Camel Power

This is a very typical scene out the vehicle window wherever you travel in Niger. The Nigeriens use both camels and donkeys for carrying anything and everything. And in order to get into the market place here in the village by Galmi Hospital, you must first walk through a maze of resting camels, donkeys, and goats. Did you know that camels have 5 legs? While they are resting, they have
another "leg" underneath their stomach, that gives their stomach and chest area support while lying down. Some are more obvious than others. And by the way, stay far back from these camels, as they have been known to take nasty bites out of people!

We went to the market here near Galmi. So many sights, sounds and smells! It is divided up into the various sections, like materials, vegetables, meats (including fried locusts-just make sure you take off the legs and wings before you eat!), and dried goods. It was extremely busy, with narrow lanes in between the stalls, and the bartering takes place while crouching down to speak with the merchant. If bartering was interesting in an English-speaking country, the interest just doubled by throwing in the Hausa language! This is quite a tonal language, and they speak it very quickly. To the untrained ear, it is difficult to even guess what they may be referring to. Something our boys have enjoyed watching is how they sell their chickens here. Boys our boys age often walk around with chickens strung upside down by their feet, hanging them over their necks (still alive) in the hopes of attracting interest in bartering for their chickens. The harvest has just ended here, and so there are many onions available. Niger is known for exporting its red onions to France and other parts of Europe. Something we have been enjoying very much is the pineapple they grow here. Delicious!