I've spent the past 2+ weeks in Africa, touring and living in a village for 5 days where our group helped the villagers plant 273 fruit trees and build a 6-foot rock wall roughly 38 yards by 65 yards. This was done in the country of Mali, a land-locked nation in west Africa. Not Bali, Malti, Malawi, or Maui but MALI. It is a former French colony that was granted autonomy in 1960 (we were there to see some of the 50th anniversary celebrations). It is one of the poorest nations in the world, in terms of GNP. Few natural resources, although there is some gold-mining. The government holds democratic elections and is one of the more stable ones in Africa. The capital is Bamako, in the southern part of the country. One interesting fact is that the city of Timbuktu not only exists, but is in Mali.
The cities are typical of any large 3rd world cities, but the smaller towns and villages are filled with kind, generous souls who are amazing. I joined my dad on this trip -- he'd gone with the same group last year. That, too, was extremely special. Not too many adult children travel with a parent, no?
I'll be slowly but surely putting out my impressions on the trip, but thought I'd start with this one, so at least ya'll know where I was! Have a great day!
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