brief update and answering questions

hi again!

to answer qs: a doctor at a local clinic diagnosed me with the m and d and i dont know the accuracy of hte diagnosis but the meds i took fixed me up in three days as predicted and since then i have felt great

unlce herbie i am glad you are enjoying my updates i wish i could wriet more but hopefully this suffices and gives you a sneak peak of what my exxperiences in mali are like

frannie! great to hear from you! i am picked up first in the am and second, just around a couple corners is claire or bintou traore -- she is great, sweet and really enthusiastic about everything. the convo that you and i had before i left has been really helpful and i think of you often. thanks for all your help and i will pass on the hellos. also i think the little oy you are thinking of is bua and yes! he is wonderful. i never pick favorite kids but if i did, im saying...


okay and now to all:


i am happy. content, truly happy. mali is like rowe in many ways or at least i am finding my expertience to be similar. the other students are eclectic, diversly intelligent, caring; funny, interesting. icould not have asked for better. my family is prob the biggest at 48 and i like it that way. of course i am still getting to know who is who. i gave out tons of paper hearts for valentines day.

things i have not mentioned yet i dont think are trips we took as a group out of the capital of bamako to siby the first weekend and sikasso the second. siby is a place of much malian history - look up the story of sundiata . we hiked to caves where ancinet malian history took place and tho i only get a fraction of the info via french explanation, it is all very intersting and powerful to be in these places. siby is the africa you might think of when you think of africa intitially -- lots of huts and small houses and no internet for miles. it is really peaceful. sikasso is much more of a city and is also is of historical significance -- there is a nationally recongized historical site there; the "tata wall" where colonial battles took place. we also learned about animiste tradition and hiked through more amazing caves. most of mali is red dust desert but sikasso is ,ore lush with trees and tropical like foliage and a really peaceful moving waterfall. also during the week we visited thenational museum which had breathtakingly beautiful art and then some of us returned later that week for a drum and rhythm concert which was great. fantastic music and people of all ages jumping in the center of the circle to dance.

school is okay. lots of lectures, french class, bambara class and we are beginning the field study class which will prep us for the last month of the program which is fully indepenednet study.

got to go but more later, whenever later is. forgive again the lack of spellchck


wish me continued health and happiness, both are pretty awsome right now. i wish you the same ~