A Friday Market Adventure

Hello All,

Last week, we admitted defeat to time, dust, and African life, and . . . hired a cook and a house keeper. Yup, you heard right. So, Friday morning, the cook, Bachir (MC driver) and I hit the local market to buy what we hoped would be a week's worth of food for the equivalent of $100. And let me tell you, it was tough! First, I had to draw a hard line with the cook about where to buy food and what to buy. Since everyone knows money grows in American closets, he couldn't grasp why I would prefer to go to the local market when I could easily buy everything I needed at Score in comfort for 3X the price. But, once that was cleared up - ie, "I want a lot of food for a lot of people and I don't need it to be fancy." We hit the market. Describing a west African market is tough for those who have never visited a developed country, but for those who have, it's much like any other market in the developing world. People lay out blankets covered with mangos, melons, tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, manioc etc. What makes this market unique is that it's all enclosed- or mostly, with a big sign that reads "Petit Marche" (excuse the lack of accent)- which is funny, since it seems pretty big to me. The stalls are divided into sections for meat and fish with veggies and fruit around the outside. There are walkways through the labyrinth that are covered with raggedy tarps and blankets. We spent a while picking out the right fish, which they then cleaned and filleted right there for us!

We were buying juice, chicken and canned goods in a little interior shop when the rain started. And it came down hard. First, the sky turned orange with the dust that the wind stirred up. Quickly following that, the water poured down hard and fast. We waited in the shop for more than half an hour while it showered. Suddenly the tarps made a lot more sense. When the rain let up enough, we made a dash for it. We waded ankle deep in nasty street water to get back to the car. I scrubbed my feet when we got home. All I could think about were Bachir's Friday boubou and nice shoes! terrible. Whew, what an adventure! but we have food for the week now!

Yesterday, Cheikh worked most of the day, so Karim and I met up with our new friends Jackie and BJ(almost 2yrs) at Cocochouland. Can I say enough good things about this playground? It's where I've met most of the people I know, where I got involved with the mom's group and where K and I go at least 4X a week if not more. After 2 hrs of playing, we picked up brioches at the bakery and gourmet that I am, I whipped up pb (Skippy) & J (Bonne Maman Strawberry) on brioches for the boys while Jackie and I sat down to baked pasta, with salad and flan. I could get used to a cook:)

Today, we had a nice family Sunday. We spent the morning having brunch and doing puzzles on the terrace. No cook today, so I got to whip up omelets with eggs laid this morning by our landlady's hens, mango and Earl Grey tea we got in London. This evening we went out for fantastic Lebanese food on our way home from Cocochou:) It was such a treat to see Dad, Rosella and Deb on Skype, even if they were blurry.

Love to all! Now that I have internet at home, I will try to post more videos.