WOW!!!

I'm sitting on the hotel patio, sipping on some fine coffee and thinking how wild the last week has been. We traveled North from Balikpapan to a place called Samboja Lestari, which is 2000 hectares of replanted rainforest that just nine years ago was completely bare from deforestation. THe project was instigated by Willie Smits and Peter Karsono (kinda celebrity status in the conservation world AND who we both got to spend time with!) They found the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation (BOS) which is now an international organization.

We arrived at Samboja last Saturday to an immaculate ecolodge, equipped with three stories of 360 degree views of thick green forest. From the top floor we could see the "orangutan islands" which are home to numerous orangutans that will not be able to be released into the wild of Samboja, but have a large island (they won't swim so it's surrounded by a mote) and endless swings and hammocks to play on.

We also traveled to Wanariset where BOS started. I won't write all about this because it wasn't the happiest of sights but check out my blog about it on ethicalexpeditions.ning.com. We all posted new blogs yesterday. The photo below is from Wanariset and taken but my roomie Nadine Crowe. (She has a blog too! nadinecrowe.blogspot.com)

Samboja also houses a sun bear rehabilitation sanctuary. These bears are maybe the most interesting mixture of an animal I have come across. I renamed them (in my high academic standing I'm allowed to do that) the dog-bear-monkey-bears. They have long claws and can climb like a monkey but are the size of a medium dog but look like a black bear.

Before this blog gets too long, I'll leave off there for now. I'll probably write another post later today as we have a lazy day in Balikpapan and I awoke at 5 this morning to the prayers from the Mosque beside the hotel being belted out on loud speaker. So in a nut shell, I'm pretty darn tired and have the largest bags under my eyes I have ever seen. Looking GOOD. So yes, I'll be lounging today.

xo