After the awful bus from Cotonou dropped me off in Fada, I met up with PCVs Beth and Aisha. We happened to be in Fada on the night of a Floby concert, what luck! (Floby is a popular Burkinabe singer.) The next morning we joined PCV Courtney on a bus to Niamey. There was a big fiasco in which the bus company sold us tickets and then didn’t want to let us get on the bus, but we managed to get some spots standing in the aisle. It was about an eight hour trip including a long stop at the border. [View Full Entry]

---

---

One of the things I love about West Africa...It is not very clear due to the fact that both of us were in moving vehicles, but I just get a kick out of the ladies dressed to the max zooming about on motos and scooters...no helmet, purse slung over the arm, bags and shopping stuffed onto the front. This one was a 'minimum baggage' you notice; she doesn't have three kids and a goat on the moto with her! The record on this trip was a dad, mom and three kids on one motorcycle but unfortunately I wasn't fast enough with [View Full Entry]

---

---

I was just in Niger for 10 days conducting a workshop for Imams and Pastors to equip them to discuss HIV and AIDS in their congregations and communities. It went very well - thanks for asking! All of the translations were exhausting, but other than that it was a great experience. It is nice to be in a forum where we can discuss our similarities and not focus on our differences! The group was very motivated and all but one participant turned in a follow up plan of action so that was great! I did have a chance to get with [View Full Entry]

---

---

February 25, 2008 Goodbye Niger It is our last day here in Niamey, Niger. We work for the morning and I complete the pedology map and copy maps we have worked on over the past few days to Amadou’s computer. We go to lunch at the Italian restaurant. There is a special lunch menu that you can choose between two options for each appetizer, main course, and dessert, for the cost of 7000 cifa’s. We are given a pen to mark our choices, and I have the tomato basil salad, the spinach ricotta ravioli and vanilla ice cream for dessert. It [View Full Entry]

---

---

February 23, 2008 The Project at Gounday Happy Birthday Chris. Well, not a traditional birthday in any way for my dear husband. The only indication it is his birthday are the cards for him from the kids and a birthday e-mail. I wish him a happy birthday, we eat breakfast, and then we head out. We are off this morning to another project, also located at the Burkina Faso border, but more west of Niamey, north of the previous project. The route today is the highway heading west and eventually a ferry crossing to continue along the highway. The road is [View Full Entry]

---

---

February 24, 2008 We wake up around 6:30, pack up the bedding we had brought in, and are ready to go around 7. We are the first ones up, so head outside into the cooler air. The temperature outside is wonderful. Lots of interesting sounds around the village, animals (chickens, roosters), a few vehicles, people. There is a smoky haze in the air, smoke from cooking fires and fires for heat. We find the temperature quite nice, but most people consider it to be cold (have seen many sweaters, big winter jackets on people in the morning). By 7:30, the group [View Full Entry]

---

---

February 21, 2008 Wow, what a day, it has been a full and exciting one! We had our usual breakfast, prepared to leave, then headed to the lawyers office on the way out of town. She is a neat lady, very dynamic. From there, we headed to our project at Koutouggou. Our route was the one bridge over the Niger River, south towards Burkina Faso. The highway portion of our route was paved and in excellent shape. We followed this until the village of Torodi, where we turned between two buildings, into what looked like an alley, but actually the laterite [View Full Entry]

---

---

February 20, 2008 Windy Woke up to hearing the wind howling around the building. It was so dusty this morning with the strong winds. The sun was extremely dim in the sky, looking more like a moon. The sand literally swirled on the street in front of us as we drove to our meeting. It looked the fine snow that can swirl around on top of a road in winter, such a neat site. It actually felt a little cool this morning, by lunch, it was quite warm . After the meeting, we came back for a few hours of work [View Full Entry]

---

---

February 19, 2008 Today has been an office day to start. Chris, Amadou and myself have been discussing our projects and looking at some of the data I have. We went for lunch at the Grand Hotel. It is a very nice hotel, and apparently quite popular (hard to get into). The route there took us past a huge stadium. On the way back, to my delight and surprise, I saw a camel with a large load on its back. What an unusual site. Then 2 minutes later, saw another one. There is a lot of dust in the air. It [View Full Entry]

---

---

February 18, 2008 Another day, another airline. This evening we flew Air Senegal from Bamako, Mali to Niamey, Niger. This is a new airline for me to travel on and it was a good flight. At the airport, we had to go through a passport check, then a health check (making sure immunizations were up to date), then pick up our bags and finally a baggage claim check. It took a bit of time, but it was relatively smooth. Once we got past the first two checks, Amadou was there to meet us. This is my first time meeting Amadou. He [View Full Entry]

---

---