Bird Brains

Hello Again,

People who travel to Namibia come for a variety of reasons.  One of the most active group of tourists that come to Namibia are birders. 

These are folks who focus on our feathered friends and enjoy naming them, observing them, tracking them or researching them.  I am no expert on birds, but when you are on a game drive in Etosha National Park or in other parts of Namibia, the 'game' that is most present, yet most unappreciated, are the birds.

My personal favourite bird in all of Namibia is the lilac breasted roller.

My friend Pauline took this photo....

This guy sits up on bear upper branches of trees. He east the usual bugs and insects.  He gets eaten by some eagles and falcons.  Sad to think of such a colorful and beautiful bird getting eaten, but that is the circle of life.

When he flies away his wings are just stunning!  He is turquoise and teal, with mauve, lavender and other shades of purple... His breast and underbelly are... of course... lilac.

When you come to Namibia, make sure to buy a birding book and/or have a guide who can tell you the name of various birds that you will see while here.

You don't have to be a birder, to learn a bit about birds, learn to appreciate them and start seeing them as a necessary part of any 'game drive.'

When you come.... Tell 'em Jackie sent you!

Devil's Claw and Hoodia Work!

Dear Readers!

As you begin planning your holiday in Namibia, consider that when you are here, your visit helps to finance communities all over our country who would have no other source of income other than revenue from professional hunting or revenues from tourism related activities.

One of the other income generators of our communities is our natural products.  This is all a part of Namibia's commitment to sustainable usage of ALL of our natural resources.  We are committed to making sure we plan the use of the commodities TODAY so that we have it for all of our tomorrows.

Two natural products with very popular usage in our today's world are found in Namibia. They are Hoodia and Devil's Claw. These indigenous products are harvested by local communities and black businessmen to be provided for worldwide consuption.  Many donor partners have invested in training, marketing access planning, commercialization with sustainable usage, community inclusive planning and other very important aspects of developing these naturally Namibian products for the world.  Again, these small plants benefit Namibian people. This is GREAT!

Devil's Claw

Hoodia

For those who may not know, the Devil's claw is useful for stiff bones, arthritis treatments, etc... As I have hit middle age with a blast, I know what it feels like to wake up on a cold winter morning and try to get out of bed and have your back and knees slap you in the face!  I find Devil's claw products are useful in helping me to slap all muscle pain right back in its face!  So there!  I take 3 capsules per day and it works for me.  Once I travelled and left the Devil's claw at home.  After a week, when I returned I felt the difference.  I am not in heavy muscle ache pain yet in my middle age, but the difference was still noticeable being on the devil's claw and then being off of it.

Hoodia got slammed by the US drug company Unilever.  That was curious?  For me, it works.  Folks I am round... yep.  I admit it.  When I run, I run as a group with all my parts moving in the same direction.  Ok.  That said...  Hoodia helps me control my eating.   You can even get Hoodia in a gel form so that you can rub it on your arm on directly on your belly!  I take it in tea usually and that goes down much smoother and doesn't leave an oil stain on your blouse.

Of course, healthy weight loss comes with work with my doctor, dietician and bio-keneticist (workout torture artists!).  Working together with this program, the Hoodia does keep me from having seconds.  It kills that afternoon crazy craving for a candy bar; it helps me not snack on unhealthy things between meals.  When I eat a bowl of vege soup (I make my own with fresh veggies boiled with a chicken bouillion cube) and I want to top it up with a nice ham sandwich, I am too full after the hoodia and soup to go any further.  So, I move on away from the table and do something else.   I stick to my dieticians' plan a lot better on Hoodia than off of it.  This is not scientific, it is just Jackie-talking.  For me, it works.  Maybe for those in Unilever's study it did not. 

Namibia has these and other natural products.  There are NGOs working here that are involved with these products.  You can probably find out more by contacting the Namibia Nature Foundation or the MCA- Namibia office and they can steer you into more informaton on indigenous products and their use for the benefit of Namibia.

Better still... come here on holiday and arrange with your tour operator a visit to one of the places where these and other natural products are grown! 

Tell 'em Jackie sent you!

Update: Namibia gives wildlife to a Zoo in Cuba

Hi there!

Namibia just finalized arrangements to send a huge amount of animals to Cuba so they can have a nicer zoo! 

When you come to Namibia on your holiday, you will see wildlife here, no question about that.  But, another part of conservation and wildlife appreciation in today's world are zoos. 

I have mixed feelings on this because whenever I go home to the States for holiday and to see my family or visit other cities in Europe, the one place I cannot stand to go is a zoo.  Now that I have seen animals in the wild, running free and living and dying in nature the way they are naturally meant to do, it is hard to see them in cages or enclosures.

Imagine seeing a Cheetah in a zoo enclosure!  They are made to run, run fast and run free - a better enclosure would have to be the size of three football fields!!  But, that's not practical in the cities of the world.

BUT.... zoos bring animals to the world.  Only a very small percentage of people around the world will ever get to come to places like Namibia and see these animals in the wild.  At least in humane and caring zoo atmospheres the animals can teach generations of new animal loves about wildlife and conservation.  That makes it worth it.

Also, zoos host breeding programs and keep species that are extinct or nearly extinct, alive.  Zoos trade animals with one another in order to diversity the gene pool of various species living in captivity.

Though I cannot visit a zoo or enjoy one after seeing Etosha here in Namibia, I am a zoo cheerleader for sure! 

Come to Namibia on holiday!  See those zoo animals how they are supposed to live!  C'mon... visit us. 

Tell'm Jackie sent you.