May 9th

So I am preparing today for tomorrow camera fun time. And dang it’s hot today. Mid-90’s but the heat index is definitely over 100+. So I go to my friend Jamiatu and I say, “OK you have no shirt on.” And she’s like “Nope It’s hot!” And I say “Well is it ok for me to take my shirt off too??” Apparently no problem! THIS IS SO MUCH BETTER!  Why haven’t I been doing this all along??

Half the cameras are out. Whee! The picking up of cameras is a lot more fun than the putting out cuz of the pictures. I think it is going well though. Our random sites seem pretty good now. We’ll see! I haven’t seen any fresh hippo sign yet which is a little weird. Just old foot prints.




I went to a cultural dance last night that was a celebration for the new Bundu Society girls. Actually there is just 1 girl in Kambama, but I guess that doesn’t stop the fun! The Bundu society is the women’s secret society that almost all women join when they come of age. I guess it’s where they learn what things about being a woman. I have no idea (secret society and all…). However, the one thing I do know is that female circumcision thing happens during this process of initiation *shudder*. I could make a rough estimate and say 99% of the women around here are circumcised. It’s a very deep part of the culture and yes, it is women performing it on women. Anyways, I didn’t really know the girl, but I know her father, and everybody basically demanded I come watch the dancers, so how could I refuse?? I wasn’t really sure what to say to the girl. Congrats for getting cut up? I gave her some money and smiled and took her picture and hoped that was enough…



My field assistant Kenewa’s wife basically left him today because she decided she didn’t want to be a farmer. There was some major fighting in the village that went on these past few days but it seems to have died down, especially since she left. The problem was she was supposed to go sell last year’s harvest and purchase new seeds with it to plant this year, and it appears she spent the money on herself and therefore no seeds to plant. So now Kenewa is in a bit of a tight spot and has to go buy seeds for his farm. I feel like tensions are high in the village in general, but I may be just imagining it or am just not used to all this shouting, etc. I am amazed at how people can just yell and yell at each other for like half an hour and then suddenly it is over and forgotten. I guess living in close proximity with people makes for drama. Seriously could make a fun soap opera out of this stuff.



Evening time:



Well I had planned on getting some reading done but apparently the research station was the place for the dress rehearsal for a cultural dance on Saturday. There is some CEPF (Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund) bigwig coming I think and they are going to put on a performance to impress. It was fun to way impromptu dancing. My favorite girl, Mami Kanay, can dance! She’s gorgeous. Sometimes I wish I could whisk some of these girls away and put them in school in the U.S. School is dangerous for girls here really. Two of the staff member’s daughters, who were in secondary school, have gotten pregnant in the last year and had to drop out. They are both like 14-15.



I will be both sad and glad for these trainees to leave the research station. I really miss the peace and quiet that I had last year here, and the ability to do work without being interrupted constantly. Also the ability to cook meals without everybody staring at me would be great too! However, it is really nice to have some company and they are teaching me some great Mende, and I feel like I have made some really good friends, even with the whole language barrier thing. Jamiatu, the girl who is my field assistant’s girlfriend (another cause for a fight with his wife…) is my new best friend. It’s nice to have a girl friend.



We heard the chimps this morning and yesterday morning banging on the trees. There are no mangos at the research station and too many people for them to come around here this year though. However, I am a bit amazed to find the sooty mangabey’s and Campbell’s monkeys coming here daily to feed on the fruiting trees. They don’t seem to be bothered by any noise or people here, which is a fantastic sign I think. I love that the sooty mangabeys make for great watch dogs. In the afternoon if I am reading, and somebody is coming on the trail towards research, they sound the alarm! Fantastic.