Gone fishing..

I sort of invited myself along for a fishing session with the boys from the village. Nice to finally dive into the Niger. Looking out over the River from a distance it looks deep and mysterious. Once you get out there on a boat and dive in you realize it's full of huge boulders and not very deep. The current is just strong enough to keep you working the boat to stay in place. I understand why the village fisherman are out here all day and night. This was probably the most peaceful spot I've been to in Bamako.

Once we got out on the water they told me it's better fishing at night. Indeed our catch was not great. This particular fishing technique involves throwing a casting net around a bolder and then diving into the water to drive the sheltering fish into the net with your paddle. No offense to my African peeps who can swim, but these were the first real swimmers I've met in Bamako that could stay under water without panicking. The people from these villages along the Niger are called 'Bozo'. The Bozo are known to be great swimmers and fishermen. So that explains it.