Dogon Country, Mali

We started out eating chocolate croissants in Ouhyiguya.



Then it was off to check out the cliff dwellings in Dogon Country!

Fada Entrepreneur Workshop

At the end of January one of my colleagues, Matthew Konsa, organized an entrepreneur workshop and asked us to help out. Seven volunteers worked with small business owners from the Fada area to create a business plan. On the last day of the workshop the participants presented their plan to a panel of judges. The panel chose the best presentation and awarded 30,000 cfa to help them with their new business idea. It was great to work one on one with an entrepreneur.

Bike Tour 2009

It all started in Karfiguela. We got off to an early 11 a.m. start. We stopped at the Domes. We had a full fifteen minutes to enjoy their grandeur thanks to our crack of dawn departure. We got oven roasted pork in Beregadougou and then continued on to Orodara (the fruit basket of Southwest Burkina).


The next day we passed through mango and citrus orchards until we reached the Sindou Peaks. We camped there, hiked through the peaks the next morning and then visited the Subakadougou marche before heading back to the Banfora area.




Thanks Abby, Brekke, Coleman, Leah, Leslie and Lara! That was fun!

Semaga Sunset

The tiny village of Semaga could be mistaken for a remote wasteland, but once the sun set it became the most beautiful place on earth.

Basket Weaving

Lately, Siaka's aunt has been teaching me how to weave baskets out of palm branch leaves. The women weave in underground rooms that they have dug out to keep the leaves cool and moist. I've had three lessons so far. One lesson was briefly interrupted be a very large green snake that accidentally slithered and feel into the pit. The women killed it and then resumed weaving.

A Quest for Palm Wine

The local drink is Palm Wine. It is made by tapping Roniers Palm trees and then letting the juice ferment. I've watched people climb up the trees in envy, so I decided my friends and I could give it a try too! It was scary.

Christmas Time

Leslie, my closest volunteer neighbor, came over to my house and hung snowflakes from the ceiling and played Christmas carols on her i-pod. It really put me in the Christmas Spirit, so I painted a Christmas tree on my wall.