Another day

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Words cannot describe exactly how I feel right now, but it makes me feel good to try, so here I go. Today began like most of our other days so far. Cultural and language training, safety and health awareness, one more round of immunizations... my body is pumped full of immunizations at this point... At the end of all of this, we took a trip to the crocodile pond in Basau, which is not far from where we are staying in the Kombo region. The crocodile pond is very historic and mystical to the Gambian people who believe that the crocodile symbolizes fertility, and come to the pond to pray and/or bath in it one cannot bear a child. There is also a small museum with various African artifacts and historical summaries from different Gambian time periods. The crocodiles are tame, and allow visitors to pet them... so here is my snapshot of petting the crocodile. However, take this picture with a grain of salt, because the true experience of getting to the pond was worth more than a picture to me. In fact, I had my camera out, ready to take a picture, and decided that there was no way to truly portray the streets of Basau with a photograph... so I put it back in my purse. This was my first image of what it really means to be in a third world country. The homes of these people were crudely constructed of corrogated tin and stacked upon each other very closely. The streets were crowded with people of all ages, goats, dogs, and trash. A small stream filled with trash and what smelled like a sewer... and probably was... ran beside the road. Since the crocodile pond and the museum attract tourists, the children come running to you asking for gifts and money. They are used to seeing Toubobs like us, which is the Gambian word for foreigner or outsider. We drove our air-conditioned Peace Corps van through these crowded streets, each of us taking in the sight of it all. Then we got out of the van, went into the museum, took a bunch of pictures and read a bunch of information. Then we each waited in line to have our picture taken petting the crocodile... then we walked back to the van, got in, and drove off. Many of my fellow trainees have traveled to very poor third world countries before, but no one had seen a sight quite like this before. I believe that this is why the Gambians are wear such bright, beautiful colors and act so happy all of the time. They have to add a little bit of color to their lives. This experience has run deeply through me. I am determined to do something to add a little bit more color to the lives of even just a few...