Tag Archives: Africa

Adventures by Disney: The A’s

I talk so much about the Disney parks around here, especially the domestic ones, that it might appear those are the only Disney vacations available. However, there are many other Disney vacation options out there, and today I’m starting a recurring column on one of the largest: Adventures by Disney. Adventures by Disney consists of a series of guided tours along various locations in the world. You pay a lot more than you probably would just planning a trip on your own, unless you’re going all out, but for your money you receive a one-of-a-kind experience. Adventures by Disney provides … Continue reading →

Pirates Attack French Navy

You have probably read the stupid criminal stories before. You know, like the bank robber that writes his hold up note on his deposit slip that contains all of his personal information. Today, I read an international stupid criminal headline on Yahoo…”Somali pirates attack French military flagship.” If you’ve been reading the news lately, you know that pirate attacks are on the rise, particularly off the coast of Somalia. We are not talking charming Jack Sparrow pirates, but honest to God modern day pirates. I really shouldn’t make fun of these pirates. I am sure their piracy is just an … Continue reading →

Mia Farrow Fasts for Darfur

Actress/activist Mia Farrow has long been a supporter of children’s rights and has especially been concerned about the welfare of those in Africa. She works as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and has traveled to war torn Darfur three times since 2004. To help spread the word of the crisis going on there, Farrow has had photographs published in PEOPLE magazine and she has written editorials for the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times. She feels so passionately about this cause that in August 2007, she offered to give up her freedom in exchange for that of Suleiman Jamous, a … Continue reading →

Matt Damon Visits Zimbabwe Refugees

Actor Matt Damon is in South Africa to film a movie about Nelson Mandela, directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Morgan Freeman as Mandela. While there, he decided to visit the Zimbabwe border town of Musina to help raise awareness of the suffering going on in that country and of those that have fled it. (This image is in the public domain because it contains materials that originally came from the United States Central Intelligence Agency’s World Factbook.) Damon visited a Zimbabwean refugee camp and talked to some of the people there. He heard stories of the sexual violence occurring … Continue reading →

Incredible Video: Baby Water Buffalo Survives Lion and Crocodile Attack

Over the weekend I saw the most amazing video. Or, at least an edited part of a video that’s become a YouTube hit. It’s haunted me ever since. The Edited for TV Version The version I saw was edited for time not for content. The video is over seven minutes long, but the clip I saw was less than a minute and some of the most dramatic of the footage. It showed a pack of lions chasing after a herd of water buffalo. A baby water buffalo gets singled out and a lion tackles it, sending it flying into a … Continue reading →

Going Wild On Safari

Searching for the perfect holiday gift for the person who has everything? If you have a bank account the size of Oprah’s or you know someone who is willing to loosen their purse strings to make sure your Christmas is extra special this year you might want to consider one of the following trips. Wildlife safaris are regaining popularity after suffering a slight dip a few years ago, according to travel experts. If you are passionate about the great outdoors and have always dreamed of coming face to face with big game, the following trips might be your ideal vacation … Continue reading →

Book Review: There Is No Me Without You

Whether you are interested in adoption, in history, in science, in child welfare or simply in riveting memoirs of children and families, you will find There Is No Me Without You to be a fascinating book. It tells the story of an Ethiopian woman who has taken in children orphaned by AIDS, many of whom were later adopted to Europe and America. There Is No Me Without You is written by Melissa Fay Greene, an award-winning writer and a parent of four children by birth, a child adopted from Bulgaria and several Ethiopian-born children. The book’s main subject, Haregewoin Teferra, … Continue reading →

Duma (2006)

One night while driving through a semi-colonized part of Africa, a boy named Xan and his father happen upon an orphaned cheetah kitten. Knowing he’ll never survive on his own, they take the kitten back home and raise it, along with other animals they’ve collected along the way. Soon Xan and the cheetah, Duma, are closer than brothers and the thought of returning Duma to the wild is too much to consider. However, if left tame much longer, Duma will lose all his instincts and will never be able to defend himself. Xan reluctantly agrees to help his father return … Continue reading →

Hatari! (1962)

John Wayne plays Sean Mercer in this adventurous film set in the wilds of Africa. Sean is the head of an expedition sent to collect wild animals to be shipped to zoos around the world. They have built a house to live in and an enclosure to hold the animals they have captured, and at the end of the season they will send each creature to the zoo that expressed a need. It’s a great set-up and they each have their jobs down to a T. But one day, Sean gets a letter from A. M. D’Allesandro, a wildlife photographer … Continue reading →

Who are the Birthparents Who Place Children for Adoption, Part Two

Part One of this blog talked about countries where societal reasons are often the prevalent ones for placing children for adoption. This blog, Part Two, will deal with why children might be available because of economic hardship or being orphaned. The term “orphan” is misleading in international adoption. The U.S. Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS, formerly the INS) defines an “orphan” as either one whose parents are dead, or whose “sole surviving parent” has relinquished custody. “Sole surviving parent” is also something of a misnomer. In some countries, if the couple is unmarried then the father is not … Continue reading →