March 26, 2007

A day off for the busy Beaver

Yesterday was a long day. I took the day off and went with my Peace Corps friends to visit Djenne, where one can see a traditional mosque, which is both a part of the world’s historical heritage and the world’s largest mud structure (see the above header?).

We sat under a straw hut and had drinks with other Peace Corps girls, talked about Mali, and the world, and relationships. It was a good day, but I am exhausted.

I have been procrastinating for the last 2 days my work on the Mali report. This is my chance to shine, and I am about to blow it if I don’t do something soon. I guess I was a bit over ambitious – I also think the stifling heat and my overall fatigue are getting in the way. Hopefully, my boss’ arrival this evening will put a bit of pressure on and I will be ready to give him stuff by working overnight and stuff.

I’ve taken here the habit of wearing my hair up in a loose turban. It has several advantages: it hides my hair (which is somewhat gross at the moment since I ran out of shampoo), shields it from the dust and protects my head from the sun. It also makes me look like a hippy, not a negligible asset if you ask me.

Koporona (Dogon Country) 70

This stay in Mali has many of the qualities of my Senegal experience (the hippy friends, the friendly locals, the scant accommodations) but none of its bad sides (I have money, a nice landlord and no boss.) The difficulties in managing communications are the main problem for me. If I had reasonable internet access and if phones worked, this could be heaven for me. Oh yeah – if I wasn’t procrastinating, also.

The Beaver

My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way

2 comments:

007 in Africa said...

Sounds like fun sweety! Enjoy the Senegal-like experience on my behalf!

Saur said...

Sounds like you're having such wonderful experiences. Enjoy them while you can, and while you're young. ;o) And I like the hair in the turban idea. One thought: When you're out of shampoo, you can "wash" your hair by rubbing cornmeal in at the scalp and then processing it through the hair. Then shake your hair out and comb it. It's a good substitute in a pinch.