PKB-Camp Leakey (TJ national park) 6/5

Past few days have been amazing. We visited the care centre in PKB, where we saw orangutans who have been rescued from palm oil plantations..many orphans. Ones who are injured from it etc. I was really surprised at how good their facilities were, these people really care. Walking around we saw so many orangutans in cages, as it was part of the rehabilitation process before being released back into the wild. That was really hard to see. Especially the babies..you just see their eyes pearing out between the slacks. I can't believe that this is still happening.



In case you don't know the reasons why orangutans and possibly many other species are dying out, I'll tell ya! Basically the demand for palm oil is so high all over the world pretty much. Its used in so many products, snacks, shampoos..etc. They also use it at the chip shop I worked at in Farnham. Due to the high demand, large portions of the forest in Borneo (and other forests obviously) are being torn down for palm oil plantations. When they are torn down, the wildlife living there dies, it can't live without it.

That is only one of the evils destroying the forest! Another is logging..it was weird in PKB..you'd see all the shacks families were living in...then you look across the road and you see great big mansions, owned by the loggers. The other evil is mines..forests get cleared so the land just looks baron..on these their workers pretty much risk their lives for their jobs going underground with no gear or anything.

Anyway, back to the care centre. We went to the baby playground where they were all going crazy swinging from the ropes and stuff! Incredibly cute. They would run up to you and just hug your leg..then try and steal your bag. I love them.





We got a few more supplies in town..I bought a guitar for about 10quid! We then set off for Camp Leakey in the national park. To get there we hired a Kelotok (boat), which we would stay on for a few days there. Was nicer than I thought it would be!! Actually had a shower and a WESTERN toilet! Its really cool going to bed listening to all the jungle sounds around you. I woke up today and saw 2 orangutans on the jetty our boat is at, just playing about.

We watched a dvd..(yes the boat actually had a tv and dvd!) of when Joanna Lumley did the same trip. Pretty sure she was on the same boat as we were!

Met Princess in camp, the famous orangutan who appeared on the cover of National Geographic years ago. She is so clever! We watched as she tried to open the padlock to the food store room with the key next to it..!



8/5
This morning I was woken up by Siswi, the queen orangutan (Dawn, Catherine and I slept on the jetty), she grabbed my bag and I had to actually wrestle her to get it back! I only awoke when I heard Ibu (our cook for the project) shouting 'Siswi!!! no!!' Shes so quiet and devious like that! just sneaks up at about 6am and steals your stuff. Siswi is possibly the laziest orangutan EVER. She slept on the jetty..not in the trees like orangutans are meant to! She then just lay back on our mattresses, jeez!



My arm still aches loads from the volleyball game yesterday..the Indos do mean serves!! All the assistants that work at Camp Leakey are really cool.