Bangladesh One

Impossible to do full justice to the experience of being there - those of you who have been to that part of the world will remember the noises, colour, smells and press of humanity. Wonderful, generous and educated people.
Along with another teacher I was a guest of the government girls' and boys' schools in Bogra. As well as spending time in those schools we accompanied the girls' school on a relief trip to a flood affected area about 25km away taking pencils, books etc to the children. A humbling experience. here too people were very welcoming, generous and curious about the world. We were asked about the referendum and told how lucky we were to be part of the UK!
Everyone wanted to speak English to us, know where we were from and to hear how we liked Bangladesh.
A mainly muslim country but with a female prime minister and a female opposition leader. The value placed on education is enormous - pressure to pass exams but also a sense that without it life cannot get better.
Here is a small selection of my pictures:

Girl guides on the bus out to the flooded village

With the girls' school janitor

Rickshaw

colourful truck

Loaded truck

Buying fresh fruit

Riding in a tuk tuk

Inside the boys' school

Girls line up for assembly

Dancer from the girls' school

Another dancer

Villagers come out to meet us

Shaquille shows us the water pump

Flood devastation in the high school

Inside the village secondary school

Freshly pressed uniforms

Handing out school equipment

Temporary post flood housing

Flooded primary and secondary schools

Shaquille and friends by the Jumana river

Mother and child

Cloth shop

How true

Having spent a day in the flood affected village I hope to organise some fund raising here to help them rebuild and re-equip the school. We all know there is poverty in the world but having a personal connection really brings home how lucky we all here.

Malaga Day Six - Jueves

Today the sun was out and the temperatures soared. We were in class most of the day. In the morning we discussed the Picasso painting Guernica. The artist was born here but left at a young age.  I went to the Picasso gallery yesterday to see some of his works. Had a chance to wander at lunchtime:

Some colourful washing:

And then I came across a mural of the very painting we had discussed this morning:

Tonight we have another meal out and some traditional flamenco entertainment. Not sure the obligatory red flower will stay in my hair...

Malaga Day Five - Miercoles

A full day of study including the subjunctive! Watched a good song by a local group about the risks immigrants take trying to cross into Spain from North Africa.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj8aNCtTHW4

I also learnt that there is a population of Spanish speaking arabs in the Sahara between Morocco and Algeria. A lot of Spanish families host children from the Saharaui people for 3 months in the summer. It's a kind of national guilt that these people were semi-abandoned by Spain (which still has 2 enclaves in Morocco). Here we are in the classroom with our tutor Manuel:

At lunchtime we visited the covered Mercado Central de Atarazanas:

Then a stop at the sweet shop and a wee wander:

Tonight we are being taken to a traditional tapas bar  - apparently it is very small and we will have to get over our British idea of personal space!
Here I am in Sybaris:

Malaga Day Four - Martes

All 25 of us had a meal out last night. Shows the number of places to eat that we could find somewhere to take us all at a moment's notice. Also that the Spaniards don't eat til late!
Today after classes we took a bus for the 100km journey to Ronda, a town famous for having the oldest bull fighting ring in the country.
It also has a canyon running through the town:

Had a good wander around some of the Moorish ruins and the beautiful streets:

Found a great vegetarian restaurant tonight - they did however warn us it was vegetarian! Seems a lot of people get up and walk off when they see the menu!!

Malaga Day Three - Lunes

A hefty day of work as I was asked to join the secondary teachers' group  - tutors thought it would suit me better! Managing to follow everything ok but the speaking part is progressing more slowly. However learning a lot.
Some lovely food here, including cakes. Here's our post lunch selection:

Had a wee class in Sevillanas dancing - a kind of flamenco. Then a meal out, sitting on the street at 10pm in a thin top in October:

And tomorrow after class we are taking a trip to the town of Ronda.

Malaga Day Two - Domingo

Had a nice welcome meal in the hotel last night - some cold soup, not gazpacho, but thicker. Can't remember the name. Also with some sangria to wash it down. About ten teachers here, all from Scotland, half primary and half secondary. Another group of ten to arrive on Sunday.
After that a walk into the old town and a drink at a cafe in front of the beautifully lit cathedral. Streets so busy with people walking, talking, eating and drinking - but all very civilised. A maze of narrow, mostly pedestrian, streets where everyone is cheek by jowl making it very intimate.
Today woke to heavy rain which eased off as we walked to our first class. Pleased to find I could understand most of what was being said - played a few games as we learnt various bits of vocabulary from our tutors Manuel, Isabel and Ana.
Then a free afternoon to explore. After another bocadillo:

Then stopped at a lovely North African cafe and had Marrakech mint tea. Some good vegetarian options for a visit later! Queue too big for the Picasso Museum so headed up to the Alcabazar, an eighth century Moorish fortress with views out over the town:

Queue still long so had to stop for an ice cream (but not this one!):

Malaga Day One - Sabado

Fountain

Now in Malaga for a week of Spanish lessons and cultural experiences. My first of the day was a flight on Jet2.com full of Glaswegians going on holiday. 42nd time to Spain for a woman behind me! In fact they were all fine it was the constant high pitched and high speed sales spiel the cabin crew kept giving that was a bit hard to bear at 7.30am!
Arrived in plenty of time for a walk around the city. Warm with heavy but brief showers during which some umbrellas appear or people just shelter together in doorways or under canopies. A lot of tourists still around - have heard quite a bit of German today.

Port

A brief look at the seafront and then a stop to admire the hilltop fortifications below:

El Acazaba

Didn't go inside but more free time later. Sat next door in the sun at the Roman theatre eating my bocadillo (no roasted lapwing livers or similar fare on offer!). This is the birthplace of Picasso so a museum to possibly visit later. Hotel modern and central - with wi-fi! Meeting the rest of the group tonight.

A quick update of the summer's adventures so far:

On Connachcraig with Lochnagar behind

On Dun Caan Raasay

Coasteering on Raasay with Colin and Phil

On Inver beach Raasay

Ben Nevis

Priory, Oronsay

Kiloran Bay, Colonsay

Shadow biking to Beinn a Ghlo

Falls of Tarf

On Carn na Gabhar, summit of Beinn a Ghlo, 1121m