23 February 2018
Photos for the past week... and a little visit on Tuesday on the way to the airport
Here, as promised, are some photos in illustration of the last week of my February Gambian trip:
Tuesday 13th February:
We suddenly had a visit of a very large number of the white egrets who feed in and around the hotel - something must have startled them, as several hundred of them flew up and roosted in the palm trees in the hotel garden. An amazing sight...
Whilst at the airport waiting to see Andrew and Kathy off to UK, we realised that Abdoulie was in the process of gradually cutting off his hair (a few locks every day or so), so we felt we should record what was left before it all disappeared. Abdoulie has been growing his hair ever since we first met him, so this is quite a decision on his part!
Wednesday & Thursday, 14th & 15th February
These were days of school and family visits - lots of photos of children, amongst which is this one of a newly sponsored girl, holding her 'welcome to Pageant' gift. As she is in Grade 7 (Junior Secondary school) we gave her a pencil case with the basic pens, pencils, ribber, sharpener etc for school, plus a simple calculator, a geometry set and a small English dictionary. This ensures that she has the basic materials to help her in her school work - it is always a very popular gift.
Friday 16th February
Our trip to the North Bank.... this started very early in the morning, as you may remember. (I remember it vividly!) It was so early that this photo of the family with the delightful gifts from one of our sponsors had to be taken in the pitch darkness in the compound outside the house. No electricity in Barra, which makes for wonderful star-gazing, but is not so good for even flash photography.
Later that morning we visited Albreda LBS and saw the tap, sink and work surface that had been installed in the kitchen. We suggested that the sinks and draining board could do with a bit more support - it was sagging a bit without any water in it(!) so they will put another support in, either along the front or between the two basins. However, the tap works, the water flows freely and drains away back through the pipe in the wall to a soak-away outside, so that was all good.
Sunday 18th February
The work on the multi-purpose hall at Humanity nursery is going well - outside view at the left, inside, looking towards the existing school buildings, at the right.
These are some of Esther's beautiful little dresses (these were actually made by her Mum, I believe) - very popular with the little girls who were lucky enough to receive them.
The young women with them are two of the recently graduated Automotive Engineering students, still very happy to be working in the repair departments of some local garages. Fatou, on the left as you look at the photo, is the person who is in charge of the women's group associated with the mothers of the children in Humanity Nursery. She was pleased to tell me that the group is doing really well and that the money is now on its 4th iteration around the women. Well done to her and to all the ladies of the group.
Monday 19th February
These are some of the tiny babies who received the hats at Brikama hospital - more thanks to Esther. The youngest baby was 2 hours old, the oldest 2 days old! I was a little worried about disturbing the mothers so soon after delivery, but the nurse said they would like to have the hats... and the photos...
Tuesday 20th February
On our way to the airport for my return trip to UK we managed to squeeze in one final visit. This was partly to get the estimate for a cement floor for the temporary classrooms that have been erected to cope with demand at the Yundum Barracks school - the one for the nursery at the left is not quite finished yet, but the roof is expected to be completed next week. Another one, further down the school compound, has been completed and is for the overflow from the Lower and Upper Basic schools.
The other reason was to collect the stack of letters that the LBS children are writing to Jeannette Mars' Worldclass club at Bishop's Waltham Junior School in Hampshire. The Gambian school, pupils and teachers, are really enthusiastic about this and the school has funded special T-shirts for the members of their club.
I posted the letters off to Jeannette yesterday, so I am waiting to hear the reaction from her children.
That's all for now - I'm signing off until the next time. Lovey sunshine today - but brrrrrrrrr, isn't it cold!!??
Tuesday 13th February:
We suddenly had a visit of a very large number of the white egrets who feed in and around the hotel - something must have startled them, as several hundred of them flew up and roosted in the palm trees in the hotel garden. An amazing sight...
Whilst at the airport waiting to see Andrew and Kathy off to UK, we realised that Abdoulie was in the process of gradually cutting off his hair (a few locks every day or so), so we felt we should record what was left before it all disappeared. Abdoulie has been growing his hair ever since we first met him, so this is quite a decision on his part!
Wednesday & Thursday, 14th & 15th February
Friday 16th February
Sunday 18th February
The young women with them are two of the recently graduated Automotive Engineering students, still very happy to be working in the repair departments of some local garages. Fatou, on the left as you look at the photo, is the person who is in charge of the women's group associated with the mothers of the children in Humanity Nursery. She was pleased to tell me that the group is doing really well and that the money is now on its 4th iteration around the women. Well done to her and to all the ladies of the group.
Monday 19th February
Tuesday 20th February
I posted the letters off to Jeannette yesterday, so I am waiting to hear the reaction from her children.
That's all for now - I'm signing off until the next time. Lovey sunshine today - but brrrrrrrrr, isn't it cold!!??
20 February 2018
19 February - Final Visits
Monday was announced as being a public holiday, so our original plans for school visits had to be changed.
We started off in Brikama, visiting the large hospital there to give out some beautifully knitted baby hats to the maternity wards. Then to the local market to buy some fertiliser for the gardens organised by the ladies in Wandifa & Abdoulie's compounds. These bags are extremely heavy and even Abdoulie could not lift them onto the top of the van unaided.
Next stop, Gambia College, to drop the list of prize-winners and some microscopes in to the Science department. Nakulang (head of science) had come in, even though it was a holiday, and was busily engaged in clearing out his office when we arrived. We discussed the workshops, which we all felt had gone well, and agreed that we hope we will be able to manage to do some Physics, Electronics and Chemistry as well next year.
Back via Abuko to drop off the fertiliser (the minivan was labouring a bit under the strain!) and then visits to a couple of old friends: Samba, an erstwhile sponsored student, who is now an Inspector in the Gambian Police; and finally Billy, who used to run the café near the Arch in Banjul, beloved of many Atlantic Hotel visitors.
We reached the hotel in time for me to have a last short sit in the sunshine... to be remembered with great fondness and not a little envy once I am back in UK tomorrow, I am sure!
I will add some photos to illustrate some of the past week's events once I am back in UK, so keep watching this space for a few more days...
Posted by Dave for Pippa.
We started off in Brikama, visiting the large hospital there to give out some beautifully knitted baby hats to the maternity wards. Then to the local market to buy some fertiliser for the gardens organised by the ladies in Wandifa & Abdoulie's compounds. These bags are extremely heavy and even Abdoulie could not lift them onto the top of the van unaided.
Next stop, Gambia College, to drop the list of prize-winners and some microscopes in to the Science department. Nakulang (head of science) had come in, even though it was a holiday, and was busily engaged in clearing out his office when we arrived. We discussed the workshops, which we all felt had gone well, and agreed that we hope we will be able to manage to do some Physics, Electronics and Chemistry as well next year.
Back via Abuko to drop off the fertiliser (the minivan was labouring a bit under the strain!) and then visits to a couple of old friends: Samba, an erstwhile sponsored student, who is now an Inspector in the Gambian Police; and finally Billy, who used to run the café near the Arch in Banjul, beloved of many Atlantic Hotel visitors.
We reached the hotel in time for me to have a last short sit in the sunshine... to be remembered with great fondness and not a little envy once I am back in UK tomorrow, I am sure!
I will add some photos to illustrate some of the past week's events once I am back in UK, so keep watching this space for a few more days...
Posted by Dave for Pippa.
18 February - Independance Day
Sunday was Independence Day, so many Gambians were heading for Banjul where the main celebratory parade was to be held. We set off in the other direction, picking up David & Jenny en route to see Faks at Humanity Nursery in Farato, which is a little to the south of the airport.
This visit was mainly to see how our latest project there, a multi purpose hall to be used by both students and the village community, was progressing. The shell of the building has been built to a very high standard and I had no hesitation in paying the second portion of the money for it to be completed.
Following some discussions with regard to finance and school policy we travelled the short distance to the chicken farm, which is in Faks' compound. It has been enlarged considerably since our last visit there in November and now holds around 1,000 chickens. Egg production is good, with upwards of 18 trays of 30 eggs being collected and sold every day. This is now going a long way towards paying the salaries of the teachers, which is the main purpose of the whole enterprise.
This was David & Jenny's first experience of a Gambian school.... I did point out that this was starting at the top end of the range of schools they were likely to see!
We then spent some time in Faks' compound, giving out some of Esther's beautiful dresses to several little girls and chatting to two of the young women who had graduated from the Automotive Engineering Diploma a year or so ago.
We dropped David & Jenny back to their hotel after what they agreed had been a delightful Gambian Experience and I then spent the afternoon going through all the admin with Linda.
Having successfully completed that, we decided we deserved a dinner at Samba's Kitchen, so the carvery for Linda and a steak for me completed a very good day.
Posted by Dave for Pippa.
This visit was mainly to see how our latest project there, a multi purpose hall to be used by both students and the village community, was progressing. The shell of the building has been built to a very high standard and I had no hesitation in paying the second portion of the money for it to be completed.
Following some discussions with regard to finance and school policy we travelled the short distance to the chicken farm, which is in Faks' compound. It has been enlarged considerably since our last visit there in November and now holds around 1,000 chickens. Egg production is good, with upwards of 18 trays of 30 eggs being collected and sold every day. This is now going a long way towards paying the salaries of the teachers, which is the main purpose of the whole enterprise.
This was David & Jenny's first experience of a Gambian school.... I did point out that this was starting at the top end of the range of schools they were likely to see!
We then spent some time in Faks' compound, giving out some of Esther's beautiful dresses to several little girls and chatting to two of the young women who had graduated from the Automotive Engineering Diploma a year or so ago.
We dropped David & Jenny back to their hotel after what they agreed had been a delightful Gambian Experience and I then spent the afternoon going through all the admin with Linda.
Having successfully completed that, we decided we deserved a dinner at Samba's Kitchen, so the carvery for Linda and a steak for me completed a very good day.
Posted by Dave for Pippa.
18 February 2018
17 February - Microscope Kits for Upcountry Schools
The morning was spent at the hotel, where we (Wandifa, Abdoulie, Karamba and I) spent a considerable time organising and packing our remaining microscopes and associated materials into quite generous kits for four schools. We were able to give each school a total of nine microscopes, each set containing three different types, so these schools will be very lucky.
We spread out all our stuff over a large portion of the hotel lobby and attracted interested questions from quite a few of the guests. The hotel staff are very good about the chaos we cause....
We were almost finished when Modou, our delightful medical student and a couple of Pageant members, Kate and Diane, arrived to see us. Modou had come to collect what will be his final sponsorship payment - next time we see him he should be Dr Jeng!
Kate and Diane had come for a coffee and to have a look round the hotel, with a view to possibly staying here next time they come to The Gambia. They left at around 2pm, after which I phoned Linda to suggest that she could bring the children of the Gambian family who live in her house for a play in the pool. I could hear their shrieks of delight over the phone!
They all arrived at about 4pm and, despite the breezy conditions, had a great time in the children's pool until nearly 6pm.
Just time to change and then go out for dinner with Linda at a very nice Indian restaurant called the Clay Oven. Quite a full day, really, considering it was supposed to be one of the quieter ones.
Posted by Dave for Pippa
We spread out all our stuff over a large portion of the hotel lobby and attracted interested questions from quite a few of the guests. The hotel staff are very good about the chaos we cause....
We were almost finished when Modou, our delightful medical student and a couple of Pageant members, Kate and Diane, arrived to see us. Modou had come to collect what will be his final sponsorship payment - next time we see him he should be Dr Jeng!
Kate and Diane had come for a coffee and to have a look round the hotel, with a view to possibly staying here next time they come to The Gambia. They left at around 2pm, after which I phoned Linda to suggest that she could bring the children of the Gambian family who live in her house for a play in the pool. I could hear their shrieks of delight over the phone!
They all arrived at about 4pm and, despite the breezy conditions, had a great time in the children's pool until nearly 6pm.
Just time to change and then go out for dinner with Linda at a very nice Indian restaurant called the Clay Oven. Quite a full day, really, considering it was supposed to be one of the quieter ones.
Posted by Dave for Pippa
17 February 2018
16 February - North Bank
Success!! Wandifa and Abdoulie arrived almost on time and we made the first ferry with several minutes to spare. It seems to leave earlier each time we go - we left Banjul at 6.05am. We were fortunate to be travelling on the new ferry, Kunta Kinteh, which is considerably larger than the older ferries and coped with the really choppy water conditions pretty well. Even so, it was definitely a "wet ride" for those at the front, as the spray was quite impressive. Some of our members would have found it less than comfortable.....
We arrived at Barra while it was still dark and negotiating the roadway to the taxi was a little adventure of its own. I was pleased I had taken my torch. I was also very pleased to find that our trusty north bank driver, Alieu, was to be driving himself - many of the drivers over there drive incredibly fast over the very rough roads, which can be quite terrifying at times.
Our first stop was at a compound in Barra itself, where we have two sponsored children. Mary, who has only recently joined Pageant and become a sponsor, had sent a collection of very thoughtful gifts for "her" young boy and his family: two mosquito nets, a cooking pot & serving bowl, three small buckets for carrying water to the garden and a watering can.... and a football for Sherrifu himself. To say that the family members were delighted would be an understatement. Even though it was still so early in the morning (the sun was just rising while we were there) the two sponsored children were dressed ready for school and all the other children and adults came out into the compound, exclaiming with wonder and gratitude for their good fortune. Thank you so much, Mary, it was a wonderful start to the day.
We then set off for the long and bumpy ride down to Albreda, where Wandifa's brother and family live. We picked up a sack of rice along the way, a gift for Bakary from Andrew & Kathy, and bounced off down the dusty red road. We were early enough to see several groups of monkeys playing in the grass at the side of the road, some of them with babies - always a lovely sight.
Our first stop in Albreda was at the local primary school, at which we have done several projects. There is a new head teacher at the school now, but we did not meet him as he was at the regional office in Kerewan. We were greeted by the deputy, who we have known for some time, and went to inspect the new tap, sink unit and work surface in the kitchen. It looked pretty good in general, but we spent some time peeling off the protective blue plastic layer from the stainless steel, which had been left on the draining board surface and was now ingrained with soap and sand! We explained about the need for cleanliness and how easy the steel itself would be to clean - and that the blue plastic was only for protection during transportation. It looked a lot better after our ministrations, as everyone agreed.
The deputy had spoken to his headmaster on the phone, who had agreed that we could go ahead and deal with him regarding the next project, already approved, which is to be a small, two cubicle toilet facility for the female staff. We have planned to provide a small block of living quarters for the female teachers, so these toilets will be for them. We left the money for them with the deputy and Wandifa will go back to check on them when they are completed. If all is OK we will then proceed with funding the living quarters.
Next to see Bakary and family. They all seemed well and were very pleased to receive the rice. We had a discussion with Bakary about second wives.... he said that he needs a second wife to collect more water for him, but that Ida, his current wife, is not keen on the idea! He asked me if I agreed with Ida and I replied that I certainly did. This is a very good example of a Gambian joke, as he certainly has no intention of taking a second wife!
Having left the family still discussing wives, we went to the little cafe beside the river for a drink before returning to Barra.
So far, so good... we arrived back at the ferry port at just after 12noon. Amazing, we said, we will be back in Banjul in time for two o'clock prayers. But no, the ferry "had a little problem" and it was stuck over in Banjul for some considerable time. The queue got longer, the day got hotter and the small kids were crying. We peeled our remaining oranges, passed some round and ate some ourselves...still no ferry. At last, after a wait of two and a half hours, it arrived, absolutely crammed with foot passengers and vehicles. We eventually boarded and had a much calmer voyage back to Banjul, arriving just before 4pm. The tide was by now very low and they said that it would not be able to leave the port again until after 6pm, so I guess we were lucky we got back as well as we did!
Back to the hotel, where I managed a short nap before getting ready to go out to dinner with David and Jenny to Mama's for their wonderful fish buffet - sorry you couldn't be with us, Andrew!
Posted by Dave for Pippa.
We arrived at Barra while it was still dark and negotiating the roadway to the taxi was a little adventure of its own. I was pleased I had taken my torch. I was also very pleased to find that our trusty north bank driver, Alieu, was to be driving himself - many of the drivers over there drive incredibly fast over the very rough roads, which can be quite terrifying at times.
Our first stop was at a compound in Barra itself, where we have two sponsored children. Mary, who has only recently joined Pageant and become a sponsor, had sent a collection of very thoughtful gifts for "her" young boy and his family: two mosquito nets, a cooking pot & serving bowl, three small buckets for carrying water to the garden and a watering can.... and a football for Sherrifu himself. To say that the family members were delighted would be an understatement. Even though it was still so early in the morning (the sun was just rising while we were there) the two sponsored children were dressed ready for school and all the other children and adults came out into the compound, exclaiming with wonder and gratitude for their good fortune. Thank you so much, Mary, it was a wonderful start to the day.
We then set off for the long and bumpy ride down to Albreda, where Wandifa's brother and family live. We picked up a sack of rice along the way, a gift for Bakary from Andrew & Kathy, and bounced off down the dusty red road. We were early enough to see several groups of monkeys playing in the grass at the side of the road, some of them with babies - always a lovely sight.
Our first stop in Albreda was at the local primary school, at which we have done several projects. There is a new head teacher at the school now, but we did not meet him as he was at the regional office in Kerewan. We were greeted by the deputy, who we have known for some time, and went to inspect the new tap, sink unit and work surface in the kitchen. It looked pretty good in general, but we spent some time peeling off the protective blue plastic layer from the stainless steel, which had been left on the draining board surface and was now ingrained with soap and sand! We explained about the need for cleanliness and how easy the steel itself would be to clean - and that the blue plastic was only for protection during transportation. It looked a lot better after our ministrations, as everyone agreed.
The deputy had spoken to his headmaster on the phone, who had agreed that we could go ahead and deal with him regarding the next project, already approved, which is to be a small, two cubicle toilet facility for the female staff. We have planned to provide a small block of living quarters for the female teachers, so these toilets will be for them. We left the money for them with the deputy and Wandifa will go back to check on them when they are completed. If all is OK we will then proceed with funding the living quarters.
Next to see Bakary and family. They all seemed well and were very pleased to receive the rice. We had a discussion with Bakary about second wives.... he said that he needs a second wife to collect more water for him, but that Ida, his current wife, is not keen on the idea! He asked me if I agreed with Ida and I replied that I certainly did. This is a very good example of a Gambian joke, as he certainly has no intention of taking a second wife!
Having left the family still discussing wives, we went to the little cafe beside the river for a drink before returning to Barra.
So far, so good... we arrived back at the ferry port at just after 12noon. Amazing, we said, we will be back in Banjul in time for two o'clock prayers. But no, the ferry "had a little problem" and it was stuck over in Banjul for some considerable time. The queue got longer, the day got hotter and the small kids were crying. We peeled our remaining oranges, passed some round and ate some ourselves...still no ferry. At last, after a wait of two and a half hours, it arrived, absolutely crammed with foot passengers and vehicles. We eventually boarded and had a much calmer voyage back to Banjul, arriving just before 4pm. The tide was by now very low and they said that it would not be able to leave the port again until after 6pm, so I guess we were lucky we got back as well as we did!
Back to the hotel, where I managed a short nap before getting ready to go out to dinner with David and Jenny to Mama's for their wonderful fish buffet - sorry you couldn't be with us, Andrew!
Posted by Dave for Pippa.
15 February 2018
15 February - A short day
Quite a short day today, prior to our early start for the North Bank tomorrow. We visited a couple of schools to check on particular students, gave a pencil case plus associated school materials to a newly sponsored girl and paid out sponsorship to several of the more local families.
Jereh was driving for us again (Abdoulie did not return until late afternoon today) and we were back in the hotel at around 2.30pm. This meant that, having sorted out some more money with Wandifa, I spent nearly three hours lying very lazily in the shade of a palm tree beside the pool! Very pleasant, but I would not want to do that every day.... however, once in a while is truly delightful.
I had a very early dinner with Linda at Luigi's and am now just about to go to bed at the amazingly early time of 9.30pm!
Wandifa and Abdoulie are due to arrive at 5am tomorrow, so that we can catch the first ferry - however, as several of you will know, that does not always go according to plan. Fingers crossed......
posted by Dave for Pippa
Jereh was driving for us again (Abdoulie did not return until late afternoon today) and we were back in the hotel at around 2.30pm. This meant that, having sorted out some more money with Wandifa, I spent nearly three hours lying very lazily in the shade of a palm tree beside the pool! Very pleasant, but I would not want to do that every day.... however, once in a while is truly delightful.
I had a very early dinner with Linda at Luigi's and am now just about to go to bed at the amazingly early time of 9.30pm!
Wandifa and Abdoulie are due to arrive at 5am tomorrow, so that we can catch the first ferry - however, as several of you will know, that does not always go according to plan. Fingers crossed......
posted by Dave for Pippa
14 February - Brikama & the South
Wandifa and Jereh arrived a little later than planned as Wandifa had forgotten the money he had changed for me the previous evening and they had to go back for it!
We decided to start in Brikama and do our southern round trip from there, leaving out Banyaka as Jerry's car is not good at coping with "too much of sand".
We visited twelve family compounds in all and in many of them we were given a bag of oranges. It is an amazingly good orange crop this year and we passed many orange orchards where the trees were almost completely golden with fruit, really beautiful. I think I must have had my vitamin C intake for the year! Wandifa and Jereh assured me that all would be eagerly consumed by the children in their compounds when they returned home, and the goats would eat the remains, so nothing would be wasted.
We arrived back at the hotel mid afternoon and Jereh agreed to come and collect me in the evening to take me to dinner with David and Jenny, two Pageant members who have just arrived out here and are staying at the Kairaba hotel. It was only when I sat down to dinner in the restaurant and looked at the beautifully decorated menu that I realised it was Valentine's Day!
Nick Taylor also joined us for dinner - you may remember that he has been fund raising for a Gambian project for some time and this was his last evening, following what had obviously been a very rewarding week. He will be sending us a report after he gets back to UK.
I hope that Abdoulie will be back with us today, but will not know until whichever car it is arrives....... to be continued tomorrow.
posted by Dave for Pippa
We decided to start in Brikama and do our southern round trip from there, leaving out Banyaka as Jerry's car is not good at coping with "too much of sand".
We visited twelve family compounds in all and in many of them we were given a bag of oranges. It is an amazingly good orange crop this year and we passed many orange orchards where the trees were almost completely golden with fruit, really beautiful. I think I must have had my vitamin C intake for the year! Wandifa and Jereh assured me that all would be eagerly consumed by the children in their compounds when they returned home, and the goats would eat the remains, so nothing would be wasted.
We arrived back at the hotel mid afternoon and Jereh agreed to come and collect me in the evening to take me to dinner with David and Jenny, two Pageant members who have just arrived out here and are staying at the Kairaba hotel. It was only when I sat down to dinner in the restaurant and looked at the beautifully decorated menu that I realised it was Valentine's Day!
Nick Taylor also joined us for dinner - you may remember that he has been fund raising for a Gambian project for some time and this was his last evening, following what had obviously been a very rewarding week. He will be sending us a report after he gets back to UK.
I hope that Abdoulie will be back with us today, but will not know until whichever car it is arrives....... to be continued tomorrow.
posted by Dave for Pippa
14 February 2018
11 and 12 February
Family visits and farewell
On Sunday we had a late start as we were all tired after two
long days doing the workshops. We had planned to visit Yankuba and Fatou at
their house to give them a wedding present and then we were invited to lunch at
Fatou Lisa Janneh's family compound where Alaghie lives. He is the recipient of
the Ian Howard memorial award and is a bright and engaging young boy.
The day was very hot with a strong wind. The weather has
been cold for the time of year, by Gambian standards, with strong winds and
often days with cloud and even some light rain. It was good to sit inside out
of the sun today however, which seems odd as it is lovely to see such sunshine
in February. We see that the weather in the UK is quite cold and are not
looking forward to that at all!
Before leaving the hotel we brought the blog up to date and
Pippa and Kathy looked through the list of student teachers attending the
workshop to decide who should have the microscope kits when they go out
teaching.
So firstly, to Yankuba and Fatou. We had bought them some
cooking pots and dishes and personal gifts which they really appreciated. We
had also bought two iced fruit cakes and made a tier with a wedding topper for
them to cut the “wedding” cake, explaining that it was traditional in the UK. A
photo of the happy couple is below.
We then drove to Fatou Lisa's family compound to be met by Alaghie and
his sisters as well as his parents. We had cooked a marvellous lunch of chicken
benachin and also chicken domada. The benachin was really superb and we had a
great time chatting and laughing with the family. When we had seen them last
February Alaghie had quietly asked whether we could bring him a football. Like
most 11-year olds he was mad about football and a Chelsea supporter. He has a
wide knowledge about the Premier League teams and their top players and would
like to be a professional footballer when he grows up. If that isn’t possible
then, at the moment, he would like to be a bank manager! His favourite subjects
at school are Maths and English. We had taken him a football and he was
delighted with it. He was playing in the local competition semi-finals later
that afternoon and was confident they would win.
We got back to the hotel at 4.30 in time for a swim and lie
in the sun before meeting Linda at Luigi’s for dinner.
On Monday Kathy stayed at the hotel for a bit of a rest (she has to go back to work on Wednesday) so Pippa and I went out. We went back to Kotu Kala school and were pleased to see that most of the electrical safety work has been done. All that needs to be done is to make the box in which the equipment sits watertight. A simple job 5 minute job with a tube of flexible sealant to fill up the hole where the cable goes. Ebrima, the school's administrator has the other job of making the water tower safe in hand. It is quite a big job as the tank has to be drained and removed from the tower. He is planning to have it done at the end of February.
Pippa and I spent the rest of the day going round schools and compounds paying sponsorship monies and taking photos of those students and of some who are seeking sponsors.
As Dave has posted, Kathy and I are now back in the UK after an uneventful flight back. I have enjoyed writing this blog and I hope that you have enjoyed reading it.
I hope to see as many as possible of you at the PAGEANT AGM on Sunday March 4th.
Best wishes
Andrew
On Monday Kathy stayed at the hotel for a bit of a rest (she has to go back to work on Wednesday) so Pippa and I went out. We went back to Kotu Kala school and were pleased to see that most of the electrical safety work has been done. All that needs to be done is to make the box in which the equipment sits watertight. A simple job 5 minute job with a tube of flexible sealant to fill up the hole where the cable goes. Ebrima, the school's administrator has the other job of making the water tower safe in hand. It is quite a big job as the tank has to be drained and removed from the tower. He is planning to have it done at the end of February.
Pippa and I spent the rest of the day going round schools and compounds paying sponsorship monies and taking photos of those students and of some who are seeking sponsors.
As Dave has posted, Kathy and I are now back in the UK after an uneventful flight back. I have enjoyed writing this blog and I hope that you have enjoyed reading it.
I hope to see as many as possible of you at the PAGEANT AGM on Sunday March 4th.
Best wishes
Andrew
13 February - Goodbye Andrew and Kathy
Many thanks to Andrew for his posts bringing us all the news from The Gambia. Pippa has now taken over the reporting role, and hopes to send daily updates by email, which I (Dave) will then post on the blog. Unfortunately, there probably won't be any photos until Pippa gets back.
Pippa writes:
"Andrew and Kathy returned home yesterday - very sad to see them go, we have worked hard but have had a lot of laughs along the way.
On our way to the airport Abdoulie received a phone call telling him that a family brother had just passed away after a long illness, while staying in southern Senegal. The burial was to be in Senegal later that same day, so Abdoulie set off very soon after we arrived at the airport in order to get there in time. We had checked with Jereh, our long-standing relief driver, and he was able to come to the airport to collect Wandifa and me. We waited for the incoming flight to arrive, saw Andrew and Kathy go through immigration, and set off to see some families and pay out sponsorship in the Bakau area.
Wandifa is due to be arriving with Jereh at 9am this morning and we hope to 'do' the southern part of the coastal region today.
I'll try to report on that tomorrow, internet permitting."
Pippa writes:
"Andrew and Kathy returned home yesterday - very sad to see them go, we have worked hard but have had a lot of laughs along the way.
On our way to the airport Abdoulie received a phone call telling him that a family brother had just passed away after a long illness, while staying in southern Senegal. The burial was to be in Senegal later that same day, so Abdoulie set off very soon after we arrived at the airport in order to get there in time. We had checked with Jereh, our long-standing relief driver, and he was able to come to the airport to collect Wandifa and me. We waited for the incoming flight to arrive, saw Andrew and Kathy go through immigration, and set off to see some families and pay out sponsorship in the Bakau area.
Wandifa is due to be arriving with Jereh at 9am this morning and we hope to 'do' the southern part of the coastal region today.
I'll try to report on that tomorrow, internet permitting."
11 February 2018
9th and 10th February
Microscopy workshops
Friday and Saturday were spent
carrying out the workshops we had planned for with Gambia College.
On each day we arrived promptly at
the university in Brikama shortly before 8.00am. We had prepared the lab the
day before so it was just necessary to unpack our stuff, lay out samples and be
ready
Each workshop was given mostly to student teachers but we had a few lecturers from the college there
too. Some of the students had already had some teaching experience; others had not.
The workshops were given to 20 people each day. We had taken with us 20 small
stereo microscopes and 10 larger transmitted light microscopes, with some kits
boxes containing useful tools for preparing samples to look at and simple
lenses and jewellers’ loupes.
At the end of the workshops the 10
student teachers whom we judged to be the best overall would receive a kit
containing a stereo microscope and tools to take with them to their first
teaching post.
The first session on each day
explained what equipment they had and how to us it. The teachers were shown how
to use a simple magnifying lens, a jeweller’s loupe (which was theirs to keep)
and how to use the microscopes, including how to work out the area you can see,
using simple measurements on graph paper.
We then stopped for breakfast which
consisted of a sausage, onion and salad baguette or cold fried egg baguette and
tea or coffee plus water.
After breakfast (at about 11.15)
the teachers had about two hours to choose and look at samples. We had taken a
number of samples with us including cheap and expensive tea in teabags,
different types of fabric, flowers and leaves, insects, potatoes, onion and
parsley and small electronic parts. The students were especially interested in
the tea where they could see the cheap tea contained mostly stalks and the
expensive tea was mostly large pieces of dried leaves. We found some brackish
water in a puddle. The students were amazed to find that under the microscope
they could see small mini-beasts darting around that were not visible to the
naked eye.
Towards the end of the session the
teachers were put into groups of 4 and asked to prepare a lesson for students
from local schools and the college who were due to come after lunch.
After lesson preparation we
stopped for lunch and prayers. On the first day lunch was fish benachin. This
consists of savoury rice, baked fish and vegetables including cabbage, carrots
and cassava and a tamarind sauce. On the second day we had chicken yassa which
is plain boiled rice, spiced roasted chicken and a thick sauce containing
roasted onions. On each day bottled water was provided.
The afternoon sessions went well,
with all teachers coping well with the students. We had about 30 students each
day, We could see much animated teaching with the students clearly engaged with
using the equipment, which is the aim of the workshop.
After carefully packing up we
returned to the hotel and now have the difficult decision as to which 10
teachers will receive microscopes and kits. We would love to be able to give
them all a set.
08 February 2018
8th February
Preparing for the microscopy
workshops
On Friday 9th and
Saturday 10th February we will be delivering our microscopy
workshops to student teachers from Gambia College. These will take place at the
University of The Gambia which is next door. The workshops will be delivered by
Pippa, Kathy, Abdoulie, Wandifa and, we hope, Yankuba for at least part of the
time, and me.
We spent the morning at the hotel
unpacking the microscopes from their boxes and checking they worked. We were
joined by Karamba (the young man referred to in an earlier blog who hopes to
become a chef). We recognise that whilst Yankuba is working at the Atlantic
Hotel he might not always be available to help deliver workshops, so we think
it will be useful to give him some experience. We also put together the kits
that go with the microscopes for the students to use.
That done, we went down to the
University to unpack and get the laboratory ready. We were pleased to see that
the lab had recently been very well decorated.
Once finished we headed back to
the hotel, stopping off en route to give out some sponsorship monies. We were
delighted to be given presents of three freshly picked grapefruits at one compound;
and some oranges at another.
My next blog will cover the two workshops
and I hope to have some good photos to show then
07 February 2018
6th and 7th February
Pageant Core Activities
We spent the two days undertaking some of the core activities of Pageant. A
large number of visits to schools to check on projects completed, consider
requests for new projects, visiting schools and compounds to pay sponsorship
and catch up on news, and buy goods for projects and our workshops.
We went to Yundum Barracks
Schools. We had arranged for Fansu to make for the school some tables and
benches suitable for the younger Lower Basic students when we were over in November.
These had been made to a very high standard:
seating for 60 students around 10 tables for each of 2 classrooms. We
had bought and delivered more than 40 chairs for nursery children at the
weekend. These are in place in one classroom and we will be asking Fansu to
make some small tables to go with them. We are buying some teaching and
learning resources for the school and will be shipping them soon. We talked
about how they can be used.
When we went to the school in November
there was a large amount of litter in the grounds. We had bought the school
some wheelie bins to help collect litter. The school certainly looked a lot
better now, but we were asked if we could let them have a further three to
help. We agreed to buy these. The school also has a temporary nursery classroom
that it hopes to make into a permanent structure. They would like a concrete
floor for it, as at the moment it is just on bare ground. An estimate will be
provided and we will consider this.
We also went to Kotu Kala school
to look at the new borehole we had funded in November. This had been completed
and was working but there was still some safety work to be carried out. The
electrics for the pump were exposed to the elements. They need to be made safe
and in a waterproof place to protect from the rain when it comes in the summer
and of course they pose a risk to the children. We had provided the new
borehole as the existing well had become contaminated from being too close to
the toilets. A charity from Spain had bought the school a new 2,000 litre water
storage tank, but we were concerned it
was not safe because of the state of the tower that it sat on. The supporting
timbers were rotten and some of the struts were buckled. Ebrima, the school’s
administrator said he would address these urgently. We will go back there
before we leave.
Over the course of the two days we
visited a number of schools to give out sponsorship and welcome gifts to newly
sponsored children, and compounds to deliver sponsorship and just generally to
have a good chin wag.
We went to Mr Abolly’s stationers
to buy some exercise books and to a builder’s merchant to buy some wheelies for
Yundum BS. A lot of activities over the two days that certainly took up our
time.
Finally for today’s blog, I posted
a picture of the refurbished staff room at Pakalinding in the “Upcountry” blog.
Looking back at some old photos I have found one of the room before it was refurbished,
so to make a good comparison, here are the two.
06 February 2018
5th February
5rd February
Upcountry
We had decided to go upcountry to
visit schools and compounds around Soma, and also to visit Wandifa’s sister
Wontu. Soma is about 2.5 hours’ drive with good traffic and for the most part
is a good road. We made good time despite many stops at police check points and
arrived in Soma just before 9.00am where we bought breakfast of freshly cooked omelettes
in baguettes (Tapa Lapa)
Our first visit was to Misera basic
cycle school, which is a literal stone’s throw from the Senegal border, where we
met the principal Mr Modu Faye. In November we had agreed a project to render
the perimeter wall which Pageant had funded in 2017. The rendering of the wall
is almost complete and the builders have done a first class job. When it has
been finished the wall will be decorated with educational art by a teacher.
We
were pleased to tell Mr Faye that we had agreed tp the project to build a
technical workshop on the school site. It will be used by the school for
woodwork, metalwork and home science, and will be available for use by the
local community outside school hours. As soon as decorating the school wall has
finished we will give him some of the money to start that project.
We were also shown the school
garden which was being worked by students at the time. We were able to see
lettuces, cabbage, onions, tomatoes, aubergine, okra and sorrel growing. Most
of these will be used in the school kitchens but any spare will be given to the
students to take home. The garden was looking good but regular and frequent watering
is essential. The school has pumped water from the village borehole to a nearby
tap but the supply is sporadic. At the time we were there was no water to the
tap so students were carrying water in the traditional way for almost 1
kilometre – see photos below.
We went to Soma health centre to
give some small hats suitable for premature and newborn babies which had been
handknitted by a pageant member. We were fortunate enough to be allowed to
visit the postnatal ward and personally give a couple of hats to newborn
babies.
We then took a short drive to
Pakalinding first to visit a student’s family to pay sponsorship, then to the
upper basic school there. When we were last over in November the school grounds
were very scruffy with lots of litter. We had suggested it would give students
a sense of pride in their school if it could be tidied up. Clearly the advice
had been taken and we were pleased to see how much better the school grounds
looked.
We looked at the refurbished staff room which was a pageant project.
The contractors had done an excellent job, with a very good suspended ceiling
and floor tiling. It is now well fitted out with tables and chairs brought over
in the pageant container load last autumn.
The school has a new project it
would like us to consider funding. It has a solid boundary wall going ¾ of the
perimeter but the fourth side is just a wire fence in a bad state of repair
that is broken in parts and leads straight onto a road. This meant that animals
were able to get into the school grounds and cause damage. The school would
like to build the fourth wall, which would be about 100metres long. They gave us
an estimate for the work which we will consider when back in the UK.
On then to Mariama’s (Wandifa's
wife) family compound in Sankuya. We were delighted to be able to give ethical
gifts to the very poor community there, including buckets and watering cans for
the gardens and a good number of mosquito nets. The community were overjoyed.
Our final visit of the day was to
Kani Kunda to see Wontu and the compound. There are a number of sponsored students
living there and we gave them their sponsored money. Two newly sponsored
students were given their welcome pencil cases. We were surprised and delighted
to be given lunch which was a Benechin with small fish cakes and dessert of
fried doughnut-like pastries.
We then started the long journey
back to the hotel with a brief comfort stop and a cold drink at Tendeba, a bird
sanctuary right on the river. We arrived safely back at the hotel at 7.30pm.
04 February 2018
Sunday 4 February
Family Compounds
As it was Sunday we decided it
would be good to visit families we knew and sponsored children, past and
present. The weather has improved back to the usual Gambian sunshine and
warmth. Not too hot with a gentle breeze. The cold North wind has stopped much
to everybody’s relief.
First stop was to visit Lang, a
lovely teenager who will be taking his GCE exams (yes UK ones) in the summer. He says that he likes science and also reading any books he can get his hands on.
On to Ebrima’s compound where we
met him and Fatou, who despite being recently married to Yankuba, goes every
day to cook for Ebrima and Ebe as well as Fatoumatta who has a 4 year old lovely daughter, Isatou. Ebrima’s barber's business is doing well but at the
expense of his garden which was only just getting going. We had hoped to see
Yankuba and Fatou together but he had been called in to work on his day off.
Several sponsored students arrived while we were there and were paid their
money. The word goes around very quickly that Pippa is visiting, almost
magically fast.
A short drive took us to Abdoulie
and Aminata’s compound. Their new baby, Isatou had grown considerably since we
saw her last November and enjoyed being cuddled.
Abdoulie’s orange tree was
doing well and his nephew Ousman climbed the tree and Abdoulie deftly caught the
oranges for us all to enjoy. If you haven’t had the blissful
experience of Gambian oranges on a hot day, they are very juicy but full of
pips and they are peeled with a knife and sliced in half. You then suck out the
juice and feed the shells to the goats. Meanwhile Pippa had given sheets
of paper and colouring pencils to all of the many children who had appeared.
This amazingly produced a ten minutes of peace as they all worked on drawing something
for her. All the pictures were really good efforts and the children greatly enjoyed showing them to her.
Our final visit of the day was to
Wandifa and Mariama’s compound which is not far from Abdoulie’s. It is a lovely
area with some fantastic trees and a very calming atmosphere. We were surprised
and pleased to see that the mango tree that was diseased last year had
recovered completely. An even larger number of sponsored children arrived with
reports and some with letters for their sponsors. Sponsorship monies were duly given out
.
Back to the hotel after a good
relaxing day. Tomorrow will be different as we are intending to go upcountry to
Soma to visit Pakalinding and Misera schools. This will be an early 6.00 start
and a long day.
03 February 2018
3rd February
Markets and sponsorship
We went to Mama’s last night for
dinner. The fish buffet was excellent with a wide variety of fish and shellfish
along with salads, rice and rosti potatoes. The centrepiece was a whole
ladyfish. The ladyfish is probably the best known and loved fish in The Gambia,
but like most largish fish is rarely seen cooked whole, so for food lovers here
is a picture of the one we had last night.
On Saturday morning our first port
of call was Royal Albert Market in Banjul. Pippa, Kathy and I went to a stall
that sold traditional Gambian cooking pots and pans. We were looking for a
wedding gift for Yankuba and Fatou. Yankuba is of course one of our Pageant
agents and as a student was sponsored by Pippa and Ian. Fatou was our sponsored
student and was one of the first to be sponsored under the Pageant scheme. We
bought them two cooking pots and a pan and at the same time bought some more
from money donated to Pageant under the ethical gifts scheme. We will give
these to families much in need of them. While we were doing that, Wandifa and
Abdoulie went off to buy some mosquito nets and buckets, again from money
donated under the ethical gifts scheme.
We then visited a number of
compounds in Banjul to see students and their families and give out sponsorship
money. We had already received most of the student letters to sponsors and also
many school reports the day before as Wandifa and Abdoulie had collected them
early for us to look over. While parked outside one compound a large flock of
vultures arrived on a neighbouring rooftop and we thought you might like to see
a photo of some.
We had a brief visit from Modou
Jeng, a sponsored medical student who is now nearing the end of his studies. He
is very excited at becoming a doctor in the Gambia.
Heading out of Banjul we stopped
to buy some “ethical gifts” watering cans and then visited a few more compounds
to see students and pay out more sponsorship money.
On the way back to the hotel in
the late afternoon we passed a shop selling small chairs suitable for nursery
or lower basic school children. We had tried to buy some of these in November
but the deal had fallen through when the shop holder unexpectedly put the price
up after agreeing a sum. Wandifa negotiated a good price for 40 chairs of good
quality which will be sent to Yundum Barracks School.
Tonight is a quiet night at the
hotel before hopefully visiting our sponsored students and friends tomorrow.
02 February 2018
1st and 2nd February
An early start
saw us at Gatwick at 06.00. The plane left more or less on time and we had a
very quick flight down to Banjul. We were helped along by the north wind that
had been blowing in England that day and continued all the way down the Iberian
Peninsula and into the west coast of Africa. It was a cool (by Gambian
standards) 24 centigrade (75 Fahrenheit for those who prefer it), and all the
Gambians we met on the first day were complaining about how cold it was!
We were met at
the airport by our Gambian agents, Wandifa and Abdoulie, but this time no
Yankuba. He has returned as a waiter at
the Atlantic Hotel which has recently reopened after being closed for about two
years and “refurbished”. We will of course see him when he is not working, but
it will be strange that he won’t be with us all the time.
Off to the
hotel to settle in, unpack and have our first Julbrew. We followed this with a
good meal in the hotel restaurant and then an early night.
After breakfast
on Friday morning we were picked up by Abdoulie and Wandifa and headed off to Gambia
College in Brikama to sort out the details for the two microscopy workshops we
will be giving next week.
En route we
stopped to buy some honey. The National Beekeepers’ Association of The Gambia
have a roadside stall where they sell local honey. It really is the most
intensely flavoured honey I have ever tasted. I suppose it must reflect the
different nectar of the wide variety of Gambian flora. We bought bottles for friends
in The Gambia and a few bottles to take home.
At Gambia
College we met Nakulang Ceesay, Head of Science to arrange the details for the
workshops. We will be having the same excellent laboratory as last year. We are
also hoping that the Science Club will clean it to the same high standard as
last year. We also finalised and paid for the catering for the breakfast and
lunch we will have provided.
We followed
this with a short visit to Baba, Wandifa’s brother whose sponsor had some gifts
for him, and then to Fatoumata’s compound who is hoping to go to nursing school
later this year.
We finished our
day’s outing by going to Karamba’s compound. Karamba is going to the Hotel
School in the summer to undertake a three year course to become a professional
chef. He told us he helps with the family cooking, something quite unusual
among Gambian men! We spent some time discussing cooking, including how to cook
the perfect fried egg and make the best fried egg sandwich!
Back then to
the hotel. This evening we are meeting Linda and going to Mama’s restaurant to
have their wonderful fish buffet.
February 2018:
Pippa, Kathy and I are now back in The Gambia. I will be posting blogs throughout our stay and I hope you will enjoy reading them. As ever, the internet connection here can be patchy, so there may be a few days when I cannot post blogs. Rest assured, though I will catch up when possible.
Andrew
