East Jebel Marra | Southern Darfur

The mountainous region of Jebel Marra, locally referred to as a "liberated area", is the traditional homeland of the rebel insurgency which kick-started the war in Darfur. Almost entirely surrounded by enemy militias, the people here, known as the Fur tribe, are completely dependent on outside aid for survival.

The Future for Darfur?

Humans | Nature | Rumbek

Thank You Womankind

No matter where I travel to, I'm always astonished by how hard-working the women are. In Sudan, this reality could not be more obvious. It's no wonder the dowry here is somewhere around 7 cows. (Evidently this = $7000 US dollars!!) How the average man comes up with that amount I haven't a clue, but it makes complete sense, because in many ways it seems the women are what holds it all together. Fetching water, cooking, cleaning, taking care of the children, carrying insane loads of everything imaginable on top of their heads for miles through the blistering heat with no shoes on...I could continue but I think my point is clear. To be fair, I'm sure the men do their part, but I wonder if the women would agree? Anyway, I believe there are some very universal truths to be found in these images.

Easter and ReBirth

The Episcopal Church in Rumbek celebrates Easter Week and a few very significant church re-openings.

The River Nile

In the Upper Nile region, outside the port-town of Malakal, the White Nile river forms a boundary between the Shilook kingdom and the Jonglei State. In the not-so-distant-past the river also formed a geographic battle line between government-backed militias and the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA). Our boat captain Joseph spoke of when he was a boy growing up along these banks and "the river flowed with bodies". Apparently the militias would cross over to raid villages, indiscriminately kill innocent people and toss the bodies into the river. But today this river represents hope. Those like Joseph, who fled as young children, are now returning in great number to re-settle along the fertile banks. They are planting crops, grazing animals and re-starting their communities from scratch.

Signs of Life

This is the White Nile, where we saw an assortment of beautiful birds, but missed the crocs & hippos. Despite, or perhaps as a direct result of 30 years of civil war, Sudan is home to a vast array of wildlife. Not only is it Africa's largest country, but Sudan is also home to the world's largest swamp, the Sudd. Evidently it's not only refugees who are returning; elephant herds have recently been spotted, and other reports indicate one of the largest animal migrations on earth is currently taking place in Sudan. For more please check out this article, and this one. It is fascinating! Lot's of folks have asked about the above picture, so here's an explanation: We were floating down the Nile when I saw huge smoke clouds (from a brush fire I imagine) billowing up into the sky. Simultaneously, the late afternoon sun was shining from behind me, illuminating the river bank with a warm glow and creating a strong contrast to the dark clouds in the distance. This is one of my favorite lighting scenarios which is actually found naturally when storm clouds gather in one direction as afternoon sun shines from the opposite. I was happily snapping as we floated, when along came this monster tree with its gnarly roots exposed.

Ayod

This was a first for me...
We got dropped on a muddy runway in the bush, outside a "town" called Ayod. All we had for details was the name of a local pastor whom we had no such luck finding. After an hour of being circled by local children and thoroughly inspected as if we were aliens from Mars, we make a discovery: someone knows the person we are looking for, whom it turns out is "out of town" and was not expecting us until tomorrow. Thankfully, before I pitched a tent on the runway, they led us to their compound just as the night closed in.

Where in the World is Waat?

There are very few places I've visited that have felt as remote as Waat. We flew for two hours over apparent nothingness before landing on a dirt strip in the middle of it. But surprisingly, there was quite a bit to see. The beautiful tundra beckoned me and the people encountered were warm and mutually curious.

A City of Dreams

Dreams of peace, equality and freedom of religion.
Sound Familiar?Juba, the official capitol of South Sudan, is a dusty, bustling boom-town along the White Nile. With relative peace now holding, every NGO in the world is racing to set up shop here. People are flooding in from all over South Sudan & beyond looking for work. At dinner, my server told me that he just got off a 3 day bus ride from coastal Kenya to find his job. But less than a decade ago Juba was little more than a garrison town. It lacks the facilities and infrastructure to handle the influx, which makes it quite an un-appealing place to be. Nevertheless, it is supposedly the 2nd most expensive place to live in the world. Rooms go for $6000 a month. The "motel" we stayed at gets its' water straight out of the Nile river and the place smells of sewage, but its' still considered cheap at $185 a night. We didn't get out much, just attended a few government meetings where I learned a lot. Which brings me to the political situation, a fascinating topic that I will delay discussing for now.

Never Met a Gangster I Liked... Until Today

At the Airstrip.....waiting.

A great majority of my time in the field is spent waiting around for transportation. Surprisingly, this is also where I find some very interesting pictures...

David Johnson is a photographer whom I will be traveling with for a couple of days in South Sudan. David runs a non-profit photography organization called www.SilentImages.org for which he travels around the world photographing the work of various NGO's. He recently published a book of images from Darfur called Voices of Sudan. Check it out.

The Nuba Mountains

The Nuba Mountains region of central Sudan is experiencing the first sizable stretch of peace in over 20 years. It is a strikingly beautiful place where the remnants of a war-torn past blend precariously with a cautious hope for the future. Plus, the mountains are calling my name. They are taunting me to guess weather or not anyone has ever climbed their rock faces before.

Nuba Take Two

Bahr al-Gazhal

Western Bar al-Ghazal province is situated just below the contested North-South boundary and Southern Darfur where fighting is currently taking place. We came to visit some of the many people who have fled the fighting in Darfur and are now living in displacement camps here. Many people who fled Darfur in recent years originally escaped from the first war in the south.

Flying In

Due to mechanical problems with our aircraft, (2 of our generators went out, whatever that means) we must overnight in Lokkichokio, a rather beautiful airstrip on the northern Kenya border. Then at dawn the next morning, we charter a new plane & lift off into Southern Sudan.