Over the past 3 weeks, it looks like MTTW has been “business as usual” with a post every day.  In reality, I have been off on the birding adventure of a lifetime in West Papua, Indonesia!  I prepared 3 weeks of posts in advance and scheduled one everyday as I didn’t want the blog to look like no one is home and also for my personal home security I don’t like to publish online that I will be away from home.  Now that I’m back, I am planning a whole series on West Papua and how to organize a birding trip there.  It’s without a doubt the most difficult and physically demanding trip I have ever been on and one I wish I had done when I was much younger and more physically fit but you can’t turn back the hands of time and no one gets younger!  What makes birding in West Papua so rewarding is the beauty and uniqueness of the birds such as the Birds of Paradise and the Parrots…………and that the guides are so highly skilled at finding them.  These skills come from their roots as bird trappers and poachers so thankfully they have seen the value in keeping their native birds wild and free and earning an honest living helping eco-tourists to see them in the wild.

I am still pretty worn out and came home with the flu so for now I will just outline the chapters in this series which will be forthcoming over the next few days.

1.  Preparing for a trip to West Papua, Indonesia

2.  Getting to West Papua using miles and getting around

3.  Birding in Biak

4.  Birding in Nimbokrang

5.  Birding in the Arfak Mountains

6.  Birding in Raja Ampat – Waigeo Island and Sorong

7.  Bali for Birders

8.  Shopping in Indonesia – Bird Related Souvenirs

9.  Review Sriwijaya Airlines Business Class

10.  Bird Species Profiles (various species we saw, will be interspersed with the above)