Ecology of the Turkana Basin with Dino Martins

Hello everyone, a lot has happened since I last posted. After our trip to Lothagam we wrapped up our Geology module with a test and a trip into town to Lodwar that weekend. There we said good bye to our professor, Craig Feibel who normally teaches at Rutgers, and explored a bit of town. Like most town centers, Lodwar is where all the stores are, where people come to buy food or sell food, where people come to see the doctor, where the bank is and so on. We had an interesting time there buying local snacks and received quite a good amount of attention since we stood out so much from the locals.

The following week, we began our second module, Ecology of the Turkana Basin with Dino Martins and so far we’ve been having a blast. When we’re not in class, Dino has us running all over the place observing and catching all kinds of insects and plants. I think I might have learned more about bugs and plants here in the past week than I have in all my twenty-two years of schooling (that’s what happens when you grow up in the city). Bees for example, are extremely fascinating insects with very complicated lives, who knew?

Other highlights of these past two weeks;

1. According to Dino, we caught parasites and bees that have never been studied so far.

2. We climbed the Napodet Hills, which is a series of hills about an hour away from TBI.

3. We all started our own projects for our ecology class; mine explores how rainfall affects the Turkana region, others have taken up to studying the decomposition of animals, ants that live in hot climates, the pastoralist community around here and etc.

4. We explored the Kerio River Delta and made some new friends.

5. We visited a nearby farm to learn how a small group of women have taken up to sustainable farming, and then sung songs for them.

Till next time! :)

Central Island and Lothagam

Duct tape use #1- mending mosquito nets

Duct tape use #2- fixing broken eyeglasses

Two trips have happened since the last time I wrote; one was to Central Island and the other to a place called Lothagam.

Central Island, as I have mentioned in the previous post is an island located in the middle of Lake Turkana and use to be a volcano. Today however it is a mountain full of volcanic deposits and craters and is home is several species of animals. One of the craters we visited was taken over by flamingoes, which I have learned are very pretty to look at but not so great to smell. Another animal that resides on this island are crocodiles and luckily for us, we spotted two of them in the lake, but instead of being scared we decided to jump right into the lake. You think we’re crazy but if you were standing under that hot sun, you’ve done the same. Plus, those crocodiles know humans were nothing but trouble.

Our second trip was to Lothagam, and our main purpose there was to learn about the geological structures there that date from the Miocene (approx. 23 million years ago) to today. There we did a lot, I mean A LOT of walking and hiking till the point that I was sweating in places I never knew I could sweat. Imagine hiking in a big sauna. On our hikes we saw many exciting things such as mysterious human burials, stone tools, fossilized giraffe footprints, hyena tracks, oysters, bones of humans and various animals and more. I have also learned that walking in sand is very difficult and not fun for those who like to walk fast like me. When we were not hiking and learning we rested in our campsite under a bunch of palm trees. There we sipped tea and coffee with biscuits, and talked about anything and everything that came to our minds, something I enjoy very much. At night we slept under the open sky and although it was so hot that I couldn’t sleep, I didn’t mind it so much because I was too busy looking all the stars. Have you seen the milky way? I wish I could take a picture of all the stars here and show you guys but it seems my digital camera just won’t do. Anyhow it is about lunch time here so here are some pictures of these past few days, enjoy.

Central Island































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Lothagam

It's a dry world.

Hi all! It’s BLAZING hot here today at TBI. I don’t know the exact temperature conversions (Kenya uses the Celsius system) but I know we are definitely well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit here. To give you an idea, I drank over 3 litres of water today and a nap in the afternoon left me soaked in sweat. However, class continues here hot or well, hotter. Class started this Monday, and we’ve done a variety of things since then including going to the outskirts of the camp to explore the landscape, going down by the river and crossing it and getting lost during one of our class activities. Turns out, I did not know how to read the compass as well I believed…but now I know. In addition, we have also learned how to use GPS devices, how to measure elevations with simple instruments and how to calculate the flow of water in rivers. All in all, these lessons have been very educational but also very valuable if I ever got lost in the middle of nowhere.

Today is the fifth day of class but surprise; it’s not the last of the week because here we also have class on Saturdays. No fear though because we’ve been assured that tomorrow will be a fun filled day out of the camp. We will be going to the lake and not only around it but we will actually get on a boat and get to an island in the middle of it, which is actually the tip of a volcano turned mountain. Not bad for a Saturday huh?

Here are some pictures of various happenings from the past few days:

P.S You can find TBI on Google Earth but you have to spend a good few minutes scanning the west area of Lake Turkana.

Even Better than I Imagined

Greetings from Turkana Basin!

It’s our fourth day in Kenya and so far it’s been amazing. The travel from Nairobi to Turkana Basin has to be one of the coolest things I have experienced. We went on a small aircraft that seated about only fifteen people and though every movement felt like turbulence, it was thrilling. Once we got on the ground warm air wafted onto our faces and I just couldn’t help but smile knowing it was soon to be winter back in New York.

When our car pulled into the Turkana Basin Institute (TBI), Dr. Leakey was waiting for us and at that moment I knew this experience was going to be something special and not to be taken granted. For the first two days we were instructed to do nothing but eat, drink and rest, and that confused me because I felt like I was in a resort instead of a study abroad program, but it was wonderful to be able to lie down horizontally after spending many hours on planes.

Here are some pictures of our journey so far, enjoy :)

At JFK before we left, nervous yet excited.

At Nairobi checking into our hotel, exhausted.

Plane to TBI!

Super excited to reach our final destination.

The breathtaking view from our cafeteria.

Most of us have abandoned our bedrooms to sleep on the breezy verandas.

Until next time!

TWO MORE DAYS!

Hi all! Welcome to the Turkana Basin study abroad blog! I can’t believe I’m doing this or saying this but in approximately two days I will be boarding a plane from JFK to Kenya for two and a half months! I don't know about you but summer sure went by fast for me and next thing I know I am here worrying if I have enough socks for Kenya hah. Before I go though, I thought I should drop by and write an entry to tell you guys little bit about the process of applying to study aboard (also I really need a break from packing.) I know for sure that before I applied I had TONS of questions, so in case there is anyone out there reading this and is considering study abroad, I hope this is somewhat helpful. But first, let me introduce myself.

My name is Hui (I know it says Benjamin on the right side but it should be updated any day now...) and this is my fifth year at Stony Brook University (that makes me a super senior). I am an Anthropology major and an international studies minor, and I love learning about different cultures and how humans came to be and got to be where we are. I find human prehistory fascinating and somehow learning about it in class just wasn't enough, which is why I am going on this program. I want to study human prehistory first hand in a place rich in fossil records and Turkana Basin is the place to be. Also interesting is that the Turkana Basin Institute is located in the middle of nowhere which can be scary or exciting depending on how you feel, but for anyone interested in studying human evolution like me, the Turkana Basin is an open textbook... but thankfully a much more interactive and exciting one.

Anyways, here is a map showing where the Turkana Basin is courtesy of Google Maps, except the location is so remote that even Google couldn't zone it on it hence the DIY mark I made:

Now if you are thinking about applying to study abroad and specifically to Kenya, please feel free to ask me any questions. I know studying abroad sounds like an exciting thing to do but I know it can also seem a bit mysterious if you haven't done it before. By the way, this is my second time studying abroad so trust me when I say apply early because there is a lot of paper work that needs to be done before going anywhere. These things include: filling out your application (which can now be done online), getting recommendations from your professors, going to your doctor’s to get your medical forms filled out, getting travel vaccinations and medications if your destination requires them, applying for financial aid if you need it, getting your visa, booking your flight, paying all your fees before you go, registering for classes, making copies/scanning your passports and other important documents, making sure you have signed all your paperwork, and finally buying any special things you may need for your trip.

Now I know this sounds like a lot, but that is why I recommend applying early that way you can do them without feeling overwhelmed, but once it is done you will be so glad you did!

Speaking of preparations, I better go finish packing! Will update once again when I'm in Kenya!

Notice how I have duct tape in my suitcase? What's it for? I don't know, but I'll let you know once I find it out.

Out of Africa...

I think that this post has been so long delayed for one important reason, and that is that I do not wish it all to be over. I do not pride myself of the fact that I descend into a nostalgic trance now that I have returned to the states, but that has often been the case. A lifetime seems to have passed in the blink of an eye. It is difficult to write about Kenya now, as it seems so far away, and yet not a day goes by that I don't think about my time there. And when I do, I can't help but smile.

Like I was at the beginning of every post previously, I am once again overcome by the the daunting task of describing my experiences, much less giving them proper justice through my description. After leaving TBI, I and a few others, traveled a bit in the south of Kenya. After staying in Nairobi, we went on safari in Tsavo East National Park and we saw elephants. Lots and lots of elephants. We didn't just see elephants. We nearly had them trample us in our tents, charge us in our car and walk right through our camp. This is on top of the baboons and vervet monkeys steeling our bananas and the lions roaring within earshot of our tent. It was absolutely wonderful! The Kenyan coast was spectacular. After safari, staying near Mombassa afforded us the most spectacular view of the Indian Ocean, while allowing us to eat fresh seafood every night and go snorkeling whenever we wanted. The amazing thing was, comfortable seaside lodging and delicious food added up to no more than about twelve dollars a day.

My return to the states was, and continues to be, difficult. All of the familiar sights and sounds are lost to me here. I miss the sunrises. I miss sitting in the cool evening air watching the sunsets over the hills every night. I miss the sand and the sun. I even miss the heat. It would be an understatement to say I have experienced culture shock upon my return here. Everything seems, at the least, slightly more than necessary. Television, billboards, concrete sidewalks, tall buildings, cars. The noise of it all can be defining. I am comforted by the knowledge that I will return to Africa and that I take away from it knowledge I could not have acquired otherwise. Both the knowledge of human evolution and ancient prehistory in Africa, and the personal affinity towards Africa that I have gained, give me pause when I hear things like "this really was a once in a lifetime opportunity wasn't it?" To that I say absolutely not. This is a lifetime opportunity. One that I expect to influence me for the rest of my life.

With that I say Asante Sana, Ejoka Noi, and Thank you. It has been my pleasure.