Befriending Camels at the Pyramids of Egypt

ABOUT THE CAMEL


There are two types of Camels.  One-humped camels are native to the Middle East and the Horn of Africa and the two-humped type (the Bactrian camel) is native to Central Asia.  Contrary to popular belief, these humps are not sloshing around with water, but are instead filled with fat reserves for energy storage.  This is a great adaptation that concentrates the fat away from the rest of the body so that camels do not contain much fat in other areas which would cause too much thermal insulation.

Trekking for Gorillas in Uganda

ABOUT THE MOUNTAIN GORILLA

Like much of the world's mega fauna, Highland (Mountain) Gorillas are endangered.  Their range is in the Congo, Uganda and Rwanda (the green areas in the map.)  My trek was in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest (What a cool name, but it is obviously a misnomer.)

Ugandans Don't Need Gyms!

Don't judge my muscles next to him!

North America has an obesity issue.  I don't think it's deniable.  We spend more money on weight loss: supplements, equipment, gym memberships and diet schemes than any other part of the world.  Yet, we still remain fatter than most of it.  There's no new information there.

But when you visit a place where the people are fit and yet eat nothing but carbs (yes....evil carbs) for all three meals, it brings home how different cultures treat their bodies in relation to their food and their level of activity.

I asked to take a picture with one of the men helping to build the new kitchen at the Almond School (you can see the old kitchen in the back. It's just a shack.)  I asked him if he ever went to the gym.  A laugh was his response and then he shook his head for no.