Our final blog from the Gambia

We are down to our final two days in the Gambia. The packers have just left and the house is looking very, very bare.

With our last weekend we made sure that no one will forget us in a hurry: we went with a group of friends to one of our favourite spots where the natural formation of the rocks creates a beautiful bay with shallow, calm water and lots of deliciously warm rock pools that the children love exploring and swimming in. There are two ways to get to the Bay – you either drive along the beach which always makes us a little nervous as we never check the tides ahead of time; or you drive off road down a sandy track. We opted for the latter which proved to have become very, very sandy over the last few weeks. So sandy that our four wheel drive almost didn’t make it through and grounded two cars in our party. It took nearly two hours to dig our friend, Tamara, out with the help of some local farmers, but by the end of the day even Aubs was quite pleased that he can claim a bush adventure. The rest of the day was perfect and the children were thrilled to find an octopus, puffer fish and lobster in the rock pools.

As we are so close to the end of our time here, we have been thinking a lot about all the things we have most enjoyed and what we might not be so sad to leave behind. Here are our top five in both categories and you can let us know whether or not we have sold the Gambia to you!

Aubrey:
Best Worst
1) The friends we have made 1) The bumsters
2) The beaches 2) The police check points
3) The laid back pace of life 3) The laid back pace of life
4) The climate 4) The climate
5) The family being so happy here 5) Getting stuck in deep, soft sand

Marianne:
1) School and work being only 5 mins away 1) The dust in the dry season
2) The sense of space 2)The mould in the rainy season
3) The people we have met 3) Driving through deep, soft sand
4) The Gambians’ love of children 4)The lack of good chocolate
5) The sense of community 5) Mosquitoes whatever the season

Amelie:
1) Body boarding at Boboi beach 1) Sticky fish in Tanje
2) Rock pooling and swimming at the Bay 2) Biting ants
3) My school 3) Bumpy roads
4) My friends 4) The lack of red summer fruits
5) Climbing trees

Elise:
1) Jessica (a friend’s nanny) 1) Button (Raya’s dog)
2) Kankarangs 2) Being called “baby” by the locals
3) Claudio’s BBQs 3) The sea!
4) Making mud baths in the garden
5) Tree houses