Niamey

It has taken me two days to figure out how to use the Niger Grand Hotel's computer - T-Mobile Blackberry service not working. I still have not mastered the French keyboard, so please excuse typos.

We arrived in Niamey on time. Our passports and visas were checked multiple times, the last time after a porter had collected our bags and we were almost free of the airport bureauocracy. The military policeman carefully pursued both our passports and found Collie's expired. We explained the DC counsulor mistake and he let us pass.

Our shuttle was waiting as planned and we got our first glimpse of Niamey through the very clean windows of a modern van. The constrasts of a third world city were apparent on the brief ride to the Grand; beggers; street vendors, colorful dresses and flowing robes; cattle, goats and sheep running freely in the streets, and all forms of transportation - cars of all ages, lotor scopoters; and bikes. The hotel overlooks the banks of the Niger River, which flows east to west, opposite of what I had thought. I need to brush up on my geography: The face of Africa has changed since my high school years. The river is swollen by the recent heavy rains; dark and muddy, and looks to be a mile wide.

We got settled in our room, very adequate and clean - no luxury here, and phoned Susan Rosenberg; our Niamey contact. Susan is sixty-one and originally from New Jersey. She discovered Africa during a stint in the Peace Corps in the seventies and has lived here ever since, twenty-five years in Niamey. She currently works for Boston University administering their study abroad program in Niamey. Susan met us and drove us to an Italian restaurant for dinner. We explained that the money changer that Leslie had arranged had not shown as apppointed. He was also Sue's money changer, a legal profession here. She called him and made arrangements for him to come to the restaurant. Besides English; Susqn speaks French, Italian, Zarma, and several other African languages: She reminded us that it was the month of Ramaden, when devout Muslims fast and drink no water from sun up to sundown. Life, already slow by our standards, moves even slower.

I mentioned that it would be good to have a guide the next day to show us the city. She called Issau Ousseine, one of the teachers at Boston U, and made arrangements for him, to pick us up the next morning at 10:30 am after his class - cost fifty dollars US for the day. Sue said that Issau had just purchased a car. The money changer gave us a ride back to the Grand.