Into the Unknown…

It looks like this will be my last post for the next 12 days or so. We are heading to Hamakuya, a rural village of the Venda people. While we’re there we will have electricity only from a generator turned on as needed and no phone reception of any kind. Three of our nights will be spent on a homestay in traditional Venda homes where we will assume the gender roles of their culture and learn to live in a whole new way. The men will bring home food while the women will collect firewood and cook. I will be sure to tell you all about it as soon as I have cell reception and can post, which will be on our midterm break in Cape Town!

For the last week we have been staying in a camp on the north western edge of Kruger called Punda Maria. It is a luxurious camp where we each share a room for two, complete with our on bathroom, shower, comfy beds, and air conditioning! Since I last posted, we’ve done field work for two Faculty Field Projects. One studied the effect of geology on savanna vegetation structure and the second looked at the bark thickness of savanna trees and how that protects them against fire. Both projects gave us the opportunity to work with visiting faculty that are well-known in the field of savanna ecology. Having the ability to learn from them and pick their brains is an incredible opportunity for us to grow as students and scientists.

After Hamakuya we go to Cape Town where we will have a 5-day break and the opportunity to visit Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned. We will also hopefully be going to a rugby match and so many more amazing activities that can only be found in South Africa!

Until next time!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 7th, 2012 at 5:34 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

One Response to “Into the Unknown…”

1. TechiTeens Tech Minute says:

   July 3, 2012 at 5:07 pm

   http://css.lsu.edu/?p=123…

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