ZECO TRAVEL TALK

Zegrahm cofounder and seabird expert, Peter Harrison, is working on his next book Seabirds: A Handbook. Peter has written and illustrated over a dozen books, of which Seabirds: An Identification Guide is considered the bible of seabird identification. Peter has shared with us several pages from his manuscript in progress. Below are links to detailed pages on the emperor penguin and the three newly designated species of rockhopper penguin (see Peter’s previous blog post on this subject).

Rockhopper Penguin PDF
Eastern Rockhopper Penguin PDF
Northern Rockhopper Penguin PDF
Emperor Penguin PDF

Hue, Vietnam & Cambodia

We had a great day in Hue today. The morning was busy with photo stops of rice fields, farmers, water buffalo and lotus flowers. We arrived in Hue and visited the local market—you name it, they have it! However, the highlight of the day was definitely the citadel! It’s just an amazing place, much bigger than I expected. Everyone enjoyed it. Lunch was fabulous! The weather held so we were able to go out on the dragon boats and have a very local meal. The boats had ready made pjs, robes, silk tops, and pants laid out for us on when we boarded and it was a shopping frenzy. It’s safe to say we have all greatly contributed to the local economy. So fun!

Nha Trang, Vietnam & Cambodia

We’ve had a great weekend. Yesterday was a highlight for many. We had a full morning tour through Nha Trang and then 19 people went snorkeling which was surprisingly good! We saw lots of coral, many colorful but little fish. Thomas did an excellent job in the water interpreting and spotting every thing he could. Those that did the city tour enjoyed themselves also. Phu did a phenomenal job arranging for the school kids to be at the kindergarten on a Sunday! The passengers and the kids had a great time. In the afternoon we heard from Steve Esposito then we went out for an expedition landing. Most did the village walk and then all ended up at the beach resort where the water was almost too warm!

Amasya, Circumnavigation of Black Sea

Another great day! We split into about three equal groups for our exploration of Amasya visiting the Ethnographic Museum, the Mosque, the Archaeology Museum, and some taking a hike to see the tombs of the Pontic Kings. And lunch was up on the hillside with a beautiful view over the valley. We arrived at lunch right with the mid-day call to prayer, and the food was great…