by phil | Nov 23, 2010 | Mali, W. Africa
Bambara is the most widely spoken language in Mali. It bears great similarity to Dioula, the trading language spoken in many parts of the Sahel, including Northern Cote D’Ivoire and parts of Burkina Faso and Niger. Bambara is uncomplicated on the surface. There...
by phil | Nov 19, 2010 | Mali, Morocco, Stories, W. Africa
This title is misleading. It hasn’t quite been five months, I’ve spent very few days alone, and if you read this blog, you are already inside my head in one way or another. More than anything, you’re inside my bowels. My efforts at transparency have...
by phil | Nov 15, 2010 | Mali, Stories, W. Africa
This story has several parts. It has dragged on for too long and has been mostly about my poor health. I am sorry for that. It will be over soon and then I will talk about Dogon Country, a wedding, Bambara, camel drawing, and a few other pretty cool things about Mali....
by phil | Nov 10, 2010 | Mali, Stories, W. Africa
This is what people say, right? I went to Timbuktu and back? To exaggerate distance? I understand. And this is why many people visit Timbuktu. They want to say they were in that place from that expression and yes it is far and yes there is nothing there. This...
by phil | Nov 8, 2010 | Mali, Stories, W. Africa
The quatre quatre ride between Niafunke and Timbuktu was manageably uncomfortable. There were four people in the backseat, four in the trunk, and three on the roof. I shared the front seat with a husky man who knocked me into the gear shifter every time he laughed. He...
