Africa Part Three

Well we've been back for just over 3 weeks now, it is hard to believe. It feels like it has been forever, and I would go back right now in a heartbeat if I could. Instead I guess I can reminisce. Today I am going to show you pictures of one of my favorite places we went. THE ORPHANAGE! This is the place that I miss the MOST out of all the places we went, mainly because I LOVE THE KIDS and I want see them again!!!!! We got to spend two days at this place...for only a couple hours each day. When we arrived at the orphanage, the first little kid that greeted us was Adam. He was seriously one of the funniest kids there. I gave him a big hug and took some pictures of him... he instantly fell in love with my camera, and pretty much kidnapped it from me and started taking pictures of everyone. He was so funny. He would always wear his little red underwear. And girl sandals. He had a twin sister named Eve. Adam and Eve. So cute...haha.

We then went outside in the scorching hot heat to play with the rest of the children, ages baby to 10...and there were a few teenage girls. The kids seemed REALLY happy there. They were extremely playful, had tons of energy, and seemed to be well fed. The one baby had malaria, but other than that there was just one other girl who was feeling a little sick. Everyone else was good! It didn't seem to bother the kids one bit that it was 45 degrees Celsius outside. They just wanted to play! We brought all sorts of things for them, like balloons, and beads to make necklaces and bracelets and anything else under the sun, beach balls, bubbles, Frisbee, teddy bears, candy, you name it. We had so much fun, but it was so exhausting to have kids hanging off you non-stop when it was so hot outside!!

Robbie started this marching game with some of the kids which caught on really fast, and all of a sudden there was a big line of kids marching behind him for no apparent reason...just kids being kids...and Robbie...being a kid too. :)

It was so sweet, all the kids would call us "Tante" for Auntie and "Tanto" for Uncle. All we heard, all day long was "Tante! Tante! Tante!!!" and then a bunch of French words we couldn't understand. They didn't seem to be bothered that we didn't speak the same language. They would still talk to us like we knew what they were saying. It was quite cute actually. We all sang the alphabet together in French! haha
This little girl was such a darling. So funny. She had the cutest little giggle. And she looked at me and thought it was just hilarious to "water" the water basin. I laughed. And then I told her to stop because she was wasting water. haha



Now my favorite little sweetie was Jamima, pronounced "Jameema". She was so precious, I would have adopted her in a second if I was an irrational person. She was so beautiful, and so full of life. I miss her so much!!! The orphanage was wonderful...I hope to go back someday....

Taste of Africa

I thought I would post some random pictures to give you a little taste of what Niger is all about. These are things that would be considered normal, or common in Niamey... ENJOY!!!

I'm not 100% certain, but I believe this photo could be entitled "Moving Day in Niger". People would pile everything and anything on the top of their vehicles to get it from point A to point B. I think this would be typical of someone who is moving, not an everyday occurrence for the average person. But, I even saw goats on roof one time! Not to mention the inside of the vehicle probably has 10-15 people inside it as well!!!!!

I took this picture as the truck was driving past us. Yes, you heard me....this truck is driving. Like that. How he can see out the window...I'm just not sure.

The temperature some days was just unbearable. Almost painful. You see it right. 50 degrees Celsius. OUTSIDE. Yes, that is where we spent most of our time. Outside. I can't even describe the heat. Just stick your head in the oven at 350...and you will catch a glimpse of what we felt. (I'm just kidding...please don't actually do that!!!!!!)

This is a typical "Home Hardware" or "Home Depot". Piles of wood tied together. Nothing matches.

Here is a typical store in Niger. You can get food or...well I'm not really sure what else. But these things are just on the side of the road, and that is close to as good as it gets for a store.

People ride on the top of vehicles, on the sides of vehicles, on the backs or fronts of vehicles! Pretty much anywhere they can fit their bums.

And this of course is MORE than common. Everyone has amazing balance and can carry absolutely anything on their head. It was so amazing to see.