Kololi Beach Club

... etwas groesseren Stadt landeinwaerts, ging. Im Gegensatz zu seinem Pendant in Banjul war dieses Gerichtsgebaeude recht klein, unscheinbar und gut fuenf Autominuten von der Hauptstrasse entfernt. Die Verhandlungen selber in dieser Woche waren groesstenteils recht emotionslos, bis auf eine Ausnahme am Donnerstag, als ein Mann seine Schulden an einen Freund nicht zurueckzahlen konnte/wollte und man als Loesung per Gerichtsbeschluss seine Moebel verkaufen wollte, bis dieser ...

... ohne alle 30 Meter lesen zu muessen, wie zufrieden Kunden von Comium sind oder wie viele Extras man jetzt fuer eine neue SIM-Karte von Africell bekommt. Dazwischen sieht man noch ab und zu, wie toll die Fluege von Brussels Airlines nach Afrika sind oder wie ueberzeugt der pseudo-demokratisch regierende Praesident ist, Gambia zu einer oekonomischen Supermacht des 21. Jahrhunderts zu machen (natuerlich...). Der Verkehr in den Staedten ist ziemlich dicht, waehrend die ...

... Avocado-Aufstrich mit Tomaten, Zwiebeln und Ei. Das Ganze eiskalt auf einen heissen Wecken - eine aeusserst leckere Kreation. Gestern bin ich dann das erste Mal alleine in Manjai herumgelatscht und hab die Gegend erkundet. Letzten Endes bin ich dann am Internetcafe haengen geblieben, was aber zuerst kaum, und nach 20 Minuten dann gar nicht mehr funktionierte. Hab mich deshalb heute fuer ein offizielles - und zu meiner voelligen Ueberraschung sogar guenstigeres - Internetcafe von ...

... Stadt S**ekunda umgibt, liegt. Dort hatte ich um 19 Uhr dann endlich die Chance, mich auszuruhen und was zu essen. Chris und seine Lebensgefaehrtin Binta waren gleich sehr nett zu mir und zeigten mir mein Haus, was ab** nur spa**rlich eing**ichtet ist: Mattraze, zwei Tische, Kuehlschrank, Bad. In sechs Zimm**n. Troztem alles sehr schick und total saub** - ein gut** Ort zum Hausen. Am Dienstag und Mittwoch v**brachte ich dann die meiste Zeit mit Chris. Er musste einkaufen, sein Auto ...

... the problems with transportation, and got involved in the activities. And thought there was the occasional amused look about some of our strange ideas, like arranging the chairs in a circle instead of a classroom format, the students went along enthusiastically and even participated. It was good, very good, but by the lunch break I was a little frustrated by the way everyone tended to look to Jennie or me for approval, and the way the same couple kids would adopt that practiced ...

... and no guests. As I turned on the pool shower, I noticed one of the attendants turning on the 'real tap' to provide water, mine was a dummy. Headed into Kolda, a large town with a bustling street atmosphere. Lots of market stalls, shack shops, workshops and snack shops. Had the best meal so far, rice and a beef stew, with a drink all for 40p. The Low Sodium diet has not reached Africa yet... and you can taste it! Day 06 ...

... where one person dresses up in a bird-like costume and is supposed to be possessed by a spirit, while the other children bang pots and rocks and sing, making an excited parade down the street. You prefer other activities, however, and if you feel like you have the energy, you'll head down to the football field nearby, find someone with a ball, and get a game together. There is usually a large group of boys who are on the fields each day, even during Ramadan. A much more ...

... their matches to qualify, but we w**e still sitting should**-to-should** on the cement seats of the cramped stadium, a few hundred feet from the sideline in our two dollar seats. It satisfied my ideal of a raw** v**sion of sports than the v**y rich, elite, glam and scandal filled world of sports I tend to see when I look at Am**ican sports. H**e, you could get good seats at a big game for the price of a few Fantas, and so it really did seem like the masses could and did show ...

... foreign exchange students. But we've seen many different parts of Gambian culture, almost all of us are incredibly stimulated by it, and it doesn't seem quite so impossible to imagine us actually living in it. You should probably plan on hearing about our many faux pas, crises, and frustrations, but I'm finishing up this entry on a very positive, excited optimistic note after this past week. One last comment, I'd like to make it clear that we would NOT have survived this week if it hadn't ...

... laughter from the drummers until they decided to take pity on us and turn our miserable embers in to a blaze of glory. There nearly was no fire at all as we'd forgotten to buy any timber and by the time we rocked up at the roadside woodseller's pitch, he'd long departed, leaving his bundles of twigs neatly stacked up ready for the next day's trading. Having decided to take some and leave him the cash, I suddenly hesitated as it struck me that there was something ...