Long, trying, cold, windy, boring drive. Lunch stop a welcome break from the monotony.
A huge bump in the road and crash landing shortly after lunch sent us all skyward and forward; Julie jarred her back and winded.
Stopped at a village with the beautiful matting huts for photos - no-one objected as we stared and fired our shutters at them. They seemed as curious as we were and watched us with wide-eyes, big smiles and giggles.
We camped a short way beyond the village, beside the Niger RIver. The water was freezing but an invigorating wash left me feeling ready for anything.
A small audience gathered, including a very dark woman with a suckling baby and four other children. They watched our evening cooking, fascinated by Nikki’s handling of the hissing pressure cooker. They sat with us till late, the mother leaving with her kids but a second group of youngsters replacing her, chatting quietly or just watching us, their teeth and whites of their eyes visible in the dark. And then they rose as one, wished us “Bon Nuit” (good night) and left. I expect that we were as much a subject of conversation around their fires over the next few days as they were of ours.
I love how they just sit and watch, something that's knocked out of us as we age - "It's rude to stare!" I must try to just and watch, one day soon, rather than photographing their reactions to us.
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