The Mandiack Weavers

I had the opportunity to visit the Mandiack weavers with the Dakar Women's Group this past week. It was a great outing and although the heat and dust were particularly oppressive that day, we all had a good time regardless.

There are wonderful arts and crafts to be found in Africa and some are quite unique to West Africa and even Senegal. One of those is the art of loom weaving. Something done by men only. While women may collect the cotton and work in processing and coloring it, the actual weaving of the cloth is done by the men. I thought that was rather interesting. The detail in the cloth is amazing and the colors are rich. Watching their nimble fingers work the loom is a sight to behold.

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I topped it off with lunch at the Calebasse Restaurant with a friend, which was not only a culinary delight but a visual one too.

The restaurant is mostly art gallery, with a restaurant perched at the very top. I had a very nice beef curry and Leslie had shrimp cooked in honey. The plate of accompanying dishes were wonderful; fresh home made french fries, fried slices of sweet plantain banana, a home made relish and a bowl of fancy rice for my beef curry. The fact that I got some adult conversation in too, was an added bonus.
All in all a very nice day indeed!