And so it goes

Saturday I visited Fina's Saturday Kid's Club again and took Pastor Ezéchiel along with me this time as a guest. We spent the hour before the formal presentation pasting library pockets on the books I brought along last time so they could be checked out.  Fina had typed up the book cards already and had given the book accession numbers, which form an identification number for each title. She has them arranged by reading difficulty using colored tape.  

 

Games

this one remains a partial mystery to me

checking out the library

introducing Ezéchiel and me to the children

 

Basil helps out with the younger ones (below) as 
Ezéchiel looks on

 

and Basil has the help of one of the older girls as his assistant

Here Blandine helps Fina with the older children

Not long ago a number of badminton racquets, nets, poles, shuttlecocks, etc. had been donated to the Kid's Club. When I visited three weeks ago, Fina had those interested in playing the game roughing out the playing courts in the dirt field nearby. This time she had the kids practicing their game following the Club, and invited the individual responsible for the management of the field, along with the local badminton club president, to meet her players. The latter, in turn, brought along some "champion players" (who have played in several tournaments) to play with Fina's group and give them some pointers. 

 

introducing the guests

Some of us were wishing we had brought something to sit on...

Fina owns two African dogs, and the photo below shows her beta dog hiding under a chair while he barks at me.  

 The breeds here are unfamiliar to me, and most seem unfriendly as they are used primarily as hunting and guard dogs. The two below were having a good time chasing each other around and playing tug-of-war with the piece of cloth while the children were playing badminton. The large green can behind them is for trash.

Sunday a group of us went again to the fancy CanalOlympia 
Yennenga movie theater in the upscale Ouaga 2000 district with its embassies, fancy hotels and the Monument des Martyrs.  This time it was for the premiere of the Black Panther, which was pretty strange sitting in a modern movie theater in poor Burkina Faso watching a black super-heroes film. It was quite crowded this time--a stark contrast to the Star Wars film of a few weeks ago.  Maybe it was because it was the opening night in English.

And one guy came in costume allowing photo ops for some

Monday Ezéchiel and I visited Dounko Sanou at the FAVL [Friends of African Village Libraries] headquarters so he could learn more about what they are doing here in Burkina Faso and their grassroots approach to libraries. He was quite favorably impressed.

Me, Ezéchiel Lopembo and Dounko Sanou looking at some of the FAVL publications

But the hot weather has arrived... Even though we walked there in the early morning, the sun was a little much for me and I had to take it easy for the rest of the day. It has been heating up fast and, at this writing, it is not yet March...