Adios mis patos

I was going to make a funny, witty last blog about my time here, the things I’ve done, and all the weird and unique things that I experienced that most people wouldn’t be able to in their lifetime. As I was thinking of my list, I realized that none of, absolutely none of the experiences I had would be anything without the people with me. So move over smart-assed and witty, here comes over sentimental and sappy.

To my Patos:

Bina- I am so glad that you and Sarah really didn’t hate me from the first night- I can’t imagine not being friends with you over the course of this semester. Without your social coordination and screaming about hormigas, I don’t know if this trip would have been the same. Seriously, even though you hated being here in the beginning, and knew the least amount of Spanish, I think you have grown the farthest as a person. And I’m pretty sure you’re the only girl I know that could rock being a ‘girly girl’ so well in the heart of Malabo and still be aggressive in a bread line. Looking back over the past 3 months you have been so awesome to hangout, dance with, and have the ‘occasional’ glass of white wine with. Thank you again… and see you in Elkins Park.

Cait- What can I possibly say that you don’t already even know since we share the same brain? Without you I wouldn’t be on this trip- you pushed pulled, knocked on doors, emailed the president- all so we could come here. Thank you, for getting me here, listening to me blab till 2am, for helping me get out of the forest alive (and not killing me for being so ridiculous). Your caring nature has been such an asset to this group, which was extremely helpful after many Marathon nights. And I’m sorry I broke your glasses, (you know where I live). Thanks again for making this trip a reality for me, I honestly didn’t have the drive to get here on my own, but I can’t tell you how this experience is probably the best of my life. You are one of the best friends I could have.

Julia- I am so happy that there was another crazy liberal political junkie in this group. Thank you for making coffee In the mornings and listening to my ramblings about everything that’s going on in my crazy head. Also, I still don’t know how you didn’t kill me on the way up or down from the beaches. I would have left myself there – so I don’t know where you found the patience. I will do my best to go to ‘scones’ on Saturdays and I’ll make sure to skype you when I eat my first ‘Ben & Jerry’s’ ice cream…which I almost did, but it was way to cold in Madrid for ice cream. Good luck with the new crew (even though we are going to be still cooler) and when you get back you owe me a drink and I’ll take you to Chickie & Pete’s.

Sarah- Since we get mistaken for the same person, does that mean I don’t have to write one of these? Your love of dancing and music has definitely made this trip so much more fun for me. Your passion for what is going on in Moka actually made me enjoy science. It was always fun to out with you; as a part of the JD crew… well, you are probably one of the coolest people I could walk back from Macumba with. Thanks for listening to my random and ridiculous ramblings (alliteration much?) about life. I am so glad that we were able to have a cross accent exchange, even though I am sad that I no longer say water like a true Philadelphian. Come to Philly as soon as possible- and we need to talk about Grey’s ASAP.

Tristan – I’m sure that you never would have thought that you would have known so much about Clay Aiken. And you really need to read Harry Potter, they will always better than the movies. Seriously though, thank you so much for being our surrogate ‘big brother’ of the trip. From getting us away from creepsters and Bahia and Macumba, to worrying about whether we’d make it to the beaches alive; words cannot express how grateful I am that you were able to put up with living with five girls. I’m pretty sure that I will never hear ‘No Scrubs’ or ‘Bailamos’ the same way again. Your random commentary and sense of humor added another level to this trip… and karaoke will never be the same.


Without you guys (my family) in Bioko, I would never had (in no order):

Met new people in a new house
Travelled to Moka
Seen endemic species
Made a song about Tuacos
Met more friends
Sat and socialized in a tent for 5 hours while in rained
Walked through the forest at night
Walked through clouds
Climbed trails that I had deemed impossible
Swam in a lake…ina crater… in the middle of a volcano
Spent a night looking at the constellations
Bonded while sitting in different tents
Walked to cascades, swam in them, but couldn’t see them
Hung out with Lebanese architects
Drank awesome tea and had shisha
Ridden on the back of a pickup truck down a mountain…standing up
Wrote a crappy science paper
Hung out with Scotsman
Played Quizo
Danced and partied more than I had
Was Sarah Palin
Struggled, but survived Spanish class
Shared pictures, music and gossip
Had girly sleepovers
Stood at the tallest point of the island
Stayed up to watche the Phillies and the election
Experienced the joy of teaching children and frustration of a broken system
Taught the hokey pokey in Spanish
Enjoyed Southern Hospitality and cooking – and love the people who provided it.
Created dozens of quotes and inside jokes
Ran around in a stadium
Touched the mainland
Loved without running water for 3 days
Got super tan
Laughed and cried
Ate rice and pasta for 2 weeks in Moka
Didn’t shower at Moka
Laid out on the beach and swam in pools… in November
Hung out at oil compounds and watched ‘Friends’ for hours at a time
Ate way too much Oreos and other snacks
Almost fell in a ditch
Incorporated ‘torpe’ at least 4 times a day
Talked to my housemates on Facebook while they were all in the same room
Watched a bunch of movies
Wandered throughout the city
Ate cheap food; ate overpriced food
Learned Spanish that is not useful in everyday conversation
Got punch drunk
Baby sat grown men
Been called Turaco, Jim Beam, Obama, Imelda, and probably at least 4 other names
Walked down highways
Went to church with the President
Learned to cover my shoulders in church
Went to a bush meat market
Shopped for dresses
Applied Harry Potter to many aspects of Malabo and life
Shared information about Clay Aiken that noone was interested in
Stayed up past exhaustion to talk
Walked an insane amount of kms to get to a turtle beach
Saw a sea turtle
Spent 3 hours getting my hair done

And so, so much more

Thank all you guys again for all of the crazy, random unforgettable experiences… it would have been impossible without each one of you :)

Peace and Love Always,

Amanda Ilmeda Sita Mue Mude Turacobeama Malamut

Back from Moka

Hello to those connected to the internet! It has been a very interesting two and a half weeks, which I wish I could have shared with you threw several updates. But as fate would have it, the internet was not accessible at Moka. So instead of working on my paper or checking my hundreds of emails, I have to decide to update you fine people on what has been going on for the past half month or so. So go walk your dog, go to the bathroom, balance your checking account before you read this, because it’s going to be a long one, and you best be comfortable while reading this.
I was thinking about going in order, but since I was there for 16 days or so it could prove to be a bit challenging. So instead of giving everyone a play by play I what I did for the past 2 and a half weeks (not shower…but I digress…) So I am going to hit on the major highlights (there is still a lot, so if you get bored, feel free to scroll) that I can think of, and if you have anymore questions, feel free to ask, since I will have a lot more access to internet now. (Going through 2 weeks of email- oh the fun)
When we first arrived to Moka, I definitely was expecting a whole lot more isolation (see pictures below), and was very pleased that we were so near a town, had cooked meals (same almost everyday, but I’ll get to that), and sometimes had electricity through a generator. Not too bad since I was expected 5 tents in the middle of the jungle with a stream as our only water source. A low expectation prior to our arrival has definitely fueled my excitement and enjoyment of my stay here in Moka.
What I’m sure will be to my sister’s happiness, I switched my research from squirrels to the Great Blue and Yellow-Billed Turacos at Moka. When you see 4x as many birds as you do squirrels, you get the idea that switching projects might be a good move. Not having any research on hand was a bit tricky, but I compensated with the books and former projects here. I honestly never have found bird watching all that interesting, but there were so many Turacos and they were so vibrant and seeing them fly throughout the forest was a marvelous thing to experience. Seeing 11 or so Great Blue Turacos fly out a large tree….it was probably the most intense experience you could have bird watching. I don’t know if I’m going to pick up bird watching back home, but I’m glad I got to enjoy the experience here.
Besides Turacos, I got to see chameleons, squirrels, red-eared monkeys, galagos (bush babies), bats and many different animals and plants (pictures below). It was so fun to go out on other people’s expedition to see the animals without doing any of the research work involved. The first time I went out to see galagos with Cait and Sarah, it was a fail for any galago sightings, but I had one of the coolest experiences here. After walking for an hour or so we all sat down on the trail, in almost complete darkness, the only thing lighting the sky was the occasional lightning in the distance that light radiating from our guide’s cigarette. It was so peaceful, tranquil, any word like that just to sit there in silence, listening to the sounds of the rainforest. I was upset because: 1. I couldn’t take a picture and 2. Even if I could it couldn’t possibly capture the awesomeness of it all.
The food in Moka has been interesting to say the least. And by interesting, I mean eating pasta and rice for 98% of my dinners, and some kind of cookie or roll for 100% of my lunch and breakfast. Thank God for Quaker Oats bars, and various snacks and such. Between the lack of constant eating and walking approximately what would be the length of Bioko Island (2x), I’m pretty sure I lost some weight, which I hope I can keep off at least some off for the rest of the trip. You know the food situation becomes a little strange when a meal of bread, cheese and hot sauce becomes something to look forward too. (I am very happy that Julia found some pistachios for me too eat, all I need now is cheese fries).
Some Hess guys and other oil workers came over to help us fix up BBPP (which looks a lot better than it did a couple of years ago; we looked through past pictures left at the station.) It was awesome because we got a BBQ out of it and lots and lots of snacks. ( I got a little sick from the chicken, but nothing too bad, Moritz got sick so much worse than I did).We got so many invites to oil compounds; we do not have to worry about being bored on the weekends here. I really have to remind myself that people who work for a corporation are not the people to rally against. It’s the corporation itself that needs to be fought; the people working in these oil companies have been nothing but hospitable and helpful to us. It puts it perspective.
One of my other favorite moments came from our trip the lake in the middle of a crater on MT. Pico. The walk was really hard, but it was so worth it. Looking out at the lake, I couldn’t help having a massive feeling a Déjà vu. It took me a while to realize that the lake was the same place where the picture displayed at Arcadia as a poster. It felt surreal. It was at that moment that I realized that all the crap I had to work through to get to this point was worth the trouble. I swam in a lake. In the middle of a crater of a volcano. In the middle of a cloud. In EG. In Africa. It had to be one of the best moments of my life. It was also the first time I was able to wash my hair using Julia’s shampoo. (Yes Sarah- your sister is gross, get over it). I have pictures of the area, but honestly, they don’t even get half of the awesomeness that we experienced. Seeing the clouds roll off the hills like waterfalls, see the reflections of the land in the lake, being able to see the stars and planets like I never had before…It was dreamlike and strangely familiar all at the same time.
Hanging out at BBPP (Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program) center was also a lot of fun. Whether it was hanging out with the UNGE students, watching movies, eating the snacks the oil companies give us, or just sitting up and talking, it was a nice escape from fast-paced life. There was nothing wrong with sitting, hanging around and discussing anything from politics, food, family, religion, or whatever random idea pops into our heads. For example, Cait and Tristan invented an awesome sport called Turaco Ball. You use a Frisbee and having to throw in through a hanger rack contraption. I hope it can be an Olympic sport one day… but people might have an issue since it involves neither a Turaco nor a ball, but such is life. When you invent a new sport you can judge us.
Actually working on the paper was very challenging and tedious, but the people there definitely made it a lot easier. Science had never been my strong point, but Demetrio, Heidi, Moritz definitely were life-savers and gave great advice concerning my paper. It was so nice to have people there who have had experience with field research and the Moka area.
One of the more random experiences we all had at Moka was hanging out with one of Demetrio’s friends, Abdel. He is a contractor from Lebanon who is working on one of the new palaces in Moka. So we hung out with Abdel and his friends at least 4 times throughout the couple of weeks. They were so hospitable and friendly. They fed us, gave us tea, and we got to dance in their living room. One of the best parts was that they put on some of the VP debate on TV. That was only political fix I got the whole 2 weeks, but it was still very nice. And I think I behaved really well, I tried to keep most of my comments to myself, but Heidi and Julia definitely brought the liberal out in me. Abdel also brought us to a beach one of the last days we were in Moka. It reminded me so much of Costa Rica, it was startling. How the trees and beaches formed, I could have been sitting on a beach in Costa Rica. One of the only differences was the water temperature, but it wasn’t too cold. It was nice to wade in water and play Frisbee and volleyball with everyone. I love being at the beach, its one of my favorite places to go. I know my dad would have liked this beach because it the water wasn’t too cold, but not too hot because of the rive flowing in, and there weren’t any shells to step on. There weren’t many waves though, since we were in more of a bay. No sharks either, which was really nice.
This group has been so awesome; this trip was so awesome. But it was nice to be back to a place with lots of running water, a shower, and some internet. I hope I can catch up on everything, but that will probably take me another week, at least.

I hope you haven’t died of boredom from reading this. It took me 2 days to write all of it (mainly cause I slacked off a bit, but whatever). Here are some pictures that were taken by yours truly throughout the trip

Staff House

Coco yams

Fresh water crab


View from the lookout over the lake at sunset


I figured you would all want a picture of me

Mt. Pico in the background- one of my favorite pics I took so far


(I took a lot more pics- which will be one facebook- when I can upload them)

‘See’ you in a week

Peace and Happiness.

Amanda

P.S. An impressive fact- in the 16 days I was there walking the trails I walked approximately the length of the island twice, or about 50 miles. Uphill, both ways, in the rain, and snow, and fire pits. and strange animals. use your imagination to make me look more extraordinary if you must