Sunsets Like a Dream: 1/17/09
From 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. is a magical time to shoot video here. The temperature is perfect. The sky goes from blue to yellow then orange then red and pink. Mixed with the red earth and the haze from dust it is a majestic scene.
I’m trying to get out every evening to shoot around this time. Today I shot a lot of football (soccer). As 4:30 rolls around you see boys of all ages heading to areas all over town to play. It’s no wonder we can’t compete in the World Cup. The rest of the world is playing soccer everyday and in poor countries without cleats or shin guards.
Earlier in the day The Chief of Sikoro (dugutigi) approved Eduardo’s mural design. Tomorrow they will start on the wall. In the morning they’ll paint the wall white and then in the evening they will use a data projector to project images onto the wall which they can trace with pencil. Then they will darken the lines and begin to paint Monday. We have 16 days left.
We also strolled around our voisinage (neighborhood) today. We saw many beautiful children, hundreds of smiling faces and tragic filth. There was a beautiful garden and just beyond it a stream chock full of garbage, scum and waste. It makes me sad that the people and animals here live among such squalor. Then you stop and talk to people and they offer you fried bananas and the trash and filthy water melts away and all that remains is the happiness, contentment and generosity of these wonderful people.
Photos from today:
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- The camera and the Bamako sunset.
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- Camera sunset 2.
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- Che Guevera graffiti. His image is all over.
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- Sunset self portrait.
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- Eduardo with a boy flying a kite made from a trash bag.
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- The highest of many trash bag kites. Amazing resourcefulness.
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- Kids in the sunset. The scene is the Hippodrome which is a football field and horse track.
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- More American hip hop graffiti.
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- Pain (bread) from one of the many local Bolangerie Pattiseries. Two loaves cost a dollar.
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- Rox is the local Red Bull. It’s from Austria.
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- Teresa, Eduardo and some potsmiths.
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- Trash creek.
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- Trash garden.
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- The happiest goat on the planet. Trash and fresh grass for dinner.
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- Keeping cars cool with cardboard at the Supermarche.
Categories
Mali Project
Dan, I am loving reading all of the entries! I look forward to seeing what you, Teresa and Eduardo have been doing and experiencing! It feels like I got to tag along without the passport! It looks like its been an amazing trip but crazy to think there is only 16 days left! Tell Everyone hello! Can’t wait for tomorrow’s entries!
What Rose said above. !
Ditto Michael.