Mbaamhala, Soya, ak Mbaam. (Pork, Soy, and Donkeys).

Is it funny that some of the best pork I've ever eaten is in a Muslim country? I think so. Last night some of us went out to dinner at this place in a dark alley called "Marie's" and, well, we ate pork. 5 kgs of it to be exact. At D75 a kilo I thought it was a pretty sweet deal. Gin and tonics for D15? Seriously. That's like 50 cents. I love the Gambia and Gambians love 50 cent. Haha.

We had a language test last week and I scored Advanced-Low. I was pretty pleased with the result. The levels are Novice-Low/Med/High, Intermediate-L/M/H, Advanced-L/M/H, and then Superior. I still have trouble understanding what's going on if people talk fast, but when I speak quickly to an English-speaking Gambian they usually don't get what I'm saying. It works both ways.

I finally have soy! A fellow PCV, Karissa, and I finally tracked down some seed at the government research institute. About 75kgs! Some of it is going to go to the poultry association near me, some to volunteers, and some to schools. We need to plant it really soon because the rains are already here. I'm still optimistic about the project for this year but not convinced that the type of soy we have is suitable for this region of the world as it came from Ohio. I think it would really be worthwhile for us to check into getting other varieties from Ghana or Togo. We're planning to pursue those options further at the end of the summer.

Back at site I've also been trying to link up individual farmers in my village with the UK based Horse and Donkey Project. http://www.gambiahorseanddonkey.org.uk/ Donors in the UK sponsor, well, a donkey which is then lended out to a needy Gambian farmer to use in the fields. The farmer attends a 2 day training on proper donkey care and maintainance and then gets the animal. The health of the animal is checked up on periodically and the farmer is responsible for providing feed and shelter for the animal. It appears to be one of the more organized organizations I've come in contact with. I've already hooked up 3 men in my village with donkeys and have plans to help write a couple more applications when I get back to site.

So I'm still stuck in Kombo until this leg thing heals up, at least until Saturday. I'll try to get a picture up sometime soon but the pics aren't on my camera so I've got to track down some people. It's a lot better. Now instead of a hole in my leg the size of a quarter, I just have an open sore a little bit smaller than a quarter.

Assuming I get back to site relatively soon to plant some soy, I'll be going overland to Dakar with Jen and Cheyenne for a little mini-vacation at the end of the month. Jen's sister is coming here for a week and then flying out of Dakar so we are all going to take her there and then just hang out in the city for a few days. Border crossing here I come!

I'm going to be working on updating the Poultry Manual for the incoming Ag-Fo group. They should be arriving around the end of September. That's so soon! I can't believe I've already been here over 9 months! The time is going by so quickly I feel like my head is spinning.

Hope all is well back home! I miss you all and think of you often!

Love,
Mandy