Every Sunday morning a man stands near the oceans reach with subha¹ at hand reciting the many names of Ala. When the rains fall it will collect at the tips of leaves and sparkle in all directions as the sun sits on the horizon. A lonely mango washed up by the ocean will bake in the midday's sun as a stray dog continues it stroll. Reed thatched roofs will stand above the tall rows of corn and millet. Midnight lightning storms over Senegal will give way to a million stars, where you will sit and reflect on all things humanity. What am I trying to say is that this place has a unique beauty and excitement. The Gambia is this tiny niche of land that is located on the smiling coast of Africa or so the locals say it is smiling. The smiles I usually encounter are when I am walking or running along sandy shores, perhaps that is why it is called the smiling coast. They usually drop their smiles and attempted handshakes as I just ignore their presence and continue my run.² I have already been end to end where you will find two banks divided by a river with one good road and one bad road. A hundred villages will pass by on this journey and they all resemble the romantic thoughts of Africa . These villages some are poor and ancient and others concrete and striving to be modern. This is a land where modern and traditional ways collide to define a raw beauty only found in lands far away. ¹Arabic for prayer beads |