at sea off Senegal

We have seen some life in the sea and recently quite a few ships (a handful actually--but that is a lot for us). Yesterday we were 30 miles off Senegal and were getting a butterfly and some actual bugs from land. At dusk, Carla Tolbert sat on the deck with our second after dinner cup of tea. Visiting after meals is one of the pleasures of being at sea with interesting and nice people. Bugs had landed on the deck in great mass before Rob and Charlie left to go prepare their classes for the next day. Carla and I have time to do as we wish since we are not teaching. The bugs were small--about 1/8 inch long, pale green, and shaped a bit like tiny grasshoppers. Earlier we had all been delighted to see a butterfly. At dusk something (bugs)started biting us (Carla and Me) so we dashed inside. Rob insists that we were just bitten by gnats. Whatever they were, no harm seems to have been done. We were having a strong wind from off shore. I don't know what our distance from shore was at that point. We think the insects were blown in mass our way by the strong wind. Yesterday we saw no bugs at all--but Rob and I did eat inside on deck 5 with two students who had invited us to join them for dinner. It was fun.
On the way to Cadiz from Halifax I saw a dolphin and others saw more dolphin. Off the horn of Africa (where we are now) we have seen lots of flying fish, lots of dolphin, small white birds, several heron (white, but larger than the little white birds). Crossing the Atlantic, we saw no birds or bugs. Everyone keeps an eye on the ocean to see what we can see. No one has seen a whale or any other fish. The flying fish flap their very thin (gossamer comes to mind) fins to keep them in the air for about five times their own length or more). We have also seen more other ships than we are used to seeing; plus we saw one actual fishing boat.
We haven't yet started taking our malaria pills for Ghana. We are supposed to start them two days before we reach the port of Ghana--so tomorrow, I think. Then we take them the whole time we are in Ghana and then a week after. I know we repeat this procedure for Viet Nam because we are going into the Jungles of Cambodia to Angkor Watt (sp?) and we may need to do it for South Africa.
Today the students have no classes. They were getting a bit overwhelmed with their assignments, so they have a day to catch up on class work and sleep. There is a group who party every night on the seventh deck (near the pool). We had a talent show last night. Rob did not participate--then regretted it while he watched the show. He has a bad cold and well as lots of work grading papers and getting ready for class. Bob and Maria Chapel have had the same terrible cold for at least a week, more like ten days. The three of them have been very tired and felt terrible--but they have all kept going the whole time. I have been washing my hands like Lady Macbeth to keep from catching it. So far I am fine--but I wish Rob would get well and stop coughing so much both for his sake and, selfishly, for mine. Now Cindy has it--she is a prof from Colorado with porcelain skin--its lovely.
Rob just came by--I am in the computer room--to say more bugs--ugh. We like to eat outdoors and it is lunch time.
Bye for now.