Tag: Kenya

The fast five

currychickenloveLeave a comment

Through my photography, I have been able to travel to the most beautiful places on this planet. But one definitely stands out to me like no other. The Masai Mara in Kenya, Africa. A heaven for photographers. It is one of the best places on earth to see big cats. I have traveled there three times already, and I fall in love over and over again. Last summer I was able to observe one of nature’s seven wonders, the big migration of the wildebeest that come over from the Serengeti to find fresh grass in the Masai Mara.

Many big cats use this chance to hunt wildebeest that got injured during the crossing. There is especially one group of wild cats that are known to almost all photographers. The fast five. The fast five are a coalition of five male cheetahs. Two brothers got together with a set of three brothers and formed a coalition to hunt and live together. Nowhere else on earth can this be observed.

I have had the privilege of observing these magnificent cats hunt, and it is truly incredible. Each one of them has a special dedicated role and their hunting is extremely coordinated, I have never seen anything like it in my life. They know that they have a higher survival rate if they work together. They hunt every day and are more successful than any other group out there. I am excited to see them again on my next trip to the Masai Mara, and I hope that many others get the privilege to see these beautiful cats.

It is truly incredible what nature has up its sleeves sometimes.

picture by author

Half Mast

callmemaybe321 Comment

It wasn’t always been this way, or at least so I hear.

It has become semi-normal to see the red, white, and blue flag the represents freedom to be halfway down the pole.

September seems like there has been an unusual amount of days to have the flag be lowered.

We started the month of with 9/11.

That was the only day that made sense for the flag to be at half-mast. Not to say that 9/11 should have happened, but it’s been 12 years, the wounds have healed, but to see it down two other days this month, that was unexpected.

First we start off with the Navy shooting.

I don’t even really know what happened, but that’s the issue.

I don’t read into these things, it’s just like oh, there’s another shooting, and I move on.

I see 12 people dead and while yes I get sad, at the same time we have been trained to go, “oh 12.  That’s a lot less than that other one.”

Excuse me, but for the children, teens, and even adults to just expect that is really f****d up.

It is common talk to just be like, “hey, did you hear about that shooting?…Oh yeah some guy went crazy and just shot some people.”

Usually the response to that would be tears and cries and millions of questions why.

I literally had that exact conversation on the way to football practice the other day. I talked about 12 people dying for no reason, and then just strapped on my helmet and went on with my day.

And then again a few days later I look up, and there the flag is, just hanging halfway down the pole. I was like somebody must’ve gotten lazy and forgotten to put it up, but nope, another shooting.

I just saw that on the TV the other day and I was like you’ve got to be kidding me, another one. 

IT IS JUST SO NORMAL!!!! Why is it normal for 3 year olds to be shot in a park having a good time? IT’S NOT!!

A 3-year-old was shot in the head while having a fun day in the park, and the world just moves on. #wtf

I was sitting at breakfast with my grandparents and I brought up the latest shooting.  This time it wasn’t in the U.S., but still, any shooting is crazy.

My grandma said, “I feel so bad that you guys have to grow up in this time, it wasn’t like this when I was young.”

That got me thinking. Is it just going to keep getting worse? By the time I have kids I’m going to have to put them in bullet proof vests to walk out of the house.

Now, this isn’t a lobby for gun control. This is a lobby for the crazy people in this country.

If you are crazy and reading this…. please don’t shoot people.

For everyone else. I don’t care if you have a gun. Shoot targets, go hunting, but not for people.

But, do you really need an AR-15 hanging around your house. Are you really gonna go shoot a dove with a gun used to kill enemy forces overseas. If so, more power to you, but I think there are some more sensible gun options for you.

There’s not really much that I can do to control the crazy effed up people in this world, but I’m just a little sick of that flag not flying at the top is all I’m saying. I want to see good ol’ red, white, and blue, flying at the top of the pole, majestically flapping in the wind.

Altitude training in Peru

thehungryrunnergirl1 Comment

10000 ft high up, I ran hard.

The program offers an opportunity to high school runners all over the country for community service and altitude training every summer to Peru and Kenya. I was one of the lucky ones to go.

When I flew into Cusco (where I stayed for 3 weeks) from Lima (capital of Peru), as soon as the plane landed, I felt the thinness of the air. My lungs couldn’t get enough oxygen and the heart rate was so high. I thought to myself, I am going to stay here for 3 weeks… How am I going to survive? I’m at 10,000ft high. I didn’t have my oxygen inhaler, so all I could do was to get used to it.

On the first day of altitude training, we ran 30 minutes which supposed to be nice and slow, but somehow for the last mile, the pace went up to 6:30 minute mile. I was dying…

On the second week, I started to work out on track. I felt really fast, because the air is thin but the burden on my lungs killed me. My legs are moving really well but I felt like someone was pressing on my chest. I was dying… But the pain felt good after all. I really can’t wait for track season to start although its like… 5 months away.

Well, three weeks of high altitude training ended and I got back home. I went for a run on the next day, and… OH MY GOSH I felt nothing. I did a 6 mile race pace and I literally felt nothing, and wasn’t out of breath at all. It was just so amazing. BUT…it only lasted for 5 days… and those were the best 5 days of my life.

Next year, I’m planning to go to Kenya. A lot of my friends went there last year and met world record holders and world champions in running. Gosh, I can’t wait. But I also would love to go back to Peru and stay little bit longer than last time.

I want to write a lot more about Peru, but I have too much thing to say.

MUCHOOO LOVE PERU.