Tuesday 26 April 2011

Day 220 Sudan 26/4/2011, Abdulfadil's house, Abo Hojar. Recovery, a stroll round the village and more neighbours!

Thankfully I woke feeling better this morning. The consensus seemed to be that it would be best if we stayed for another day while I got my strength back. See, I told you we were slipping easily into the Sudanese way of life.

This morning we were taken on a tour of the farmland surrounding the village, and got to see one of the deep wells where the irrigation water is drawn from. Despite the harsh conditions the area was surprisingly green.

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During the walk we were greeted by several more neighbours and friends and eventually found ourselves in a what seemed like a house full of women. They were all keen to have photos taken and Debs, despite the language problem, was in her element. Her old English teacher days are clearly coming to the fore. With a promise to come back later for tea, we had to leave as breakfast would be waiting for us.

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After breakfast I played on the Playstation with Abdulrazig and then later helped him fix his bicycle. In truth I really only held the bike upright, but he appreciated me showing willing, I think?!

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Meanwhile Debs had gone a nearby house with the women folk who are all preparing for the forthcoming wedding. It is a shame that we won't be here for the wedding, nevertheless Debs seems to be having a terrific time.

Later that evening we returned to the house we had been in earlier for tea. Once again we were greeted enthusiastically, Debs especially. The women of the house have really taken her into their hearts.

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For some time Debs has been saying that she would like to have her hands painted with henna. The women were all very keen on the idea and said that they would do it tomorrow. Obviously we were planning on leaving tomorrow. Not wanting to be stopped they found some henna and started immediately to draw some designs on her hands. The finished work is very pretty and sometime during the evening, we agreed to stay another day so Debs could come back and visit the women again.

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Once again overwhelming hospitality is keeping us here. It is going to be very difficult to tear ourselves away. Only the knowledge of how big Sudan is and the time remaining on our visas is keeping us aware of the need to move on.

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