A Phoenician Ship Expedition is searching for keen sailors and adventurers to take part in a unique international project called Phoenicia.
The Expedition has begun by building a replica Phoenician/Mediterranean vessel and crew is needed in August 2008, for an attempt to recreate a circumnavigation of Africa, as first accomplished by Phoenician mariners in 600BC. Learn more and download an application form from the Phoenicia website.
I came across this video taken last year by Judith Porter, on a short trip to Timbuktu. It was posted by Jerry (imgip) on YouTube and he has several other videos shot in the region.
In Timbuktu, the ancient Malian city nestled between the Niger River and the Sahara Desert, a new library and research institute is being built that will house more than 100,000 ancient manuscripts, representing the history of Africa.
Some of the manuscripts are 1000 years old and cover almost every conceivable subject, revealing a rich intellectual culture.
Timbuktu still takes more than two days to reach by a four-wheel drive vehicle from the Malian capital, Bamako. Read more about the manuscripts and library project.
A report entitled Ecotourism and Community Benefits, from Taiko Lemayan and Donald Mombo of the Kenya Community Based Tourism organisation, concludes that although poor communities in Kenya have devoted substantial portions of their own land to the wildlife conservation on which ecotourism businesses are based, they appear to have received very little in return and most of the businesses rewards from promoting responsible travel to areas rich in wildlife, have instead been enjoyed by various private investors with whom they seem to be in exploitative partnerships.
The report paints a gloomy picture of the reality of the much hyped notion that ecotourism in Kenya and elsewhere is a win-win solution, beneficial to the local people, while also helping to preserve the environment and conserve wildlife. More.
South Africa, Botswana and Namibia have agreed regional co-operation in tourism, with the aim of avoiding long queues and unnecessary detours for visitors travelling in the region, as a result of the 2010 soccer world cup. To this end, a Tourist Access Facility, located on the South Africa and Namibia border, in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park has just been opened and this will enable tourists to take a short cut across the border at Mata Mata, without having to leave the park. Information from SABC News.
In late August and September, ospreys across Scotland begin their long migration to West Africa; this includes the young, just 12 weeks after hatching. Roy Dennis, an independent ornithologist, writing in Living.Scotsman.com says, "One of the summer's most exciting sights is to watch a male osprey diving to catch pike and trout in fresh water, or flounders in coastal estuaries." There are nearly 200 pairs of ospreys nesting in Scotland, so you have a great chance to see them at Scottish Wildlife Trust and RSPB reserves or Forestry Commission osprey watch centres. However, Roy points out that you only have a few weeks left, if you want to see them in Scotland this year. Of course, you could always go on a birdwatching trip to Africa.
