Gambia

Moving on to the smallest country in mainland Africa (it's smaller than Connecticut!) Gambia is enveloped within Senegal on the Atlantic coast of Africa. The whole country lies on either side of the river that the country is named for, and at it's widest point it is less than 30 miles from the top of the country to the bottom. The Gambian river is actually twice as long as the country of Gambia. The river is over 700 miles long! 

It may be the smallest country on the mainland of Africa, but it is the second smallest coastline. (The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a much bigger country, but has a smaller coastline) That small coastline is an attraction in and of itself though. Gambia is known for it's lovely beaches and adjacent party resorts and fishing villages, even though it's all packed into about 50 miles of coastline. 

Gambia was once a British Colony (who wasn't, am I right?), so it's no surprise the official language is English. It is kind of funny though, because  it is completely enveloped by French speaking Senegal. 

The largest ethnic group in Gambia is the Madinka people. They make up about half the population. Total population of this country is just over 1.8 million. 

The capital is Banjul, and it is one of the quietest capital cities in all of Africa. But it boasts the Albert Market, a popular (and crowded) place to shop and eat. Of note: TripAdvisor gives it four stars, but um, a lot of people complain about the smell and the flies. 

A landmark in a tiny country like this is always a little tricky, but I settled on Arch 22. It's a commemorative arch on the road to Banjul. It is relatively new, built in 1996, to mark the military coup d'etat of July 22, 1994. In that "bloodless" coup, 29 year old Yahya Jammeh and his Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council overthrew the democratically elected Gambian government 

Gambia is home to a thriving traditional music scene. The traditional instrument used is called the kora. It's a 21 string instrument that's a cross between a lute and a harp. It's used to tell the history of the Mandinka people through song, poetry and music. 

 Gambia also has landmarks to it's slaving past. One of the most well known Africans to be sold into slavery, Kunta Kinte was Gambian. According to stories, Kinte was searching for wood to make his younger brother a drum when he was taken captive in 1767. 

Gambia may be tiny but it packs a punch in ecotourism (I mean, I wouldn't be mad if my vacation included a trip up the Gambian river in a pirouge). What brings many travelers to Gambia is actually birds. It's a premier bird watching destination. It lies on the migratory bird path between Europe and Africa. Over 560 bird species have been sighted. 

Birds aren't the only animals worth noting in Gambia. They have the Western Red Colobus Monkey, who live in families of 50 members and while they have no thumbs have impressively large tummies they pack with tons of fruit, leaves and seeds. 

Then there is the Kachikally crocodile pool that is home to about 80 gators, including an occasional albino one! The pool is considered a sacred spot, where couples hoping to have kids bathe for good luck. (Which, as a Floridian, can I just say... is bananas! There's gators in there! Geesh!) 

The boys made their Gambian post cards. 

Calib's featured bird watching and the crocodile pool. 

Peyton's featured Arch 22, and the British flag being lowered while the Gambian flag is being raised. 

And Hayden's postcard fit in the beaches, and the kora. 

Popular food in Gambia includes Domodah (peanut stew), and Bissap (Hybiscus juices). In addition, a traditional dish is oyster stew (many tribeswomen collect oysters from the Gambian river).

But, we're not stew people. And we certainly aren't oyster people. So for Gambia dinner we had Benachin: Gambian One Pot Rice Pilaf. Gambian meals are usually served with a side salad and bread, so we had that along with some bananas for our fruit.

This meal earned three spoons up. But nobody was too enthusiastic or too down on this meal. And, by African meal standards, we were pretty pleased with this one. It was a little more exciting than the usual rice and chicken. (It helped that we've done so few countries this month that we hadn't had rice in ages!) 

Surprisingly too, the boys really liked the squash in the pilaf. It probably helped our veggie intake was few and far between when we were in Ohio, so everyone was kind of craving them. I had a second helping where I picked out a whole bunch of squash, and I really never had much of the meat, so overall, it was a veggie and carbohydrate meal for me. 

We will probably have to color in Gambia again when we do Senegal, but for now it's blue (like the river), cutting through Senegal.

That's 113 down, 80 to go!

Next Up: Mozambique