Sand Dunes!

This past Saturday we visited some sand dunes outside of Madaoua. It was amazing! The day was very clear and calm, and we got there early enough in the morning that the temperatures were still very comfortable. These sand dunes are shifting every year, and as a result a project group had been there trying to stop this a number of years before. They built a fence on the top of the dunes, as well as planted bushes/plants at the top to catch the drifting sand. It worked for the first few years, but when the project people left, the fences were torn down for firewood, and the trees were not watered sufficiently, so the dunes continue to creep a significant amount each year. In fact, there is a little "village" - a small group of buildings that may have one more year before the Sahara takes it over. The owner of the house talked to us, and indicated that he knew he would have to relocate soon, and that there was not much else he could do. The hills of sand were huge, with a cliff at the top which the kids would take flying leaps off of, and then run down the rest of the way. The climb back up to the top took some work, though! They played football on the side of the dune, and let me tell you there was some incentive to catch the ball before it rolled down to the bottom! We were there for not more than 5 minutes before a few children came to see what was happening in their area, and soon we had around 50 people watching us enjoy the dunes. It did not take long before they all got into the fun of the morning, and joined in the antics of dune climbing. I'm sure they wondered what the big thrill was - for them it was just out their front door. After wearing our legs out climbing the dune, we stayed at the top and played a football game, but the field kept shrinking with all the onlookers. Fortunately, the people who took us to this place spoke the local language and could ask them to give us a few more feet for a field. But the side who was calling the play always had a "few" extras looking over their shoulders! Jerry even had dental consultation up at the top for a woman who was experiencing much pain. And when these ladies complain of pain, you know it is bad. All in all, it was a great experience, and the view was magnificent.

Is my load to big officer?

This is a typical taxi that makes a few extra bucks transporting people around. These vans (or bush taxis as we call them) usually pick up anyone that needs a ride(and has some money). The only pain with this type of transport is that they stop whereever anyone needs to stop and they don't have that much leg room. This makes a 5 km trip quite long. The vans/taxis usually blow their tires and axles out because of the loads(or people).
The taxis aren't the only things that have loads that exceed the load limit. Trucks and Semi's usually are loaded down quite heavily too. Most of the transports are loaded down the heaviest on market day(Wednesday*).
*This is only Galmi's market day

Life in Niger

Just a short note to give you some perspective as you think about complaining about your road and infrastructure. At home right now I bet most of you are complaining that your roads have not been graded and the snow not removed for a while. Well the situation around here is not much different , so continue to pay your taxes and vote for the right party

As you have heard we went to Parc W , which is an international parc with shared borders with Benin & Burkina Faso(Upper Volta for the old timers)The Nigerian side is Parc W because the Niger river forms a "W" on the northern border of the parc.The trip was only 150kms south of Niamey but took the better part of 3 hours and we didn't need 4x4 but we were glad for the suspension that it had , nice and stiff. The first 50 kms was on blacktop and was excellent and fast,but that soon ended and the gravel/rocks /pot holes begun. the words of direction that we got was that the donkey path beside often was smoother and faster than the actual road. So ,this gives you an indication of the condition. We only got lost once and ended up turning around ,and would have asked directions (being males) but there was no one around . So we found our way back to the road and proceeded. The further along we went the narrower the road got and at times it felt like you were driving at the Little Red River in PA. At the tail end of three hours we thought we were lost again and ask some guys on a moterbike if the parc was close, But before we got their answer we saw they had parc shirts on and were glad we were on the right track. We had invisioned this grand entrance to a parc but it was very understated, and was basically just a part of a small village. Parc entrance fees were about like our national parks , but you had to hire a guide as well for $20 a day. He rode with you and explained about the parc and help spot game with you. Our giude was from Benin and was very well informed and willing to share despite our halting french. But , like he said we were easier than the chinese group that knew no french, english or Hausa. So it was a hot dust and tiring trip but well worth the effort. It is really difficult to see these parcs from a north american position as the cost of maintenace is high for these countries, but the returns could also be high,but to attract most tourist they would not be happy with the ruggedness of the roads, and camping. But if you are willing to put up with some discomfort, especially in the hot season in May (45C) then you could really see animals. The old man at the camp said at that time of year the lions come to the river to live, eat and bred, and they don't care if people are near. (no midnight pottie breaks). We only heard the hippo's grunt and splash. But, the star show was amazing as it was a perfectly clear night with no moon ,and no bugs. It was very difficult to go to bed that night as the setting was right out of an old Tarzan movie, every boys dream no matter what his age. To top it off there was only two other ladies in the camp site so it was very private. With the lod man telling stories of the lions and such we were happy that they always ring the camp all year long with old fashion kerosene lamps to keep the animals out . I guess it works because all the kid were still present at the breakfast table in the morning

So have a good sleep and remember January is almost over and tomorrow they said it will be around 38C. As it is still winter here as well.

Who's hole?

In our many adventures at park W, this one was very interesting. While we were exploring around our campsite looking for a monkey colony, we came across this big hole. This hole was actually a den and was very large, Mark could have easily climbed into it with room to spare. This was a little frightening at first because it was abandoned (or so we thought) and so we thought that something was living in it and coming back! But after awhile we realized that nothing was living there ( we still didn't climb down into it though) so we weren't afraid.
This was a really cool sight!!

Toms Corner- Monkeys!

At our campsite in Park W, we had quite a few visitors, most of them were not human. They were monkeys! These monkeys came so close to the campsite because they had a good source of food and many places to live. During our overnight stay, we saw many monkeys not far from our supper table. They were fun to watch because they were in the wild and they were doing everything on their own, not relying on a zoo keeper. The monkeys also widened my variety of animals that I have now seen. These monkeys could been seen eating fruit off the top of trees or climbing rocks with their family or sitting around.

African Scenery

These pictures are taken at Park W. The first one is of the area where we camped overnight, on the top of the rocks that were beside the campsite. It was very beautiful, and quite different topography from what we had been driving in to get to it. The setting was absolutely gorgeous, with canvas tents arranged on the perimeter, perfect sand all around, a cookout shelter with tables and lanterns for our supper that they prepared and served us, and a spot for a bonfire at night while stargazing, complete with tea and coffee. The evening we were there was so clear and the stars so bright, it was magnificent. We stayed up as late as we could keep our eyes open, but had to get up early the next morning to catch the first sunlight hours to get back in our vehicle to search for animals. The second picture is of the sunrise as we saw it riding in our truck. It was so beautiful. The kids were all bundled up top of the truck in warm clothes and sleeping bags, and they had the perfect viewing spot. We then went back to the campsite for breakfast, and packed up our bags to continue on for the day. What a great way to spend an evening and morning!

Park W

After the conference was over, we went on to a game reserve outside of Niamey called Park W. It is a very large park, which touches Niger, Burkina Faso, and Benin. The animals in the park are varied, ranging from the very small to the very large elephants and lions. Once we got there, the coveted place to be was on the top of the roof, attempting to spot animals first. We had a great time, eating lunch by the river, watching baboons and crocodiles in the same area on the opposite bank.

George!

Meet George, the new animal that Matthew would love to bring home with him. Unfortunately, I don't believe he would fit on carry-on. This is a tortoise that lives at the American Embassy in Niamey, where we had lunch one day while at the conference. Speedy he is not, but he does love to pose for photos. The Embassy is a lovely setting, and served wonderful Mexican food, which we ate by the pool. The pool was closed for the "cold" season, which I am sad to say is becoming our reality. Long-sleeved shirts are what we wear these days, as the winds have picked up and the temperatures have dropped. However, we continue to see sunshine for which we are thankful. We have been amazed at God's creativity in creation, both the animal kingdom and the diversity of plants and topography here in Niger. One would think that with the country composed of over 80% desert it would look the same from one location to the next, but there are some interesting differences. You can always tell when you are coming to the river or a reservoir, with palm trees (!) around. Scrub brush exists in abundance in some areas the further away from the river you get, but there is still quite a lot of vegetation throughout the area where we've travelled. Since this is the dry season, there are few green crops growing, but where there are, the contrast to the rest of the landscape is startling. The onions around Galmi are now beginning to be harvested, and the vegetables planted a few short weeks ago are growing so quickly. We continue to be on the lookout for new and interesting bugs - both inside and outside! The other morning while pouring a glass of water, I glanced down to see a lizard watching me from his post next to the fridge! An early morning workout ensued!

We're Back!!

We have arrived back into Galmi after a week spent in Niamey, and then some time at the nearest game reserve called Park W. We'll be blogging on more of that later on. For now, we wanted to show you some of the sights by the Niger River from the bridge in Niamey. The boat loads full of pumpkins was a familiar sight by the end of the week, but it never failed to amaze us that the boats never sank under the weight of it all. Alongside the pumpkins, at the shore men would be washing their lettuce and other produce that is currently available prior to taking it to market. The funniest thing I spotted, but we were driving and I had no time to take a picture of it, was a van close by the boats absolutely packed to the roof inside and from front to back (I mean FULL) with pumpkins, leaving barely enough room for the driver! It was quite the sight. The river shore is very colorful and active, with much to see and smell. This is a very enjoyable time of year as the produce is more plentiful and varied than before. We are able to get lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, melons, peppers and of course, onions quite easily. And in Niamey these things are much more readily available than in the outlying villages. One other thing of note - we quickly realized that anyone that has any vehicle trouble must first get to the bridge before they break down! One shares the bridge with donkey carts, buses, motorbikes, pedestrians, women with huge loads on their heads, men in suits and briefcases, and huge trucks with loads so heavy that we are never quite sure how the engines don't blow more often. Traffic jams take a long time to get past, and the bridge is the only option with one lane in both directions.

Dust

Happy New Year . I hope this works as we are just on our way out to the capital of Niamey for a spiritual life conference ,which is the mission in Niger 's yearly conference and social time with misionaries from across the country. It is a 450 kms away in a bush taxi , or a crowded 1995 Toyota minivan with no shocks, air , but lots of natural freshness and about a 50/50chance of a breakdown. We will be blown in by the winds as the weather has been particularily windy and cold for here. The temp was 4C just a bit north of here this week with no humidity in the air and strong winds. The locals just dress a bit warmer,extra shirt,or wrap and complain how cold it is.How canadian is that. The babies often wear next to nothning and sleep in their same mud houses. So windy cool days feel the same to them as the cold ,short ,dark days of January that you get at home. I think home is warmer as you can get out of the wind and weather. If you are interested the Harmattan winds that blow here start about 400kms east by Lake Chad and than build and end up in South America. An interesting picture can be found on the web at www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov ,then click on Natural Hazards , and go to dust and drought section and on the map click on the middle of Africa icon for a great picture and a world perspective. It truly is amazing how God has made this all so interconnected, and we are just now figuring it out. So have a great weekend and congrat to the Canadian Juniors, I am sad that we missed the big game. Jerry

Agricultural pictures

It's time to blog once again. This may become a bit less frequent as we are having some "issues" with our computer. We have been enjoying the changes we've observed in the crops that are currently being grown in the area around Galmi. The onion fields started out so small, and within 5 weeks, have grown so fast. As you can see from the picture, they have developed an irrigation system here, with a cement drainage system that carries the water to the fields. It reminded Jerry of the system in Alberta from years ago. These onions are very well known here in Niger, as well as in Europe, as they export them all over. The workers dig by hand with some basic tools, and the effort to produce food is tremendous. It makes one very appreciative of the technology available at home, and the abundance of such variety of foods. For example, I was down to some very basic items for fresh fruit and vegetables at Christmas, until a trader came to my door selling some carrots. This was a major treat! There is food available, but one never knows just what that will be until the trader comes to the door and you can see the items being sold. Currently in season, we have carrots, cabbage, potatoes, onions, bananas, and melons. So that is what we use for our cooking, and supplement those things with items out of a tin. Creativity is definitely developed in these moments! My family is certainly learning to appreciate the simple things in life, like those fresh pineapples, and homemade yogurt. It's a beautiful thing!