11°46′0″N, 34°21′0″E

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Galib flew in a helicopter to check out a local village, Kurmuk. He has now been there a few times to report on the local conditions and current situation, which changes from day to day.

To put things in perspective, Damazin is located at 11°46′0″N, 34°21′0″E.

Vancouver is located at: 49°15' N 123°6' W.

Galib comments further on his experience:

"The Sudanese are very social people with a great deal of pride. I love driving to work everyday by the villages and by the schools in the city and see the beautiful children, the girls with head coverings and pants and the boys wearing their Sudan football jerseys, and all with very white teeth wave at me and smile. It is truly amazing. The really incredible thing is that through the civil war, the famine, the droughts, the harsh climate and the snakes etc, the people manage to keep their dignity and their pride. For example, each morning while in Khartoum, I would look outside and see many IDP (internally displaced persons) families sleeping on cardboard boxes, sleeping under trucks (gotta look under before you drive off). But when they wake up, the first thing is hygiene and brushing their teeth, cleaning their clothes and living with some dignity although they are incredibly poor. The begging is nothing like other countries including Canada. You know when one asks for money, they truly need it in Sudan and not like some of the able bodied people I see at home (not trying to generalize).

The other thing about the Sudanese is that they are very social. English is spoken in the schools (many set up by NGOs) and taught, but mostly the children are adept at it. Some adults, particularly those in the UN or NGO system speak it and have to for work reasons, but it is minimal. They love to hear you speak Arabic and enjoy it very much. Salaam (hello), Tamam (I am good, or even how are you?). Alhamdulallah (by the grace of god or thanks to god), Mia Mia (100 percent) Many others, but if you try, as in any other country, they really appreciate it.

The social aspect is coffee or a meal in Sudan. Breakfast is at 1030 am and consists of beans cooked in oil, onions (called foule), maybe a liver sandwich cooked with onions, tea with
lots and loads of sugar, or Nescafe with sugar and powdered milk (quite tasty actually). Oh, and for lunch, they have a Sudanese hamburger (I think I have mentioned this before, it is a bun with beef burger, a fried egg on top and onions, much better than goat). They love to have tea in the afternoon and they love to talk.

As for television and the radio, I see the odd tv or satellite dish out there, but not much else. There is some censorship in the country for sure. We have no tv in our home, but power is a big problem as is water supply. So that may be the reason you see Sudanese kids playing soccer (footie) in the evening. Life for children is the same anywhere I think. But the reality of UXO (unexploded ordinances/ mines) during the rainy season is certainly something that is on everyone's mind including the locals.

Some photos of Kurmuk and the villagers now returning back home, a mine field being cleared and my roomates cooking and a tank blown up from the longest war on the African Continent."

Salaam,
gb

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Photos

That's some knife you have there...
I'd rather take on the guy with the spoon

Road in Kurmuk
GB's thumbprint

Bank of Khartoum Cheques
Off-shore bank account