Home and back again

Greater blue eared starling:  Lamprotornis c. chloropterus perched on an acacia 

View of Mt. Kenya from the doorstep of the banda the Darja Academy has generously loaned to me

Superb starling: Lamptotorns superbus 

So good to be back in Kenya!  I made it back safe and sound - the only inconvenience being a large group of drunk and very privileged, young U.S. college students who surrounded me during my first flight to Zurich.  They spent the entire eight hours screaming to each other or climbing over chairs or sitting on each others laps while they read aloud Vogue (could have been another trendy magazine) quizzes concerning sex and/or relationships, all the time keeping the flight attendants busy with their frequent demands (because it really is crucial that they do a taste test of the different brands of hot cocoa carried on Swiss Air at 3 in the morning!).  I think this is how many spiritual ventures to Israel begin… :)

Anyway… I missed the smell of the air here, the music, the friendly people so excited to hear your story and so genuinely proud that you have come to Kenya and love it.  I missed falling asleep to the sound of bugs, howling dogs, tree hyrax, hyena, mongoose, large cats, and of course the bush rats and other stuff of unknown identity seeking warmth in your thatched roof.  When I stepped foot on the Daraja Academy campus the sophomore girls were on the field playing volleyball and they nearly knocked me over as they came rushing in waves.  What a nice welcoming!

I was able to acquire a new 300mm lens while I was back home, and I am so excited to get to work documenting the wildlife and of course those human primates as well.  During my absence the rains did come and continue to come, albeit not heavily, and the environment is so lush and verdant - a whole new world that invited a slew of seasonally fastidious creatures  that will soon be added to the species list (I know some of you out there appreciate that list, i.e. Jeff :) 

Maria

Male and female red-winged starlings