WASHINGTON (March 24, 2020) — Today and every day, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) appreciates America’s rich agricultural history and celebrates the work of American farmers and ranchers.

Environmental News  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Give Them a Break launches this month

We'll have to wait for Sunday's statement from Boris

Night Safari at iSimangaliso Wetlands ParkOn our last day of volunteering we had the opportunity to go on a night safari at iSimangaliso Wetlands Park. Some of the interesting wildlife we saw on safari include monkeys guinea fowls

Meeting the iSangomaToday we got the chance to meet the Zulu iSangoma. The iSangoma is like a spiritual psychic which is in charge of protecting the clan against evil spirits. Bad luck is considered to be the work of evil spirits an

Hippo and Crocodile CruiseToday the VESA group got the opportunity to enjoy a hippo and crocodile cruise along Lake St. Lucia. St. Lucia estuary park is home to around 1200 Nile Crocodiles and 800 hippopotamus. I find hippos intimidating as the

Tuesday 25th June 2019I participated in a Kyushu day tour departing from JR Hakata Station covering Dazaifu as well as the hot spring towns of Yufuin and Beppu. Earlier on I had my breakfast at the popup Hello Kitty Cafe within the station co

Wednesday 26th June 2019Dark clouds greeted me this morning as I woke up on my 40th birthday in Japan. Not a great start for me as I had planned to commemorate this special day with a crossisland expedition between Honshu Shimonoseki and Kyu

Rain poured down this morning putting the final kibosh on the boat trip around a nearby island park that was originally on the itinerary but is now closed. I was happy because I didnt want to go on the boat trip anyway. Yesterdays antimotion pill m

Wednesday 26th June 2019My second half of the day was spent onboard the Nozomi N700 Shinkansen services to the city of Himeji some 455km away on the island of Honshu. It was amazing that the journey only took slightly less than two hours to co

Day 23 Gabby the motorhome is still on furlough . We keep checking on her . To make sure she is Ok . That she is not missing us as much as we are missing her.Walking makes you stop and think . Instead of a mind racing on important things it goes i

I love walking on my own. It is never a lonely experience. There is too much to see and too much to take in . Even on Day 24 of the lockdown I am still finding nooks and a cranny or two in our village that I have never investigated before . Yes I am coveri

I take a sharp intake of breath as I test what the air temperature is outside . The chill of the frosty night has not yet been burned away that frosty morning feeling. My breath comes out like a thick wisp of smoke. I need my gilet on today to keep me warm

I was down to cook lunch on Sunday but there was so much food left over after the Braai I had a very easy job I did help Remi make veggie tempura for supper which we deep fried once in the afternoon then refried after the evenings survey. As it was Re

Most of the time we dread April 15th. For those of you outside of the U.S. it is the day our income taxes are due. But this year is a little different due to the Covid19 crisis. I went ahead and paid my Federal but still await a small refund from t

Morning safari at Hluhluwe Imfolozi Game ReserveToday we had to wake up extra early and leave Bibs Backpackers by 430 am to get on the bus to arrive at Hluhluwe Imfolozi Game Reserve for the morning safari. We had a packed breakfas

iSimangaliso Wetland Park In the afternoon the VESA African Unearth group headed of to the nearby iSimangaliso Wetland park for a nature walk with Johan one of our group leaders at the Crocodile Centre in St. Lucia. Johan is very k

Welcome to SwazilandToday we left St. Lucia and started to make our way to Swaziland. At the border because we were Canadian citizens we did not need to get a visa. However one of the volunteers of the VESA African unearth group from Thailand h

Mlilwane Wildlife SanctuaryWe woke up from our accommodation at Sondzela Backpackers to discover in our backyard warthogs grazing the grass. It finally dawned on us that we were in a sanctuary where animals had the right of way. The Mlil

Munich StopoverWe left Johannesburg South Africa on May 16th and arrived in Munich on May 17th. We had approximately 8 hours in Munich before we needed to head back to the airport for our flight to Toronto. Marienplatz

Thursday 27th June 2019It was raining in the morning as I made my way to the city of Kobe. The train ride to JR Kobe Station from Himeji took about an hour and very soon I was making my way out of the station towards the direction of Kobe Harbo

From Mostars mountainous hills we drove to Sarajevo where snowcovered high mountains showed why it was host to the

Morning all I guess you will all be up and greeting the dawn . Sleep did not come easy last night . Tossing and turning . You get nights like that at times . Hoping that once your head hits the pillow you will fall asleep . Some nights you do. Others the

The early morning dawn light was streaming in through the window . The time seemed irrelevant . It was still not quite light enough to rise . Looking at my watch I hoped the green luminous fingers would give me a clue to the time . It felt like 5am. The fi

Friday 28th June 2019I headed to the city of Takamatsu on the eastern end of Shikoku island this morning. This is as far as my railway pass could take me given that I had only purchased the limited SanyoSan'in Area Pass rather than the all Jap

Friday 28th June 2019 From Yashima I made a trip back to the city centre where the Takamatsu Symbol Tower is located. Towering 30th stories above ground level there is a public observatory where free views of the city could be had. Following

We had a leisurely breakfast this morning cold cuts cheese fresh bread banana although I left early to write sketchy travel notes. This tour is so full I cant record it all before the next day. Not a bad thing.Our guide Boris met us at our

This has got to be the weirdest situation weve ever found ourselves in ehAs global citizens we gotta do our part. Stay home. Practice safe distancing. Wash our hands. Remain calm. Be respectful. Help neighbours. For me it all started when a

Shall I let you into a little secret oh go on then . I am quite enjoying this walking . Lying in bed unable to drop off to sleep I sorted out in my mind where I was walking to in the morning . The weather whas a let down . Over the past few weeks someone

As day three Dawn's upon our souls. We start the journey to the capital. Present in the moment as only Iceland can teach you to do. We follow the highway upon what I expected to be an ordinary drive filled with the same scenery as the days before. Be warn

Finland day two.The hotel is a bustle with people a conference is being held in the hotel. The lobby is stuffed with people groups of people laptops open discussing topics important to them. We make our way to the breakfast bar just off of the lobb

It was not the aching feet that were stopping me in my tracks . To be fair they were burning . This walking plays havoc with the arches of your feet . It was not my brain working overtime thinking of reasons not to go out . Although it would have been easy

Rain it can be quite therapeutic . When it patters on Gabbys roof it can lull you into sleep . When it hammers down it is worse than listening to Ginger Baker and Keith Moon on their drumkits on the roof. It does the garden good . But lying in bed listen

Today should have been the day. It is going to be a day of would have could have and should have again. We would have been waking up on the park and ride paid our fee to exit and driven the M2 down to the tunnel . We should have been sitting in the car

Saturday 29th June 2019Before heading to Hiroshima in the afternoon I made a brief stop at the town of Tatsuno. This is home to Japan's only Soy Sauce Museum. Access to Tatsuno is relatively straight forward with frequent trains departi

Sunday 30th June 2019Breakfast was a happy affair at Royal Host one of the nicer restaurants in the city that opens early in the day and closes late into the night. I liked how well my scrambled egg turned out to be creamy soft and f

Friday 9th August 2019And so here we are on our annual MC retreat to the state capital of Sarawak with some of the nicest people I have ever met in my life. About 40 of us assembled at the airport on National Day 2019 for our flight to Kuching.

Leaving Mostar was almost sad because we had enjoyed the compact city as a group and on our own. We headed into the hills where towns or villages lined the road for a considerable distance. Rain was falling for the whole drive. I noticed none of the unr

Reaching Blog 100 on Chesterfield who would have believed it Not me. Sometimes I would write something about my home town. Most of the time though blogs were about somewhere else . Covid 19 has scuppered any chance of a blog from out of town for a whil

This year Children's Day is May 5. Of all the childrencentric holidays I miss Children's Day the most. Why I felt it was special for Japanese American children in a culture that cherishes tradition family and outright spoiling of children. Writ

Back in 2008 we finally got to attend the most exciting two minutes in sports the Kentucky Derby. The Derby is always run on the first Saturday in May until this year. We finally arrived in Louisville around dinner time on Thursday. Our plane to Ch

It is dark when I wake . It is Day 48 of the lockdown . The sun has not risen and the birds have not woken. It is Thursday . Sage are meeting today with our government . Sage used to be that herb that you stuffed up a chicken together with onion . Now it i

I woke early again . The bedroom was still in darkness . Tossing about I found I could not get back to sleep. My mind was going round and round . Odd thoughts . Day 49 how many hours have we been locked down. 1176 hours or thereabouts. I could have begun

Morning she shouted across the road . Morning I replied . Busy isn't it I thought it was lockdown Yes seems like a lot of people still travelling in their cars was my reply. We agreed the lady on her morning walk and I that this was a lovel

No photos as internet connection in hotel very slow. Will need to wait until tomorrow.Day 1 Siem Reap to Battambang. 172km. Saddle time 6hrs 59 mins. Total time 10hrs 1 min. Avg Temp 34 degToday was a reminder of what a wonderful country Cambodia

Slow start again we started packing everyone was sharing photos etc. After lunch of rolls tomato prosciutto and cheese we headed into the Antonettiano Mole one of the symbols of Torino and home of the Museum of Cinema. The museum was very cool with a

I have totally lost track of the days. Today was jammed pack of learning and fun. Many of you know I always like an adventure and try something fun. It is winter here and snow is on the mountain tops. This morning several of us opted to take a jet boat rid

Wayne had the FULL bathmassage experience at the Buckstaff Bathhouse this morning. He loved it I shopped around downtown while he was there. The nicest shop I found is called Girlie Girls. They design their own jewelry and it is beautiful. If you are th