Have" mobili" will travel. Arriving in Banamba with Maria's LandCruiser was a great opportunity for Sambou and I to take a road trip. When Naomi and I and the kids were up in Banamba in December, we didn't have the time to visit Sambou's family in their "farming hamlet" called Touroukoro, 18 km from Banamba. So, this time, since we had all day and no other plans, we loaded up 3 of his sons (actually 2 sons and 1 nephew), and hit the road.We headed north from Banamba on dirt donkey-cart roads, as Sambou and I reminisced about the many trips we made over 20 years ago on my motorcycle. We had some great times, including getting lost at night coming back from a baptism, and getting stuck in a rainy-season pond on our way to a wedding. This time though, we were riding in style in this cushy LandCruiser. It is hard to set the scene, because Sambou is the last person that anyone would expect to drive up in a LandCruiser. So, each stop was pretty memorable, as we were always greeted with lots of cheers of astonishment, and cries of "Sambou, is that you?" and, "Madu Diarra, i ni fama!" (Madu Diarra, it's been a long time!).
This time, our first stop was a small village called Sinzana, where we visited the family of Sambou's second wife, Hatmata. Then we kept driving 
toward Tourokoro. About 10 kms away, we saw a someone walking next to a someone riding on a horse, with two other horses in tow. It turns out that was Sambou's brother, Madi (in the picture below), so of course we stopped. He was walking to Banamba for the market on Monday, accompanying a more wealthy merchant, taking care of the horses along the way for some money. But, when we stopped, Madi was not going to turn down a ride in a LandCruiser, even if we were going the opposite direction (yes, we just came from Banamba, his destination). So, Madi jumped in the car, and said goodbye to his merchant friend --and his little commission!
toward Tourokoro. About 10 kms away, we saw a someone walking next to a someone riding on a horse, with two other horses in tow. It turns out that was Sambou's brother, Madi (in the picture below), so of course we stopped. He was walking to Banamba for the market on Monday, accompanying a more wealthy merchant, taking care of the horses along the way for some money. But, when we stopped, Madi was not going to turn down a ride in a LandCruiser, even if we were going the opposite direction (yes, we just came from Banamba, his destination). So, Madi jumped in the car, and said goodbye to his merchant friend --and his little commission! When we got to Tourokoro, we got to greet Sambou's family: cousings, aunts, uncles, nieces and 
nephews. It is very cool to see how the "Moores" greet each other. When a younger person greets an older person, he/she comes up to them and doesn't extend his/her hand, but rather gently leans toward the person, making a slight bowing motion. Then the elder takes his hand and puts in on the younger person's shoulder, all the while, asking "how are you? how is the family? How is mama and papa? etc." Very sweet. We had a great visit with Sambou's aunt in her hut. She's now blind, but she had lots of memories from twenty years ago, and kept talking about the time I slept over there for the baptism of the twins which were her grandchildren. Unfortunately, neither of the twins lived.
nephews. It is very cool to see how the "Moores" greet each other. When a younger person greets an older person, he/she comes up to them and doesn't extend his/her hand, but rather gently leans toward the person, making a slight bowing motion. Then the elder takes his hand and puts in on the younger person's shoulder, all the while, asking "how are you? how is the family? How is mama and papa? etc." Very sweet. We had a great visit with Sambou's aunt in her hut. She's now blind, but she had lots of memories from twenty years ago, and kept talking about the time I slept over there for the baptism of the twins which were her grandchildren. Unfortunately, neither of the twins lived.
Sambou kept asking me if I could recognize how things had changed. And I had to say honestly, no. There are about the same number of houses, but they have moved around a bit. That's the nice thing about building out of mud bricks: if you want to move, you just pick a new spot and build a new house, and your old house eventually melts back into the ground.Madi stayed in Tourokoro and we headed further down the dirt track to "Genguan," another 12 km away, taking Sambou's cousin (who he called his "brother") Bakary with us. Genguan is actually the town where Sambou's family comes from, though his father and one other brother left Genguan and settled in Tourokoro. So Genguan is really the family homestead, and Beya, the last living brother of Sambou's father is considered the "village chief."As we were about to arrive in Genguan, we saw a group of men and dogs scouring the bush. They were folks from Genguan, on a group hunt called a "fele." They try to flush-out small game (rabbits, antelope, quail etc.) from the bush, to take home for a nice Sunday brunch! It was so hot, and the brush so sparse, that it didn't look like much fun to me. Among the men on the "fele" was Beya, Sambou's uncle, who greeted us profusely, was so glad to see us because he really didn't feel like going out on the hunt! So, we were a perfect excuse for him to drop-out, and head back home. He then convinced us that we had to spend the day there with his family, and absolutely couldn't leave until after lunch. So, of course, we agreed.
What an afternoon we had. It was as if time had stood still for the past 800 years. We were treated like kings, as the straw prayer mats were brought outside under the "gua" or "sukka." The
elders of the family all gathered, and we relaxed while eating peanuts while the elders threw the cowrie shells and did some fortune telling. Then, little by little, people just dozed off to sleep, including me. Then, after a couple of hours had passed lunch was brought. 3 bowls of milled porridge (known as "to"), with a nice hearty meat sauce which included the chicken and the guinea hen that were killed in our honor! After lunch, I watched as Bakary and Beya set up and then played a game of "M'Peri," which is something like checkers. What was so cool, is that it started by Beya asking one of his grandsons to bring him some sand, and then some dry twigs. The next thing I realize, they are creating the game board from the sand, and the game pieces from the twigs. Of course, the old man Beya beat Bakary 3 straight games in a row. I guess he is not Village Chief for nothing! Enjoy the video of Bakary and Beya playing M'Peri that follows, and just try to enjoy the simplicity of passing the day under the "gua" with us in Genguan.
elders of the family all gathered, and we relaxed while eating peanuts while the elders threw the cowrie shells and did some fortune telling. Then, little by little, people just dozed off to sleep, including me. Then, after a couple of hours had passed lunch was brought. 3 bowls of milled porridge (known as "to"), with a nice hearty meat sauce which included the chicken and the guinea hen that were killed in our honor! After lunch, I watched as Bakary and Beya set up and then played a game of "M'Peri," which is something like checkers. What was so cool, is that it started by Beya asking one of his grandsons to bring him some sand, and then some dry twigs. The next thing I realize, they are creating the game board from the sand, and the game pieces from the twigs. Of course, the old man Beya beat Bakary 3 straight games in a row. I guess he is not Village Chief for nothing! Enjoy the video of Bakary and Beya playing M'Peri that follows, and just try to enjoy the simplicity of passing the day under the "gua" with us in Genguan.Blog ya later.
Seth (aka, Madu)./.
