Here are a collection of snaps taken with my iPhone whilst in Libreville. I'm leaving on a jet plane out of here tomorrow night and then onto Mauritius for a few weeks. JB will still be in Gabon until the end of August

We crossed the equator often but thought I had better snap it...

Gorgeous coloured raffia they sell on the main highway... Made from raffia palms

My gorgeous Gabonese footsteps...

Couldn't resist this gorgeous African fabric from Cote de Voir

Sunset at the grubby industrial port 

I could live in Libreville! What amazing restaraunts...

I love these roasted peanuts and fried plantains sold in used jars and spirit bottles! Recycling at its best... You can buy these tasty snacks everywhere...

Huge trees make loooong dugouts! A fisherman in the lagoon of Myumba, Gabon

And the night shall be filled with music, And the cares, that infest the day, Shall fold their tents, like the Arabs, And as silently steal away. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Belfry of Bruges and Other Poems

I have never had clarity. I have only ever had trust, Mother Teresa. Gabon, land of the hiding sun...

We spent the weekend at a place called Myumba, on the southern coast of Gabon! It's so beautiful and so basic, with no hotels etc and very bad roads! But the beauty makes up for a lot....

Yes JB caught. Barracuda! 

The local fish shop.... It's basically a room with a Large deepfreeze filled with the weeks catch! 

It's in the dry, difficult times that makes us send our "roots" down deeper to search for "the water of life" to sustain us, "His peace" to calm us and the "joy unspeakable" to uplift us. Gigi

Whilst walking I am rather nervous of coming across either one of the "big" creatures, as most of you know. A forest Elephant, buffalo or even a python or mamba - but it's really the "little" zappers that annoy and hurt me the most. The tsetse fly (yes there is sleeping sickness here) the annoying palm flies and even mosquitoes! They attack my vulnerable exposed parts. The back of my neck, my arms (they love my elbows!) and ankles. I don't see them, but only feel the ouch once I've been zapped. With the tsetse the bite becomes a swollen, hot, hard lump for up to 3 weeks. With malaria, it's as if a forest elephant is standing on your head! The pain they inflict lingers... It's much like sin.... The "bigger" ones are more noticeable and they can kill or maim, but the "little" ones, which are just as bad, and aren't too noticeable, slowly creep in and harm where you are vunerable . The hidden zappers that rob you of your peace and joy. They could be fear, worry, pride, self pity, envy - everyone's list is different. Thank goodness for Gods grace and forgiveness....

Most fears are only mirages...

There isn't much to do on a Sunday on the Ranch. I don't have access to any vehicles during the week. So Sunday's are when I drag JB out to try and do a spot of photography. Today we went checking on the firebreaks...

Gabon........ The land of the hiding sun........

Whilst driving up from the beach in Myumba this weekend, I was so excited to spot 3 baobabs! If you had been following my blog whilst in Moz, you would have known about my addiction to these trees! It just made me feel "more at home" in a very alien country.... I googled to find out more about baobabs in Gabon, and there is hardly any information. Gabon is really not the ideal climate for baobabs, and there are not many recorded. Some say seeds were brought from Senegal to plant in gardens, others that they were carried by different tribes. I think the sea or rivers carried the fruit and with the ideal temperatures, they sprouted. The 3 trees we found are close to the beach. We have driven past these trees twice before and never noticed them as they were covered in leaves, now as their leaves are falling, we noticed them. Here is one of the many traditional stories about the famous Baobab. The Creator is said to have initially planted the Baobab in the rainforests of the Congo Basin (Gabon isn't too far away) , but the tree complained that the dampness made his trunk swell. So the Creator moves it to the higher slopes of the Ruwenzori Range, the "mountains of the moon", but the Baobab continued to grumble about the humidity. Angered by the incessant wailing, the Creator took the swollen trunk and tossed it into the dryer parts of Africa (Tete!) and the tree landed upside down with its roots in the air......

Check the little birds, only noticed these once I had downloaded the pics onto the computer...

A little far away, but it was in an army camp, so was denied permission...

The Ant "mushroom" ( which dot the Savannah areas of Gabon ) made stronger after being through the fire.... Can I say the same for myself?

The trees and vegetation is so different in Gabon from Southern Africa. I love the pods starting to form on the different trees around here...

Gabonese art on the walls of a building in the town closest to the Ranch.

We will always find hope in reaching upwards.......for light, for growth, for help, for praise.....

People are like grass, their beauty like a flower in the field, the grass withers and the flowers fade... 1 Peter 1:24

Another gorgeous flowering shrub you see in the bush around here!

I love Sicilian Caponata....

And I actually managed to have the main ingredients in my garden, which is quite something.... I have 3 vets coming for dinner and it's delicious as a starter served at room temperature with some crusty bread to wipe the plates clean... 

This is Jamie Oliver's recipe that I use:

Ingredients: (+\- in Gabon) and I always add Green peppers...

• olive oil
• 2 large aubergines , cut into large chunks
• 1 heaped teaspoon dried oregano
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 small red onion , peeled and finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic , peeled and finely sliced
• 1 small bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley , leaves picked and stalks finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons salted capers , rinsed, soaked and drained
• 1 handful green olives , stones removed
• 2-3 tablespoons best-quality herb vinegar
• 5 large ripe tomatoes , roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons slivered almonds , lightly toasted, optional
• Method:
• Get yourself a large pan, pour in a couple of lugs of olive oil, and place on the heat. Add your aubergine chunks and oregano, season with a little salt and toss around so the aubergine is evenly coated by the oil. Cook on a high heat for around 4 or 5 minutes, giving the pan a shake every now and then. (Depending on the size of your pan you may need to cook the aubergine in batches.) 
  
  When the aubergines are nice and golden on each side, add the onion, garlic and parsley stalks and continue cooking for another couple of minutes. Feel free to add a little more oil to the pan if you feel it's getting too dry. 
  
  Throw in the drained capers and the olives and drizzle over the herb vinegar. When all the vinegar has evaporated, add the tomatoes and simmer for around 15 minutes or until tender. 
  
  Taste before serving and season if you need to with salt, pepper and a little more vinegar. Drizzle with some good olive oil and serve sprinkled with the chopped parsley leaves and the almonds if you like.
• 
  

Did the hectic 12 hour trip to get supplies in Libreville...

My body is aching today, check these roads

A palm wine and peanut stall just for refreshments along route, mmmm right by a Police roadblock, so convenient! Sometimes you need that palm wine after a run in with the police...

Then we reach Libreville beach front just when the sunsets...

The beautiful Cameroonian Zebu cattle of Nyanga Ranch. So much better in black and white to see their gorgeous hides...

Wild flowers of Gabon