Hello Everyone

It’s now been over one week in Africa, Bakau New Town, The Gambia to be exact. Things are pretty much the same as last year when I visited for three weeks and I expect they’ll be pretty much the same after I’m gone as well. Things don’t change much and when they do it’s usually real slow. Unless there’s a coup of course, this is Africa after all.

First Impressions; Friendly people, yellow cabs, British Tourists, Lebanese merchants, thick grassy smoke (almost the same as lit sage) from burning trash; the same as last year. It’s been Africa at a glance so far, which will be ending as soon as I begin to dig deeper into this place. There are a lot of people here, the most densely populated area of Africa, very different from the endless Sahara that waits atop this region. Flying from the UK to here I passed over the western edge of the Sahara and from 32,000 feet up it did not stop in either direction till it hit the Atlantic and was sand right up to the beach. Gambia is lush comparably as the entire country is 30 miles north of, and 30 miles south of, The Gambia River. A dot on the map in West Africa surrounded by Senegal on all sides, save for the ocean.

We caught a bus from Westfield the other day at an intersection that looks like Africa in the movies. To use the parlance of large mass descriptive writing, it could best be described as, ‘a bustle.’ People everywhere lining up for buses, catching cabs, selling wares, begging, and running around doing their thing. In this melee I saw a guy wearing (I shit you not) a Chris Cooley Redskins jersey. I was wearing my Redskins t-shirt at the time, in memoriam, so I walked up to him and very excited said, “Hey, Redskins!” And did that fist to the heart tap thing I do when I’m saying, ‘DC Hardcore!” (You know the one) He looked at me like I was a freaking crazy person. It was hilarious. As we walked on Carolyn just laughed and laughed.

We bought a DVD in the street with 16 movies compressed onto one disc for 100 dalasi, about 5 bucks. We have every Harry Potter movie now. We’ve watched two so far. With one of those discs per week and we won’t need a TV [SHUDDER]

Hey! Ever had constipation with non-stop diarrhea at the same time? I have, welcome to Africa!

I’m going to start a new diet trend when I get home, Kavon I might need your help with the nutrition angle, but it will be called; Shit Yourself Thin! Along with another weight loss book coming soon entitled; The West Beach Malaria Diet. I have some interest from most of the major publishing houses. Stay Tuned!

-BBB