ZECO TRAVEL TALK

Our visit to Burma and Laos was a great success. Pleasant memories of the trip remain fresh and vivid – the luxury and surprise of Afternoon Tea at the Strand Hotel; the joyful spirit of the people at the Shwedagon; the peacefulness, relaxation, and enthusiastic service of the Pandaw voyage; sunset and horse cart ride amidst the stupas of Pagan; and the incredible and unique Inle Lake. For many of us, Burma was especially delightful – thanks to our super guide Daniel. To others, the cruise down the Mekong in Laos was most memorable: hours and hours of lovely, uninterrupted greenery and forest – not to mention the wonderful teakwood bungalows at Luangsay Lodge. A highlight for me was the very moving ceremony of the Baci, graced upon us so gently and kindly by the warm village folks around Pakbeng.

Excerpts from the Welcome Home Letter written by Expedition Leader Gary Wintz for our March 2008 Burma & Laos program.

What amazing contrasts we experienced, beginning with our somewhat damp welcome in Nagoya. From the tea plantations and flowering plum trees of southwestern Kyushu, to the light snow followed by sunshine in the forested mountains of Nagano Prefecture. And finally, day after day of glorious sunshine reflecting on packed snow in east Hokkaido.

And what wildlife experiences we had! The spectacle of more than 12,000 Hooded and White-naped Cranes at Arasaki in Kyushu was our southern highlight—but with the added bonus of close encounters with individual Common and Sandhill cranes. Four species of cranes in two days, coupled with delightful glimpses of displays among the White-naped Cranes left us with the ultimate dilemma: which crane is most beautiful? The displays in Kyushu were just a prelude for the magnificent dancing cranes of Hokkaido, which we experienced under so many different conditions, and at sites around Tsurui (the village of the cranes), and Akan Villages. Read more

From the urban chaos of our first afternoon in the narrow alleyways of old Delhi to the serenity of our time on the sacred Brahmaputra River… from the timeless elegance of the temples at Khajuraho to gaudy roadside markets, India boasts a cultural and scenic richness second to none. No single trip to India can hope to cover the rich spread of this immense country. But in our case, it was tigers we were after!

The global plight of tigers is among the most publicized of all wildlife conservation stories, for no other animal can match this largest of cats for sheer beauty and charisma. Ironically, the day before we commenced our expedition, the sobering news broke of the latest Bengal Tiger census figures: 1,411 remaining at the end of 2007, Read more

Because of the remoteness of our Eco-Expeditions destinations, we don’t always hear from our field leaders until a trip is almost concluded. So we eagerly await news and are always excited to hear the details. Since so many Eco trips are happening at this time of year, we thought we’d share some of the enthusiasm expressed by our leaders via phone calls and quick emails to our office… Makes us all wish we were there!

BACK TO AFRICA SAFARI
from Lex Hes, Expedition Leader
“…As always, this has been a great adventure. And guess what? There was rain at Serra Cafema, Namibia, of all places! We had their entire average ANNUAL rainfall this afternoon! And with three times their average annual rainfall in the past three weeks, it has turned this area into an incredibly beautiful place, almost right before our eyes… the rolling hills are carpeted in lush, bright new green… Quite amazing!”

INDIA & THE BRAHMAPUTRA RIVER
from Jonathan Rossouw, Expedition Leader
“We’re on the home stretch of our trip… now over-nighting in Kolkata. With 11 tiger sightings under our belt, a pack of Asian Wild Dogs, and three… yes, THREE leopards, everyone is as happy as wild boars in a mud wallow!”

SNOW MONKEYS & CRANES
from Mark Brazil, Expedition Leader
“All is well from our spot in Tsurui. We’ve just enjoyed the best ever conditions at our monkey site; there were so many of them, and offered incredible photo opportunities… everyone was thrilled. Plus, there was fabulous deep snow and sunshine… and now it’s snowing here too – lovely!”

“…our first trip out last month was the most successful ever in terms of birds… We sited a whopping 145 species – shattering last year’s new record!”

Circumnavigation Of The Black Sea

We had a wonderful time on board Le Levant, a luxurious cruise ship, circumnavigating the Black Sea for two weeks in September. The history and culture of that part of the world are fascinating, and the lecturers on board did a great job.

When we received the brochure for the trip from the MIT Alumni office—who sponsored a group of 22 people—we knew right away that this would be our 8th MIT-sponsored trip. We also knew that we had an extraordinary personal opportunity that no one else on the trip would have—to visit the city of Varna, Bulgaria, the last port of the trip and the birthplace of our adopted grandson. Read more

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…