by phil | Sep 8, 2011 | Mali
I tend to rail on people who generalize about Africa, but I also realize that cultures south of the Sahara have a lot in common. This post from Akila and Patrick, about a cooking class in Zambia, reminded me of that fact. Women append their babies to their backs with...
by phil | Sep 1, 2011 | thoughts
Much to your dismay, I am not actually skydiving to the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro. I will be returning to West Africa, however, and I have a few things in store beyond my normal agenda of camel drawing consultations.Right nowI am in the states, doing some side trips,...
by phil | Aug 22, 2011 | thoughts
I have a surprise announcement. I will be returning to Africa next week. Back to Mali? No. Mali has incredible people and otherworldly music, but there is nothing else I can conquer there. I already went to Timbuktu and I’ve climbed the Hand of Fatima like 14...
by phil | Aug 9, 2011 | Cote D'Ivoire, Mali, Music
On the coast of Cote d’Ivoire, in Abidjan, you can go to a nightclub and dance to coupé-décalé till morning. It is possibly the most frenetic dance music on earth. Get in sync with it and your definition of human movement will change forever (see Dj...
by phil | Aug 4, 2011 | Mali
In what is turning into something of an informal series (see this and this), this is another post challenging perceptions of Africa. In tenth grade, one of my classes began with a round table discussion of current events. Each day, everyone in the class brought in an...
