I should stop listening to them!

I guess it is hard to NOT believe what a native African person is telling you when you are in a moment of panic and/or fright, but I shouldn't have thought that it could possibly be true all that stuff about the Enemy of God. And after realizing that new PCV's and their parents are reading my blogs I don't want to scare anyone too badly. Yes, there are a bazillion creepy crawlies here and yes, it is annoying and disgusting. However, the lizard I saw in my house can not give you leprosy. I asked at the local hospital, and while it is an accepted village belief, it is just not medically factual. Shockingly. I think I can also safely assume that his tail will never grow into a second head, either.

Since I have some time on my hands here in Ouaga, I also researched this critter on the internet, and it's possible that what I saw was the Fat-Tailed African Gecko, described as: "....the second best species of Gecko to keep. They have a nice, calm nature making them a great exotic pet...." Here are some more facts about the little guy, if this is, in fact, who I saw...
www.exotic-pets.co.uk/african-fat-tailed-gecko.html





So now I feel just plain awful about having him destroyed. Then again, it was night time, and when you don't know what the hell kind of big, fat, strange creature is staring at you from behind your door, you tend to want to just kill it.
Anyway, thought you'd like to know.

I'll be around in Ouaga for two weeks!! We have mid-service medical exams, then I have a training seminar. I still have that cell phone, for those of you who forgot!!

And for the parents of the new trainees who just arrived, don't worry too much. I probably have one of the most worrysome mothers of all, and she is doing just fine. Possibly a few new grey hairs, but generally still in good health. :)
We are all just fine over here and support each other very well.
Come visit!