Taxis et Marabouts

I would like to say a word about the two most common and colorful occurrences (after the color riot bouganvellia and bright red dirt). They are the taxis and the images of marabouts.

The taxis here are always personalized with upholstery, something hanging from the rearview mirror (if there is one) and stickers all over the dash - from "hamdoullah" and "I [heart] Islam" to "Lovers Forever" and the american flag. Speakers are also often placed on the shelf behind the rear passangers head - resulting in abrupt shock when the driver decides to blast the radio.
The taxis are yellow and black, with decorations and messages written on the back and nose of the car. and my favorite decoration of all is the tail, a bushel of horse hair (good luck?) trailing next to the tailpipe. Must capture this on film before I leave...




Marabouts are like living saints in Islam, devotion to a particular marabout is common. In Senegal, there is one marabout in particular, whose image is painted in black and white all over Dakar. There are variations but its the same guy, Amadou Bamba. There are also photos and fabric with a photos with him, or another marabout. That would make a fetching bou bou, n'est pas?