Out of the frying pan and into the forest

Hello again.

Before we get to the content, I have decided to change my blog format slightly.  I am not going to worry about journaling every nearly single day like I have been.  Instead, I will focus on writing interesting things as they come up.  This is due to a few reasons.  First, I don’t actually like feeling the need to write down mundane stuff every day then picking and choosing later what to write about.  Second, I have noticed more feedback when I write entries in terms of telling a story or two, rather than listing my activities.  Finally, I like the idea of this blog becoming me just writing about what strikes me in my research or otherwise.  I think this is better than having a disconnected blog with some posts being list-like journal entries and others with me ranting about unrelated things.

Now for yesterday’s adventures:

I took a break (I normally do text translation or elicitation with Bakary on Saturdays).  This is partly because I needed it.  I was feeling very warn down and wasn’t very inspired to do much in the afternoons.  I also did this because I need time to prepare for getting a better handle on the tones and figuring out exactly how I want to structure my dictionary.  I felt guilty for not working though.  I guess this means I belong in academia?  And I took a nap.  I missed naps.  When and why did I stop being five?

I met a new American friend the other day in Bobo when I went swimming at a hotel pool.  I decided to invite her to go with me, Zaki, Bakary, and Kadit to see a protected forest.  Everyone thoroughly enjoyed it.  It rained a bit yesterday morning and I experienced the sweet enjoyment of serendipitous timing.  It was cooler than it had been and it was even nicer under the park canopy.  The scenery was distinct compared almost anything I have seen in months.  It was exactly what I needed for a break.  The stroll was refreshing and invigorating.  The smells and sights overwhelmed my senses as we leisurely ambled along the path.  The air itself felt green and pungent.

First, lemma take a selfie!

Who is that sexy beast?

Jeanne and me

Zaki

Kadit

Jeanne and our guide

Bakary

Painting on a wall near the park entrance

What the trail looked like toward the beginning

Now for a bunch of vegetation and canopy shots.

This was toward the end of our trail

It was a bit a like a jungle movie bridge

A little too much like one, actually

The clearest picture I could take from the swaying bridge

But I thoroughly enjoyed myself

We all did

On the way back, we stopped at the Senufo (an ethnic group) cultural museum.  I was not allowed to take pictures inside, but the outside is pretty amazing too.  I will start with the inside and outside walls surrounding the museum compound.

These are pictures of the compound with various statues.

And the outside of buildings.

My digital camera appears to have finally started to die on me (I have owned it since 2005).  All these pictures were taken with my iphone.  Not bad, right?