Balmoral Apartments Kololi

... wu**de ich sagen, dass etwa die Haelfte d** Menschen, denen ich hi** mittl**weile begegnet bin, keine gebu**tigen Gambian** sind. Stattdessen hi** massig Leute aus *****ia rum, was zwei Gruende hat: Erstens ist *****ia - das Land mit d** groessten Population Afrikas - hoffnungslos ueb**bevoelk**t und die meisten Leute dort v**suchen einfach nur, woand**s in d** Region Arbeit zu finden, und zweitens kommen viele Eliten aus diesem Land, was die Regi ...

... am Atlantik und kaum groesser als Geislingen. Trotzdem finden sich hier alle grossen Ministerien und die meisten Botschaften, dazu noch allerhand anderer Verwaltung. Amtssprache des Landes ist Englisch, wobei es daneben etwa ein Dutzend einheimischer Sprachen gibt. Eigentlich habe ich mir gedacht, dass mein Englisch nach meiner Zeit in Afrika nochmal eine Stufe besser sein wird, doch schon nach einigen Tagen habe ich den Eindruck gewonnen, dass wohl eher das Gegenteil ...

... Street"... Allem Anschein nach war sein Daddy eine grosse Nummer bei der Unabhaengigkeit des Landes in den Sechzigern, denn nach deren Persoenlichkeiten sind die Strassen der Hauptstadt benannt. Der Herr kommt also aus beruehmtem Hause. Anyway, ich jedenfalls werde jetzt noch nach Bakau gehen und mir im landesweit bekannten Buchladen "Timbooktu" einen neuen Schmoeker besorgen und dann meinen verlaengerten Feierabend geniessen. Weitere Updates folgen am Wochenende. Brisko

... zu lassen. Bei mir war alles einwandfrei, bei Asienne nicht... Sie hatte eine Ladung Kondome dabei, im Grunde nicht and**s als die meisten Leute in Deutschland, Europa und dem Rest d** westlichen Welt auch, doch so wies aussieht, gefaellt das d** Polizei in Gambia nicht. Er v**mutete, dass sie eine Prostitui**te sei und in Gambia anschaffen wolle. Das Dumme dabei war dazu noch, dass ** kaum Franzoesisch sprach und ich fu** ihn ueb**setzen sollte. ICH!!! Also tat ich mein Bestes ...

... to run to a store for a last minute errand, expect everything to go wrong just as quickly. The fact that the day of our event was at 1:30 on a sort of national cleaning holiday, called Setsital, where the whole country shuts down and people stay inside until 1pm added plenty of difficulties for us. To account for these things we didn't have activities actually starting until 2pm on the schedule. This schedule became little more than a rough suggestion when the CPA representative didn't ...

... looking house on the outskirts and enquired about staying at the local school, with a promise of a donation for books. I compound elder was consulted and I was invited to stay with the family. I got washed and changed and join them for food. A giant bowl of rice with ground nut source and fish. Delicious and filling. I then distributed some toys to the kids.. bouncy ball that flashed when bounced and glow sticks. The ...

... societies, the focus tends to fall more on women. As a girl, if you want to wear more traditional clothes, you can choose from a brilliant assortment of different colors, usually the brighter the better. Your skirt, top, head scarf, veil, bracelets and shawls give you the opportunity for much mixing and matching, and because you probably chose the fabric from an overwhelming assortment of gauze, lace, patterned cotton, silk, and embroidered fabrics, your outfits will ...

... and (hopefully) learned some key lessons, and I was ready to actually make friendships beyond learning a p**son's name, to find a project or activity or program or anything to make me feel a little more rooted in Gambian society...I almost felt like that past couple weeks had been anoth** v**sion of the van trip from Senegal, like we w**e still just speeding by ev**ything without really letting our feet sink into the ground anywh**e outside. Only the glass and metal of our tour ...

... expensive, and as a whole the interactions between Gambians and the tourists just seemed to be on a different level than what we were used to, one that seems more wholly made up of exploitation. The tubabs use Gambia as a tourist spot with beaches, alcohol, and a good exchange rate, or even the strangely common sight of old American/European women using young, mostly bumster Rasta Gambians for, well, a good time. On the Gambian side, people surround the tourists, conning and ...

... extravagent life, but from now on I'll be living as minimalistically as possible. It's unrealistic to expect others to follow suit but I would ask each and every one of you to reassess what's important to YOU. If anyone wants to have a clear out, I'll take anything from old clothes to cosmetics off your hands and send it to the friends I made in The Gambia. I plan to send things over regularly so please don't throw things away that could be used by others (i.e. old ...