Gambian Arrival

I arrived here in The Gambia Sunday night.  The travel, though long (over 24 hours) wasn’t actually too bad.  Mohammed, our program facilitator/guide picked us up from the airport and so kindly brought us back to our new home.  Our home is big and airy- the floors are cool and there are lots of windows which remain open (but with screens to keep the mosquitoes out.)   We met Mohammed’s wife Haddy and her sister Sainabou, both of whom also live with us in the house and help prepare meals/clean.   We had some soup (ramen noodles-esque) and bread for dinner. 

Today, we had some time to explore.  One of my fellow students, Gavin, has already been here for a week so he was able to show us around.  After a FANTASTIC breakfast of oatmeal (but really, the best oatmeal I’ve ever had) we went to change money down the street.   We perused our neighborhood further until we got a call from Mohammed telling us to meet him for lunch at the beach.  The walk down to the beach—wow.  For you NH’ers, picture a ton of people walking up and down route 4 while normal traffic rolls through (for Susquehannies, think Route 15 North towards Lewisburg.)  Somehow it works- cars just fly by as people (and dogs, cats and goats) walk along the side of the road.  We arrived at the beach just in time for lunch.  We ordered sandwiches and drinks and were in much better spirits once fed.  We ate directly on the water which was a pretty blue-green color.  The beach was practically deserted except for an occasional bumster and a few tourists.  After a walk up and down the beach with our feet in the sand, a few of us approached a drum circle.  We listened to them play for a bit, until we decided to head back to Mohammed and our professor, who were still chatting away at the restaurant.  During our return trek, we took a quick detour to the National Stadium, where I will probably be getting a membership this week so I can run on the track and take aerobics classes.  The national stadium is about the size of a college football stadium.  It seems Gambians train there frequently, so I am looking forward to (hopefully) meeting some other runners.  The best thing so far- the unbelievable color.  The women wear elaborate dresses or matching long sleeved shirts and floor length skirts often with a head dress.  I am looking forward to donning one outfit of my own.  Also, the kids.  They yell “Hi toubab” when we walk by and wave enthusiastically.  Children roam the streets unaccompanied (It seems as soon as they can walk and talk) so they walk right up to visitors like my group.    Photos next time!