More of life in Africa!

So, the dog came back after 6 days. That is the current thing happening in my life. Let me lead up to that though. I'm eating jago biscuits and having to listen to loud reggae music at the typing class.

Some dutch man with his family came to my town to get married to this Salone woman that is one of the offspring of that gigantic family that Shebura is part of. Shebura told me that they were Americans, but he lied. I think he was just misinformed. Everyone thinks they are related to me or at the very least friends, since they are white. But yeah, the family had given the family here a bunch of money to build this really nice luxurious home. So, the dutch people have been staying there. I watched the place get built. It's the nicest home I've seen here, really. Sinks, toilets, cushy couches, tiled floor, glass windows that aren't broken, a deep freeze, and even maybe eventually a solar panel to power the lights. Right now they are using a loud, annoying generator like everyone else.

I was invited to their wedding. It was interesting, to say the least. They tried to do a cultural fusion thing but I think it was probably unsatisfying for both groups. Weddings here are apparently very loud and joyous and not amazingly ceremonial like western weddings. A lot of the people I've heard talk about it were disappointed that there wasn't more dancing and stuff. The ceremony was done in Themne and translated to English. It was outside, and there was just a huge circle of Africans gazing at these *ahem* well-fed Dutch people. There were people with things on their heads to sell and people with boxes set up right in front of the people getting married. One little boy walking by with granat yelled out his wares in the middle of the whole thing and people laughed. A crowd represents a good place to sell stuff. But yeah, I listened to the older man, I guess the groom's father, talk about their connection to the place.

I guess they were just baptist missionaries, the parents, and for one reason or another had brought this salone woman back to their home in Amsterdam with them. She learned Dutch and the culture and is now doing nursing. So, you can guess somewhere along the way, their son fell for this woman and now they are married. Everyone here is pretty happy about it.

I only spent a couple times with them. It was nice to talk with Europeans, and it made me realize how much culture we share. They ended up giving me a bunch of delicious drink mixes and fruit cookies from Europe because they didn't want to take the things back with them and I was very grateful!

        I went to this beach called Bureh beach this past weekend. I didn't get there until almost night time on Friday but I managed! This place is super nice, and probably the most stereotypical paradise setting I've ever been to. The water is shallow and blue. There are forest covered mountains all around. It's sort of out of the way and not very many people go there. It took me about 4 hours to get to, so I'll probably be going often. There is a surf club on the beach that rents rooms and allows you to pitch a tent on the sand. There are a few places to get absolutely delicious sea food from. I ate clams, crazy looking lobsters people went and caught for us, and delicious fish. I surfed for a lot of Saturday and plan on doing a lot more - I'll be able to learn to surf here and I'm totally stoked about that!

I left Sunday morning again traveling by myself, but this time feeling sick and terrible. I think I probably ate something bad because I ended up being sick until Tuesday. Transportation back was horrible. I was exhausted, sunburned (unavoidable with this white skin..), upset, sick, dehydrated, etc. I just wanted to get home. At one point I puked out the window of a taxi and then apparently instantly passed out. I woke up disoriented to a bunch of concerned looking Africans wanting to sell things to me at a place we were stopped at. I bought a coconut and kept going. Dehydration here sucks a lot and can be pretty scary!

Then I got home, and my dog was on the porch waiting for me. He was excited, I was not. He looked like he hadn't eaten for 6 days. I said I would deal with it later and went in and tried to feel less horrible. I didn't go to school the next day and just relaxed. Next day the nausea was still there a bit, and I was still exhausted so I ended up staying home again and slept. But yeah, I'm fine now. I'll try better next time to not get sick, sunburned, and dehydrated.

I'm tired of the dog problem. I thought he was gone and living a new life and I felt good about it. I told everyone last time that I would drown him if he came back, but I just haven't really felt like it.

Yesterday I was riding my bike somewhere in town and the dog was running with me like he likes to do. Whenever he sees children or bikes he chases them and nips at people. Same old dog. He wants me to forgive him but he still sucks a lot. Going home, I was stopped by a man that told me he was going to make a complaint to the police because my dog had chased him on his bike twice just now and he was pissed about it. I live by the police station, so I went home and saw the man going there to complain. I sat down and talked with the man, exasperated by this stupid dog. Then, some other guy on a bike comes and stops and is angry because my dog had bit his leg and drawn a bit of blood. At this point I just said okay, I'm going to drown the dog tomorrow.

So yeah, that's what I'm going to go do after this. I'm going to the clinic to find some injection I might be able to give him. But if they don't have anything I'll go drown him. I have given him many chances and done all that I can to keep him alive without too badly sacrificing the opinions the town has about me. He's a nuisance and a danger. I don't see another solution really. I was thinking to castrate him, but at this point I feel that if he is around at all people are going to look negatively on me for it. I don't blame them. He is a terrible dog, anyway. He doesn't even do his job. All he does is run around town bothering people, being a terrible dog, a danger to children, and occasionally costing me a lot of money and annoyance. I don't feel as bad now about it as I have before because I feel there is no other way to deal with the problem.

I'll try to get around to carving a pumpkin tonight. I miss the fall atmosphere.

It just started raining so maybe the dog will live another day.