3.30.2015

Bohol Tarsiers

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Bohol is home to the World's smallest known primate, the Philippine Tarsier. (Though, their primate status & classification is up for debate!) These little Yoda-look a-likes are precious and tiny! They grow to be no larger than an adult male's hand.  We were lucky to find ourselves in Bohol, one of the few places tarsiers are native to, with the opportunity to meet these little guys at the Loboc Tarsier Conservation Center. 
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I do believe that the Tarsier Conservation Area in Loboc, Bohol is trying to do a good job at protecting these endangered 'mamags', the local term for these small creatures. At least it appeared so in the areas that we saw. The Conservation center has sought to keep the place serene and tranquil for the easily stressed tarsiers, despite the influx of tourists. Each group is assigned a tour guide, that makes sure every person is following the park rules. Touching the tarsiers and using flash photography are prohibited & silence is observed through out the conservation area. Sadly though, I have recently discovered that this conservation area is not apart of the Philippine Tarsier Foundation, "a non-stock, non-profit organization established in 1996 to find ways to conserve as well as to promote the tarsier of Bohol."- The Tarsier FoundationDSC_0324DSC_0308
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These endangered cuties are quite peculiar looking. They have large eyes, which are larger than their brain and stomachs. With those wide eyes, they are quite sensitive to light, which is why they love lounging around at the base of trees and bamboo in the shade. Just like an owl, they hunt at night and have a joint between their skull and spine, allowing their head to turn in an 180 degree arc. These insect & small animal eaters, have long ankle bones to easily jump from tree to tree. 
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We loved getting the chance to see these amazing animals but now I can't help but wish we had done our research and visited The Tarsier Sanctuary instead. With only 700 left in Bohol, I think all tourist "support" should go towards sanctuaries whose program goals are;
"1. To protect the Philippine Tarsier and its habitat from extinction through increased environmental awareness, research programs and establishment of protected areas for wildlife in the Province of Bohol
2. To provide economic and social development opportunities to the local population through the introduction of eco-tourism-related livelihood endeavors."  -Tarsier Foundation. Right? Right. 

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Except that upon further research, it seems The Tarsier Sanctuary and the Tarsier Conservation Area are doing the exact same things when it comes to tourism and the viewing of their tarsiers. People are not touching them, staying quiet & not using flash photography in both places AND tarsiers are still being viewed by tourists during the day, though they are nocturnal, living close together, though they tend to be alone in the wild & put under high stress because of both, due to their extremely shy nature, in both places. The conservation of these shy, endangered animals, seems to be a complicated matter in Bohol. The beauty of tourism is that it usually provides most of the funds for conservation & research, yet it's also the beast, placing stress on these fragile creatures. Ugh.
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They are extremely cute, though? Right? Right! If you are in Bohol, I leave you to your own convictions on the rights & wrongs in the conservation & tourism in the tarsier population. If you'd still like to visit the Loboc Tarsier Conservation Area, its only 50 php per person and easily accessible from the Chocolate Hills or Tagbilaran. Should you want to do more of your own research, check out tarsierfoundation.org  or Project Tarsius. post signature

3.01.2015

Alice in Wonderland Murder Mystery Party

 
You know, some days, I really wish professional photographers weren't so expensive or really that someone just willingly wanted to come to my house with a camera and take amazing pictures, for free, because there has been a few events, that the pictures I took, just didn't do the fun that was had justice. This Alice in Wonderland Murder Mystery Party we hosted back in October, was one of those events. Let me just say, if you've never attended/hosted a murder mystery party, ATTEND ONE! or HOST ONE! They are suppppper fun. We love, love, love these fun filled evenings. We're hoping to have a Murder Mystery Night tradition in the Mosby household once a year. You may remember our Harry Potter themed party last year. If not you can read about the festivities here. I must say though,  this year was even more fun. It was so much 'funner' guys. ;)
 
This guy. Man. Who knew he was such an actor, delivering Academy Award winning worthy performances? I sure didn't know. There was something about this character, The Mad Hatter, that just brought out Zachary's crazy side. Like he WAS Mad Hatter and it was kind of amazing.  I wish I had video. If only I had video! 
 
Beautiful Alice and Cheshire. 
The cook who loves pepper, who also says, "Would you like some pe-puh?" Because she's from the U.K. and it's just the cutest.
 
The White Crazy Rabbit. 
These two. They could have won the Academy for best acting duo at a Murder Mystery Party.
The Queen of Hearts and Mad Hatter.
The Duchess, who in the book always carries around a baby. So, of course, Elijah came over. I'm obsessed with this picture and how hilarious it is. Elijah looks HUGE in Nicole's arms. 
As always, I loved preparing our costumes and all the decorations but the script this year was fantastic, and really made it a great night. I found it on the MurderMysteryGames shop via Etsy. They have tons of themes to choose from. All the themes come with print outs, a folder of MP3 theme music, scripts, menus and all the directions and details you need. I also loved adding little touches here and there that really made the night's ambiance feel like Wonderland. As party favors, I loved these 'Read Me.' postcards from Tiny Prints. Since all our guests were expats, postcards seemed like the perfect favor, too!
 
Discussing and voting on who we think the murderer was and who our awards should go to!
Tallying up the scores! There were several awards to be handed out. Best Costume, Best Actor, Best Improvisor, Best One Liners, Best Actress, Most Realistic, Etc. 
Best  Improvisor: Rabbit
I wish I could write a list of all the winners here, but I forgot! Womp womp wahhh.
Chara came out to play after the party.
Alice in Wonderland Murder Mystery Party 2014!

Want to host your own Alice in Wonderland party? Follow my Alice in Wonderland Pinterest board for some ideas! Also, here's a few, basic (very basic) Printables for you! Just Right Click, Save Image and Print!
 
Can we all just take a moment and 'oo' and 'aaa' over the above printable? I am no graphic designer so the above printable took me ages. You guys, you don't even know! That yellow crown there, well. That's actually a yellow square. And I spent ages putting black triangles in the right places to create the perfect crown. Also, those red hearts. It takes a while to turn them all the right way, the way you want them. Oooos and Aaahhss, ready, go!





 

For all the fun Alice and Wonderland inspiring quotes as printables, just Pinterest it or google search!  There are tons that amazing, graphic designer oriented people have made that will knock your  parties socks off.



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