and Jordan and her friend Sinead visit The Gambia during their summer
break. They divided their time mucking in with work in the school
compound and visiting places of interest around the Kombo area of The
Gambia. They constructed a new support for the well, helped repair
parts of the rain-damaged house, organised resources and spent time
teaching and playing with the children. The girls cried when they saw
a beautiful sea-turtle which had been caught and stuck in a plastic
bucket. They negotiated with the owner to release it and half an hour
later it was swimming to freedom in the warm seas off Tanji beach. We
hung around for some time to ensure the turtle didn't get caught again
by some local boys intent on re-capturing it.
Our visitors toured the Royal Victoria Teaching Hospital in Banjul,
Tanji Health Centre and donated some of our medical supplies to
Africmed Medical Centre in Bijilo. We visited the SOS Children's
Village and donated a huge bag of soft toys and teddies for the
children there, most of whom are orphans. Unfortunately we arrived
outside visiting hours and the children were taking a post-lunch nap.
I
wish my children would do that, they have so much energy they exhaust
me! We also sorted lots of books and toys and presented them to
various family compounds near Ghana Town, a very poor area inhabited
mainly by Ghanian fishermen and their families. The smiles and whoops
of delight when presents like this are received make all the hard work
involved worthwhile and I wish I could bottle the smiles and give them
to the wonderful people here who have donated all these things to
enable this to happen. Their smiles are priceless!
It wasn't all work for our guests. They went to Bijilo Forest Park and
saw monkeys and birds in their picturesque natural environment right
next to the beautiful sandy beaches. I took them to Katchikally Sacred
Pool to visit Charlie the Crocodile and his pals; yes you really can
touch the crocs here with guidance from the locals. At Kartong, we
crossed the stunning Alahein River in a rickety, leaky pirogue and set
foot on Senegalese soil just as the sun was setting over the river,
truly beautiful. At Lamin Lodge, a stilted bar/restaurant set among
mangroves, our intentions to take a boat trip were thwarted by a sudden
dramatic thunderstorm which is a common occurence during the rainy
season. Many thanks to Diane Billington of Mandinka Lodges who
provided the group with comfortable accommodation and friendly service
during their stay in her lovely African lodges.
dwdebs@aol.com or call 07596 249987.
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