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.