Geology and Cheese

  Hi again, once again we are sorry for the hiatus.  I just wanted to post something quickly so that you all know that we are well and fine.  Two weeks into the semester (students still just showing up) and all is well so far.  Today Jess and I went hiking with some friends (guiltily without the kids, but better off) across the river near Bagale Hills.  Present besides Jess and I were Ales, Charles, Darren, Jean-Marcel, Jasmine and Sesugh (also our guide for all things local).  The hike was great as it was nice to get out of Yola and into somewhat fresh air (the harmattan prevents completely fresh air...hack hack).  However, I was fixated on the local geology which I hope to present a bit during this post.  First some pictures:

Life is so tenacious!

Jess Scaling the Wall with Darren and Sesugh in the background

Jean-Marcel's turn

Darren with Ales up ahead

A view of the area

Another view

A Desert Rose

  Now I am sketchy on the geology of the area, but I have been trying to piece together some of it from different abstracts online (can't get the full pdfs).  It appears that the area is dominated by sandstone, more specifically Bima Sandstone dating back to the cretaceous period (somewhere around 100 to 125 mya).  Much of this sandstone exhibits cross-bedding, which essentially is the accumulation of sands from different directions that is eventually cemented into rock (sandstone) as layers build and extreme pressures develop.  If we look at what the world looked like during this time it might make more sense of why we see what we see here:

As you can see during the Jurassic Africa and S. America were cuddled up nice and close.  During the Cretaceous, the two continents  began to drift apart. 

If you can locate Nigeria you can see a large inland body of water, which I believe is part of the Benue Basin (the river that runs through Yola).  This spreading likely caused some thinning of the crust in this area and allowed for the formation of horsts and grabens along with seismic activity.  Now I don't know whether or not the sands for the sandstone was brought in by water or by winds.  

 All of this movement arranged some of the sandstone into the hills that we hiked through.  Now as for the strange weathering patterns I am not so sure.  It appears to be the result of running water, but many of the weathered rocks were in areas that really could not accumulate enough water (in my humble opinion) to form the weathering patterns seen.

Interesting weathering patterns in sandstone

From the little I have observed, I can only imagine many of these rock were either weathered when perhaps a much wetter climate persisted or occurred when this area may have been covered by water (which appears to be the case throughout much of cretaceous and beyond).  What is also interesting is that  typically in these areas where we have warm shallow seas we have a good chance for dense blooms of phytoplankton and zooplankton.  If you have a chance and can look through some of the maps depicting the Earth's tectonic activity you see that were many of these warm shallow seas once existed you now have oil deposits (ie. Saudi Arabia, the caspian sea etc...).  This is also the case for Nigeria.  This is the result of accumulations of dead and decaying biomass derived from the plankters mixed with some method of burial of these accumulations.   I have a hunch that many of the hydrocarbon deposits Nigeria owe their existence to this once inland sea and to the Benue Basin, only the hydrocarbons have made their way from the upper basin (Yola area) to the Niger Delta (I don't know how), I am sure the Lamido wishes this were not the case. 

Interesting Rock Formation

Crossbedding

More crossbedding

Now the cheese.  

  If you can see the resolution clearly enough, you could confirm that this is indeed a 2.894 kilogram (6.3 lbs) block of mozzarella cheese.  We purchased it frozen from Yakubu Market for the grand price of 7500 Naira ($50.00!!!!).  Now why would a family of four do such a thing?  Well for many of you that have lived in far off lands you may have experienced a dearth of cheese, or a complete lack cheese and or and appreciation for it (if not cheese I am sure these adventurers could substitute another comfort food).  Anywho, this is the case for our situation.  Among many other comfort foods cheese is scarce here, which has driven us to this sad state.  We buy frozen (more likely thawed, refrozen, thawed, refrozen...depending on NEPA (electricity)) and we store it frozen, chunked into individual baggies (thanks Pops and Lauren for the ziplocks!).  Is it worth it?  I guess, it just boggles my mind that we spend $50 for sub standard frozen cheese.  However when we calculate it, we will make nearly 20 pizza's so $2.50 a pop ain't so bad.  What is scary is that when I look at that 6.3 lbs block and compare it to the weight I have gained from the carb only diet (exaggeration alert) forced upon us I gasp and wonder about having any of those twenty pizzas.  Arghhh!!

Harmattan

Hello All!

  Just a quick note on Harmattan.  Harmattan is the name given to the winds that blow south out of the Sahara desert this time of year.  The result is a haze that is much like a heavy fog or a smoke.  You can feel the dust on your skin and in your lungs.

  Though the dust causes some discomfort, it provides relief in the form of coolers days and nights.  The dust particles thin out the electromagnetic rays that typically brutalize us.

dust on the hood of the car

   So while snow falls upon many of our loved ones, we ge get dirt :)

Harmattan in Abuja

Politics...

Okay, to be honest Nigerian politics are hard for me to follow. There are over 50 different parties, with only a few carrying any nationwide clout. The party in power presently is the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP). The two other parties that I see around here are the Labour Party (LP) and Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN or AC, I can’t keep up) There are many more, but those seem to be the most prominent ‘round here. Currently there is a boatload of activity as 2011 is an election year. Back in September the elections were set to go for January 11, 2011, but since they didn’t get around to registering voters in time, the Independent National Election Commission (INEC, the body responsible for organizing and setting dates for elections) postponed the presidential elections until April 9th (I believe).

The actions afoot now are smaller elections, reruns, and primaries. The biggest story (in my opinion) is the primary for the PDP coming up this Thursday. The incumbent president, Goodluck Jonathan, is up against former vice president (under Obasanjo), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar (the founder of AUN). The past few days (I guess perhaps months) there has been a back and forth between these two candidates as to whom should be the flag bearer of the PDP.

Goodluck Jonathan

Atiku Abubakar

Jonathan from the south, is the incumbent has been questioning the eligibility of Atiku to run under the bye-laws of the PDP. Most of his claim is based on a stipulation that anyone essentially associated with scandal, corruption, etc… cannot run under the PDP banner (Atiku has been alleged to be involved with some money laundering, but only $40 million or so ;). Atiku claims that Jonathan cannot be the PDP presidential candidate based on the zoning rules set forth in the party’s constitution. I don’t fully understand the zoning law, but in a nutshell it says that someone from the south (mostly Christian) gets to rule for 8 years, then it is the north’s (mostly muslim) turn for 8 years (imagine if the US did that). Essentially Atiku believes it is the north’s turn, and more to the point his turn as the northern ‘caucus’ of the PDP has given him the nod to run for president.

I guess what muddles things is that Jonathan became president after the death of President Yar’adua (spelling…sorry, from the north). I am guessing that this contingency was never planned for in the zoning mechanism, which is leading to some problems. Who’s turn is it now???

The late President Yar'adua

Anywho, our two candidates are up for screening by the PDP ‘board’. The delegates will vote on Thursday, and we should have a presidential candidate from the PDP (the presumed winner by many, this is why many people refer to this process as a selection, not an election). The reports are mixed, but it seems that Atiku believes he is going to be passed over as the delegates appointed are not particularly fond of him. If this is the case it is also presumed that he will run under a different party, perhaps ACN or another. All in all we are simply concerned that the process proceeds peacefully!!

A good link to another blog on this topic is here.
http://sahelblog.wordpress.com/2010/12/30/nigeria-pdp-primary-approaches-poll-gives-abubakar-hope/

Disclaimer: I have not made a study of this, so please do not take this for gospel by any means. This is my understanding from what I have been able to glean, I could be (and I am sure on some points) totally of base. If you are interested check some of the links I provided early on on this blog. You also have the RSS feeds from AllAfrica.com on the right of the text here. They do a nice job of scanning the African papers.

Cheers

Last Days in Zanzibar

Vacation nears its end…

  Well as all things do, our vacation is beginning to wind down.  We have about 48hrs left in Zanzibar and the feelings of vacation idleness and carelessness are giving way to thoughts of travels home and the realities that await us (I know, I know… boo whoo), but I know that these feelings are commonly shared by many whose vacations are at an end.  And this vacation, has been the best I can recall (I probably say that after every vacation), which is great because it came at a time when we needed it the most. 

Emma, Lala, and Suma on the dhow

  A wonderful time with family and friends in a familiar corner of the world.  Throughout this vacation as I brought up my recollections of being here ten years ago, I kept asking myself, “Who was I?”  This internal question set me upon reflection from time to time and I tried to picture myself here on these shores at the age of 24.  As is the case my pondering brought forth further questions such as whether or not I kept the promises I had made to myself the anxious nights before returning home from Peace Corps (some yes, some no).  So many of these types of questions have come to me that I honestly cannot answer, but I have reconciled myself to leaving them open.  I am easily contented as I have a wonderful family and we are all fortunate to have each other and a wealth of shared experiences and love. I have abandoned my reflections upon my past and have focused them on the future for our family.   We came off of a busy semester of work, adjusting, and frustrations, and so now we need to think of how we begin to operate back in Yola as a family.

Jambiani Sailing

A video of sailing (can't believe we were actually able to upload this)

   The siren call of vacation’s end begins with Linda leaving us tomorrow; we will follow her the day after.  We are set to sail again tonight on a dhow owned by the father of our new friend Suma (from the Starfish).   We will soak in the essence of Jambiani while we can.  We will follow the sail with yet another fresh fish dinner. 

Sunset in Jambiani

Samaki wa Tasi

The Last Day

  This morning we saw Linda off at 6:30 am, before the kids woke up.  When the kids awoke we embarked on a day of total relaxation, save my neuroses of having to have some things packed before tomorrow.  We had a beautiful swim and had a truly lazy vacation day.  In the afternoon we took a dip in the high tide waters then showered up to take a walk down to the Starfish.  Our trip was both frivolous and practical.  The trip was frivolous in the sense that we wanted to have one more beer with Suma and Moody and the girls wanted to say farewell to Pakuwa (their adopted cat).  We were practical in that we needed to get on the internet at the blue oyster to check on flight confirmations and those types of unpleasantries (made less unpleasant with a glass of vino).  During our trek we walked along the breaking waves of the highest tide we had experienced yet.  Some places we were forced to abandon the beach and head inland where we walked among the local houses built from coral.  All in all a nice walk with a strong sea breeze.  After our brief internet connection and our farewells to Moody and Pakuwa we hurried back as not to miss Hassan's dinner. 

 Bye Pakuwa!

Now Hassan has a little restaurant in the village named Karibu (Welcom in Swahili).  We met him a few days earlier on the beach soliciting tourists to come and dine at his place.  As it turned out his place was located about 50m behind us and appeared to be less restaurant more dilapidated shack (a stark contrast to Hassan's personality).  Earlier in the morning I placed our order (you need to give about 8hrs notice for dinner...no really); octopus in coconut curry (surprise), fish masala, and chipati.  My mouth was already watering as I could tell that the evenings dinner was going to be the pweza wa naazi Jess and I had remembered (something about a half blown over shack gives you these feelings).

     We returned home from our little expedition slightly before 8p to get the kids down.  After showering off their weight in sand we put them to bed.  The timing was perfect as it allowed Jess to setup a table outside under the yard just as Hassan brought us our pre-ordered dinner.  Hassan showed up with our spread, and we quickly sat down to feast.  Wow!  This is what we had been waiting for, the perfect blend of coconut and curry and octopus sooooo tender (we barely needed to chew).  The fish was no slouch either, another perfectly spiced dish rich with tomatoes, onions, and the buttery flesh of a fish unknown to me.  This was the dish we had been seeking (all for $8).  Thank you Hassan. A wonderful night under the stars...

The Sign for Karibu Restaurant

Okay the last last day (really)

  Not much here, we woke up on our day of travel and took turns taking runs in anticipation of long hours in cabs and airplanes.  To cool off we took our last dip in the Indian Ocean, which was the coolest yet, as the tide came in during the breezy night.  We packed up and collected some momentos and cleaned the house.  We topped it of with a light lunch of mango, avocado, chipati, and our two last remaining Kilimanjaros.  We took turns saying goodbye to our Jambiani (misty eyed of course).  Handed Shehe the keys, hugged Suma goodbye and jumped into the Suzuki Sidekick for our ride to the airport.  Heavy hearts, but renewed spirits...thank you Jambiani.

Our Last Lunch

A sad goodbye

  Our goodbye to Zanzibar was tough but we have one last one.  I must be honest, some of the deep reflection upon life and love I had mentioned earlier had been brought about by the news of the death of a man that meant so much to us in Zanzibar ten and eleven year ago.  His name was Moses Maha.  He is the one that made Jambiani so special to us.  He was the caretaker of the little house we rented back then and was our source for everything…food, information, travel etc…  He was our junior and often spent late nights asking about life in the US with the curiosity of a child (he was perhaps 5 to 6 years younger than us so…maybe 18 years old).  He really made this place special for us.   Apparently he passed after a motorcycle (vespa) accident, the details are blurry, however, our memories of him are crystal clear…rest in peace Moses.   

  

New Years!!!

Hi all! This will be a brief post as I am crunched for time. Vacation continues and we are having a great time. We have left the Starfish and are now in our home in S. Jambiani. We really enjoyed our time at Starfish with Suma the general manager and Moody the rastafari bartender, they really made our stay pleasant. We left them on New Years Eve after the big ngalwa (dhow) race.

Obama Boat

Coming to the Races

Full Boat

Starting Line

And they're off!

Coming in

Pakuwa our adopted cat for two nights

The ngalwa race was phenomenal, twenty something boats decked our with excited crews and each with it own fan club dancing and chanting up and down the beach. The race took nearly two hours and the winner was a boat named Safarinjema (travel well). It was far ahead of any other boat. The ngalwa’s made there way in to the cheering of the crowd (largest I have seen in Jambiani). The winds were strong (one of the ngalwa’s masts was shredded) and everyone was festive. After the race, we packed up and went to our new home in S. Jambiani.
There were some hiccups as when we arrived at the house the previous occupants were not yet checked out. They checked out and then it took forever to get the place cleaned. No problem though. The real problem came when Sheahey the “landlord” came and he had double booked the place. After some arguing and putting up with is annoying attitude things were resolved. The poor Finnish couple (very delightful) had to find a room elsewhere, but I caught up with them later and they fared well.

 Our Zanzi Girl in front of our temp Zanzi House

Our View! (not bad for $100 a night)

We have been really enjoying a relaxing time here. We had New Years Eve dinner on the beach at Al Hapa (a stones throw from here). The evening was pretty uneventful, only that it was the first time in many years that Jess and I managed to stay up until mid-night. We walked on the beach and shared a mid-night beer at Dhow Beach Village (a beach bar) and watched the Masai who were now dressed in jeans and t-shirts dance behind the bar. There were fireworks in the distance and people jogging up and down the beach with flaming palm fronds. My second new years in Zanzibar, exactly ten years apart.

New Years Eve dinner on the beach

New Years day we went into Stonetown, which was pretty uneventful. A coke at the Africa House, some shopping, pizza on the water front, and stocking up on provisions. We headed home early and had a great feast including fresh calamarie and a picturesque grouper.

Fanta for two

Some type of grouper

Palm Frond Princesses

Today we went to the Jozani forest to see the red colobus monkeys and the mangroves. The kids loved the monkeys and our tour of the mangroves was brief as we were greeted by a downpour.
Tonight we will dine on octopus and Lala is letting Jess and I go out for a drink afterwards. Still on vacation, but reality is in sight. When I post this blog I will check the news on Nigeria as what we have heard lately is not very cheering. We hope things have calmed…More soon.

Red Colubus Monkey

The Mangrove

The End!