Road to Maradi

We left for Maradi on Monday, March 26^th.  It is about a 3 1/2 to 4 hr. car trip depending on how slow you drive through the rougher spots. We had the kids “roped in” the back seat. We were hoping that by leaving around nap time the kids would sleep most of the trip, but we had no idea how bumpy the ride was going to be. They attempted to sleep, but ended up awake for the majority of the trip. Eli thought the bumps were so fun. He would giggle and squeal and say, "Daddy, this ride is so bumpy!"

                             

It was enjoyable getting to see more of the country’s landscape and many of the villages that were scattered along the road. The soil in Galmi is quite rocky and hard but as we drove East the land became more sandy and looked more like the desert.

Of course, every village we passed had plenty of onions for sale!

It is difficult to tell the sheep and goats apart in Niger because they have the same color and pattern, but someone recently pointed out to us that the sheeps' tails point down and the goats' tails point up. So, this is a sheep herder below. :)

I have been surprised by how young kids are when they begin working. If a child can't pass an exam at the end of 6th grade then they are done with their schooling and usually begin helping support their family full time.

Marc decided half-way through our trip that he wanted to buy a few cokes. He said he envisioned pulling over to one of the little shops on the side of the road, passing his money through the window, and getting his cokes. However, our driver pulled all the way off the road and turned off the car. He began chatting up someone he knew while someone in our car ran out to buy some beverages. The conversations carried on for a little while so our quick stop became a long one. While we waited, a large group of children gathered outside our vehicle to see who was inside.

Eli and Hailey enjoyed all the attention at the window while we waited. :)

Once we arrived in Mardi, we stopped off at a bakery to pick up some fresh bread for dinner. There were a few boys who bravely approached our van. I passed out the remainder of our popcorn and they ran off delighted. I’m not sure they knew what it was. They looked at it for quite a while, but they never tasted any. Then, one of the boys shoved the bag in his front pocket and ran away without his friend. It was quite fun watching this all play out, yet also heartbreaking as I looked at these little ones in tattered and dirty clothes begging for handouts of any sort.

Some more cute kids hard at work..

And finally we arrived!