July 4th!

4 Juilliet 2006

My feet are blistered. It makes everything feel hot. Today we had goat again (maybe) with rice. I've gotten tolerably skilled at making the rice balls. It takes practice, but it's not brain surgery, after all. The food is still good, but its getting progressively worse. I think they're preparing us for homestay. Hunger, we've been talking, is very different from malnutrition. There is very little hunger here, but malnutrition is rampant:The children have skin which stretches like old peoples'. So I stuff down the food, even after I'm sated (everyone's appetite is lessened in the heat) I gnaw at the bones to get every piece. It's sort of thrilling to act this way. We eat out of things, and drink out of things, and touch things we may not have before. There is simply no choice now.

Yesterday, we had Culture Fair, which was 2/5ths lame, and 3/5ths very excellent. I sat and watched Ellie play a sort of sand-mankala with Le Generale (Bidi), one of our teachers. She speaks excellent French, and just watching them mumble a few things here and there was very enjoyable. Then she translated what I couldn't get, and her and I played a game- what a graceful series of pick-move-drops that is, especially with the sand sifting through one's fingers.

When the Soninke girls started dancing, they grabbed us up one at a time. (The music and dancing) is just as thrilling, and wonderful and earthy as you think it is and more. I had a feeling I was next, and sure enough a beautiful, bespectacled Soninke young man pulled me up. Everyone was cheering and laughing, and I felt my face burning, (and I probably looked like an ungainly fool), but it was so electrifying (it's soo hard!) There was lots of stamping and arm waving, and as I face him (silver rimmed glassed, and regal) I mimicked his motions. First arms shakes, wild and jabbing with stamping feet, then he grabbed his pants (short, ballooning trousers called sirwal) and said "Comme ca" (like this). He pulled and shook and jerked and grabbed, and I did the same, hiking up my pants as we spun round in circles. Then we were back to back, bumping asses, 'competing', it was incredible.

After the dancing we had snacks (sugared peanuts, roasted peanuts, hibiscus and baobob juice) Moor dancing (much more subtle, sensuous and arabic sounding). This time, we all went onto the sand together, and I faced off with two 9 or 10 year old boys (skinny little things) but they ran circles around me.

Then some Egyptian Ratscrew (the best card game ever!) with a few pals, dinner, a shit, a shower, a shave and then bed. Phew.