the sarrś are fishermen

so im staying with the sarr family - and as ebrima told me last week, the sarrś are fishermen. every last name in the gambia (in all of africa, presumably) tells people what the family does and who they are, as a people. some may be hunters, warriors, farmers, etc. but the sarrś are fisherman and last night this was apparent when ali - ebrimaś older brother (but with a different mother) returned home from the sea with buckets full of prawns! i don't think i´ve ever seen so many prawns at one time - not even in a seafood market. there were prawns to feed the entire village, though we only fed ourselves. and what a feast it was. they cooked up all the prawns so that they would not go bad (no refrigeration, remember) and today they will begin the drying process, so that they can pound the dried shrimps into a powder to use in their cooking. they also eat them dried by the handful, like chips.

the weekend in fajara was lovely. i had another saturday under the palapas at leybato reading for nearly 5 uninterrupted hours. (interrupted only for a beer and occasionally by the women walking around with trays of peanuts on their heads, trying to sell). it took me 2 hours to get to the beach, waiting for a ride and then getting a lift in the neighbors truck (surely a model-T, or a closely following model, very very old). he had to pick up eggs on the way into town and i would wager a bet that only half of the 30 dozen or so eggs made it to the paved road intact.

ive grown fond of my canadian ´cub´ friend - she and i have a laugh together and enjoy comparing experiences. i think she´ll help keep me sane for the next 9 weeks here, and i can see crashing at her place when i stay in fajara. we went to dinner on saturday night with a few other women and then hung out a bit on sunday morning back on the beach, taking a walk through the fajara craft market where she bought some (overpriced!) fabric and is having a dress made and where i bartered hard for a wooden bowl. i imagine that will be my one african purchase (besides any clothes i have made) because i not really into much of the other identical crafts i keep seeing around. wooden giraffes are just not my thing.

sandra and i found ourselves laughing hysterically on saturday at the beach at some photos we taken of ourselves. which was brilliant because i realized itś been a very long time since i´d laughed that hard (well, at least 3 weeks). things have been funny here and have made me chuckle, but not a downright belly laugh. that felt good. we were laughing at how funny we both look. itś quite obvious that i have not had a mirror for 3 weeks nor do i care. and her outfits that are so classic and stylish on the streets of montreal are hilarious here. (knee-high socks and pointy shoes are a sight to behold on the sandy streets of fajara). so we laughed and laughed at our ridiculous appearances.

hers is a completely ´urban´ experience complete with bumsters (annoying men constantly cat-calling, ´hey nice lady, i make you friend´, etc), electricity and water, an office job with daily internet, and a bedroom ceiling fan. i think she finds my experience nearly impossible to comprehend but enjoys my stories about the squat toilets and bucket showers. i hope to get her out to the village at some point before i leave.

a few other random tidbits:

* i´ve gotten my showers down to half a bucket of water! to shampoo and wash with soap. (no conditioner out here in the bush). think of me next time you linger for a few extra minutes under the tap, and then STOP WASTING so much water!

* for 1 dalasi, i can buy a bag of peanuts the size of a tangerine. for 2 dalasi, i can buy a bag of purified water in a bag, for 4 dalasi i can buy a stick of delicious tapalapa bread, for 7 dalasi, i can buy a gellah gellah ride from my village to brikama, for 10 dalasi i can buy a cucumber (if i can find it), for 15 dalasi, i can buy an omlete and a nescafe, for 16 dalasi, i can buy one hour of internet at the internet cafe, for 18 dalasi, i can get two gellah gellahs into the bigger town, for 20 dalasi i can treat myself a chocolate croissant, for 23 dalasi, i can buy a kitkat, and for 35 dalasi, i can indulge in a cup of watered down filtered coffee. remember that 1 dollar = 20 dalasi / 1 pound = 40 dalasi. thatś living on the cheap. going into town, i usually end up spending around 200 on a meal out (without drinks) ... so weekends are a little more expensive! but well worth the luxury by the time they roll around.

* this morning i waited for over an hour to get a ride to brikama. while i waited, i shook hands with at least a dozen people who were gathering in the market place (near the bus stop), i met a trained ornothographer (?) - bird watcher - who can guide me around abuko national reserve should i like to, i bought some peanuts, and was given a baobab-flavored icey. (frozen drink inside a small plastic bag - bite a corner and suck - also 1 dalasi). sometimes waiting is fun.

* when i finally did get a ride, it was on the back of a moped and was quite possibly the most dangerous thing ive done yet. but im here and alive, so the trip was not in vain, though i did wish i had a helmet and spent much of the ride contemplating how much it would hurt if the bike wiped out in the sand.

and now i must get some work done in the internet cafe lest i spend the entire morning blogging and emailing. thank you to those who comment, itś lovely to hear from you, and for those who´ve been emailing! much appreciated!! itś nice to stay connected when i can.

enjoy the week!