DOWN to EARTH - Three kid’s journey around the world

Down to Earth

a kids’ journey around the world

Copyright: Zoeli, Sky and Levy Winters, Renata Heinen & Rolf Winters 2013 Printed in Graphic Design: Flukso/Maria Taari ISBN

Contents Introduction

8

1. USA

14

2. Peru

38

3. Ecuador

54

4. Australia

86

5. Japan

118

U.P. (Upper Peninsula of Michigan) .............................16 Anishinaabe ............................................................ 26

Cusco.................................................................... 41 Machu Picchu .......................................................... 42 Q’eros .................................................................. 46 Quito.................................................................... 56 Galapagos...............................................................58 Otovalo.................................................................. 64 The Amazon ........................................................... 72 The Achuar............................................................. 80 Sydney .................................................................88 Arnhemland ............................................................ 94

Tokyo................................................................... 120 Meeting the Ainu ...................................................127

6

6. India

134

7. Nepal

178

8. Namibia

200

9. Kenya

236

10.Norway

270

Coming home

282

New Delhi .............................................................138 Pondicherry ...........................................................153 Bhoramdeo Jungle ................................................... 163

Kathmandu ............................................................182 Meeting the Shamans .............................................. 190

Meeting the San.....................................................214 214 Kalahari................................................................ 210 230 On the Safari ........................................................230

Nairobi ................................................................ 243 The Loita Maasai ................................................... 244 Maasai Mara..........................................................256

Kautokeino ........................................................... 272 Meeting the Sami .................................................. 276

7

Hello!

We are

Sky

We are going to travel around the world with our parents.

We are going from America to Peru, then Ecuador, Australia, Japan, India, Nepal, Namibia, Kenya and Norway.

And then back to America. All in one year!

8

Zoeli

& Levy.

Our mom and dad are making a film about the Earth Keepers; very special indigenous people* who live close to nature and have a lot of wisdom.

9

Our friends say ‘Cool, so you don’t have school for a year’. But NO. We have to write in our journal every day, about the things we see and experience.

And sadly…we have to bring our Math books too! We have a teacher who is coming to travel with us. We are going to do a project on every country we are visiting. It is really exciting that we are going to all these different countries, meeting different people and different animals! Hopefully we will make many new friends. *Indigenous people = original inhabitants, often tribal people who have a strong connection to nature and the Earth. Mostly living outside the Western world, preserving their own culture in traditional tribes. They use healing ceremonies and natural remedies to cure people.

10

Welcome to the Journey!

11

This is our family: I am Zoeli. I am 10 years old.

I love all sorts of animals. I like drawing, playing the piano and taking photographs. I would like to see many cool animals and take them home.

Hi, I am Sky. I am 7 years old. I like dancing, our cats, playing violin and drawing. I would love to go on a safari on the back of an elephant.

12

Our mum is called Renata. She loves gardening, making art and dancing.

My name is Levy. I am 6 years old. I like to play outside, climb trees and play with legos. I love adventure and hamburgers.

This is our dad, Rolf. He likes to make things, talk to people and organize stuff.

13

USA USA: United States of America Capital: Washington DC Population: 308 million (of which 4 million Native American) Currency: American Dollar National bird: Bald Eagle National flower: Rose Language: English is the most common, but the country has no official language.

o o h z o Bo in Oj ibwa) , s g in t e e r (g

OUR home !

= Upper p of Mich eninsula igan, U .P.

The Great Anchorage Lakes CANADA Detroit New York The Michigan State San Francisco

UNITED STATES Washington DC

Los Angeles MÉXICO

15

U.P.

(Upper Peninsula of Michigan)

Population: 300,000 The U.P. is the size of Holland surrounded by Lake Superior, Lake Michigan and Lake Huron People in the U.P. call themselves “Yoopers�

! e s u o h Our 16

7 January

We moved here five years ago. Before we lived in Amsterdam and before that in London. Mom and dad wanted to live closer to nature and they had become good friends with the

Ojibwa people here.

I love it here, there is so much space and so many animals in the wild. You wake up to the sound of Coyotes, birds chirping as well as to our rooster!

We always see deer around our

land. We even saw a huge grey wolf once. There are bears, they hardly show themselves, but they leave their droppings as a sign of their presence. The other cool thing here is

winter.

5 months of snow!

And

lots

of it.

17

18

8 January

This log cabin is our school. We only have school in the morning.

Our teacher lives in the cabin; in the morning it is a school, the rest of the day it is her house.

After three years with Dorothea,

Tahnahga is our new teacher. She

will come traveling with us. Tahnahga is a Native American medicine woman.

Every morning we walk from our house to the school.

Then we always first go for a walk in the woods.

We are doing a lot of free writing and maths. We learn quite a lot every day. It's only us three in the school. Sometimes other children join us, for art classes or special events. Sometimes our Ojibwa friends come to teach us about their crafts and culture. They usually bring a big drum and teach us Ojibwa songs.

19

10 January

We have lots of

animals at home.

We have two cats, Runt and Panther,

who we all take care of. We have two goats, Snowy and Twinkle, and a rabbit. We also have about 14 chickens and roosters. Me and Zoeli have to clean the henhouse. It can be quite disgusting!

s y a w l a e W s t a o g e h t e tak on walks.

20

21

22

s ’ m o M rite u o v a f e c a l p

The Four Native American Sacred Plants TOBACCO Renews life. It is offered to the sacred fire, so that the smoke can bring prayers up to the great spirit.

CEDAR When burned, cedar acts as purifier. Also a circle of cedar twigs put around the house will protect it. Cedar gives courage.

SAGE Also used as a purifier.

The smoke of burning sage cleanses humans’ aura and houses. It also purifies our way when we change worlds in death.

SWEETGRASS Represents the hair of mother Earth. Sweetgrass purifies and will replace negative with positive.

23

12 January

Pat

We went to our friends Pat and Bruce.

Bruce is a Ojibwa fire keeper and travels around the world to light sacred fires. Pat and Bruce are like family to us. We go there a couple of times every week.

Pat and Bruce own a Motel where everyone is always

Bruce

welcome.

What many people don't know is that in their backyard they have a big Wabeno lodge, where Bruce does all the 24

sacred fires and ceremonies.

14 January

We have many nice friends.

They always welcome us. We eat together, sing, drum, swim, do sweat lodges and have talking

circles.

We laugh

a lot,

Duane

especially with

Duane.

He calls me

"Dude!".

Most of my friends here are adults. I don't mind. Sharon has a very cosy home. She's like a grandma to us. Her dog is called Amos. He is always hungry.

Preston

Sharon Preston is also a good friend. We spend a lot of time on his parents farm. We ride horses, play hide-and-seek in the hay loft or watch Star Wars. He has all the films. His Mom, Michelle, is teaching Zoeli and Sky to play piano. Dad is teaching Preston to swim.

25

Anishinaabe

Symbol of the Anishinaabe (Anishinaabek) (SCAN 03) Our Native friends are from the

Ojibwa and Patawatomi tribes.

The Ojibwa and the Patawatomi are related and part of the Three Fires People (Ojibwa, Ottawa and Potawatomi).

They are also referred to as Anishinaabe,The First People.

26

OJIBWA (CHIPPEWA) - THE KEEPERS OF THE FAITH There are nearly 150 bands of Ojibwas living throughout Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan (and Canada). The Ojibwa used to live in longhouses - houses with a wooden frame covered up with birch bark.

Now they live in houses like where you and I live in. They still hunt and fish. When killing an animal, they thank the animal spirit for sacrificing itself to them. They still have gatherings and ceremonies.

OJIBWA LANGUAGE Hello - Aanii How are you? - Aniish na?

Thank you - Miigwetch I love you - Gi zah gin man - ninic woman - ikway child - binoojiing

The sweat lodge is a ceremony held in a place close to mother Earth. It’s pitch dark. Hot stones are brought in. Sacred water and medicine plants are put on the hot stones. When it is hot and you sweat, it purifies you.

They sing, talk and give thanks to important things.

27

FIRE

Our friends make fire A spark lits the fire, the

28

14 January

Most of our f Ojibwa. Lik riends are e Duane is an Bruce, Ojibwa fire keeper and a the sacred keeper of so runs the sw ngs. Duane eatlodges.

29

The medicine wheel is a sacred symbol for the Ojibwa and other Native Americans. It represents the continuous cycle of life and the oneness of people. It has four colours, one for each direction.

The four directions represent: the 4 seasons, 4 races, 4 elements, 4 stages in life and 4 aspects of humanity (body, mind, heart, spirit).

EAST

SOUTH

WEST

NORTH

childhood

adolescense

adulthood

old age

Season

spring

summer

autumn

winter

Time of the Day

sunrise

high moon

sunset

night

Element

water

wind

earth

fire

Sacred Plant

tobacco

cedar

sage

sweetgrass

Human Race

the yellow

the red

the black

the white

Period of Life

30

POTAWATMI (NESHNABEK) – KEEPERS OF THE SACRED FIRE The Potawatomi were considered ‘the youngest brother’ of the Tree Fires People. They always lived around the Great Lakes and most of them still do. Today there are approximately 30,000 Potawatomi and about 1,300 (mostly older) people who still speak Potawatomi as their first language.

POTAWATOMI LANGUAGE flower – waskonedo grass – mishgos water – mbish thunder - tthigwe gathering – mawttheshnowen to have a feast – mikgwege

FOOD Wild rice Fried bread Corn Berries Meat and fish

31

Cindy

14 January

Dale is the teacher of all our Native American friends.

He and his wife Cindy are very special people. They live in a little trailer near Lake Superior. Last year Mom and Dad asked them if they could film them.

They didn't answer until Mom and Dad hade been visiting them for 7 times. Then Dale said it was okay. That's how the film started!

This is Dale. His Native name “Nowaten” means “He who listens".

32

33

POW WOW A gathering place for Native Americans. They share their ways in songs, drumming, story telling and dancing. I like the fancy dance, where they dance in beautiful regalia, expressing a certain animal.

34

Van

Drum. The heartbeat of Mother Earth Bud

35

Goodbye ceremony

January 6

goodbye ceremony at the Wabeno lodge. Bruce lit a sacred fire for us. It was really beautiful. All our

We had a

friends came over. Even Grandma and Grandpa were there from Holland, and our friends from Chicago. Everyone said really nice things and wished us a good and safe trip.

36

Packing up for the journey

January 8 We had to bring away all our animals. Preston will look after the chickens and the rabbit while we are gone. We brought the goats and our nasty rooster Rusty to our friends Buddy and Carrie, who have a zoo. I am sure the goats will have a good time there. Rusty is betterto behave or he might end up as alligator food.

37

Peru Capital: Lima Population: 29 million Language: Spanish, Quechua (Kichwa) and Aymara Money: Nuevo Sol Food: fish, potato, soup, roasted guinea pig Animals: llamas, alpacas

d e r f c Sa d o s n a a c l n I e h t

ECUADOR Iquitos BRAZIL PERU Lima

Machu Picchu

Cuzco

BOLIVIA CHILE

39

2 February Today we left in

the plane. It was

not a bad flight.

We flew via Miami to Lima and went to a nice hotel. I was very tired. I fell asleep very quickly. zzz zzzzzzzz

zzzz

3 February

z

Today we got ready to leave to

Cusco.

Arriving in Cuzco can be difficult, because of the high altitude, but when we got there I felt fine. No altitude sickness. We met

Pepeand Theo, our guides here in Peru.

They are very nice.

We had some coco tea.

We had to take it easy!

o t t o g I y b a b a d hol lama.

40

Zoe Li

Altitude: 3,399 meters Population: 300,000 Cusco was originally built in the shape of a puma. The body of the puma contained the most important palaces and temples. The square between the legs of the puma is the Plaza de Armas.

Cusco

SOME WORDS IN QUECHUA man - qari water - yaka woman - warmi eat - mikhuy sun - intiq sing - takiy moon - killa

41

Mach uP icchu

“The Lost City�

Located: 2,400 meters above sea level One of the seven wonders of the World One of the mountains is called Wayna Picchu, the young one.

Another one is called Machu Picchu, the old one.

42

6 February

An d

ean

char Issa

Today we took a ride in the train to Machu Picchu. Wow! Was it pretty! There were ruins all over.

We saw lamas on the terraces.

I spotted a really cute animal that looked like a mix between squirrel, a wallaby and a rabbit.

I got really close to it. Pepe told us it's an Andean Issachar.

43

Pacha mama is mother Earth Mother Earth Gives everything

44

13 February

Today we went horseback riding in the mountains. I had a white horse with grey spots. He did not like water at all! Pepe, our guide had a very funny horse, that loved water (exactly the opposite from mine!). Some parts were rocky and sometimes we had to cross a wooden bridge. Two guys walked all the way.

One of them kept on whacking my stick. But horse with a bamboo took care of I and Zoe Li sure that stick. We broke it in four them in the pieces and threw river, never to be seen

again.

It was a very nice day.

45

Here is Maria. She is a

Q’EROS The Q’eros descend from the Inca’s. They worship Mother Earth: Pacha Mama, and the mountain spirits: Apus. The Q’eros are farmers and weavers.

The Q’ero healers are called Paq’os.

46

Q’ero

14 February Mom and dad went to climb a mountain. We stayed with Tahnagah.

When they got back they were very tired and said the lady, Maria,

15 February This morning we went to the weavers village.

When we stepped out of the bus, people threw flowers on us. Then we were taught how to dye the wool and make it fine.

The weavers live in small houses and make money by selling their work. We bought some t hings, like belts, scarves, all hand made.

was not there!

17 February

morning mom and dad climbed the mountain again and again, Maria was not there!

This

18 February

Today was a busy day.

In the morning we met Maria and her son. They all chewed a lot of coco leaves. After that Maria said it was okay for mom and dad to film her.

47

48

19 February

Mom and dad went filming with Jose at this place called

Sacsayhuaman.

After the filming, the bus had to be pushed as it was stuck in the mud.

49

Ima-manta-taq hamu-nk-i? (‘where are you from?’ in Quechua).

20 February

Today is our last day in Peru. We went to Cusco for the last time. We have to get ready.

Equador.

The next

stop is

Huk ratukam a! (‘Goodbye’ in Quechua)

53

54

Ecuador Wel come to th e

Jungl e!

EQUATOR

The Galapagos Islands

Ecuador is Spanish for Equator; The equator runs right through Ecuador

COLOMBIA Otavalo EQUAT

OR

Quito ECUADOR

The Ama zon

Capital: Quito Population: 14.4 million Language: Spanish, Quechua (Kichwa) and many indigenous languages Climate: tropical along the coast and the Amazon region, cooler in the High Lands Export: Petroleum, bananas, cocoa, fish

PERU

55

Quito Capital of Ecuador First World Cultural Heritage Site Highest (official) capital in the world (2,800 m.)

Population: 1.8 million Headquarters of the Union of South American Nations

56

21 February

This morning we woke up at 5, to get to the airport. The

DO YOU Yes SPEAK No H? SPANIS Please Thank you You’re welcome Hello

-

si no por favor gracias de nada hola

flight was long.

In Quito we

had avery

good dinner.

Dad had a

humongous burger!

22. February Today we explored Quito. Quito is really cool. e went with horse and wagon all over the W city. We visited this very creepy church, with all walls and ceilings covered in gold.

57

Galapagos 13 main islands and 6 lesser islands. Together they represent one of the Worlds most precious ecosystems. The ora and fauna is nowhere else found.

58

23 February We just arrived at Santa Cruz, the main island of the Galapagos Islands. Later in the afternoon we went to Turtle bay. No turtles to be seen, but the waves were enourmous.

! n u f t a e r g d We ha

The owner of the hotel, Tabby, told us that

when he was young, there was once a cannibal that escaped from Germany to the Galapagos to not get punished. After she had arrived on the island children started to disappear.

Creepy! We made sure the door of the

hotelroom was locked!

24 February We went to the Darwin station and saw lonesome George.

He's called lonesome because he is the only one left of his kind!! How sad. George weighs 90 kg and is almost 100 years old. There was an exhibit at the station about how certain plants and animals got extinct.

59

25 February The place called Gruetas was like a pool with rock

walls and cliffs all the way around it. The water was freezing!

60

26 February Swimming with the sea

lions was so much fun. One of them touched me with its flipper. Also a sea

turtle swam by!

Crab Pinching red circles crawling over stones

61

SEALS I sleep on boats almost all day When I am not asleep I play My friends do the same thing as me Sleep on boats and play in the sea!

62

63

ry 29 Febraua We are st ying din Caasa cool place, calle Mojandaan. dThehoyrhasevse!lots of dogs

Otovalo Population: 50.000 Mountains: Otovalo is surrounded by the peaks of Imbabura 4,630 m, Cotachchi 4,995 m and Mojanda volcanoes.

Otavalo is mostly indigenous and is known for its weavers and also its healers.

KICHWA

yes no hello see you later please How are you?

My name is

64

-

ari mana imanalla asha kashkaman jau man Imanalla kangui?

Nuka shuti mikan

1 March

Today we went horseback riding. I rode the best

horse ever, called Calua.

When we came back, Pepe and Christine were having dinner with us. Christine will be our guide for the

Amazon trip.

65

3 March

We all met Maria Juana for the first time. She is a very nice old lady and she hugged and kissed everyone. Her whole family was there, some very nice kids! Maria Lena and I were friends in no time.

We all walked up a mountain.

Maria Lena and I collected seeds and threw them at each other. By the time we walked down, we looked like seed monsters, the seeds were

everywhere!

Dad f ilmed g n i k c i p a i r a M . s t n a l p g n i l a he

66

Men dress in traditional white pants, blue or grey poncho’s and felt hats. Their hair is braided in long pigtails.

Quicha people are known for their farming techniques. They adapted to the demanding conditions of the Andes. They invented systems to water their crops and also they have great knowledge of special plants.

This is Don Esteban, another healer.

Women’s dress is closest to Inca costume. Women are dressed in white blouse, blue skirt and shawls. Jewelry is an important addition; layers of necklaces of golden beads.

67

68

4 March Today mom and dad went filming with Maria Juana. We stayed

at casa Mojanda and

After

school

did school.

we took a taxi over to Maria

Juana's place and met up with dad.

Mom did a ceremo with Maria Juana. ny feast with thee We all had ay.bigAft dinner w er il m a f le who ccer. It was a lot of played so age boy right fun. Sky kicked! aHtee enhad to laugh. to the ground

69

8 March This morning we went to the animal market.

There were animals

all over. It was not nice! People threw little chicks into boxes and put alive chickens into bags. It was very hot and the animals had to stand right in the sun.

9 March Last visit to Maria Juana's place.

We went to the shop to get

pencils and books for the kids.

Levy picked a big bear, that was holding a heart saying: I love you. He gave it to the little girl. She held it all day long and would not let go of it. When we left, she started to cry.

Adios!

70

p o t s t x e n Our ! e l g n u J e is th

71

The

Amazon The amazon river covers 2.5 million miles. The river travels through 8 countries.

There are 2500 different tree species in the rainforest 40.000 plant species 2.5 million species of insects and 7500 species of butteries.

72

f o s e i c e p s 50 n e e b e v a h ants e n o n i d foun ! e e r t e l g sin

73

20% The Amazon basin contains . er at w h es fr ’s ld or w e th of

There are more species of fish in the Amazon river than in the entire Atlantic Ocean. tical drugs eu ac m ar h p n er od m l al of 25% , yet ts n la p st re fo in ra om fr d ve are deri died.

99% still haven’t been stu

More than 20% of the worlds oxygen is produced in the Amazon Rainforest.

74

The Amazon Rainforest has the biggest biodiversity on the planet.

Every second one acre and

a half of tropical rainforest is DESTROYED !!!

At this rate half of the world species will be lost in the next 25 years!

75

76

went We p swimming with yrani

as!

Pyranias Little yaws piercing out of the water Digging into soft skin Destroying everything that comes by

77

11 March

It was sooooo exciting when we first arrived.

Christina, our guide was great! Mom

d and dad filmed e y a t s e W Sumpa and we got to meet him. l u f r e d in wo nChristina and I huts. and walk went for a counted all the interesting bugs we saw.

We also spotted a blue Cicata and it was loud! We also saw a trail of woodcutter ants!

Christina picked up an ant to show me how the ant was holding onto the leaf and then she put it down again. The leaf was all crooked and as she picked it up again to straighten it, she got

bit!

r we saw 24 Altogetheinteresting bugs!

Animals we saw: Parrots, bats, big Lizzards, puffer fish, pink Dolphins, Catabara, bugs, monkeys, frogs, birds, snakes

78

Sumpa is an Achuar medicine man.

79

The Achuar The Achuar believe that every plant and animal has its own soul and a living almost human spirit.

ACHUAR LANGUAGE hello thank you a drink child girl boy

80

-

winajai dolphin maketui garden chicha moon uchi sun nuwa mother earth aishman

-

apu aja nantu etza nunkui

This is a white-throated toucan. Warriors, good hunters, shamans and important leaders wear a feather crown made out of toucan feathers. It takes about 25 toucans to make one crown.

Yes! I like the jungle! I like the sounds and animals.

TREES Giant old sticks Filled with leaves 81

13 March

JUNGLE! In the

we went with trail. We walked for a deep forest, bit in thewere when we attacked by sting less bees. They went in our ears and hair. Mateo (the Achuar guide) showed us the plant medicines the Achuar use. morning

the

canoe to a hiking

Stingin gB Bu

zzzin ees gS SStinging

Thingsss

THE MONKEY LADDER VINE The monkey ladder vine is a legume (like beans and peas).

The achuar believed that the monkey ladder wine used to connect earth and heaven.

82

14 March

We went to visit a school in the community. We were going to show the children where we live on the globe of the World. They all ran across the school floor like a herd of elephants and than the whole school

floor caved in : crack!

A FEW ACHUAR PLANT MEDICINES Montrichardia: tall tree like plant that repels mosquitos.

Otoba: dragons blood tree is used for cuts Muricarpa: stinging nettle; punishment for children that won't listen and pain relief!

83

84

15 March We went fishing.

We all stepped into the canoe and went upstream. After a while we tied the canoe to one of the bushes at the side of the river and fished for a while and saw pink river

dolphins!

We got our faces painted Achuar-style!

85

Australia Capital: Canberra Population: 22.6 million people of which 0.5 million Aboriginal and 80 million sheep Export: wool, beef, fruit, gold Many of Australia’s first settlers were British criminals, sent to live in Australia as punishment.

Australia is surrounded by oceans.

The land has deserts, rocky cliffs, heathlands, rainforests, woodlands and many rivers and streams.

U luru

is the large st Rock i n the

World .

East Arnhemland Darwin Uluru Perth

Brisbane Sydney Canberra Adelaide Melbourne

We put this add in the Sydney Newspaper and over 100 people replied!’

87

Sydney Population: 4.5 million people.

Main language spoken: English, Chinese and Arabic.

4.5 million people visit the Sydney Royal Opera house a year.

f r u s a d n u o f e ! h W c a e b e h t n o d r boa 88

4 April Our teacher Tahnahga left us after South America.

Mom and Dad are looking for a new teacher. They meet with people who might be good for the job. They have meetings every day in the Speedo Cafe.

6 April Mom and Dad picked the two

people they liked most. We got to spend a day with them. It was hard to choose but we finally chose Aleena.

She is really nice!

Aleena is our new teacher!

8 April

Shakira

Shakira

Mom and Dad went filming with Kathy. She is an aboriginal medicine woman.

She is also a dancer at the Bangarra Dance Theatre in Sydney. Kathy brought her granddaughter Shakira and we played with her.

She is very wild and funny.

89

Sky's birthday.

For my birthday we went to

the Sydney Aquarium. In the Aquarium we saw crocs, sharks, rays, penguins and the reefstone fish (very very ugly and poisonous fish that looks like a stone). At night we had a dinner. I ate a piece of kangaroo. After the dinner we had ice cream and then, all of a sudden, there were fireworks all over the sky. It was beautiful!

t s e b e h t It was ! r e v e birthday

90

Animals KANGAROO The red kangaroo is the world’s largest marsupial. Females have one baby at the time, which at birth is smaller than a cherry.

The little one will climb into its mother’s pouch and does not get out for two months.

Until it’s eight months of age.

They live in deserts and open grasslands.

Kangaroos look like big rabbits, with little ears and a long strong tail.

We did not see any wild Kangaro os. Only dead ones on the side of the roads.

91

BOX BOX KANGAROO! Unexpected, little fluffy cute jumper Punching and punching Oh kangaroo oh kangaroo

25 May We went to this place with all kinds of Australian animals. You

were allowed to get really close to them. Dad was filming Levy with a cute kangaroo. All of a sudden the little thing punched him with his two little fists. It happened in a flash and Levy fell over. We had to laugh so hard,

and after a few seconds

Levy fortunately too.

92

THE KOALA Koalas are small, fluffy animals, that feed at night and sleep during the day. There are more than 700 different types of gum trees in Australia, but Koalas only like the taste of a few gum tree leaves.

The gum trees are very low on nutrition and don’t supply Koalas at all. That’s why Koalas sleep for 20 hours a day and are only walking around for 4 hours in the night!

CROCODILE Crocodiles are big and scary. They have very sharp teeth. There are two types of crocodiles in Australia, one is the salt water and the other the fresh water crocodile. Salties grow up to 7 meters and weigh up to 2,200 pounds! Sometimes salties even eat fresh water crocodiles!

It was so amazing to hold a crocodile. I really liked its skin, very cool!

93

Arnhem Land North eastern corner of Australia.

Capital: Darwin.

The explorer Matthew Flinders named the region after the Dutch ship, Arnhem, which explored the coast in 1623.

Homeland of the Yolngu people. THE YOLNGU They pass on their knowledge thank you through clan names, designs, bush song cycles and rituals. ower song kangaroo crocodile snake dancing

94

-

LANGUAGE ga marrkami retja bur wu manikay dhumxsthum bawderu bapi giritji

MUSIC The didgeridoo: the didg is from a tree that has been eaten out by white ants or termites, leaving the tree hollow inside.

Its cut and carved in the shape that fits in the palm of your hand. When the didg is blown, it creates a rhythmic sound.

Clapsticks, or message sticks, are hit together to make different pitches.

DIDGERIDOO Giant wooden pipes Blowing air around Shaking the earth 95

12 April

We stepped out of a tiny plane onto a little island where Aboriginals live. They came to pick us up in a tractor! We gave them flour, sugar, coffee, tea, milk, cookies and other things, like a lot of school supplies. We set up our tent and dad made wraps which we shared with the people. They shared some kind of root and fresh crab with us.

At night Langani did a ceremony with us. She put her sweat on us so the land would recognise us and the spirits would be okay with us. We were all very tired and glad to go to bed.

I , l l e w t p e l We all s e r e w s t i r i p s think the . s u h t i w y oka 96

Langani is the leader of the clan. They call her LakLak. 97

ELEMENTS

Fire is everything Air is everything Water is everything Wind is everything 98

99

16 April

Last night, when we were in our tents, it started to rain and then to pour. We slept with water dripping on our faces and listening to all that was coming down.

I think I was the first one up. I watched everyone getting up. Someone made the fire.

18 April

This little bird was

found on

the beach without its mom. We took really good care of it. He survived 1 day, 1 night and through the morning. Then he died and we buried him. It was really sad.

100

101

102

103

s l l e h s r o f We lo oked d e k o o l s y o b and the . y a r g n i t S for 104

MARPAN (turtle) With floppy feet They glide through the water Swimming to the shore, against the current Scooping away the sand to lay their eggs.

22 April After lunch we went Stingray hunting. It was a pretty long ride.

On the way one of the boys jumped out of the tractor and ran into the sea to spear the fish. But he missed. On the way back we found turtle eggs.

I wish they would have left some, so there would be at least a few baby

turtles.

105

24 April Once Sky, Bawu and I went out looking for crabs.

We lifted up a piece of coral and a blue crab jumped up with its pinchers ready!

good I really like Bawu. Shfue nis a friend. Bawu is very to play with.

106

107

Bawu

108

Manmunga Dylan

109

The aboriginals are known for their bush medicine. Langani uses many different plants (roots, leaves and bark) to make medicine.

This is Dj alinda, Langani’s cousin.

110

Djalinda teaches the children on the island about bush medicine in her makeshift school.

DANCING Shaking the ground with little feet On the rhythm of the clicking clap sticks

e r e h t d n a s e r u t ! c s i b p r o k o f o o t We hundreds were

30 April At night the didgeridoo comes out and the boys start to dance around the fire. The kangaroo dance was the funniest. The boys hopped around with leaves in their mouths. Levy joined the boys, they all had to laugh. Instead of didgeridoos they used plasic pipes.

111

7 May

the beach with all the boys. They made amazing flips and saltos.

Dad filmed them.

We went to

112

113

Yo! (yes)

KIDS' NAMES Kids on the island have two names, an English and a Yolgnu name.

James Philip Dylan Jonah Lucy Frank Alex

– – – – – – –

Bunbuyngu Wedu Gadaman Manmunga Bawu Gitjakarra Yunupingu

Yaka! (no!)

114

FOOTBALL Kicking around Moving and shooting 115

It’s sooo hard to say

Nhama! (goodbye)

116

18 May I love the Island!

It's one of my favourite places of our trip. I love the way the wind blows at night. I love the

way the water laps at the beach.

And I love the people!

Nhama yalala! (see you later)

117

Japan Capital: Tokyo Money: Yen Population: 127.5 million Food: Tempura, funny veggies, noodles in a soup, rice.

Geography: Japan is 70% mountains.

There are 4 main islands and over 4000 smaller islands.

Sapporo

Kyoto Osaka

Tokyo

Fukuoka 119

FLYING THROUGH THE SKY I was flying through the sky and suddenly I saw a mirror.

Before I thought that I was a kid, I was a grown up.

Then I flew back into the sky.

Levy

30 May

d e p p e t s We e h t f o t ou bus and ky o. o T n i e r we

The flight to Japan was about 10 hours. I watched three movies!

The people in the plane

were very nice, and said things like: "Would you care for more?" We flew over the barrier reef. It was so beautiful.

5 June - Dad's Birthday!

Tokyo seemed like any other city. Soon, we found a nice Japanese restaurant. The people bowed as we went in. They had really good food. Aleena had jelly fish! The people were very nice. They said we could pay whatever we wanted. The next day they even baked a birthday cake for dad!

Levy was so tired, he

fell asleep at the table.

121

6 June

7 June

We visited the Ainu Centre in Tokyo. We had great fun, pretending we were studying with these really serious glasses.

Now,

I am in bed wearing a Japanese robe, writing in my journal. In our hotel I had to use the toilet. It had all sorts of buttons on it. One made the seat warm, one gave a butt shower when you sat on it and there was even a button for music so people can't hear you using the toilet!

JAPANESE LANGUAGE How do you do? - hajimemashite?

Yes - hai No - iie Good morning - ohayo gozaimasu/oha (youngsters) Good evening! - konbanwa!

122

There are huge stores, filled with funny things; inventions, dolls, legos, toy cars, anything!

It’s hard to eat rice with ! s k c i t chops

CHOPSTICKS Snapping snappy sticks As they go as you eat 3 May

One day in Tokyo we went to a place where girls dress up like dolls. Some looked really creepy.

Some had punk hair, some had red hair, some had frilly pink dresses with ribbons on their shoes. Dad tried to take a photograph of one girl, but she put up her hand, and ran away!

125

KIMONO The common dress of Japan used to be the kimono. Mostly, they are made from silk, have big wide sleeves and reach from the shoulders down to feet. They are tied with a wide belt, called an obi. Kimonos are now only worn on special occasions.

126

Meeting the Ainu The Ainu are recognized as the aboriginal people of Japan. The word ‘Ainu’ means man/human.

Current population: 30,000, of which less than 200 are pureblood Ainu Home: 80% of the Ainu live on the island of Hokkaido Culture: originally Ainu were hunter-gatherers and fishermen

127

Hurazo lives two hours East of Tokyo.

We were invited to stay in his house for a couple of days.

We camped out in the living room of his house, which he built all by himself.

Hurazo is an Ainu leader

AINU LANGUAGE boy - okay girl - menoko child - ekaci tree - ni house - cise what?/ which? - nep eat - ype rice - amam good - pirika

9 June This morning

I did not

feel like

getting up.

Mom almost dragged me out of bed, because we had to catch a bus. We met up with

anako, Kour guide.

She is half apanese, half reminds meJ of our wonderful jungle guide Christina. The bags we all carried were so heavy, they felt like filled with rocks. We had to take a few different buses before we got to Hurazo's house. I like it here. It's very different from crazy Tokyo. There are no tables in his Ainu. She

Hurazu s house so we did school work on the floor.

129

the Mukkuri 10 June Kanako

the other two Ainu women played on a traditional Ainu instrument, called "the It's Mukkuri" (mouth harp). It made of bamboo and makes a really cool sound when it is played in front of your open mouth. We tried it too, but it is more difficult than it looks like.

130

Kanako and twoparladk. ies

danced in the A traditional Ainu dance.

Dad filmed it. The older lady sang.

131

1 1 June

We were

shown how to make

the Ainu patterns from the clothes by an Ainu

princess, our guide.

The circles mean protection. The ones like eyes were put on their clothes when hunting, so nothing would attack from behind.

132

Kanako is fun and

a good person to get along with. A great guide. She asked me what my favourite thing in Tokyo was, and I said: "You!"

r� e t a l u o y e e S “ in Japanese:

Ja Mata!

133

India

Capital: New Delhi Population: around a billion Religion: 80% Hindu, 10% Muslim, 10% other Money: Rupee Language: Hindi and English are the main languages, 21 other languages are spoken, and 844 different dialects; Sanskrit is one of the World’s oldest languages.

NA MAS TE!

New Delhi

NEPAL HI

MA

Taj Mahal

INDIA

LA

YA

S

Bhoramdeo Jungle

Indian Ocean Pondicherry

SRI LANKA 135

New Delhi Also known as “Dilli” Population: 12.8 million Size: 1 483 sq km Main languages: Hindi, English, Punjabi

INDIAN LANGUAGE, HINDI: hi - namaste thank you - shukhriya ok - theek hai dad - pitajee mom - maa ta jee brother - cho ta bhaa e elder sister - dee dee younger sister - cho tee ba hen

138

13 June

A morning in New Delhi. Early this morning Aleena was looking out of the window. Sky and I were already awake when Aleena said: "Quick!

Come here!" we ran over and guess what we saw: monkeys! Lots of monkeys were running around the hotel.

They were after the garbage.

There were moms with tiny little babies riding on their mom's back.

139

Poverty = the shortage of common things, like food, clothing, safe drinking water. Also lack of jobs and education.

I do not like to see poverty. It makes me feel really bad for the people, the children and the animals. Poverty is a sad thing. I have seen people digging in garbage ďŹ elds, while people in Europe, America or Australia throw food away. Poverty isn’t necessary, because there is enough for everyone.

When you see poverty, you want to help. But when you give money, it often gives problems. What do you do?

Seeing animals with broken legs, covered in dirt is common to see. Many dogs and other animals have their ribs sticking out. Cows, that’s another story!

140

18 June

One of the stories about the Taj Mahal goes, that when it was built, all the craftsmen involved got their hands chopped off, so it could

20 June We drove into Ranthambore National park (the tiger park) by an open jeep. We saw Samba deer, spotted deer,

never get copied!

The building was just likethe like the evil king.

Pretty from the outside, but dark within.

cute monkeys, beautiful birds and crocodiles.

We knew the tigers were there, but we could not find them. The next day we could hear tiger cubs roaring! On the way back we fed a bird that ate right out of our

hand!

It was so co ol!

143

22 June Seeing the rubbish pile in Delhi was like looking at a mountain with people climbing all over it in search of something useful.

Fact: ‘In North America we produce enough garbage each day to fill 70,000 garbage trucks.

Bumper to bumper, in one year, they would stretch halfway to the moon.’

144

Humans are the only species who create waste; in the West we throw away our own bodyweight in waste every 7 weeks!

145

Samosas: mashed potatoes, onion and peas wrapped in dough and fried.

Nan: like a atbread Dahl: lentil soup with vegetables Raita: yoghurt mixed with mint, cucumber and spices Tandoori chicken: chicken marinated in yoghurt and spiced, cooked in a clay oven.

Lassi: a drink of yoghurt and fruit

146

HANUMAN THE MONKEY GOD He met his friend, Hanuman at the riverbank.

Hanuman jumped over the river and so did he.

But he fell in the river. Oh, no! Here comes the river serpent! Hanuman pulled him out of the water, before the serpent could reach him.

Now it’s time for a good party with cookies and cake!

147

Transportation in India

148

149

Zoeli's Birthday!

Before we got on the elephants, we gave them bananas.

We also touched their trunks! They were called Rani and Lakshmi.

We were all dressed up in our new Indian clothes.

n o e d We ro ts! n a h p e l e

150

Rani and Lakshmi

were gentle and slow.

When we left them, they waved goodbye

with their trunks!

We also got to ride a camel. Getting on and off was really weird.

I got a birthday cake for dessert and two men came along to play "Happy Birthday" on an instrument that looked like a violin. Mom and dad arranged it secretly!

Bahut bahut!

(thank you very much) 151

Mahatma Gandhi Mahatma Gandhi was born on October 2nd, in 1869.

Mahatma means ‘great soul’. Gandhi’s life was essentially a search for truth.

He and his wife got married when they were thirteen years old. Gandhi studied law in London. He became one of the most respected spiritual and political leaders in the world. Through nonviolent resistance, Gandhi helped to free the people of India from British rule.

In 1948 he was killed in a crowd.

152

Pondicherry We are having a break for a week at the Ocean in SouthEast India.

A week of no filming, no travelling, just sun, beach and... yoga!

Population: 946,600 Language: Tamil, French, English Used to be a French colony.

153

20 June

We stay in a place called The Dune. It's an organic farm. We have our own little house with an open shower. Four dogs live here. A Dalmatian called Pongo, a German Shepherd called Griffou and two other cute ones.

Pongo follows us the whole day. He even joins us to yoga! But when we change into another pose, we can only hear

him snore!

156

A DAY IN THE DUNE 7:00 wake up 7:00 time for yoga 8:30 breakfast 9:00 school starts 2:00 lunch 3.30 swimming, milking the holy cow, feeding the rabbits 4.30 pottery, swimming in the Ocean 5.00 volleyball starts 6.30 dinner 7.30 time to get ready for bed 8:00 sleep

He works in the Dune.

He has a sweet face.

I like him!

157

24 June The yoga teacher said things like: foooocuuuuus on yourrrrrr thhhirrrrrd eye! Focussssss on normal breathing through nostrillllll! So when everyone was playing volleyball, Levy said: Foooocuuuuus, on tttthe balllllll! When the yoga teacher plays volleyball, he does the cobra pose while diving down!

was practiced YogaYoga means union. in India already 5000 years ago.

159

THE YOGA MASTER Focus on your third eye Breath normal through nostril With your eyes closed or wide open

27 June When we drove off, some of the staff stood in a row and waved us goodbye.

Even the cook!

! a r t a Y Subh (go o

dby e)

161

162

Tribal India

Bhoramdeo Jungle Bhoramdeo is located at the Kabirdham district, 140 km from Raipur. It’s named after the Bhoramdeo temple.

Plants and animals of rare wild species are found in the wildlife of Bhoramdeo.

163

Ram ram!

(Hello!)

2 July

We met Sunny at the Airport in Raipur. That's where our long journey began. Sunny is our guide for the next ten days. We are here to bring Rob to a special medicine man. His name is Motti. Dad filmed with Motti while we were in the Dune.

I, Aleena and Rob talked about car accidents when suddenly we had a flat tire! We drove back and parked the car by the other taxi. We stretched our legs and stood waiting. The people from a nearby house brought us a couch to sit down! People in India are very friendly! Late at night we arrived at Sunny's place close to the

jungle!

164

Aapka naam kya hai?

What is your name?

Mera naam Levy.

My name is Levy.

Apse milkar bahut khushi hui!

Nice to meet you!

165

The Ganges river is a sacred river for the Hindus. The water from the Ganges is believed to purify everything that it touches. Yet it’s also one of the three most polluted rivers of the World. It’s about 2506 km long. It starts from the Himalaya’s and falls into the Bay of Bengal.

Did you know that Dolphins swim in the Ganges? They are called ‘Susus’ and are freshwater Dolphins.

People in India carry everything on their head

4 July The people at the market were all staring at us. I think because of our blonde hair and blue eyes. I did not like it.

5 July

We had a great dinner of rice, dhal, potatoes and veggies. Sunny had invited a yoga teacher. One time when I didn't get into exactly the right pose, he said: "You naughty girl, if you are doing yoga, you have to do it right!"

169

INDI, AN INDI IN H AN Blue – Nila Golden – Sunahra Green – Hara Orange – Naranji Red – Lal White – Safed Yellow - Pila

L A N G UA GE

SOME COLOUR

S

Motti is a Baiga medicine man. He finds his medicine in the Jungle.

172

Baiga tribe The Baiga tribe is one of the most ancient tribes in India.

They hand down their knowledge by word of mouth. One of the meanings of Baiga is ‘a medicine man’. They have the knowledge of the secrets of the soil and the jungle. Tattooing is part of their culture. The women put the tattoos all over their bodies and face. After a death in the family, they leave the house and build a new one. The Baiga people totally depend on the Jungle.

173

18 July Rob flew all the way from Holland, to get healed by Motti. Rob has cancer, but I am sure Motti will heal him!

174

Ram! Radha, Ram d n a a n h s r i Dear K

you ing all of s s i M ? g n i o d y How are you had a lovel e W . e n o l a all l. and feeling from you al t o l a t n r a le time and I having he kids are t t a h t w o n Good to k l! m Ram to al fun, say Ra unny Love you, S

175

Phir 176

milenge!

(See you

later!)

177

Nepal

Capital: Kathmandu Language: Over 30 languages & 100 dialects; most people speak the official language (Nepali) Currency: Nepalese Rupee National Bird: Danphe Population: 29 million Food: Dhal bhat tarkari, lentil soup with spices, rice and vegetables in curry

MoUNT EVERE ST

: The w orld,s H

ighes t moun

tain.

TIBET Nepal is divided in three parts: 1. The Terai in the South, which used to be jungle, but is now mainly fields and farms.

HI

MA

LA

YA

NEPAL Kathmandu

Mount Everest

S

BHUTAN

INDIA

2. The hilly part in the middle called the Mahabharati.

3. The peaks of the Himalaya in the North.

Sky’s name in Nepalese Zoeli’s name in Nepalese 179

The Himalayas

0 June For a long time, Nepal was protected from the outside world, because nobody dared to climb the dangerous Himalayas in the North. And in the South nobody could come through the Terai because of the many maleria- passingmosquitos! About fifty years ago, the Nepalese king sprayed insecticide over the Terai, so people could come in. This changed everything!

Kathmandu Area: 50.67 sq km Population: 1 million Location: Kathmandu is situated in central Nepal, amid the Himalaya’s The name “Kathmandu” comes from the combination of two Sanskrit words meaning “Beautiful Shade”.

Bondi B fun! W each is very h went t en we first h warm ere it was enough swim a to n stung d Lev y got b (a blue y a j ellyfish bottle) .

NEPALI LANGUAGE I – ma you – timi to eat – khannu to drink – pivny

182

0 June

Kathmandu reminds me of Cusco in Peru and India.

Cusco because of the tourist shops and the

mountains.

India because of all the traffic, the people, the houses are shabby like in India. The streets are messy and stinky. Like Cusco and India, the people always try to sell you stuff!

183

0 June

We saw Kamari, the living goddess! She is only four and a half years old. She will stay in this house until she's fourteen. We were very lucky to see her. Before she appeared, we could hear her talk. She wore

a red dress and had black

make-up around her eyes.

No one is allowed to take photos of her!

Kamari stood in front of the window forjust a few seconds.

On the way

back we took

a rickshaw

(cart being bike). pulled by a bike ).

The guys ride like crazy. It

was so much fun!!

184

Beebal is our guide.

He is ol! o c y l real

Mero hath ma kati ota syay chha?

(How many apples are there in my hand?)

Tapaiiko naam ke ho?

(What's your name?)

186

25 July

We went to a Buddhist

monkey temple. There were millions of steps.

On the way up to the clouds we saw monkeys and hawks! When we finally reached the top, I looked down across all of Kathmandu. It was so high!

e r e w e W s y e k n o m t a h t told . e l p m e t e h t t c e prot

187

BUDDHISM Buddhists believe in Buddha. They say he was not a god, but a person. They believe in the cycle of life: birth, life, death and rebirth.

This goes on and on. If a person does not gain enlightenment when they die, they will be reborn. If someone does gain enlightenment, they will break out of this cycle. This is called Nirvana. It is the end of everything that is not perfect. It is peace and freedom from suffering.

Buddhists worship at home or at a stupa. Stupas are Buddhist temples.

Stupas usually look like an upside

down bowl. You can usually tell what a stupa is, because they have eyes with a curly nose and prayer ags all over the place.

The sacred book of Buddhism is called Tripitaka. It is written an ancient Indian language called Pali.

188

Meeting the Shamans Nepal is also a home to Shamanism. There are sixty different tribes in Nepal, more than half of which practice some form of shamanism. The main role of shamans is to diagnose and heal people, but they also are spiritual leaders.

190

We went into the mountains to meet some of the tribal shamans.

28 July After crazy Kathmandu, I was looking forward to a peaceful hike in the jungle.

First we were led over a stone path where we could hear carsArea: rumbling down in 150.67 sq km the valley! Aleena explained to Population: 1 million

our guide we wanted to go into the real is situated wilderness. Location: He did Kathmandu exactly that!Stumbling central Nepal, the jungle we were through theinsteaming hotamid humid attacked byHimalaya’s blood sucking leeches. For miles we slipped and struggled a rocky, muddy path, rarely Food: Dhal bhatontaruari, stopping ourrice sore feet. The return lentil soup to withrest spices, to the road was surprisingly welcoming, and curries vegetables even with the honking cars. What was even more welcoming was the LOCAL BUS, which saved us from another 2 km walk.

YETI’s Big white puffles walking up in snowy cliffs Leaving big marks of their big hairy toes Sticking flags on top of the Everest Snowboarding down the Himalayan tops Scarring climbers, who want to get to the top But are getting drunk from stolen Whiskey

191

29 July After hours in a bumpy bus, we arrived at the resort.

Sitting on the clean green grass, listening to the rushing river, really was a treat! ur hotel room is just O a tent under a red metal roof.

It's great! Just like camping.

There are two showers without a roof, so you can see the beautiful mountains while you shower.

30 July

Dad filmed with the Sherpa's.

They came walking down the mountain from their village with their drums to our camp. They had walked for 8 hours, some kids on their bare feet! Made me feel a bit different about our hike the day before. Dad was sick that day, but he still filmed.

192

Sherpa’s come from high in the Himalaya’s. Their climbing skills are in their genes they say, living for generations in high altitudes. They believe in gods and demons, which live in every mountain, cave and forest. The Sherpa’s call Mount Everest “The Mother of the World”.

1 August The shamans that mom and dad interviewed, live just outside Kathmandu. We were invited by Mohan to come. We brought a cake. Mohan had some very special presents for us: we each got a real shaman necklace. Dad bought some drums to send back home.

Dhan Singh belongs to the Thamang people.

The Thamang people are from the North Central hilly region of Nepal. They are the largest indigenous group of people in Nepal.

The phurba is one of the oldest medicine tools the shamans use in the Himalayan areas. It changes negative energy into positive energy.

196

Kirati people are originally from Mongolia.

They worship the sun, the moon, the rivers, trees, animals and stones.

Parbati Raj is a shaman of the Kirati people.

198

Pheri bhetaunla!

(I hope we see you again!)

199

Namibia Capital: Windhoek Size: 834,290 sqkm Language: English and Afrikaans.

Currency: Namibian Dollar Mining industry: uranium, tin, copper, lead, zinc, silver and diamonds.

I AFRIC A!

Namibia adopted their flag in 1990, after independence.

The red and white in the flag stands for Namibia’s human resources. The green, blue and the golden sun, stand for Namibia’s natural resources.

ANGOLA Windhoek

BOTSWANA

NAMIBIA SOUTH AFRICA

201

POEM: GIRAFFE by Zoe Li Above the clouds As high as the sun Licking up yummy thorns Calmly striding on stilts (DSC_0225)

202

I LOVE AFRICA Zooming through the desert Getting ostrich eggs Putting clay on, for warmth Collecting wood to make bows and arrows With cobras, black and green mambas And that’s only to start with the dangerous things!

203

6 August We flew from New Delhi to Johannesburg, from

Johannesburg to Windhoek. It was a long flight. An endless flight.

We watched a lot of movies. I am so excited to be in Africa!

Can'tt wait to see wild cheetahs or lions, or zebras or giraffes or all of them.

204

Africa is a continent. It has about 50 countries. There are lots of different landscapes, like: jungle, desert, mountains and coast. It has amazing wildlife!

It is very dry, and the land bakes in the sun at daytime. So the plants do not have much color. Since there is a very low population, there are lots of huge parks, reaching thousands of square miles. You can find many animals at the waterholes in winter/dry season. The summer/wet season, brings a lot of bird life. The animals in the park have a lot of space. Although they live in the park, they are still wild! So, if you go on a safari: stay in your car!

205

10 August Dad got into rouble when t he was filming on top of the car!

A guard passed by and was very angry that dad didn't stay in the

car.

0 August ing the day, while mom and We did schoolwork dur ganise the trip to the dad had one day to or ed a safe 4wheelKalahari desert. We needter for ten days. vehicle, tents,

206

food and wa

207

208

209

THE DESERT The desert and the mountains are everywhere But, no one, nowhere to be found!

Kalahari

The Kalahari is the ninth largest desert in the World. It’s partly in Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, over an area of 900,000 sq km.

Thanks to quite some rainfall, the Kalahari has plenty of ora and fauna, providing a source of life for the Bushmen. The sand masses in the desert are created due to the erosion of soft stone formations.

210

15 August

We drove out of Windhoek.

We were

playing a game in the car, like when you see an animal bigger than a rabbit, score

a point. We saw lots of warthogs. They look so funny when they run. They trot around with their tail sticking up. We saw a cat running across the road. We think it was an Ocelot. We were excited, because they are very rare. Later in the evening we saw a striped Hyena on the side of the road. Once Sky shouted: We all thought "Giraffe!" she was kidding, but she wasn't. Sky got 50

you

points!

211

212

213

Meeting the San The San, or Bushmen, are probably the oldest human culture on the planet. The San live throughout the Kalahari dessert and those who live far away from the towns live pretty much the same way as their forefathers did tens of thousands of years ago.

214

16 August It was a long drive. The last two hours of the journey, it was getting dark. Everywhere were warnings for potholes in the road, but we arrived in the lodge safely.

17 August In the morning we took off, to the San people. A San guide joined us. His name is Johnny. When we arrived after another 3 hours through the desert, the people picked a spot forus to camp. There are

many kids!

215

18 August Playing with the

kids is very fun. The fun

thing was, exchanging games.

Duck-duck-goose was one of the best games! When the kids had chosen someone, they would say "juice!" They all really liked that game. We also did bowling with empty water bottles and playing football.

We always bring a ball for the kids. But that didn't last long. The ball was punctured the next morning, probably one of the dogs thought it was

food!

216

217

218

20 August My favourite San game

was that we all held hands and the first person in line would pull everyone around like crazy, in loops and curves. Sometimes the chain of kids would snap!

219

! p o P ! p Po

21 August

! s p o p e h I like t ! The s p a n s The clicks!

The only hard thing was that the kids (and adults) did not speak any English.

They communicated mostly by different kinds of clicks and pops. It is a beautiful language.

Click!

Click!

How are you? - A re ko hatche?

I am fine - Mi jan or kaj’an Thank you - mi vi a

220

22 August The kids are good daonciseras.

There is one girl, wh mer. great singer anmudsicdrum and set She made the the beat for the other kids to dance.

e w n e h w t h g Every ni e r e w e r e h danced, t . s b r o f o s hundred

221

222

23 August

We had really good food and spend about two hours cooking and washing dishes, while mom and dad

were filming.

Aleena told us that the pot we used, is called a poikey. What a funny word! Poikey! She showed us a swirling technique, that is used for cleaning the poikey.

i r a h a l a K e h t Nights in are freezzzing.

24 August

We couldn't believe how cold it got at night. We slept with all of our clothes on. Mom and I slept in the roof tent.

Mom made jokes that she was Frosty the snowman.

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25 August

“!” And “/” stand for different click soun ds.

K!unta and /Ui are two of the last remaining traditional San healers.

They are best friends and

call each other brother, even though they live miles apart and rarely see each other. Sometimes they do a healing ceremony

together.

K!unta /Ui

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26 August Both healers came to do a ceremony

for one of the small kids, who was very sick.

At the healing dance, the healer dances around in a circle of chanting and clapping women. As the dance

increases energy,

the n/um (energy) rises in the healers until they reach a state of !kia (trance). In which they

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can begin to cure illness. They lay their hands on the sick person and pull out the sickness.

Not only the sick person gets healed, the whole group gets

a healing.

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27 August The women gather fruit, berries, bush onions and other plants to eat. The men hunt for kudu, antelope and dikdik. They offer thanks to the animal's spirit after it's killed.

How to shoot a bow and arrow?

1. put it on your hand 2. pull it back 3. let it go and shoot!

28 August On the last day I got a bow and four arrows from /Ui, the medicine man. He made them for me, and now he wants to see a photo of me in Rapid River, shooting a deer!

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Dad went hunting with /Ui and two other men.

They came back without anything. The men said it was because the Kudu could smell DAD’s SOCKS....

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On the Safari

This is how I always 230

30 August

We only just entered Etosha and we had to stop for crossing zebras and a huge herd of springbok!

We saw giraffes every ten minutes.

The first waterhole we went, we saw a huge grey hump.

When we drove closer we saw what it was. An elephant! It was a huge bull, very

beautiful! He was surrounded by zebras, springbok, ostriches, kudus and blackfaced impalas.

imagined Africa!

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2 September Dad woke us up at four in the morning. After watching guinea hens for over an hour we nearly fell asleep. We decided to drive

around. A landrover had stopped close to the Etosha-look-out. That's always a good sign, it means: "look here!"

We looked around. After a few minutes, we saw five teenage lions relaxing in the grass! So exciting!

Levy 233

WORLD WIDE TRIP Elephants tusking down trees It’s a big risk to go underneath Hyenas slinking through the African savannah Creeping up on little dik diks Jackals stalking after hares, mice and ground squirrels I love Africa, camping here in the bush With my family and Aleena As a part of our World wide trip!

Levy 234

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Kenya Capital: Nairobi Population: 41.1 million Geography: The equator goes right through Kenya Economy: One of Africa’s richest countries Main Language: English, Swahili Tribes: Akamba, Borana, Maasai, Samburu, Turkana and more.

I like Kenya! I have always liked the sound of Kenya, ever since I heard about it!

!

O B M JA ) ! o l (hel ETHIOPIA SOMALIA

UGANDA

KENYA Maasai Mara Nairobi Mombasa

EQUATOR

The Serengeti TANZANIA

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To day we arrived in Nairobi.

7 September After dinner our driver brought us to a place called the Methodist Hotel. Mom wondered if it was an okay place for us to stay. They had a church instead of a swimming pool. I was waiting on the staircase outside our room. A guy came up to me and started to ask me normal questions like: "Where are you from ?", "What's your name?". But then he asked me: "Would you like to become a Christian ?" and "Would you like to get converted ?". Just as I started to feel really uncomfortable, Mom called me into the room.

That night the light bulb exploded and a water jug fell, while nobody touched it!

9 September We met our guide and translator. His name is Daniel. He is Maasai and he studies at the University in Nairobi. He taught us a song and some Maasai words. Tomorrow Daniel will take us to a traditional Maasai village in Loita Forest.

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o b m a J

Jambo Kenya Habari gani Nzu ri Sana Wageni Mwak a a w r h i s b i e n K ya Hak i n i h c una Matata!

N

We started o t y e n r u o j e th Loita Forest.

10 September

It was quite a long drive up to the Maasai village. The jeep broke down. Guess how the driver fixed it ? With a piece of wood and some rope, and off we went.

The roads were

getting smaller. In the end the driver had to stop and ask Maasai people for directions as it got darker and darker.

It was late when we arrived, tired and hungry. We could sleep in a small centre, built by some Dutch people to care for disabled Maasai children.

We set up camp and ate really nice instant soup.

It has never tasted so good before!

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This is Lekiti, son of the chief.

He’s really cool!

The Loita Maasai

Food: meat, blood, milk, fat, honey and tree bark Houses: the Maasai live in enk’ang or kraal. They look like low igloo shaped huts. They use thin branches and grass, which are covered with a mixture of cow dung and mud.

Language: the Masaai language has twenty different dialects. The Maasai call their language Olmaa.

biting it! Awful!

Lekiti laughed and told ourguide

this was good medicine.

A ma asai to ot hbrush

13 September Lekiti is one of the sons of the leader, the Laibon. The people of the community will choose one of the sons to follow up the father to become the next leader. We all like Lekiti. Lekiti took us all on a medicine walk. Mom and dad filmed him for a while and after the interview he cut us a toothbrush from an olive tree.

A while after trudging through the jungle, Lekiti stopped at a tree. He looked at the tree and said that someone already had taken some roots of this tree, so he took some roots from another tree. These roots were good for malaria and back pain. We stopped at yet another tree and he cut off some bark and gave us a try. My tongue felt like twenty ants

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The de-forestation in Africa is 4x worse than the World’s avarage.

For every 28 trees cut down, only one is re-planted.

In Kenya deforestation has led to extreme droughts, with the main rivers drying up.

Of the more than 200 indigenous crops once heavily cultivated in kenya, only 30 reamain.

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Lekiti told us the story about their magical forest. Once a child who was hearding sheep, got lost in the forest and she was never found. The Ma asai are convinced that her spirit protects their forest.

This Forest is called after its protector: ‘Forest of the Lost Child’

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Mokompo is the Laibon, the leader of his community.

16 September Mokompo is the caretaker of Loita forest. He knows all about plants and is the main medicine man for the community. When mom and dad filmed him, he wore a robe made out of monkey skins. He knows about the past and can look into the future by looking at the stones from his magic box.

Really early this morning mom and dad went filming.

As soon as they left, Aleena started snoring!

Finally it was day and Aleena woke up. Well, we all woke up as Lekiti walked into "our" house, holding a spear and wearing mom's sunglasses!

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Boys and girls under the age of five, look after calves, lambs and baby goats.

The Ma asai herd cattle, mostly sheep, goats and cows. Donkeys are used to carry things. Cows are rarely slaughtered for meat, only for special ceremonies. They believe that cows were given to them by their god: Enkai. Cows provide milk, bloo d and hides for bedding and for making sandals.

19 September Maasai boys go through four different stages in their life, each one starts with an important ceremony. Girls have only one ceremony. Afterwards they are allowed to marry.

Mom and dad filmed two boys of about 13-14 years old. The ceremony was about becoming an elmoran (warrior). Their hair was shaved off and they wore deep purple shuka (Maasai blanket).

They have to live for eight years alone before returning to the village and getting married.

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Hallow?

(How are you?)

Supa!

(Good!)

POEM: DANCING WARRIORS

by Zoe Li Flashes of red Flickers of purple Springing like springbok Bouncing like bouncy balls Keeping straight Challenging each other In a singing circle Sounding/sounds like the didgeridoo

21 September We had breakfast and did hours of math.

Mom and dad returned home with a big surprise.

Ashe oleng!

They opened the boot of the jeep and there were three sheep in the back!

They are a wedding gift for Lekiti. But before handing them over, we could look after them for a day!

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(Thank you!)

Ole sere (good bye)

Tutaonana

(see you all again!)

Maasai Mara The Maasai Mara is a six hour drive (275 KM) west from Nairobi. The Maasai Mara is linked with the Tanzanian Serengeti National Park. The park is jam packed with Wildebeest, Rhino, Buffulo, Elephants, Zebra’s, Giraffes, Gazelle, Monkeys, Impala, Crocodile, Hyena, Lions, Cheetahs, Leopards and Servals.

a n o g n i o g e r a We ! i r a f a s n o o l l a b SWAHILI buffalo - nyati cheetah - duma elephant - tembo lion - simba wildebeast - nyumbu

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I’m going to catch you

Help!

Got you!

Now, lets eat!

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259

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23 September aw an old kill with a bunch of vultures and marabou storks. They are the ugliest birds I have ever seen.

They were fighting about the dead wildebeest, which was not more than a pile of bones and ribs. The big lappet faced vultures were the bosses of the lot.

They were even stealing food in mid-air!The only time the vultures looked beautiful, was when they were flying, landing and taking off!

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I never liked seeing elephants in a Zoo and hate seeing them in the Circus.

But to see them in the wild where they belong is the coolest thing!

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Kwa Herini (Good Bye! In Swahili)

Tu Tao Nana (See You Later In Swahili)

Norway Population: 4.8 million Capital: Oslo Geography: 83.000 km of coastline Language: Norwegian and Sami Industry: Gas, Oil, Fishing Currency: Norwegian Krone

Norway has the longest fjord in the world: Sognefjorden (250 km)

Norway is the land of the midnight sun.

Kautokeino CIRCLE

(

p Sa

i T er r ito ry

LAR

mi

)

FINLAND

Sa m

PO

Bergen

NORWAY Oslo SWEDEN

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Kautokeino Population: 3,000 Area: 9,687 sqkm Location: 250 km. north of the polar circle Language: For 85% of the population Sami is first language Kautakeino is one of the main Sami cities in the North of Norway, a centre of the Sami culture and Sami education.

270

20 October Kanako, our guide from Japan lives in Norway with her husband Joakim. They came over to visit us in Kautakeno!

It was so much fun. We went for a nice long walk.

21 October We went to

a forest.

We picked berries. I shot them through a blowpipe and shot Aleena on the head! She turned around, but I

was too fast for her to

catch me!

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Meeting the Sami The Sami territory is 388.350 km2. It is the size of Sweden, and spreads out over the Northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Kola peninsula in Russia. This territory is called Sampi, sometimes also Lapland. Today there are 80.000 to 135.000 Sami, depending on how you define ‘Sami’.

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SAMI HISTORY The Sami had nomadic lifestyle, like the Native Americans. The Sami moved with the seasons and their reindeer. They also made use of teepees. It was really nice to see some teepees here and there!

22 October Mom and dad were waiting to film with the Sami people, it was difficult. After the walk, we all had dinner together and dad got a phone call, to go and meet with a Sami shaman tomorrow.

Sami numbers

Sami have cool words that do not exist in any other language. For example: Suohpan ja coarvegiella = a lasso made with reinhorn, used when herding the flock Njuorjjonatvuodut = cut out sole for sewing onto reindeer hide boots Suovdnji = fresh holes in snow made by reindeer to graze underneath.

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24 October

Sigvald lives at

the

Porsanger Fjord, most,

the most northern Fjord of Norway. Sigvald's mother was a well known Noaidi (Shaman). Sigvald was taught throughout his life by his mother and now works with her teachings in his own way. People come to him for healing. He also works hard to defend the traditional use of the land.

He told mom and dad that he did not want to be filmed, but was happy to meet us.

Sigvald might take us to see

the reindeer.

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We went all the way up North to meet Sigvald.

27 October Today we saw the Sami people

gathering the reindeer.

Before the winter, they mark all the young ones by making a little cut in their ears. Every family has their own type of cut. They check which animals will be strong enough to go through the winter. They butcher some of the herd that have little chance to survive.

28 October Sigvald invited us to come to his house to eat reindeer. While Sky, Levy, mom, Aleena and I went for a walk, Dad helped butchering the reindeer. When we came back there was a funny smell in the kitchen and chunks of reindeer meat everywhere. We had no appetite! But by the time dinner was ready, we were all very hungry and it smelled nice and tasted even better!After the dinner Sigvald told mom and dad that he had thought it over and that it was okay to interview him tomorrow!

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30 October We are back in Kautakeino. Last night we were all invited to see a Sami play. The Sami have their own theatre and the plays are in the sami language.

Afterwards we met with all the actors.

Oaid naleabmai!

(See you! in sami)

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Coming Home 16 Nov The flight back to America was kind

of strange. The last flight of the journey, going back home.

Sharon greeted us with a huge banner, saying "WELCOME HOME!"

It was really cool to walk into that place and see this humongous

welcome sign.

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Back to Scho ol

20 Nov

After being away for so long, it is so good

to be home, sleeping in my own bed, holding the cats.

Seeing all our friends again!

And going back

to school.

22 November Our best friends, Amelia and Sophie,

came over from Chicago! We had so many stories to share.

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HOME Sleeping in my own bed With my little cat Playing with my toys Seeing my old boys Eating mom’s food Being home, is really good!

Levy

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5 continents, 50 flights, 23 destinations, 11 guides, 1000 different species of animals and loads of new friends!

The journey was just amazing! Can’t believe we actually have been to all these places and met all these people. Every place was so different, so many different people. Although Mom and Dad had to work on the fi film, lm, we had a lot of time together and we had so many cool adventures. The safari’s were the best! Awesome to really see and be with the animals in the wild. Camping out with the Aboriginals on the island and with the bushmen in the desert was especially cool because we played all days with the kids that were there and really got to know them.

We were so lucky to have a great guide in every country. They were all fun to be with and became good friends! They took us to great places and explained so many things. We learned a lot and the school work we did was usually pretty cool.

The journal writing seemed boring to me fi first, rst, but it was actually really nice to do. Meeting with all the different tribes was much more fun than I thought it would be. It was always very special to be welcomed and to meet them. There were nice kids almost everywhere we went to. It was quite easy to make friends, even when we couldn’t speak their language. It was really fun to go to different places and make new friends, but it was always hard to leave. I loved it but it is nice to be back home too.

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It’s so good to be home!

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Thank You We would like to thank all the people that supported and helped us making our journey safe, fun and wonderful.

A big Thank you to our teachers that helped us before and during our trip becoming smarter and wiser: Dorothea Kast Tahnagah Jako Aleena Ludke Special thank you to: Michelle and Preston for looking after our cats and chickens Buddy and Carrie for looking after our goats Pepe, a great guide and friend Theo Paredes, a great host and special thanks for fixing the violin Don Jose for playing cards Maria Juana and family for their great hospitality Casa Mojanda for riding the horses Christina for being the best jungle guide in the world Matheus for taking us into the jungle Peter & Makere Korako for their hospitality and games of chess Schoonzus Langani for making it happen for us to go to the Island Kathy and Shakira Langani Djalinda Bawu Dillon 287

All our friends from the Island, we played football, laughed and danced with Kanako, for being a great guide and a beautiful Ainu princess Hurazu Uzawa for staying in his home (hospitality) The …restaurant in Tokyo, for baking dad a birthday cake Guide india…. For bringing us to all these great places The Dune for a great stay, good food, doing yoga and a lot of playing in the waves of the …Ocean Vishu for bringing dad back safe from filming Sonny for being a great guide and host Duarka for being a good friend Muti for helping Rob Beebal for being a great and funny/adventurous guide Mohan for his hospitality and beautiful necklaces Sherpas for coming down the hill to share San guide Leon for guiding us Stacey for being a great helper /Kunta Bo & /Ui and ….

All the San kids we played with Daniel for telling so many stories and being a great guide …for being a safe driver Lekiti for being a good friend Mokombo for his hospitality The Maasai kids we played football with …..house where we stayed And all the wild animals that showed themselves to us Sigvald for showing us the Reindeer and making a great meal Nils Gaup for giving us tickets for the Sami play 288

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t .t