Travels with Tavish

Here are some pictures from the second half of my dad and Kristi's visit to Senegal! These pictures are from Kedougou (after our village visit), Toubacouta, Saly, and Thies. My guests eating their first bean sandwich after returning to Kedougou (they were not allowed to eat these before visiting the village in case they got sick) Patrons eating their ice cream bars while walking the streets of downtown Kedougou Me with my host sister's family in Kedougou Kristi with my host sister's baby boy (I went to his baptism in September) My dad with the baby  My host sister walking us out to the road to find a cab Kristi with her flag at the Kedougou transit house Having a drink at the hotel during our last night in Kedougou The view from our beautiful hotel in Toubacouta The mangroves in Toubacouta Watching a monkey at our hotel in Toubacouta Mangroves at dusk Birds settling into their nests at sunset Oysters g...

More book reviews! True Grit A great short novel about a 14-year-old girl who goes on a manhunt through the woods to avenge her father's death. The book is written from the girl's perspective; her distinct narrative voice is evident immediately and makes the reader emphasize with her. The girl teams up with the one-eyed hard-line sheriff Rooster Cogburn to go and find the man who killed her father. Now that I have read the book, I am looking forward to watching the newer version of the movie to see how Jeff Bridges plays mean old Rooster. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix I enjoyed Harry Potter 5 a lot more this time than when I was a kid. I think it is the most confusing of the Harry Potter books because of all the new characters and old plots that it references. At 24, I am finally able to follow most of it. I am consciously holding off on reading Harry Potter 6 because I want to save it (and HP 7) for a long car ride or other similarly difficult time in...

During the first two weeks of January, my dad and cousin Kristi came to Senegal to visit me. This post and the next January picture post are all pictures from their visit. We covered a lot of ground in three weeks! Part 1 of this post has pictures from Thies, Kedougou, and my village. A tapestry-weaving center in Thies. This group of artisans creates beautiful hand-woven tapestries. One hangs in the UN building in New York The yarn color samples used on every project created at the tapestry center since it opened in 1965 Another tapestry weaver at work A paining on the outside of the tapestry center that represents one of the tapestries created here (no pictures were allowed of the completed works) Me and Kristi at the tapestry center An unusually multicolored van Asleep in our luxurious car on the way to Kedougou Bathroom stop at EDK, the best gas station chain in Senegal Goats and sheep on the roof of a large public transit van (aka A...