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vited me to stay with them in their home. I accepted the offer and followed the mother. We
entered through the front door, bike and all, into a beautiful home. The side of the house
opposite the front door had no wall and simply opened to the courtyard. Instead of a wall,
there was a metal gate that spanned from the floor to the ceiling. After a shower, a bowl of
rice with milk and sugar, I watched TV (Hunter in French) with her extended family: great
grandmother, grandparents, uncles, etc. Another storm swept by knocking out the electri-
city. That was when I decided to turn in and wished everyone a goodnight.
In the morning, I was preparing to leave when I was asked if I wanted some break-
fast. When have I ever refused food? I sat down with the family and ate bread with butter
andsweetcoffee.Afterfillingmymainwaterbottle(discreetlyaddingapurificationtablet)
I thanked the family for their hospitality and said good-bye.
The scenery struck me immediately. It was simply beautiful. There were palm trees
everywhere surrounded by a blanket of green. I saw this bizarre looking tree called a
baobabwhichseemedtobeupsidedown.Sometimestheirtrunksappearedtobethreetrees
melded into one.
Istoppedinavillageforashortbreakandaskedforpermissiontoenteracourtyard
to rest under its tree. One of the French-speaking villagers was summoned and he said it
was OK. Within a short period of time a large crowd arrived and listened to us as we chat-
ted. I offered him some of my bread but he gave it to his son instead. My 'short break' ran
intolunchtime.HetheninsistedthatIstayforlunch-ahh…myweakness.Ihadrice,beans
and what looked like spinach. He brought out some family photos and showed me photos
of himself on the national football squad. After a very long rest, I told him that I wanted to
press on.
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