We are living like real Africans now. We are renting a two story adobe house with steel shutters. There is no glass, carpet or decoration unless you have done it yourself. The two-story house has a staircase leading to the roof. The staircase has no covering and is made of mud brick. The first story has an open courtyard so all the rooms in the second story are built with outside walls so everyone has at least two/three windows for ventilation. We are living on the second floor. We are renting out the house from Dani Traoré, a well known tailor and embroiderer. Both men and women here wear clothes that have lots of embroidered decoration. He and his wife live on the second story while his family lives below. Because the floors are dirt, we have mats covering the floors so we can step around without our shoes on. I sleep on mats with sleeping bags and a sheet. It is so hot at night that we usually sleep on our sheets instead of in them.

The lavatories are really stinky! My Mom washed them out with water and detergent but still they stink on... There are no flush toilets, only a hole in the floor. For a bath the people bring out water and put it out on the roof to heat. After an hour it is really warm and you bring it into the restroom, sorry no bathtubs, you have to take a bucket bath (every day!). You have five gallons of water in one bucket and you have to take a shower with that. It is actually not that bad.

Cleanliness is very important so you don't get sick. You wash your hands before every meal and occasionally for good measure. You never touch the bottom of your shoes or sandals (I usually wear sandals because it is hot) or the bottom of your feet (unless you are washing them). Jenne is a perfect example of an early city, people throw trash and waste water out into the street, then flies may come by and land on the trash, and they in turn may fly off and land in food making it dangerous to eat. You always have to take heat precautions like hat, sunglasses, sunscreen.

You may consider your feet a warehouse of diseases. Be careful when you touch your shoelaces, don't touch the bottoms of your shoes, think where they have been. I am having to learn these lessons and more as our trip progresses.