped in a little cocktail before heading off to our helicopter ride. Now Jordan and I have never been on a helicopter so this was very exciting. We took the 30 minute tour which included a ride through the white water rafting gorge....that was simply amazing!! We were only about 10 meters off the ground going through it twisting and turning. That was definitely an adrenaline rush. We also had a beautiful ride over Victoria Falls and the Mosi oa Tunya National park where we say hippos, elephants and giraffes form they sky. We ended the day with one more cocktail by the water before heading home....exhausted from too much fun!!!

On Friday we had our cultural day where we go and spend most of day on one of the farms of a local. We actually go to Fred's house who works for Lion Encounter. We started off where the men and women are separated to do different work. Us women had to go a fetch the water that was needed for the day and the men had to go chop down tome trees to help build a new room on the farm. We actually had to carry the water on our head on the way back which was about a 15 minute walk. Next the women had to start to prepare lunch which consisted of chicken, shima and cabbage. Shima is looks like mashed potatoes but it is a corn based powder that mixed with water becomes and thick, dense mixture. They use this to actually eat with as well instead of a fork or spoon, It's not high in nutritional value but it's definitely filling. While we were cooking the men worked very hard on digging holes so that they could put the logs into the ground to start the foundation of the house.

Once the food was ready it was time to wash the mens hands for them...that's right we had to go around to pour water over their hands to prepare them to eat. Once they were ready I had to serve my Dad first then Jordan....oh yes I didn't mention yet that I need to do this on my knees and then clap at the end to show a sign of respect!! It was o.k. though because they knew I was a one time deal!! After we eat too and then go around again to wash their hands again. We also had the opportunity to taste their local beer that is made from scratch..let just say it's an acquired taste!

Next we went to visit a man a few farms away that is a blacksmith. He makes axes, spears for hunting and many other items out of old metal he finds at the scrapyard. The boys participated a it to stoke the first while he heating the metal. It was a very cool thing to see. To finish of the day we danced!! Jordan and Dad got right into it and kicked up their heels with some of the ladies. It was really cool to hear some of their traditional songs and participate in their dances. This was a very cool day that people would never get to experience when staying a one of the big hotels...awesome experience.

Well enjoy the pics. Next entry will be about the bush fire. I need a whole new page for that one!!

cheers!