Kotu Layout

Last summer we moved into a new house in an area known as Kotu Layout. As some of you may remember we had a rather 'shocking' experience at our old place and while we liked the house and location, we didn't really enjoy being electrocuted every time it rained. Apparently this is pretty common in Gambia and from what I can tell it's a combination of dodgy electrical work and the difficulties associated with grounding a house when it's built on sand - the constant power surges probably don't help either. We had a friend who would always get shocked by the soap dish in her shower - when she complained to the landlord he seemed very unconcerned and told her to just wear flip flops when showering. Anyway so here are a few pics of our new digs - not too bad, we're just surviving over here in Africa :) The photo on the left was taken on Sunday... we were enjoying homemade fishcakes and fresh watermelon juice out by the pool to celebrate out 2nd wedding anniversary.

Although we also enjoyed our last house it is nice not to be around the seedy tourist strip. Our new area is much more residential and for Gambia it is very wealthy. The photo on the right is the view from our bedroom balcony, it's looking out over our yard and across the neighborhood, towards the beach. The idea that our neighborhood is "wealthy" is a relative term. Two of our neighbors don’t even live in finished houses, just the shells, no floors, doors, windows etc. just concrete walls and a roof.  In the morning, starting at 5 am we hear the call to prayer at the mosque down the road. Throughout the day we hear kids in the school across the street and as I write this I can hear them singing. The roads are always busy with goats, sheep, dogs, people and more kids than seems possible!  My study overlooks next doors yard where they keep sheep tied up to our fence, the sheep are kind of cute but when the wind blows the wrong way the smell is awful!   We still buy bread from the bitick (small shop) on the corner but the owner isn't as friendly as our previous bread lady. The area is also convenient for walking and I often walk to the beach (although I get hassled so much I don't go alone), supermarket, vege stand and even a great little Chinese mini-mart that has fresh tofu twice a week. Anyway, until tomorrow...

On the beach near our house

The sunset sky lights up over the pool and papaya trees