Ramadan has ended, all 30 days of it were a roller coaster of
emotions, frustrations, and discoveries. I drank water the whole time but
fasted 24 days out of 30. I learned some and appreciated food at the end of the
day much more. Now that its over and we are back to the rice bowls, I miss the
break fast meals very much. I also have never been that excited to see a moon
before, as the fasting ends with the sight of the moon on the 30th or 29th day.
The two days following the sighting of the moon are days of great celebration,
called Korite, where we eat and drink all day long. Boys and
girls receive presents from their parents such as shoes or new
clothing. Women braid their hair in special ways and henna their feet. Men put
on their best kaftans and head to the mosques for a special day of prayer.
Everyone walks around village in their best clothes and shoes, greeting
neighbors and celebrating the end to Ramadan. All in all, it was here only, and
now that its over, I'm glad there won't be another Ramadan till next year.
(People, including myself, get a little (h)angry, but hey who doesn't when they
are hungry.)
Gambia has gone green. Its like the place exploded. That scene in
the 'Lion King' where the rains come and
turn the land from depressing dryness and death to a place of happiness where
all the lions are roaring and prancing around in playfulness. Well, that's
pretty accurate as to what has happened. Rains have come, heavily, the fields
are growing tall and the paths are being encroached by weeds. Animals that once
roamed around wild in search of any food they could find are now being staked
and left to eat the weeds that they can reach. The people have become much more
active, going out into the fields to weed or playing with their children more.
Bugs...are more frequent. Also, infections are highly likely as there are pools
of water sitting around everywhere. I wash my feet with
anti-bacterial soap every chance I get. Mosquitoes have taken up
residence in the pools of water and after twilight its like a battle field,
human v. mosquitoes.
Which brings me to the topic of Malaria. We, PCVs, have
malaria prophylaxis that we are given by the US government, although
there is some contention behind the different drugs. If you care to know about
this argument, send me a message. We also have on hand anti-malaria drugs and
malaria rapid test that if taken during the onset of symptoms can greatly
reduce the disease. We have mosquito nets and I sleep under mine
nightly, tucked in tight to prevent both malaria and those stupid cockroaches
living in my backyard from joining me in my bed. We also have DEET bug spray
and although I use 100% DEET concentration I still get bitten. These little
suckers don't mess around. The malaria mosquitoes come out during
dusk and hang around till dawn, so I've taken to going into my room earlier in
the evening. Part of a PCV work is to bring attention to the methods of
prevention, such as bed nets which are given to each mother when she brings her
child to the clinic for their check-ups. Progress takes awhile, however,
and bed-nets are commonly used as screens over garden nurseries
to protect against bugs or sold.
Update on my neighbor, the boy who wasn't doing well, was after a
spike in his fever, taken by horse cart at 4am to the nearest health center, 6K
away and I've been told that he is coming home today. His father has been
walking the 12k round trip every morning and evening to see his son and
wife.
These are my cucumber plants in my backyard. They are doing
extremely well and have grown over the fence in such a short amount of time.
Compared to the cucumbers we had at Brown Farm, these are incredible. I
didn't know if I could grow vegetables in Africa, but you can!
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