this one’s for you lauren

hey! just thought I would take a moment to give a shout out to my friend lauren. she and i lived in bamako for a good moment: she for a back injury and me for my pending site change. this here is a picture of one of her last nights. (shortly after, :( she got sent home...) we all decided to drag her out of the stage house and go to the, arrrrrrrrh, pirate’s cove bar. we had a blast listening to music, dancing for those physically able, and hanging out.

from left to right my peace corps gals: grace, kelly, reneen (top), bertha (bottom), jocelyn, desiree (top), lauren (bottom) and yours truly.

let me quickly comment on the appropriateness of the bar’s name. the pirate’s cove? what? if you hadn’t looked at a world atlas lately, you’ll see that mali is very much a land-locked country and is flanked on all sides by guinea, senegal, mauritania, algeria, niger, burkina faso, and ivory coast. it’s not a very pirate friendly place here in the sahel, arrrrrrrrrrh. maybe there are pirates on the river niger? i guess i hadn’t thought about that.

the patio and the interior design would make very few to believe it was a cove for pirates, arrrrrrrrh. there are many hand-made artisan statues and original wood carvings, in the shape of river niger pirogues, or canoes, masks, statues, all malian in style. the closest thing that would make anyone to believe that you were in the wharf are the 5 pirogue-table-booths to sit at with your drink outside on the patio and the presence of a skeleton and fishing net above the bar.

now don’t get me wrong, aarrrrrrrh. i think it's the best named bar in the world! it's ironic, get it? who would have thought of naming a baaaaarrrrrrrrrh in mali the pirate’s cove? plus, I think the pirate’s cove is one of the best bamakois bars that makes you feel like you’ve entered a clean and decent bar but with the décor of not having left the sahel. i love it arrrrrrrh.

aaarrrrrrrrrrh one last time.

read-what-i-have-read-booklist!
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: JK Rowling. yes, i have finally gotten my grubby little mitts on book six. i had to wait almost 3 months, but whew, just in time. loved it.
He’s Just Not That Into You: Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo. from the writers of Sex and the City, these two yahoos take one episode of SATC and make it into a self-help guide for single women. it’s funny and bad and annoying all at the same time. and maybe they’re right, maybe he just isn’t that into me after all?

peace. chance.

ps. don't get me wrong here. once in a while, i go and have a beer. yes, it's true. sometimes i can't pass up a two dollar beer and friends. strange, i thought i was moving to a really strict muslim country and wouldn't be able to get a single beer. guess i was wrong.

and here is ramadan.

the new moon was on monday, and ramadan was officially called at 12 a.m. tuesday morning. it came as a surprise to many since the announcement came in the middle of the night. this annual (or about every 11 and a half months) religious event will last until the next official sighting of the new moon, or around 2 november 2005. after that, there will be around 3 days of partying, wearing of new clothes, and going to friends’, families’, and neighbors’ houses to give benedictions or blessings.

what do people do during ramadan in mali? well, the devout get up really, really early in the morning, well before sunrise to eat a lot of food and drink lots of water and coffee. they cram it all in because once the sun rises, they cannot eat or drink anything until around 6:30 p.m. and then once they can break their fast, they usually eat really sugary foods and drinks to jump-start their bellies, like moni (a grain-based cereal), furu-furu (fried dough ball) and really sweet, yet weak coffee. that’s followed-up by a huge meal.

imagine harvest time, plus mini-hot season, plus ramadan. o ka guelen de! it’s really hard.

who fasts during ramadan? moreso, who doesn’t fast during ramadan? young children, the sick, the traveling, women on their menses. in the families i have seen here, even breast-feeding mothers and children as young as 6 are fasting. that’s hard-core and totally 100 percent respectable.

i have been personally torn as to whether i am going to fast with my malian neighbors and truly incorporate this event into my own life. this past week, i have been traveling a lot and have been exempt from fasting but have had lots of time to think about it. here is my official statement: i know i could do it, but i also recognize that i am not muslim. i do not necessarily believe in fasting for religious reasons, health reasons or otherwise. in this particular context, i respect people for carrying out their devotion so intensely to place that devotion above their physical needs.

i just want to give you all something to think about... and i will leave it at that.

read-what-i-have-read-book-list!
Nine Stories: JD Salinger. Good post-ww2 lit.
Franny and Zooey: JD Salinger. Excellent character reflection between brother and sister.

peace. chance.

malian pony express is back and so am i

strikes rule because they can either take forever and mess with everyone's lives, or it can last a mere business day and have little noticeable effect on the population at large.

the malian postal service strike is over and, yes, it took less than a business day for them to get what they wanted. yeah.

so, to more personal matters, i will be moving this week to my new site in kangaba. you all that ought to know, my address that i have given out remains the same. and now that the strike is over, i am expecting to see my mail man traore this week with maybe a letter or two waiting for me...

i will let you all know what is up down in kaba very soon. love to all.

peace. chance.