All Along the River Niger

I knew the Niger River had hippopotami, and time was wasting. As I set out toward the river, men offered to guide me to the large animals. I politely explained that I had no gifts and no money, but I would be happy for would-be guides to accompany me as friends. Suddenly, I had fewer friends, but this would change when I reached the village near the river.

I was the only white person in the village and the only person that village children were convinced had come to bring them gifts. I maintained that I had no gifts, but my entourage grew as I walked. I quickly had at least half a dozen followers accompanying me to the far-away place where the hippos were. When we reached a group of boys playing soccer, my pied piper status skyrocketed. Children and teenagers learned that I still had no gifts, and I received new information about the possible whereabouts of hippos. New followers were sure that I could find hippos in the direction opposite to where we were walking, and they insisted that I walk down to the river.

I reached the river and encountered a man in a wooden, canoe-like floating object. He wanted me to join him in the boat. I explained that I had no gifts and no money. He got out of the boat. A few minutes later, he dragged one end of the boat to shore and helped me into it. A boy – his son, I gathered – joined us, and we (and by “we” I mean “he, the dad”) began paddling toward the direction from which I had walked.

I found myself sitting in a boat on the Niger River, armed with my camera and little else. It immediately occurred to me that I had no life vest and that my camera could get wet. It later occurred to me that the same hippos I was trying to locate in the river were much more powerful than the canoe-like floating object in which I was sitting.

Fortunately, two things happened: I came close enough to a hippo to take pictures of it, and the boat’s operator safely steered clear of the hippo. We never learned whether or not the hippo was hungry, hungry.


After a restful boat ride, we reached the shore. Before the entourage could join us again, I gave my pen to the boy in the boat. I figured that, after pointing out the hippo for me, he had probably earned it.

They were hungry, hungry.

On previous occasions, such as visits to Niger or South Africa, I saw hippos. Sort of. They definitely weren’t hungry, hungry. At long last, in Swaziland I saw the real deal.

She asked for hippos.

Did you know that a collection of hippos can be called a bloat, crash, dale, herd, pod, raft or thunder – just to name a few?

Well, I guess you could say I gave my sister a my-pod for Christmas. (Sure, that last sentence was lame...did you want me to say that she’s bloated?)

I gave her a raft of gifts: a hippo mug, a hippo poster and five hippo candles. Oh, and I also gave her a battery-powered rattle – not among her favorite gifts.

Southern Africa Wrap-Up

Pictures, they say, are worth a thousand words. In five weeks, I took over three thousand photographs. The major headings below are links to six photo albums, which include 375 total photos, along with snippets to describe what you will and will not find in each album. That saves you approximately 2,600 photos and three million words.

Durban
I spent two and a half weeks in Durban, South Africa, helping to conduct leadership training with high school students, through a study abroad program with Wright State University. You will see a thriving coastal city, a week or two removed from hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup. You will see informal settlements, substandard housing where many students participating in our leadership training lived. Unfortunately, the photos do not allow you to hear the breathtaking, surround-sound chorus of 1,200 students from these informal settlements, singing to welcome us to their school.

Game Parks near Pietermaritzburg
After two and a half weeks of conducting leadership training in Durban, the Wright State crew spent an afternoon visiting two game parks. You will see photos of animals. You will not see me petting any of these animals. You will see one hippo, but not a hungry, hungry hippo. That came later.

Greater Cape Town Area
I visited South African friends, whom I knew from living and working in North Africa for five years. You will see an area of tremendous biodiversity. You will see Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned. You will see photos of whales, but not the double back-flips they performed as I snapped their photos – you will just have to imagine that part.

Lesotho
For years, I have wanted to visit Lesotho, a rural, mountainous country, completely landlocked by South Africa. You will see her countryside and her people. You will not see the awe-inspiring night sky of the Southern Hemisphere, unadulterated by light pollution found in less remote areas. You also will not see the full toll of HIV and AIDS on the country. I visited people who help to care for orphans and vulnerable children. Some of these children are eleven or twelve years old and are the oldest members of their households. Some of these children receive only four meals each week.

Swaziland
This was not part of my original itinerary, but it was a sweet bonus, a blessing from friends who live in Johannesburg. You will see photos of hungry, hungry hippos. You will not see pink, green or plastic hippos, nor will you see white, edible marbles. You will see a pretty butterfly, though.

Johannesburg
I visited friends, one of whom worked with me several years earlier. You will see photos of Soccer City, the stadium used for the 2010 FIFA World Cup Final. We drove by Soccer City after visiting the Apartheid Museum, which you will not see in these photos. I planned to stay longer in Jo’burg, but Swaziland came calling instead.

I struggle to understand why the Lord has blessed me so much – good health, plenty of food to eat and living parents who love me. On more than one occasion, Africans expressed deep gratitude at having me, a white American, visit their villages and homes. It felt completely backward.

Grace is backward. God blesses us, despite our unworthiness, despite our expectations. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. He puts a song on the lips of the destitute, and causes stars to shine brightest in the darkest nights. He makes His face to shine upon even me.

Christmas Eve Perspectives

The night before Christmas provokes thought and appeals to the eyes. The following are but a few examples.









On December 23, I photographed Santa on Santa Rosa Drive in an Ohio suburb. When I was younger, he lived on Santa Rosa Drive and appeared in the picture window each Christmas season – and we’re talking about each evening for several weeks before Christmas. A few years back, he moved. No one likes to break tradition, so people begged and pleaded for Santa to return each year and wave at all the kiddies. So now Santa waves at all the kiddies, only it’s not his house anymore.

My parents and I went back to Santa Rosa Drive late on December 24 and did not see Santa. That’s likely a good thing, as he had work to do.











Lest we start to believe that Americans like only the secular aspects of Christmas, I thought I’d highlight a nativity scene of interest. My knowledge of the facts is incomplete – but I don’t intend to let the facts get in the way of a good story. On Christmas Eve we visited a nativity scene, entirely carved out of wood. We’re talking about chainsaw carvings, if I understand things correctly. The cows in the inn are wooden carvings that weigh around 1500 pounds (682 kilograms).

For some reason, Christmas traditions involve lots of animals. I can’t seem to get away from the “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” song. My blog referenced a video of the song previously; an alternate viewpoint video surfaced on a different blog; and I discovered a reindeer in a rocking chair when I arrived in Ohio.











Want a hippopotamus for Christmas? My sister always did. Well, she got one, compliments of Steeler Claus, her husband. Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to help name the hippo. Let’s see if we can get more entries than I received during my previous creature-naming contest.