a change in the weather

The weather has most definitely shifted here. Temps are noticeably cooler and the wind is blowing constantly. Sand is everywhere. It's in our shoes, in the house, and in the car. There's a pile of sand in front of our drive that looks like and feels like a dune and makes it hard to back into our parking area. My morning walks are often against the blowing sand. The air is beige, as Matt calls it. This is more like what we expected when we arrived and we are only now entering the truly "dry" season. The temperature change is a relief and finds us reaching for something a little bit warmer to wear in the mornings even though we won't need it by afternoon.

The weather isn't the only shift we're feeling here in Dakar. The presidential elections are coming up at the end of February and there is every expectation that these will not be easy. Just in case anyone is wondering, if it gets too disruptive and/or dangerous, we could be evacuated from the mission. We're prepared to stay or leave if ordered to do so. Time and the situation will dictate. We continue to feel safe here and are maintaining our schedules as usual.

We hosted three Peace Corps volunteers over last weekend. They were wonderful guests and we enjoyed their company tremendously. They had so much to share with us about their experiences in the villages and were ever so grateful for a bed and a hot shower (and we were happy to share). I think the hot coffee was appreciated, too :) -oh, for the love of Starbucks and Amazon.com.

Dakar hosts the West African Invitational Softball Tournament (WAIST) every year and it is a fun weekend full of games both social and competetive. Teams are from a variety of sources, embassies, Peach Corps, NGOs, local schools - whoever wants to play the game. Matt and I watched games on Saturday and again on Sunday and Monday with Carl when he came back from Ghana. The US Embassy team lost to the Senegal team on Monday during the playoffs. Despite losing, it was an excellent game!

"I was trying to think but nothing happens"

As a kid growing up, one of the things I remember, and have always loved were episodes of the 3 Stooges. This timeless comedy was enjoyed by my Dad in the 30s and 40s, by me and my siblings (probably mostly by my brothers) in the 60s and now by Matt, Laurie and I in 2012 in Africa. We do not have regular TV so the DVD becomes especially important.

A couple of years ago, Laurie got me a couple of seasons of the "The 3 Stooges" as a Christmas gift. It was a gift that we have gotten many laughs from over the years. Erik, Heidi and Dani would come down and the Stooges would happen to be on and everyone was dialed in. There is just something very funny about Curley getting hit in the head with a hammer or the mandatory food fight that happens at any gathering of more than 5 people who happen to be in tuxedos. We have added to the collection over the years most recently getting a copy of a full length movie of "The 3 Stooges in Orbit".

I am not sure what the difference is between the Stooges and current comedy or action TV. As a parent, I have never feared that the Stooges might have some negative impact on Matt. It is violent but the violence seems to be so outlandish, even a 10 year old understands that it is not real but extremely funny. I dont know.

Our experience in The Gambia last week illustrates the international appeal and power of the work of Moe, Larry and Curley. We had just completed a 5 hour journey across the grasslands to Barra, Gambia. We stopped there to wait for a ferry to cross the Gambia river to Banjul, our final destination. The problem was that only 2 of the 3 ferrys were running on the Friday afternoon before New Years. It was packed. We arrived Barra at about 1 PM and didn't get on the boat until after 5 PM. We had a wait on our hands.

Matt was sitting in the back of the 4 Runner watching the Stooges on his portable DVD player as we were parked. Funny that we take this piece of equipment for granted these days. Anyway, Barra is a very crowded place and "the shakedown" is very prevalent. That is, everybody asks you for money for something. Everybody. After a while, we had the windows closed and the AC on. Matt's DVD player was drawing a crowd of kids to his window. They were trying to see in the back through the dark glass. I looked back and told Matt that he could just open the window. He did and before long, the magic appeal of the Stooges found its way to West Africa. The Gambia uses English as its primary language but these kids probably spoke more Wolof than English. The howling of children laughing was almost too much. The entire back window of the car was filled with faces who couldnt contain the laughter. Really neat.

I guess that the message is that Matt probably did more to break down walls with this simple action than he will ever know. People remember this foolish slapstick for whatever reason. I hope that one day that these children get to see the Stooges again as adults and remember the white kid who gave them their first exposure to "the boys". I also hope that Matt gets it that sometime the most difficult problems between people can be solved with a little laughter and being brave enough to open the window in a strange land.

Larry , Moe and Curley get it.

The best of days to you. Carl

And a new year begins and we forget to push publish

Over the New Year weekend, we travelled to Banjul, The Gambia. The Gambia is south of us by about 5 hours, give or take a few potholes, overloaded vehicles and wild bands of monkeys (these 5 hours do not, however, include the 4 hour wait for the scary ferry or the lack of road signs on the other side of the river, which led us to being very, very lost in the dark in yet another foreign country - ah yes, adventure). My not so secret mission in Senegal (and now The Gambia) will be to label the roads, you know, like highways and streets, each and every one of them. While I'm at it, I'd like to build some restrooms.

The Gambia is a former British colony, situated at the mouth of the Gambia river, bordered by Senegal and the Atlantic Ocean - the British needed a port in Western Africa and The Gambia was formed. The fact that it is an English speaking country was a bit of a relief and was greatly appreciated.

We stayed at the Kairaba Hotel which was very nice and full of Europeans on holiday. The beaches were clean and the weather was delightful, although a little breezy and cool. We managed some fishing on the Gambia River and Matt caught a frogfish and a red snapper. Sadly for Matt, we had no way to freeze or cook the snapper, so we gave it to the boat captain, Amoro. The frogfish was happily released back into the river. That was one homely fish.

Upon our return to Dakar, we found that the public transportation system was on strike over the high cost of fuel. The strike lasted for two days. In a city of 4 million, the public transport system is very important as the great majority of workers do not have vehicles. Needless to say, the city streets were quiet even with the undertone of unrest. With elections approaching at the end of February, I believe we'll see more public protests.