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Published: March 8th 2008
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Awaiting the ferry to Djenne
I took this photo while waiting for a ferry. I was getting a ride on a moto to a town called Djenne. It's made completely of mud (like many villages in Mali) but also has the largest mud structure in the world, a large mosque. I didn't take any photos because it was pouring rain the entire next day when I explored the town. Here's a link if you want to see a picture of it and read some info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Mosque_of_Djenn%C3%A9 Haby Sy accompanied me to the airport; we promised to email, thought my written French is, well, really really bad. Good thing for google translation. I flew Dakar to Bamako and realized when I landed that I was alone in Africa and had very limited French-speaking skills. Additionally, April planned the journey and I didn't even have a rough itinerary. Oh la la. Yes, I met some French people and they TOTALLY use that phrase. Not, oh la la like ow ow but oh la la like ugg, that was tiring or a pain. Get it?
Upon arrival at the Bamako airport, I was met by a local family. A friend from college said her host family from back in 2005 would LOVE to have me stay with them in Bamako. In West Africa, I was continuously surprised by the way guests are treated. Yes, this family in Bamako was well off and didn't mind having me stay there and feed me but they didn't even know me! The families in Senegal knew me as the friend of the white girl who lived with their relatives in Mauritania but still. And upon leaving these families (who were not at all
Live Music in Bamako
I was the only one in the bar who didn't know ALL the words. The singer was covering songs from THE most famous West African singer. rich), I would buy the food to make a special lunch or bring a small gift and be sent off with an armload of gifts in return. Having a guest is seen as an honor more than the burden we treat it in the USA. A family or friend would NEVER stay in a hotel but it's considered polite in the USA. This was completely foreign and refreshing. The idea is, wow, look how well I can support this whole family and guests too. Also, the people seemed completely content that I had traveled so far just to visit them and learn about their culture. I felt at no time that they wanted something from me. This feeling was not constant throughout my trip but was quite refreshing.
In Bamako, I was able to hang out with a 2007 Carleton Grad and fellow Bio major, who was working at a start-up public health NGO. During this whole trip, I was able to get a feel for the life of an international public health worker, through my own experiences and conversations with others. While hanging out with Elizabeth and her friends I met some really nice Malian people my age
Pays Dogon made me learn French
I split the cost of a guided 5 day tour of this beautiful region with a French couple. The guide didn't speak English. The French girl spoke some, but we ended up speaking in Spanish the whole time. She tutored me in French via Spanish the entire trip! Thanks Julie. who agreed to take me out to see live music that night. I was the only white girl in a crowded room full of people singing along to Salif Keita covers (only the most famous West African artist EVER). It was awesome.
In Mali, I did somewhat of a tourist circuit. I saw the largest mud structure in the world! I ran into many hearty off-road European tourists, especially French, and had an amazing 5 day hiking adventure with two Frenchies and a Guide in Pays Dogon. The region is beautiful and the culture of the Dogan people very interesting. The region is very popular for tourists in West Africa and the local children are accustomed to hoards of people hiking through their villages. I found this part-difficult, as I didn't and wouldn't have brought and handed out the candies or pencils they incessantly asked for. Additionally, most of the authentic carved doors and window on the houses have been sold to tourists and replaced with plain ones. I found this sad. Our guide was Dogon but currently in University in Bamako. He was telling us about the efforts to develop more sustainable tourism in the area where the
Pays Dogon = Beautiful
These pictures do not do the region justice. From the HUGE cliff, the plains of southeastern Mali extend into Burkina Faso and appear unending. The rock edge has ancient pygmy houses carved high up the cliff. The Dogons use ropes to hoist their dead up the cliff, using them as graves. revenues would be used in a responsible way in the communities.
I was feeling a little strange traveling alone as I had not planned to, but had an amazing conversation with the British owner of a guesthouse who eventually convinced me it was the best way to travel and to really make the most of it. She did it in the 1970s! It was the perfect time to run into someone like her for a lil' pep talk.
I traveled soooooo many hours in many questionable vehicles crammed with people. On one trip across all of southern Mali, I opted to take a bus (as it would be more than 8 hours). There weren't assigned seats so I grabbed a window seat and waited to see who my neighbor would be. While traveling alone in Africa, and also on buses in Guatemala, I was thoughtful in choosing my seatmates if possible. It is often a choice between a could be creepy (and stare or try to cop a feel) or could be stinky boy, or a HUGE african mama (and one or more children). So, on this bus in Mali, I decided between sitting next to an attractive, but could be stinky could be creepy, soldier man for 8 hours or taking the window seat and an unknown neighbor. I chose the latter. A small teenage girl sat next to me. Whew. Then a HUUUUUGE woman came lumbering down the aisle. Whew, I thought to myself. THEN, she chatted with the girl, who was I guess her daughter, and they changed places, the small girl off to to sit with the soldier. THEN a baby was placed upon her gut. For eight hours, I had full side-body sweaty contact with my seatmate and a big baby chilling along with us. I tried to explain to many people the concept of leaving a few cm between your legs and your seatmates. That concept doesn't exist in public transit in developing countries. When it's 5 in a row (in a van) it's usually impossible to have all the shoulders fit side by side. The one lean forward, one lean back, etc. technique is employed and positions rotated throughout the journey. It's like that limo to the prom (or New Years 2006 in Mpls.) except for hours and hours and hours!
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