The fun thing about Eden’s research department is that there is always something new in the making. I’ve already introduced you to the Eden leaves, the Eden beans and the Eden nuts, and yesterday, I got my first taste of Eden oil. It was really good! There’s something so precious about rediscovering the Lost Treasures [...]

continue reading.....

…is Jojo, the family’s pet monkey (not ours). Anette took these cool facial shots of him when we were there last, and I just had to share! He’s bit me twice already and will be having some goods removed soon (I have yet to meet a male monkey who did not suffer from serious megalomania!), [...]

continue reading.....

Midik is by far my favorite riding trail, but it needs a good two hours before you get there, if you want to get back before it’s dark. Of course, darkness doesn’t pose a geographical problem when both horses and riders know the landscape like the back of their hand, but I wouldn’t recommend speeding [...]

continue reading.....

It’s been a while since I blogged about Ishtar’s Ark’s latest newcomer Allis yar’Amadeus, but rest assured she is not forgotten! It took a while before she seemed to gain any strength, but then all of sudden one morning she was up hopping on her father’s favourite rock; and that’s when we knew it was [...]

continue reading.....

Although I prefer to spend my spare time in the Zinder bush or with our pets over at Ishtar’s Ark, I was recently reminded of how many photo ops you find in the city, even when you’re just in for a quick visit. The city center is situated just a 15 min walk from Eden [...]

continue reading.....

It hasn’t gone the www.esthergarvi.org readers unnoticed that the little Rhodesian Ridgeback lady – originally from Sweden – is in love with Niger sand! “You guys go ahead. Let me just enjoy this sand for a while.” “Hey guys, I’m having one of those Quality Moments! Wanna join??” The good thing about Sheba however is [...]

continue reading.....

One little lady has been growing quite a lot lately – the trend so far is an additional kg every week… When Sheba the RR could no longer squeeze into her first love of a water tub, she finally accepted the larger container we had bought for her (which she thoroughly ignored the first few [...]

continue reading.....

I am turning a year older today, and what better than to post an entry about the day when we introduced Isolde to the track just a few weeks ago? It was a fun day, because all the other Garvis presently in Niger came out too see her! And I got to do some fun [...]

continue reading.....

I recently stumbled upon a chronicle entitled Let My People Go, AIDS Profiteers, written by Sam L. Ruteikara, co-chair of Uganda’s National AIDS-Prevention Committee. It’s an interesting read because it is one of those times when “Africa answers back”, but at the same time, it is a heartbreaking read, because it is yet another example [...]

continue reading.....

…lives Maya, Sahara’s younger half-sister. It’s been a while since she joined us from the bush, and she has grown into a nice-looking young lady, who enjoys life with her yard-mate Freya (also a Sahara relative, but not ours!). This past weekend, we went over to visit her and see how she was doing. We [...]

continue reading.....

The first news agency to write about the Niger Famine Scam (in December 2005) was Der Spiegel. Their article was recently published on the Internet, and what follows is a rough translation. Should you prefer to read the original German version, just click on the image below: The Desert Garden of Eden Global Village: In [...]

continue reading.....

There is one thing in life brings out Sheba’s skeptical side, and that’s the monkeys at the office! Here, a family of three (father, daughter and son) share a two-room outdoors apartment and enjoy life walking around the trees (as they would in the wild, prior to feeding), feeding three time a day, grooming in [...]

continue reading.....

I guess if I had lived in a metropolis somewhere in a developed country, I would have taken a Sunday walk in the park, in hope of enjoying some natural scenery. Here in Zinder, I am fortunate enough to have next-to immediate access to a never ending bush! It only takes ten minutes to walk [...]

continue reading.....

Despite being taken out on daily rides, our race horses sometimes get too restless… And when Sahara’s energy level is so high it’s about to turn into destructive (or rude) behaviour, I let her out of the horse pen and let her run a few laps around the house, which she does with a passion! [...]

continue reading.....

One of my favourite trails is the Mandara trail, which takes about one hour effective riding time (30 minutes if you’re very fast…). It starts off with long trails of sandy paths (great for a good warm-up trot!)… …passing a beautiful water whole (‘tapki’ in Hausa) that dries up after the rainy season… The Kanya [...]

continue reading.....