at last!

First off, Happy new year!!
Secondly, apologies all around for not having posted anything in a while. It’s not that nothing exciting, annoying or worth telling has happened (lots has!!), we’ve just both been busy with holidays, work, concerts, soccer, and roommates! (yes, yes, lots to tell!)
Let me start with Christmas and our holidays. Once Thomas and I both felt well, we began our hike through a part of the Pays Dogon. Dogon Country extends some 150km through the Sahel to the east of Mopti and according to Lonely Planet it’s one of the top 10 places to see before you die!! (We can check it off the list now!) The landscape is incredibly stunning- homes and granaries (greniers) were built up in the rocks in the escarpment- and the Dogon people are intriguing- many are animists! We hiked 6-8 hours a day for 3 days and spent 2 nights in different Dogon villages. The camp sites in the region are usually someone’s home on the roof on a flimsy matress under a mosquito net (there weren’t many at all!) and under the magnificent sky. Nights were a definite highlight for me! Not only could I rest my sore feet but laying under the stars in a village the Sahel is such a treat. The sight of shooting stars and the early-morning sounds of donkeys, sheep and roosters (oh yes! Let’s not forget the endless praying over the mosque’s loud speaker!!!) is an experience Thomas and I will both always remember. For those of you on Facbook, pictures are posted. Here, we’ve only posted a few.
We finished our trek on Christmas eve and were back in Mopti that evening. You may recall from one of my last postings that I was somewhat hungry for Christianity. Back at our hostal (called Y’a pas de probème- Malians say “Y’a pas de problème” ALL the time) I asked the owner whether he knew of any church services taking place. He informed us that there was a mass being held at Mopti’s only Catholic church at 9pm and told us something was to take place at the Protestant church but he wasn’t sure of the time. Walking in to town we found the “Temple Protestant Culte” and when we opened the big metal door, a crowd of people – many of whom were wearing masks- was sitting around a huge bonfire. Feeling tired and unadventurous, we decided we’d be Catholic this year and headed off to mass. Mass was in Bambara and we sat through about 30 minutes and then left. (It went on til midnight)
The following morning, Christmas morning, we woke up at 5:00am to head back to Bamako. We made it in time for a terrific Christmas dinner at Deb’s place. Deb’s sister and her family were also there and they had cooked up a storm. We had turkey and stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and even champagne!