Christmas in the Congo

Soon-to-be-Christmas-dinner taking a ride

24th December
Merry Christmas! Cintia and I will be on our own at the station on
Christmas day. We plan on making pancakes, eating fried bananas,
watching funny movies, and just relaxing. Back to work on the 27th til
the 30th, then the trackers get five days off for New Years. Good time
for data entry.

27th December
Merry Christmas again!
Guess what I had for dinner last night? And lunch today? Sandwiches!
Sakamaki found bread buns in Djolu and brought them back for us - cut
'em in half add some chicken, mayo and avocado and 'hey presto' instant
gratification. Cintia and I had not been expecting such a tasty
Christmas present, and had made pancakes for lunch, which we ate with
papaya and honey. What a delicious day. Now it's back to rice, kwanga
and mpondu.

I've got four days following bonobos until the New Year holiday. Today
they were out of the swamp, in the secondary forest. Did I already tell
you that Sakamaki said they only usually spend one month in the swamp?
He said this is the first year he's seen the bosenge fruit for so long -
almost three months! I've been in the swamp long enough to see the
bosenge flower, fruit, and sprout saplings.

Good eats and great company for New Year

Jean-Marie serenading our New Year's Celebration