Visitors

My first visitors from the mother land came to visit this past week.  I dropped them off at the airport and watched them walk through the door to the gate after going through security and they didn’t show up at my house so I am assuming they made it home. 

My brother and his wife came to visit.  They spent the first day and a half relaxing at my house, the beach and the Peace Corps office.  We went to my favorite dinner spot and met a couple of other volunteers.

Brother and I at the beach

We got up Wednesday morning and packed up and headed to my old village.  I had to stop by the market and pick up some food to take to my family to cook for the time we would be there.  The option was to leave them in the car garage to be harassed or take them along.  I took them along and it was one of the busiest days I have ever seen in the market.  They were troopers and dealt with it well.  Afterwards I told him that there are volunteers that refuse to run the gauntlet of markets like they did so that was good.  It was a great time they realized that there are more potholes filled with water than there is actual road on the way to my village.  

 

Howa and I



Brothers

We arrived in early afternoon to hunger and no food cooked for us as it being Ramadan.  So I went to finding food.  This meant me telling my host brothers to bring us, fresh Guava, Mangos and some Cashew nuts to go cook.  After doing all of that it was just resting and meeting my family. 

Lamin

There was a lot of wide eyes from my visitors and a lot of the same things they were thinking and seeing for the first time was similar to my thoughts and sights a couple of years ago the first time I stepped in to my compound.   

Comedian Mike

 

Nicole with some women

Small kids taking care of babies

  

We walked around the village and met a lot of people and took lots of pictures.  The final day in village we had my host father arrange everyone for a large family portrait.

Baby Backary

The Fam

We came back to the city Friday afternoon and just relaxed.  Saturday we got up and went to the tourist craft market in Bakou for Nicole to buy some souvenirs to take back with her.  We then went to the fish market bought some fish and had a big family dinner with fish and chips, tartar sauce, cole slaw, fresh fruit and good company. 

Cookin

Family dinner

The Food

Sunday we just sat around packed and relaxed.  Overall it was a great trip and was real grateful and excited to have visitors

Sunset