Ramadan

The 40 days of fasting are over and the official celebrations have begun!

As an outsider, it has been so much fun watching the change in the city, as well as the general vibe of the people. No longer are people grumpy or vacant from the street, rather they are out, in their best clothes celebrating with friends and family. Here are some fun observations.

Starting Wednesday, I started noticing the amount of people with freshly done hair. Little girls have added beads to their braids, and the women have fancy styling of braids and twists. The men get their hair cut and most of the boys are freshly shaved. I also noticed the tailor shops were extra busy in preparation for festive clothing.

On Thursday morning, we received the call that the official fast has broken and celebration has begun (it is determined by the reading of the moon- therefore is hard to plan for). We canceled school for the day to honor the Malian traditions, and although we were about to leave to school- it was nice to head back to bed! For the rest of the day 5 of us took a day trip to a natural bridge and water fall and went hiking/climbing as well as swimming. It was a perfect break from the city life in Bamako and great fun for our group!View from the top of the natural arch

Natural arch from a distance- we climbed to the top like cool kids!

Water fall on the way to the arch. We went swimming.

We returned to the city to find the buzz of holidays in full swing! Everyone is dressed in their best clothes- with families matching fabric if at all possible. The other fun note in terms of clothing is the obsession with Obama. An Obama t-shirt is classified in the same manner of formality as a full suit. It really is quite amusing!

Yesterday when walking into our house, Hilary (my roomie) looked at me and said "that cow is going to die". I couldnt tell if she thought it was sick or what... however, this morning as we were walking to school, we walked out our gate and both to the left and right were people butchering 2 cows. She was right! I really did not expect to have to ford the bloody river of cow guts on my way to school, but sure enough, the cow was dead, and going to be prepared for the feast later in the day.

Life in Bamako is never boring. I cant help but thank God for amazing friends here and the immediate community I was placed in. So many cultural tidbits and fun stories!