I was sorry not to have been at the hotel a few nights ago to welcome a n American from New York bearing the splendid name Javier de Frutos. He wrote me an e-mail a couple of months ago and booked a double room in September, because he was a reader of this blog!
Ever since, when I saw his name in the reservations sheets he became associated with the 'season of mists and mellow fruitfulness', and the thought was always pleasant and cooling somehow in the heat of the Malian summer. Alas, I couldn't greet him and his partner since I was already in Bamako- instead they were greeted by torrential rain and only just managed to squeeze in through the sand bags to enter the hotel compound. The hotel is now noisier than normal, because we had to rescue the new generator (see above) which we have put it in the laundry room next to the restaurant.
I decided we needed to cheer up Mr. Frutos and his friend so I called Beigna and told him to up-grade them from an ordinary double room to the Peulh suite where they spent two nights. They were so pleased with Papa's steak and chips which they had for dinner the first night that they ordered the same thing as their main course the following night, apparently. And indeed Papa's chips are among the best anywhere, it has to be admitted...