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Monty Brett Environmental and
Cultural Courses Newsletter |
November, 2008 |
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Hi there, This
is my last newsletter for the year and there’s plenty to tell you, so I’ll
get straight down to it: We’ve got
some really exciting things happening in 2009 and beyond: v THE MARVELS OF MADAGASCAR – a trip to the fascinating
island that is home to lemurs and other interesting beasts, with endless
pickings for the avid birder. Provisional dates are November 6th
to 18th, 2009. v
BIRD
COURSE AT SKUKUZA, Kruger Park,
from September 30th to October 4th, 2009.
Lecturers will be Geoff Lockwood, Clive Hopcroft and Marion Melville. v BIRD COURSE IN SOUTHBROOM on the Natal south coast.
Dates are March 16th to 20th, 2009. We’re also
running our bird course in HOWICK again in May, on 11th, 13th,
15th, 18th and 20th. v A self-drive 4x4 trip to ZAMBIA
in search of the Shoebill and other birding specials. Dates are
April 9th to 26th, 2009. v An adventure trip to the BATTLEFIELDS
OF ANGOLA, with the legendary Colonel Jan Breytenbach. Dates
are from July 27th to August 17th, 2009. v A CLASSICAL MUSIC TRIP TO NEW
YORK. Highlights
will include the New York State Theatre, the Metropolitan Opera House, the
New York Ballet, the Julliard School of Music, and much more. I’m
negotiating dates at the moment, but probably late 2009 or early 2010. I’m in the process of
finalising pricings and other details, which I will download to the website
as soon as they’re ready. If you require any details in the meanwhile,
please contact me directly. The dates for all NEXT YEAR’S EVENTS
are below, in calendar form, for ease of reference. The photo galleries on
our website have been updated, so if you attended any of our recent events,
such as Baroque in the Bush, Sani Pass, Music in the Mist, etc. click here to see the photos.
If you’ve never been to any of these events before, why not have a peek so you
know what you’ve been missing. From now on, all our
Johannesburg courses will be held at the Wanderers Club in Illovo.
The Club has safe parking, coffee shop and bars, beautiful grounds and is
always a hive of interesting activity. And to sweeten that great
news even more, Wanderers Club has made us a wonderful offer – if you attend
one of our courses being held there next year, you will receive a 3-month,
free trial-membership of the club. This will entitle you to use all
their facilities including the gym, squash and tennis courts, running club,
member’s lounges, restaurants and bars, bowling greens, etc. for 3 months, so
you can decide whether you’d like to join. Some important news for bird-lovers:
SAPPI
BIRDING BIG DAY takes place this year on Saturday 29th
November. See below for details. There’s
a PARTIAL ECLIPSE
OF THE SUN in January next year. Click here to navigate
down to the details. I
recently discovered that there is a CHIMP SANCTUARY near Nelspruit, run
under the auspices of the Jane Goodall Institute, and doing some really good
work. See below for further details. All that remains is for me to wish you all a very
happy holiday season. Travel safely, wherever you’re going, and enjoy
the journey, not just the destination. Warm regards, PS:
Unwanted emails are a headache. If
you would prefer not to receive our newsletter anymore, please
press “reply” and simply type “unsubscribe me” in
the body of the email. |
Our contact details: Monty
& Kim Brett P
O Box 314 Nottingham
Road 3280 Tel: (033) 266-6113 Email: kim@montybrett.com Fax:
086 652-7662, or (033)
266-6970 Web: www.montybrett.com |
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Quotes |
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Somewhere,
something incredible is waiting to be known. Carl Sagan Many
men stumble upon the truth, but most pick themselves up and continue as if
nothing happened. Winston Churchill |
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Animal Trivia |
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The
steenbok
is the only ungulate that covers its droppings. The
praying mantis
is the only insect than can turn its head without moving its body. Ducks,
geese and swans
are the only group of birds that become flightless during their annual moult. Albatrosses,
shearwaters and petrels rely almost entirely on their sense of smell to find
their food. |
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Computer Hint |
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On
your mouse, you have a left-button, which is the one that you use
predominantly to select objects or text, or to position your cursor on the
screen, and so on. The
right-button on the mouse is a short-cut button that pops up a menu relevant
to what you were selected on when you clicked it. For example, if you
right-click on your desk-top, you can change the picture, your screen-saver,
and plenty of other stuff. Try
right-clicking on different things on your screen, and see a whole new world
of options opening up to you. |
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Parting Thought |
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Giving
money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car-keys to teenage
boys. P J O’Rourke |
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Details |
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Sappi Birding Big Day is an
annual highlight in the birding world and has been run by BirdLife South
Africa for over 20 years. Teams of 3 or more people compete to see how
many bird species they can spot during a 24 hour period, between midnight and
midnight, within a 50km radius of a central point. The record is 313
species within 24 hours, and it’s just aching to be broken. As further
incentive, there are prizes valued at over R100 000 waiting to be
won. For further information, you can log onto www.birdlife.org.za,
or contact Sadie Halbhuber directly on events@birdlife.org.za, or (011)
789-1122. If you’re looking for a
good birding spot for Sappi Birding Big Day, I know of a delightful farm
overlooking the Limpopo River, where the accommodation is great and the
birding is sensational. Contact me if you’re interested in finding out
more. |
Date: Saturday 29th
November, 2008 Contact
person:
Sadie Halbhuber at BirdLife Arica Phone:
(011) 789-1122 Website:
www.birdlife.org.za |
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Details |
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The
partial eclipse of the sun in January next year will be the last opportunity to
see one in South Africa until 2016. The partial solar eclipse will take
place on Monday 26th January, from about 7am to 9.30am, and will
be visible all over the country. Eclipse viewers can be ordered from
the Johannesburg Planetarium, at (011) 717-1390 or order online at www.planetarium.co.za.
Please remember not to watch the eclipse with the naked eye. |
Date: Monday 26th
January 2009 Phone: (011)
717-1390 Website:
www.planetarium.co.za |
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Chimp
Sanctuary |
Details |
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I
recently discovered that there is a chimp sanctuary called Chimp Eden near
Nelspruit, run under the auspices of the Jane Goodall Institute. There
are 30 chimpanzees in residence there, having been rescued from many
different locations scattered across the globe, including Sudan, Dubai and
Italy. The sanctuary is open daily to the public and you can get
further information on www.janegoodall.co.za, or you can phone
the sanctuary on (013) 745-7406. Well worth a visit when you’re in the
Nelspruit or Barberton areas. Monty
recently went on a trip up to Zambia where he visited a chimp sanctuary called
Chimfunshi, and he said it was one of the most moving and extraordinary
experience to have hands-on contact with these delightful and engaging
creatures. Incidentally,
the sanctuary features on a TV programme that will air on the
Discovery Channel on 3rd January at 9pm, so don’t forget to switch
on and take a look. |
Phone: (013)
745-7406 Website:
www.janegoodall.co.za |
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