My buddy from the meat market and I

Sunday morning girls club

Going to slaughter

Fresh fruit galore

The tea lady. Beautiful smile

Good morning,

Rest day, so I slept in until around 8:00 and then strolled into town for breakfast. At the little place I stopped, I had two eggs, two pieces of flat bread, a few trimmings, a plate of deep fried, breaded dough ,(I think) and a warm glass of what I’m guessing was goats milk. Cost $1.00.

The people in the market were very friendly. No begging, or pestering, just the locals greeting me with hand shakes and warm welcomes. Everyone wanted to known where I lived. A few people spoke a little English. Lots of activity and merchants selling everything from home hardware to beautiful fruits and freshly cut steaks.

Clive Smith, one of the English chaps, was almost arrested yesterday for taking a picture in the barbershop. I guess he was desperate to have his hair trimmed, so ventured into a local establishment. Little did he know, that after having someone snap a photo of himself and his barber, that the police would come and interrogate him. They lead him to their vehicle and held him for about 30 minutes. He needed to produce his license to take photos. WHAT, a license to take photos? Yes, at the border we all had to buy a license for about $20 to take any Kodak moments. Do you think this country is a little  back-asswards; maybe just a little.

FYI: One thing you can’t find in Dongola is toilet paper. We searched high and low, in every type of store, hoping to land a little ass-wipe. It’s very important to pack a little TP in your day bag, for the so called camp sites. It’s a rarity to find a camp with facilities, so when you need to do your daily duty, a shovel, some TP and maybe even a wet-wipe, really come in handy. (For those of you inquisitive types, the reason why there is no TP, in most of the Sudan, is that their toilets have small hoses beside the bowl, or sometimes the hole in the floor. A little squirt and you’re ready to roll.)

Talk later, need to get a little packing done and maybe a nap..

Ciao,

Easy Rider