Fighting Poverty with Music

Posted on August 10, 2011 by Kathryn Burrington

As well as being a graphic designer for The Gambia Experience I help run the community group Nyodema based in Bognor Regis. This year’s annual festival will be another fantastic day of live music, workshops and much, much more. Headliners Planetman and The Internationalz make a welcome return having played at our first ever festival in 2007. Their infectious roots reggae sound is bound to get everyone on their feet.

Nyodema would like to thank The Gambia Experience for sponsoring the festival which is free, however, you will have ever opportunity to make a donation to Nyodema’s health and education projects in The Gambia.

Nyodema World Music & Arts Festival

Saturday 20th August 2011
The Waverley, Marine Drive West, Bognor Regis, West Sussex
1pm to 10.30pm
FREE

Live music and art from around the world in a wonderful pub by the Sussex seaside plus workshops, craft stalls and a few surprises!

Headliners Planetman and the Internationalz make a welcome return to Nyodema having played at our first ever festival 2007. Their infectious roots reggae is guaranteed to get everyone on their feet.

The festival opens with the lively rock n roll of Slim Jim and the Wildcards. Other delights include the weird and the wonderful world of Rattlin Bone, the amazing medieval/Spanish guitar playing of Claude Bourbon, flamenco and belly-dancing from Morgana Villen Castro, the authentic delta blues guitar of Slim Lightfoot and the outstanding local singer Daisy Mouatt. The line-up would not be complete with out the Nyodema Drummers bringing you traditional rhythms from West Africa and the Nyodema World Community Choir with songs from Africa, Europe and America including gospel and a spine tingling chant from deep in the Congo.

For further information and updates on the line-up please visit our website www.nyodema.org.

Me playing with the Nyodema Drummers

Erin Poirier completes her long run around The Gambia

Posted on August 3, 2011 by Matt Smith

We’ve been keeping close tabs on Erin Poirier as she ran her way across The Gambia (all 424km of it!). She was running for the Nova Scotia Gambia Association, a Canadian charity looking to raise awareness of issues surrounding HIV and AIDS, and she has kept a detailed diary on her blog and her and her team have taken some astounding photographs which you can see on her Facebook page. And the important bit – you can still donate to the project at love4gambia.com. Before she went, Erin kindly said that we could reprint any of her blog entries as she went, but in truth it’s all so evocative and so beautifully put down, it seems a shame to isolate any of it – so go to the site and read the lot!

That said, one of her final posts, on a (well earned) rest day at the Leybato Guest House, Fajara Beach is so wonderful and so moving, we thought we’d share some of it here. All images are taken from the Love4Gambia Facebook page

Erin and Team Gambia. Image from Love4Gambia Facebook Page.

“Sunday, August 1, 2011, 1030am

Leybato Guest House, Fajara Beach

On Tuesday, July 26, around 1030am, I ran into the Altantic Ocean after running 424km across The Gambia. I ran made it to the ocean because I always believed that I could. And because I had my team: Ashley Sharpe, Pa Modou Sarr, Kebba Suso and Spider (Dodou Bah), with me and behind me every step of the way.

WE DID IT!!!”

Ashley and I have been relaxing on the beach and we’ve been processing the incredible experience that we’ve just had together with Pa Modou Sarr, Kebba Suso and Spiderman Dodou Bah.

In “Running the Sahara,” Charlie insightfully states, ‘this experience was so big that I can’t fit it into my head.’ We relate to that.

Ashley and I have been keeping a list of what we’ve run through, what we’ve been through… for our own memory bank as we try to fit experience into our heads.

We are so lucky that we ran through pretty much everything that West Africa had to offer. You’ll see just how lucky we were, as follows.

Roadworks, Gambia style. Image taken from Love4Gambia Facebook page.

We ran through:

A wedding
A funeral
A naming ceremony (remember all Muslim events, we are in a Muslim country)
Refugee processing near the Casamance (Senegal) conflict
3 presidential convoys
1 presidential convoy causing a monster traffic jam in Serrekunda requiring us to run through heart and centre of said traffic jam
1 presidential convoy in Soma that caused a stampede exactly where we were standing in which a young girl got trampled. Our guys, Kebba and Pa Modou, turned into American football players instantly, bear hugging and protecting us in a huddle.
Dirt road
Paved road
Partially paved road
Side of road
Road with monkeys
Road with bushrats
Road with snakes at pee stops
No roads with nile monitor lizards, thank God
Rain
Never enough rain
Sun (34-35 degrees)
Hotter sun (37-38 degrees)
Hottest sun (42 degrees)
Humidity- worse than hottest sun
Humidity and sun so hot that on the last day in Banjul, as I stood motionless next to our truck as we waited to begin, I felt cold. It was 29 degrees. The weather was “cool” for The Gambia. In that moment, I knew that my brain’s temperature recognition was thoroughly messed up.
2 pairs of melted sneakers
We ran through more than these “things:” events, roads, animals and weather.

(Dad, you may not want to continue reading this list. Disclaimer- it’s just as safe here as anywhere else in the world. All cities have crime pockets. And we had a team of very protective men with us. Ashley once said that she was scared of a guy with a stick, thinking he might like to hit her with the stick. The man was mentally ill. If the man hit her with the stick, peaceful Kebba said very simply, “Well then I would tear him apart.”)

A bit of sightseeing... Image taken from Love4Gambia Facebook page.

We ran through rice fields, ground nut fields and couscous fields.

We ran and drove through long hours together where my team’s bond and friendship turned into family. If you want to really get to know an African country and 3 African men, there’s no better way to become close with the country and its people than to run across it with them. West African societies, especially tribal relationships, are incredibly complex. I now have a wealth of knowledge stored away from conversations that our feet carried us through.

We ran more kilometers as a team than I did alone. Days 8 through 14, I didn’t run a single step solo. On Day 15, I ran 9 km solo (7 by request) and those were my last solo kms.

We enjoyed hours of laughing together.

Ashley and I sometimes giggled late at night until we cried.

We enjoyed hours of a dramatic production where Pa Modou was president and we were the people, engaged in an election campaign. When there’s no television, internet, stereo… you entertain yourself in other ways.

We entertained ourselves with a rotating “boss:” the team member who (besides me) ran the most kilometers that day. We laughed hysterically as the boss tried to wield their power until it expired at midnight.

We enjoyed hours of Serere vs Fula jokes until I had one hour too many and started running between Pa Modou and Spider hoping they would finally stop. They stopped while running, continued the rest of the hours of the day.

We ran through the brief illnesses of 3 of our team members and learned that when one team member is down, we are all down.

We ran with 3 amazing groups who joined us: children, mamas in rice fields and soldiers on convoy. We loved them all equally. While the soldiers in the Gambia National Army and the National Guard didn’t run any steps with us, they began to recognize us and would salute me from their convoy (sometimes up to 6 trucks and over 100 soldiers). I would salute them back.

Erin and Ashley on Day 3. Image taken from Love4Gambia Facebook page.

We ran so long on the same road that the bush taxi drivers began to recognize us and would give us a happy beep and wave instead of an irritated “get the heck outta my way” beep and wave.

We went through a few mornings where I didn’t want to get out of the truck and run. On these mornings Kebba always felt my fatigue and would say, “Oh, Erin. I hate to let you out of the truck.” Ashley would push me out and Pa would drag me onto the road. Once pink sneakers are on the road, fatigue would be replaced with happiness. My team just had to get the pink sneakers onto the road.

We rested for 2 hours under 15 different trees along the South Bank Road and led way more than 15 curious youth through yoga practice.

We ran through the mysterious disappearance of Akon for 3 days.

We stayed in places where our dinner was killed before us. Although in Ndemban, the 10 year-old boy entrusted with killing the rooster with a dull butter knife only managed to mortally wound the rooster and Spider had to step in to relieve the boy of this duties and finish the job.

Ashley and I peed and changed clothes in many hidden spots in the forest together. Sometimes we were only hidden from the truck and that was perfectly acceptable. Sometimes we just changed next to the truck “hidden” by my camping towel.

We ran through forests renowned for armed robbery, although the last incidence was more than one year ago. Though such is the reputation that locals remain weary and police checks are more numerous.

We celebrated each overhead shower and each room with more than one electrical outlet.

We endured a robbery at our lodge in Janjanbureh where the thief knocked off the screen on our window and possibly entered our room. We’re not sure; the runner was dead asleep and Ashley just rolled over in bed without noticing. We heard that he was a very unskilled thief who only made away with one wallet from a guy in another bank of rooms. We did get a lot of mileage out of this thief as he was named as a suspect in the disappearance of Akon.

'Homework'. Image taken from Love4Gambia Facebook page.

We knew that we had been running and living “in the bush” a long time when we were in Ndemban, staying at a local compound next to the road leading to Senegal and site of the Casamance civil conflict. Kebba told us: “We are 3km from Casamance so if you hear gunfire overnight, don’t worry, it’s just coming from the rebels across the border.” And we easily replied, “Yea, whatever. Is there an electrical outlet here so we can charge the Garmin?” Then Ashley and I didn’t even think to talk about this conversation for another 4 days.

We ran so long that Stephen Harper was starting to look good.

I ran so long and got called “toubab” (Mandinka word for white person) so many times that I started following Pa Modou’s lead and began calling “morfing” (Mandinka word for black person) back.

We ran so long together that I felt like we could run to the end of the world together.

When Kebba drove us back to Leybato Guest House after our victorious swim in the Atlantic Ocean, we sat in the driveway next to each other in the front seat. We were both silent for about a full minute. I finally looked at him and said, “Kebba, I don’t want to get out of the truck because when I get out, it feels like it’ll be over.” Kebba nodded his head slowly. After a few moments, he looked at me and said, “Our team will never end.” Then we were brave enough to get out the truck.

My team’s goal was accomplished but after what we’ve travelled, experienced, endured, been through, supported each other through, run through together… being a team will never end.

The Love4Gambia long run begins

Posted on July 7, 2011 by Matt Smith

We’ve been following Erin Poirier’s progress as she prepares for her monumental 430km run around The Gambia – and finally her big day has arrived! As she has said on her blog (currently being updated live from Basse, and which she rightly calls ‘pretty much the last place on the map in The Gambia’):

I’m writing from SOS Children’s Village which will be our homebase for the next few nights…My Gambian team is simply extraordinary. We were chatting last night and Kebba was commenting on how my family and friends were writing to him to “take good care of Erin.” And he says, “Ah, they don’t quite understand. I think that Erin is for everyone. Everyone wants to take good care of her and we will.”

We just want to wish her all the luck in the world and to let you know you can donate to her project on her site – and watch the short film below to find out all about her feelings for the country and the undertaking she’s about to embark on…

Birthday donations!

Posted on June 13, 2011 by Kathryn Burrington

In November 2010 Christine Nield, a retired head teacher from Basingstoke, and her husband visited The Gambia for the first time. Since returning they had been looking for a way to help our School Development fund.

Christine in The Gambia

In April this year Christine celebrated her 60th birthday and in lieu of gifts she generously asked for donations to the fund. She raised a total of £170.

Here at The Gambia Experience we’d like to say a very big thank you to Christine and wish her a belated “Happy Birthday”.

A visit to Manduar Lower Basic

Posted on June 9, 2011 by Natalie Ford

Today’s post is from Natalie who is The Gambia Experience’s Commercial Development & Support Manager. She and her 9 year old son, William, recently visited The Gambia and cemented relationships between William’s school in Hedge End, Southampton and Manduar Lower Basic in The Gambia.

Natalie and William in class at Manduar Lower Basic

This was my 5th visit to the Gambia in as many years so I was aware of the poverty and basic education system that I was going to encounter, but this was the first time I was taking my son, William, who was 9.

After booking my holiday we started to get involved with the school partnership project relaunched by the School Development Fund regarding linking schools, which children of Gambia Experience UK staff attend, with similar schools in The Gambia.

My son attends Freegounds Junior School, Hedge End, Southampton that has 360 pupils aged between 7 – 11 years. On asking the school whether they would like to partner a school in The Gambia, we were greeted with a resounding ‘yes’ and luckily the head teacher, Mr Malcolm Barrett, a keen ornithologist, had visited The Gambia some years previously with The Gambia Experience, so was keen to follow up on a country he had experienced firsthand and make a difference.

The School Development Fund put us in touch with a similar type of school, Manduar Lower Basic in Manduar about 45 minutes from the tourist area. The school has 364 pupils also aged between 7 – 11 years, so really was as close a match as we could have hoped for.

Before departing the UK, Mr Barratt and Mrs Hawkins from Freegrounds Junior School had looked through the school pack and sorted a fantastic donation of school supplies from pencils, sharpeners, erasers, exercise books, tracing paper, as well as batiks made by Year 4 and letters from each class. In addition, the School Development Fund gave a donation of £50 from which we bought educational posters, flashcards etc.

Our visit was over the Easter break so we liaised with the head teacher, Mr Jammeh, of Manduar Lower Basic and arranged to visit on Wednesday 27th April; little did we know at the time but the school had been closed for the Easter holiday and was due to open on the Thursday, but as they were so keen to meet us all, the teachers and children came in on their holiday – can you imagine that happening in the UK?!

William is welcomed into Manduar Lower Basic in style

On arrival the head teacher greeted us and showed us round the classrooms. I was impressed that each classroom wall was decorated with maps, pictures and lessons all relating to a similar curriculum followed in William’s school, such as telling the time and a pretend shop to learn about money.

The school was only built 8 years ago so compared to some my colleagues had visited recently, was relatively well equipped with blackboards, desks and chairs; however supplies of basics such as exercise books and reading books for the children were lacking. William was greeted by smiling children, sung to and welcomed into classrooms as the star of the show, initially an overwhelming experience, however, once invited to join the obligatory game of football in the ‘playground’ he found himself much more at home!

Mr Barrett, the Headmaster at Freeground Junior School also passed on this message:

With the help of The Gambia Experience, Freegrounds Junior School of Hedge End have entered into a school partnership with Mandura Lower School. The two schools are of similar size with 360 children each. Mandura has eight classroom teachers and Freegrounds has twelve. One of our Year 5 pupils visited Manduar during the Easter holiday and met Mr Jammeh the Headteacher. A parcel of gifts from Freegrounds was gratefully received and the two headteacher’s have been in contact via e-mail.

We look forward to making further links in which the pupils contact each other via the internet and by letter. It is hoped too that in the future, some staff and pupils will visit the The Gambia.