Charlotte's Web: Monkeying Around

The second week of classes are off to a good start! The other day two Vervet monkeys visited the compound, one catching me off guard and scaring me as I walked down a path. As a group of us quietly watched them climb up and down trees, the monkeys began to warm up to us. Soon they were climbing the stairs of the house and exploring our porch.

Although this week we have been bogged down with a lot of homework, we have still made time for a game or two of volleyball whenever we can. Sinnary, one of our professors, also lives on the compound and often joins us for a few points. His son Mohamed joins as well, together making quite the ruckus towering over everyone else at well over 6 feet tall.

Tonight we went to a lecture at the Karen Country Club to see Jim Nyamu speak about elephant conservation in Kenya and his efforts towards raising awareness about elephant poaching. He spoke about his causes, the Elephant Neighbors Center and Ivory Belongs to Elephants, and some of the movements he has been involved with in Kenya and the United States. Earlier this year Jim walked from Boston to Washington D.C. to raise awareness about the ivory trade and what can be done to combat this issue. It was an amazing lecture, Jim was extremely passionate about elephant conservation and he is determined to spread awareness about the different challenges that exist in conservation.