Hissing

I think I am becoming a little bit Gambian. For two mornings in a row I have hissed at dogs to alert them of my presence and stop them running out in front of my bike. I still can't bring myself to hiss at human beings though!

In other news, I am eating 'mburru bu fanaan' for breakfast, or 'bread which has spent the night'... in other words - a bit stale. It's also a bit gritty, or sandy. What I would give for a bagel, cream cheese and smoked salmon! Ramadan ends after the weekend, and Koriteh will be celebrated. I will be glad to resume normal breakfasts... not that 'normal' will bring me smoked salmon of course! 

Flora and fauna

It's that time of year where the little rain that we have had so far has woken up the plant life, the butterflies, and the weird little flying ants and lacewings. One of the luxuries that I find myself missing (and am surprised that I find myself missing) is having a nice vase of fresh cut flowers in the house, or even just house plants. So, at the moment, as I cycle and walk around I find the colourful plants and trees catching my eye, and I keep having to stop and take photographs. 

I can't always do them justice with my phone camera, but here is a selection of the Gambian plants that are brightening my days at the moment. 

Colourful and unusual flowers: 

Spot the butterflies! There are three in this picture.

Beautiful flowering trees:

Fire trees:
I really can't stop taking pictures of these. They light up the horizon as if they really are on fire. This weekend, while visiting Sandele Eco Lodge, I found a nice description of them to go with my many photos! 

Huge tree:
This tree blows me away, but I can't do it justice in the photos I take and my neighbours are starting to think I am mad trying to get a good angle on it! It's has such a large canopy that it cover the whole of the road - and is really amazing when you stand underneath it and look up. This doesn't show the whole size of it, but it gives you an idea!

You can click on the photos to see larger versions as a slide show. 

Malaria, rain and proposals!

Well, firstly, yes - I had malaria again. Rubbish. Third time now, so I felt it coming and caught it pretty quick. I started feeling a bit odd on Wednesday afternoon (sadly meaning I couldn't make the most of the cake and wine party that I had been extremely excited about!) and almost immediately had a flash of 'this feels like malaria'. So I got tested on Thursday and took the medication straight away. It was worse than the first time but definitely better than the second, and I am fine now. Must be horrible if you are a child, have a weak / low immune system, or if you can't afford the medication. Thankfully I was able to get the tablets, and this time round it was a bit like having a horrible dose of 'proper' flu - definitely not 'man flu'!

One disappointing thing is that I was mostly ill over the weekend and couldn't join in with Ellie's leaving parties with quite as much energy as I wanted to! She has left to take a new job in Sierra Leone, and I will really miss her. She did, however, have a rather special exit from the country! Her Sierra Leonian partner proposed to her during the half time interval of the world cup final - in front of the big screen in Safari Garden, in front of a big crowd of people! Happily she said yes! We had chance to celebrate with her, and now have a wedding in Sierra Leone to look forward to! 

Congratulations and goodbye!

And lastly, we've seen a little bit more rain now - still not loads but hopefully enough to make a difference to the farmers. This morning it poured down, with a force that prevented me from getting to work. But once the rain stopped and the sun came out I set off, the road drying in front of my eyes and the puddles / rivers of water steaming in the heat as I cycled past them!  

Dealing with a flat bicycle tyre in Wolof

Me: Salaam Alaikum. 
Bike man: Malaikum salaam. Nanga def?
Me: Maan fi. Nanga def?
Bike man: Jammarek. Loo buga?
Me: Pompel tutti.
Bike man: Fi?
Me: Waaw, fi. 
Bike man: Bah na. 
Me: Jerejef.

Simple as that. 

(Hello, how are you? I'm here, how are you? I am in peace - what do you want? Pump it a little. Here? Yes here. It's good. Thanks.)