twikga stories about life, travels and other passions
What you love is what you cherish. We believe that opening your hart to the small wonders of life will make you appreciate what you have and passionate about preserving the world around you. Sadly, in times of climate change the urgency of wildlife conservation is brought right to our doorsteps. We realize how privileged we are to travel the world and hope that by sharing our pictures with a broader audience, through our websites, exhibitions and social media, that we may contribute to the protection of the places we were fortunate enough to visit over the years…
Desert Rhino camp – rocky deserts and ancient beasts
We just returned from a great trip to Namibia. Our first stop was Desert Rhino Camp in Damaraland, where they have the largest free-ranging population of black rhino in Africa. The rhinos are well protected due to a unique conservation approach where the local community plays an important role, together with Save the Rhino Trust and the government. We hope that this model will be able to...
Boeken en Buon Appetito in Bologna
Meer als vijf jaar geleden bezochten we voor het eerst de Childrens Book Fair in Bologna. Bologna was een culinaire ontdekking voor ons en ook dit jaar wisten we weer ware pareltjes te vinden. Huisgemaakte raviolis met sali bij Trattoria Anna Maria, groene asperges bij Il Cesare en de klassieke tortellini in 'brodo' in het 'gouden' kabinet. Het maken van verse pasta is hier tot een kunst...
Winter in Hamburg
Der Hamburger Winter kann lang und eisig sein. Gefühlstemperaturen von -20 Grad sind keine Ausnahme. Menschen mummeln sich ein und wenn möglich die Wärme drinnen. Die Schiffe auf der Elbe suchen ihren Weg zwischen den Eisschollen die sich immer höher auftürmen entlang den Elbstränden. The pictures below were taken with the Hipstamatic app on my phone. The app uses software filters to make the...
Happy Birthday to Duvel the publisher’s dog!
"Happy Birthday Duvel, five years as a publisher's dog, quite an achievement old chap. Oh, Oh, don't give me that look! Come on Duvel, I know you think, we are a nuisance, but it is your Birthday. We will be really nice today, I promise. We will not steal the bosses cookies, mess up her office or dig through the rubbish for goodies. We will even leave your precious sticks alone, ok? Look at that...
Gefühlstemperatur in Hamburg -20 Grad Celsius
Der lang erwartete, nicht ersehnte Winter ist da. Zu Weihnachten blühten unsere Geranien noch. Bei Nacht und Nebel haben wir diese Woche schnell noch unsere Kamelien eingepackt. Jetzt ist er da. Gefühlstemperatur -20 Grad Celsius. Uns war lange nicht so kalt. Wir sind nicht mehr gewöhnt an Minusgrade. Die letzten Winter waren kälter, kamen aber nicht so plötzlich. Sogar die Elbe war überrascht....
Here comes the rain again for the 3irds
"Duvel, this is rain, not snow! We want the white fluffy stuff. Apparently you don't mind getting wet. We do. Can we please go back inside?" "Noisy bird, stop complaining. I got you the bosses umbrella and those boots should keep your feet dry. I am not done marking my territory. Maybe the winter will come after all. Then you can complain about too much snow and being cold. So for now, here...
Wishing you FROHE KERST HAPPY 2014
Yet another year with a lot of exciting projects is about to end. Phanhabs Savanna, twikga's third book, was published in spring. In summer the Wild Picha site was launched, showing the pictures behind the twikga books. Willem and Tanja Dekker opened their first photo-exibition in september. Meanwhile Elisabeth Visser and Tanja Dekker are working on the new Tata&Squack adventure, which will...
Neugierig bin ich gar nicht
Mir entgeht nichts und wenn was abgeht habe ich meine Hundenase dazwischen. An mir kommt keiner vorbei ohne begrüßt zu werden. Wenn es an der Tür klingelt stürzte ich mich die Treppe hinunter, bevor Frauchen sagen kann, daß ich in meinem Körbchen bleiben soll. Dort bleibe ich sowieso nur, wenn es mir passt. Ich schlafe zwar gern und viel, aber mich mit den Zweibeinern beschäftigen macht mehr...
The balance between wildlife conservation and cattle grazing
Walking through the African landscape during our last safari, we come across a colorful group of Masai with their cattle. However picturesque this scene is, it also demonstrates the balancing act between wildlife conservation and cattle grazing. Traditionally cattle is very important to the Masai. Apart from supplying milk and meat, the animals reflect their wealth and status in the community....
Fly camping brings you even closer to the wilderness
Around a big safari camp there is always a lot of activity, like generators, cars, people, so animals tend to stay away. Therefore we love to go fly camping. A small camp brings you even closer to the wilderness. It is great to stand under a bucket shower in the middle of nowhere. Evenings are spent around the campfire, where marvelous bush dinners are being prepared. At night you sleep in a...
