A three day holiday turned into four days off with the passing of Gerald Ford. To my amazment, I didn't receive any work related phone calls throughout Christmas and New Years!
For the most part, it was calm. We had leisurely breakfasts and gatherings with friends. On the morning of the 31st, the kids remembered Toulouse with Nina one and a half years ago, given it's her birthday. Stefan recalled her stories of the Juneau garbage bears rummaging through town, eating trash. He received his very own "garbage bear" from her as a gift for Christmas. Dina and Camille made Aunt Valerie's famous carmel corn and fruit on a toothpick in preparation for the kids' New Year's Eve party. It also happened to be Tobaski, the Muslim holiday. Goats were slaughtered in the early morning after being taken to the mosque. We didn't actual observe the slaughtering but it was imjpossible not to see all the slaughtered goats being butchered in the street and then cooked on the open fire pits.
Dina and I were invited to our neighbor's house. She is originally from Argentina and her husband was a chef before he joined the Foreign Service (and according to him, "took a pay cut."). They had a very nice sit down dinner with lots of food and at midnight, we popped open a bottle of Moet to toast the New Year.
On New Year's day, our friends came over with Stefan's favorite playmate for the afternoon. The weather has been increasingly dusty and seems like a high overcast. We sat outside and ate Nims and yummy crepes Dina made filled with broccoli in a cheese sauce seved with a green salad and garlic vinegrette dressing. A glass of wine. a glass of water. A glass of wine...
I had no plans for Tuesday given the short notice day of remembrance for the former president. Our DCM called and invited me to a game of golf. I was apprehensive, not knowing how skilled he was at the game, and myself not having swung a club in about 2 years. I thought of Bob (my brother-in-law) who taught me the game. I have enjoyed several rounds with him but am never really certain where that ball is going to end up; in front or behind me after the swing. My friend Gary was also invited so I joined them to make it a threesome.
The drive out to the course is about 20 minutes from Niamey. It's situated along the Niger river. It actually has a club house and driving range. You tee off of these platforms. The fairway is marked by green painted rocks and the imaginary water is outlined with yellow painted rocks. The greens are smooth hard packed sand. Most of the terrain is rocky with compact dirt and scattered shrubs, some low lying dunes and trees. With the hazy dust, it resembles the moon. Plenty of sand traps! As long as your ball is on the fairway, your caddie places a piece of astro-turf under it with each stroke. If your ball is out of bounds, it's best to have an old club (or a weedwacker!). Unlike the golf courses at home, these fairways are forgiving in that the ball really rolls a great distance if you top end it. We had a lot of fun playing and socializing. It turned out my colleagues were only a little bit better at it than I was. Or maybe they were having an off day.