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Photographing people remains sensitive issue in Kenya. Some tribal groups request money for you to take their photo.

You should never get your camera out at border crossings or near government or army buildings; even bridges can sometimes be classed as sensitive areas.

Availability of Film and Equipment for your camera in Nairobi Kenya

You’ll find Kodak and Fuji 100, 200, and 400 ASA (ISO) print and slide film widely available in Nairobi, but even 100 ISO slide film is hard to find in Mombasa. If you plan to use 64 or 800 ASA film, bring it from home. As an indication of price, 36-exposure slide film in Nairobi is about Kshs 400; 36-exposure colour print film is cheaper at Kshs 250 to Kshs 350 but again, only 100,200 and (less frequently) 400ASA are available. Watch out for out –of-date batches.

Video animal photography

Both VHS and Hi-8 video film is available in Nairobi and Mombasa, but it’s relatively expensive. You may also be able to find memory cards and other accessories for digital and DV cameras, but again prices are high and quality is not guaranteed. If you don’t have the inclination or resources to buy expensive equipment but do know abit about photography, it’s possible to hire SLR cameras and lenses in Nairobi.

Film Processing in Kenya

Shops and booths offering film processing are popping up in small towns and villages all over Kenya. In addition, there are plenty of one-hour film-processing labs in Nairobi and at least one in all other major towns. They can handle any film speeds, but results can vary.

Depending on the print size, processing and printing costs about Kshs 480 to Kshs 650 for a 36-exposure film.E6 slide processing can only be done in Nairobi and costs around Kshs 450 for a 36-exposure film.

Taking Pictures of wildlife

As the natural light in Kenya can be extremely strong, morning and evening are the best times to take photos. A plain UV filter can also be a good idea to take the harshness out of the day light pictures.

For serious wildlife photography an SLR camera that can take long focal length lenses is necessary. Zoom lenses are best for wildlife photography as it is easier to frame your shot for the best composition. This is especially important because the animals are almost constantly on the move.

The 70mm to 210mm zoom lenses are popular, and 200mm is really the absolute minimum power you’ll need to get a good close up shots. The only problem with zoom lenses is that they absorb about 1.5f-stops of light, which is where 200 and 400ASA film starts to become useful.

Best animal camera lenses

Telephoto (fixed focal lengths) lenses give better results than zoom lenses, but you’re limited by having to carry a separate lens for every focal length. A 400mm or 500mm lens brings the action right up close, but again you need fast film to make the most of it. Another option is to carry a 2x teleconverter, a small adapter that doubles the focal length of your lens.

Using zoom Lenses in Wildlife photographic safari

When using long lenses, you’ll find that a tripod can be extremely useful, and with any lens greater than about 300mm it’s a necessity. Within the confined space of the hatch of a safari minibus, you may be better off with a folding miniature tripod, which you can then rest on the roof. Remember to ask your driver to switch off the engine to avoid vibrations affecting your photo. If you’ve got a large lens but no tripod, lying your camera on a small bean bag or cushion can help reduce camera shake.

A decent bag is essential to protect your gear from the elements and the rough roads-safari dust gets everywhere, particularly in parks like Samburu and Tsavo. It’s also vital to make sure that your travel insurance policy covers your camera gear should it get stolen or damaged.

The third Sunday in June is celebrated as the father’s day. This day commemorates all the men who are great dads and also those men who play a father like role for other people. The non traditional family structure is the norm of the day and hence in this light all father figures be it an elder brother or a brother in-law etc are celebrated on this day. The first Father’s Day was celebrated in Spokane, Washington, in June 1910 through the efforts of a woman Sonora Dodd in United States who felt that just like the mothers the fathers too played important roles in the lives of their children.

The inspiration for her was her own father who after their mother’s death had raised her and her five siblings with great love and care. Owing to her father being born in June she encouraged the celebrations in that month. Her efforts had begun in 1909 but it was not until 1972, that Father’s day became an official holiday in the United States. It was President Nixon who with the help of a proclamation declared the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day and an official holiday.

There were however not the great celebrations that are held today on Father’s day in the yester years. It was a solemn church service in which the fathers were honored for the contribution that they made to the lives of their children and the whole day was solemn and respectful occasion. The red rose was a symbol of honoring a living father and a white one for a father who had passed away. In 1924, a Pennsylvanian bible class opted for a more unusual flower: the dandelion as the flower for father’s day. This was because of the specialty of this flower that the more it was trampled upon the more it grew.

The fathers too feel special and honored and it arouses in them a sense of duty and compassion for their children even greater than what they already have. It is of course the job of the parents to raise their children but if their efforts are honored and the children show their respect and gratitude then their heart is definitely gladdened.

However some people feel that occasion such as father’s day and mother’s days are earmarks of a progressive era and are trumped up occasions. No one force sentiments or celebrations so it can be well left to them.

Christmas can be a very special time when memories of a lifetime are made. What can you do to make your child’s Christmas that much more special? Make some of these ideas part of your Christmas traditions and you will be sure to pass on that magical feeling of Christmas to your children.

1) Cook Together - Gingerbread houses are always a winner. Start out simple and as the years go by they can get more elaborate. Another great idea is to cook your Christmas cookies in the cookie cutters. You can hang them on the tree or give them away as gifts. Not only are they fun, but they add to the decor!

2) Christmas Stories - Have at least one story that is uniquely yours, then read it every Christmas Eve. It doesn’t have to be a traditional story. My mother was from Louisiana and our story was Gaston, the Green Nosed Alligator. When we go home she still reads it to us!

3) More Than Cookies and Milk - Leave out food for the reindeer too! Carrots work well. If you want to make it more involved add glitter to some dry oatmeal for magical reindeer food and leave on the lawn. (The glitter will shine in the moonlight to draw the reindeer down.)

4) Let Santa In! - If you don’t have a fireplace then leave Santa a key. Take an old key, tie a pretty ribbon on it and hang on the front door.

5) Boot prints - When Santa comes to our house he always makes a huge mess! The fireplace screen is knocked over and ash is tracked everywhere! Rubber garden boots work well for this one. Just dip in the ashes and leave “Santa tracks”.

6) Letter from Santa - Send your child a personal letter straight from the North Pole. Make sure to add personal touches like accomplishments and items from his or her wishlist. Santa loves to write letters!

7) Christmas Lights - For some reason Christmas lights are one of the most magical things. Turn off all of your room lights lay on the floor under the tree and just enjoy!

8) Jingle Bells - Early Christmas morning after all the presents are out, sneak outside your child’s room and lightly jingle some bells. (Make sure that your child knows they have to stay in their room until daylight.) Be prepared for some excitement when they tell you how they heard Santa’s sleigh bells last night!

9) Homemade Gifts - Making Christmas presents together can be a great way to spend time with your little ones! Bundles of cookies, homemade ornaments, and chocolate dipped coffee spoons are all simple yet wonderful presents to make together!

10) Countdown the Days - Making a creative advent calendar can help your child pass the days until Christmas! One way to do this is to make a paper chain calendar by cutting 25 strips of construction paper and linking them together to form a chain. The kids can then remove a link every day until Christmas.

One of my favorites is to purchase 25 miniature felt stockings and use writing paint to label each with a day. Place a small candy or prize for each child within each stocking. Every day your child can take down that day’s stocking and get a small present!

Spending time with your child is the most magical gift of all. Christmas is one of the best times to focus on your children and make new traditions and memories they will treasure for a lifetime!

Here is a family holiday idea that will excite everyone. In fact, I would say that this is the perfect adult family holiday where you can sit back, relax or less loose and enjoy the surroundings free from the worries work and home.

Experience an incredible houseboat vacation in crystal clear waters of British Columbia. A BC Houseboat Vacation puts you in charge of your own wilderness tour amongst snow capped peaks, cascading waterfalls and secluded beaches.

Shuswap Lake at Sicamous and Lake Kookanusa near Fernie, BC are two of the more popular destinations that provide a variety of houseboat rental opportunities

The British Columbia southern interior boasts some of the warmest summer climates in Canada. Daytime temperatures can reach over 38C (100F) from mid-june to mid-August. With this kind of heat, a summer house boat vacation is extremely popular. What better way to spend a summer day than cruising the BC wilderness in a houseboat on your favorite lake?

However, if you want a little more quiet and seclusion, the house boating season in BC is not limited to just the summer. Spring and Autumn vacations offer all the benefits and less of the crowds.

May and June bring you more snow capped mountains melting to produce cascading waterfalls that can be seen while cruising the shores. Wildlife is very active at this time of year and the fishing is good too.

Autumn is absolutely my favorite season. Warm, sunny, calm days dominate the forecast through September and into October. Spawning salmon runs are available for viewing at the mouths of most incoming streams and the fall colours of the never ending forests are gorgeous. This is also be the best opportunity for wildlife viewing, particularly bears and eagles as they come to the streams to feast on the salmon.

There are a number of houseboat rentals to choose from. You can choose from a variety of boats to accommodate small groups of 3 or 4 to 20 people. You decide on the length of time, from a one day outing to a week long holiday.

Todays modern house boats offer many of the amenities of a luxury yacht, including hot tubs, full kitchens, dvd/cd playing capabilities and more.

More on BC Houseboat Vacations

Families the world over are beginning to recognise Cape Town as a wonderful family vacation destination. We’re not in the least surprised! As a Cape Town family we are constantly discovering new delights in and around our own city.

Of course the perfect holiday varies from one family to the next. Given that every family is unique, it’s no surprise that one family’s ‘fabulous’ may be another’s ‘foul’.

What are the key ingredients for a great family vacation?

Firstly, easy access. Holiday relaxation is shattered if Mum, Dad and sundry offspring are sentenced to return flights via (say) outer Mongolia. Fortunately Cape Town combines the services of an international airport with many direct flights both locally and internationally.

Secondly, appropriate accommodation. You don’t want to stay on the top floor of a high-rise city hotel with your toddlers. Similarly, your teens may be ticked if your only option is an idyll far from the madding crowd. In Cape Town accommodation comes in all shapes, sizes and locations with something to fit every budget.

Finally, things to do. And that’s what lifts Cape Town head and shoulders above other destinations. As long as you’re not adverse to enjoying great weather, fabulous scenery and outdoor activity, there are an infinite number of enjoyable possibilities from which to choose!

I advise families to consider all the possible activities BEFORE booking their accommodation. That way, they can make informed choices about where they stay. Cape Town is small as cities go, but why waste your vacation criss-crossing the Peninsula?

For instance, will you spend a lot of your time on the beaches? If so, the Atlantic seaboard offers your most accessible accommodation.

Perhaps you’re all more into culture and history than sand and sun? Then the City Bowl places you right in the heart of Cape Town’s heritage.

The Cape Winelands certainly beckon most visitors young or old, so why not soak up the atmosphere of oak casks and Cape Dutch gables by booking a few nights at a local hostelry?

Simonstown is prime Cape Town attraction, a quaint village built around the historic Naval Base. It’s a 50 minute drive from the city centre, but the perfect base for whale watching (in season) and for exploring south to Cape Point.

In all, Cape Town’s many facets offer infinite possibilities for family enjoyment. World-class facilities combine perfectly with spectacular sights and riveting history. A holiday in this African city with its European face is an experience not quickly forgotten.

Use your heart-shaped cookie cutter to make Shamrock Cookies for St. Patrick’s Day.

Time needed from start to finish, including time to put icing on the cookies, 2 to 2.5 hours.

Yield: 2 dozen large shamrock cookies

Shamrock Cookie Recipe

* 1/2 cup shortening
* 1/2 cup butter or margarine
* 2 cups sugar
* 3 eggs
* 1/4 cup milk
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 5 cups flour

Cream shortening and sugar together. Beat in eggs. Stir in milk, vanilla and salt. Mix in flour. Work the dough with your hands for a minute before rolling out.

Roll out the dough to 1/8 inch thick. Use flour as needed to roll out the cookies.

For each shamrock, you will need 3 heart-shaped cookies. Place one heart on an ungreased cookie sheet, then put one heart on each side at a 90-degree angle so the tips at the bottom are overlapping. Gently press the cookies together where they overlap.

Take a lump of dough the size of a small walnut. Roll into a rope. Press one inch of the rope onto the bottom of the shamrock. Shape the remaining rope into a stem and flatten gently. (Four or five shamrocks will fit on each cookie sheet.)

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 12 minutes, or until golden brown.

Immediately remove the cookies from the cookie sheet and allow to cool. When the cookies are cooled thoroughly, frost with shamrock icing. For added decoration, use cookie sprinkles, if desired.

Shamrock Icing

(makes enough to frost 2 dozen shamrock cookies)
* 3 cups of powdered sugar
* 1/4 cup soft butter or margarine
* 5 or 6 tablespoons milk
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
* 10 drops green food coloring

Measure the powdered sugar into a mixing bowl. Work the butter/margarine into the dry powdered sugar with a mixing spoon. Add salt and vanilla. Add the milk 1 tablespoon at a time and mix thoroughly after each addition. When the icing is finished, add the food coloring and mix thoroughly.

Here are some pictures of Shamrock Cookies =>http://www.ruralroute2.com/cookie_pictures.php

Celebrate your Irish heritage on St. Patrick’s Day. In my hometown, huge family reunions occur on March 17, uniting Mother’s and Sisters, Fathers and Brothers, Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins. In my hometown, we rejoice our Irish Heritage with fun and affordable celebrations for the whole family.

All St. Patrick’s Day festivities originate in St. John’s Cathedral beginning with a 7 AM morning Mass offered by the Bishop. We cheer on our Irish Firefighters, Policemen and local Irish Dance Clubs marching in the St. Patrick’s Day parade. At night we gather in dance halls, party centers or friend’s houses to relish Corn Beef & Cabbage Stew, Shepherd’s Pie, served with warm Irish Soda Bread.

This St. Patrick’s Day, remember your favorite Irishman with a wee Irish gift

1. “Tis himself … with all things Irish. Celebrate St. Patrick’s’ Day with wee green shamrock gifts. Send a votive candle holder to your favorite Irish charmer, shamrock collector, or bring to your hostess for St. Patrick’s Day. Crafted of white frosted glass and green painted shamrocks, a votive candle holder makes a great Irish gift!
2. Kiss me …I’m Irish …have fun this St. Patrick’s Day with rubber message bracelets. All the rage with school age kids, these message bracelets bring your Irish Heritage to life. Packed in sets of 6, these rubber Irish message wrist bracelets greet your friends with Kiss me I’m Irish, Irish Forever, Luck of the Irish, God Bless the Irish, Irish at Heart and 100% Irish.
3. Fire up your dinner party … with Irish Shamrock shaped taper candles. Looking for an unusual hostess for your favorite Irish Leprechaun? We found shamrock shaped taper candles to liven up any party. 4-inch tall featured in Emerald Green.
4. Tea Time? Aunt Coletta knows how to warm us on a cold winter’s day. Anytime you visit Aunt Coletta’s house, her tea pot whistles, sugar cubes tumble into your tea cup, and the day’s troubles begin to melt away. Look for matching shamrock plates and Teapot.
5. Sweet Shamrock Sensations! …your turn for the neighborhood coffee? Invite your entire street over for an afternoon tea, cookies and conversation. Meet the newest neighbor, celebrate birthdays or simply give thanks Spring has sprung. Crafted of white porcelain china with embossed raised features and gold trim, our Irish Shamrock Teapot features hand painted shamrocks. Look for matching shamrock plates, tea cup and saucers.
6. “May your friends be many and your flower garden lush” … surprise your favorite Irishman with a darling shamrock flower bud vase. Crafted of white porcelain and trimmed in gold, a pretty Irish Shamrock Bud Vase will dress up any Irish home.
7. Irish wit lights up a room …keep your home fires burning bright with a wee Irish Shamrock Votive Candle Holder. Crafted of white porcelain, with hand painted shamrocks sprinkled throughout.
8. Luck of the Irish! We found a wee bit of Irish charm to liven up St. Patrick’s Day. Crafted of solid white wax, a pretty Irish Shamrock round candles come s packed in cello wrap with tied with gold ribbon. Display on your breakfast table while dining on green pancakes and green milk.
9. When Irish eyes are smiling… Invite an Irish Shamrock Angel to shine pretty shades of green through your Kitchen windows. We found a glass shamrock Angel sun catcher which features Irish Shamrocks, Halo, and wearing a darling floating Angel dress. Crafted of glass and wire, her milky white Angel dress holds green glass shamrocks. Each piece of glass is soldered together with wire, with green shamrock wings to protect Angle’s clear glass face.

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with wee Irish gifts!

Until next time,

Eileen Brady, 47, founded Bay Village Store in 1997 and built the business on core values: honesty, integrity and reliability. She provides kitchen, home and garden gifts to the online community. She remains dedicated to keeping alive the spirit of adventure and friendship in her customers.

There are several variety of games associated traditionally with Halloween parties. The most common and well liked is dooking or bobbing for apples; in this game apples float in the tub or a large basin of water, the people who are participating need to their teeth to remove an apple from the basin. Another variant involves kneeling on to a chair, holding a fork between the teeth and trying to drop the fork on to an apple. Another very common game carries hanging up treacle or syrup-coated scones by strings; these should be eaten without using any hands while they remain attached to the string, an activity that inevitably rule to a very sticky face.

Some of the games played traditionally at Halloween are types of divination. In Puicini (otherwise pronounced as “poocheeny”), it is a game played in Ireland, a blindfolded person is seated in from of a table on that different saucers are placed. The saucers are then shuffled and the seated person chooses one by touch. The outcomes of the saucer decide the person’s life for the following year. It is believed that a saucer containing earth means someone known to the player would be dying during the next year, if in case a saucer contains water it predicts emigration, a ring means marriage, a set of Rosary beads states that person would take Holy Orders (becoming a nun or a priest), if one gets coin that means new wealth, a bean states poverty and it goes on.

During 19-century Ireland, young girl placed slugs in saucers scattered with flour, the wriggling of the slugs and the varieties consequently left behind on the saucers were believed to portray the faces of that girls future spouses. An Irish and Scottish type of divining one’s future spouse is to engrave an apple in one long strip, and then toss the peel over one’s shoulder. The peel is to be believed to land in the figure of the first letter of the future spouse’s name. This tradition has also lived among Irish and Scottish immigrants in the rural United States.

Telling the ghost stories and viewing of horror films are few other common fixtures of Halloween parties. Television specials with a Halloween theme, normally aimed at children, those are commonly aired on or before the holiday while new horror films are often released theatrically before the vacation to take advantage of the atmosphere. Visiting a haunted house or a dark attraction are other traditions of Halloween parties. One of the biggest Halloween attractions in U.S.A is Knott’s Scary Farm in California, which features re-themed fun park rides and a dozen different walkthrough mazes, with hundreds of costumed roving performers.

With the holiday season on, gifting times are here again. This season, why not try something new? Share gifts that are healthy, like sending someone to the spa or for a good massage. Here are some healthy gift options.

Go fruity: No more of those fattening fruitcakes and cheeses. How about giving an organic fruit basket? You can buy it or even make it yourself for the personal touch. Simply pick out some seasonal fruits or vegetables and put them in a decorated basket. Any friend or family member is sure to appreciate some nutritious relief from the typical holiday fare.

Go sporty: With childhood obesity at an all-time high, sports is the only way to go. Children need to get rid of the television and computer screens and move. So, gift them a big box of sports and game equipment instead. Options range from badminton to frisbee, croquet, kickball, bocce, dodgeball, horseshoes, volleyball, whiftleball and stickball. Think of all the games you enjoyed as a kid and share them with kids. You can also give them cards with information explaining how to play the game and a little history of your experience playing as a kid. This is a bonding experience as well as a gift. Best of all, sports goods and games are much cheaper than electronics.

A fitting tribute: There are plenty of pedometers and workout machines that monitor activity. These can be ideal for all the fitness freaks in your life. They work wonderfully as motivational devices as well. Seeing how many - or how few - calories are burned can be plenty of motivation to get the laziest slacker off the couch.

Pamper them: With all the family get-togethers and intense shopping trips, the holiday season can be stressful for any person. Relieve tensions with a gift certificate for a good massage or a session at the spa.

Lastly; you should freely share of your time with your loved ones and don’t forget to add a nice holiday card along with the gift wrapped presents.

Celebration of Valentine’s Day dates back to the 1400’s. I thought it would be both entertaining and interesting to take a look at how this holiday is celebrated throughout various parts of the world during different eras, and reveal some of its myths.

Cupid, God of Love and son of Venus, fell for a mortal maiden named Psyche. Cupid married her even though, Venus was jealous of her beauty, and had ordered him to punish her. Since Psyche was mortal, she was forbidden to look at Cupid, but her sister convinced her to look at him. Cupid was angered and abandoned her, taking their castle and surroundings with him. She stood alone in an open field. Psyche became desperate to find Cupid so she entered into the temple of Venus where she was given a series of difficult tasks. During her last task, she was given a box and warned not to open it. Venus sent her to the underworld to get beauty of Proserpine and place it into the box. The temptation was too strong for Psyche to not open the box, and when she did she feel into a deadly slumber. Cupid found her and put the sleep from her body into the box. The gods were touched by the love Psyche carried for Cupid, so they made her a goddess.

In Japan, on February 14th women buy chocolates for men. However, it isn’t until March 14th, White Day, that the men return the favor by gifting chocolates to the women. It’s a definite reversal for the American culture. In American culture, men are expected to purchase gifts for women, regardless of whether a woman buys something for their mate or not.

Many years ago, children in England would dress themselves up as adults. They would travel from door to door singing the following song to the person who answered.
Good morning to you, Valentine;
Curl your locks as I do mine—
Two before and three behind.
Good morning to you, Valentine.

The expression ‘you wear your heart on your sleeve’ derives from the 1800’s. Both American and British men pinned pieces of paper with the names of their sweethearts written on it. They wore it for several days which let everyone know who held the key to their heart.

One old myth describes how young girls were supposed to eventually marry the first eligible man she met on this day. If a girl was curious and brave enough, she could conjure up the appearance of her future spouse by going to the graveyard on St. Valentine’s Eve at midnight. She would then sing a prescribed chant and run around the church twelve times.

Whatever the case may be, one thing is certain, every culture relates Valentine’s Day to romance and love. Next time Valentine’s Day rolls around, it might be endearing to try celebrating the holiday inspired by a different culture.