Grand Hotel De Bamako

We have attached sev**al short clips from our 2 weeks in Mali. The children from the dozens of villages we visted w**e amazing-so sweet, loving and appreciative of the little time we spent with them and our simple gifts. The level of excitement for pencils was unreal and humbling.

One major takeaway from our visit is the the mantra of 'zip it, get it done, and no complaining'. We have a whole new respect for what hard work means particularly in challenging circumstances ...

... experience. 

For a place that is so desperately poor, Bamako had surprisingly a lot on offer in terms of great restaurants, cheap food, great music and a vibrant night life. The city's locals love to dress up and have a good time. Be warned - you will feel a tad out of place in jeans and a nice top if you go to any of the city's night spots. Women and men, strut around in long flowing dresses and full suits, without breaking into a sweat, even as temperatures hit ...

An unbelievably tasty breakfast of omelets, tomatoes, mangoes, papayas (first fresh fruits and vegetables in two weeks!), bread and coffee, sitting in a open air courtyard overlooking a beautiful sandstone escarpment.... It feels surreal. Am I really in Mali?  Can this be the fourth poorest country in the world? Last night, we landed in Bamako's airport and were welcomed by a warm 34 degree breeze, a swarm of people and general scenes of airport ...

... from the locals w**e a highlight. I didn't both** putting up a tent on the shore, so each morning I awoke on the top of the boat to stunning sunrises ov** the tranquil riv**. The repetitive meals of couscous/rice/pasta with a tomato sauce did send a few nutty, but ov**all the journey was fun, more so than the 30 minutes of hell when 30+ people w**e sardine into a van for a dark, bumpy, dusty ride into Timbuktu from the riv**.

Timbuktu was und** a haze of sand ...

... tobobou" means white person and the kids shout it to get your attention, then they flash you the BIGGEST grin you have ever seen. I have already eyed off a couple I want to bring home with me, they are all so gorgeous. Having said that at the rate of marriage proposals I am getting I may not be home anytime soon. Day one I was in the office of a training development scheme manager with Therese who I am staying with (she runs a language school) and he offered me his ...

Hey folks! Sully is back in Bamako after being on tour with a musical troupe for a couple of days. He said it was incredible. The tour bus was so old you could see the road through the cracks in the rusted floor! Today he is visiting a friend of mine from my peace corps days. He begins his flight home at midnight tonight. I'm sure that he will give everyone a full update when he arrives home Saturday at noon (yippee!) Laura

With a few sore heads and the confusion at wearing diff**ent peoples clothing, the camp slowly comes to life. Thankfully we're granted with a sleep in and don't have to leave until 9, excellent, especially as I'm on cook group. The yellow tent of doom echoed with cries of horror again last night.... we're trying to work out what sets if off as apparently this is the first... or rath** second time it's ev** happened. It's anoth** long drive day to Bamako and ...

... cooking and cleaning to join in properly! Mum Kate was getting quite drunk so we put on her favourite song - Pour Some Sugar on Me - and she gave us a wee dance on the table. Nice one Kate! After that Jim got pulled up on the table, followed by Teresa, Sarah and Martin - who did his best to run away but was eventually caught. Two more drinking games followed - the Roxanne song where boys have to drink when it says turn your light on ...

... rendus en visite, du plus méconnu jusqu'au plus renommé, notamment le grand Manu Chao. Ras Kalonji, on se capte mon frère. Epa eu gostaria muito de partilhar convosco a maneira como conheci este Ras, mas é pura e simplesmente comprida demais para me dedicar a esse exercicio, sobretudo com o tempo contado que tenho no computador, reduzido ainda mais pela minha mania de traduzir isto em 50 linguas diferentes e com comentarios nas fotos... contentem-se com o que se pode arranjar ...

Fr : Voilà mon état au bout de 17 jours sur la route. Plusieurs lavages superficiels et une seule VRAIE douche. Je dois faire quelque chose vite, mais pas aujourd'hui, j'ai été envahi par l'esprit du « laisse tomber », dû à la fatigue du ...