1. Gabon Cythar Sparks

    Papa Nzengui, a celebrated Gabonese cythar player, strikes a chord as sparks fly from a village fire- making it seem like magic is rising up with the music as he plays.

  2. Gabon Men at Work?

    This is a photo of the fuel station in Mayumba, during working hours. And it's not an unusual sight. In Mayumba, a town of about 3000 people, there are only two taxis and less than ten private cars. Once the bush taxis leave for the day, there's not much for the pump attendants to do... People around here joke that, at midday, you could take a nap on the street and be perfectly safe.  Indeed, I have seen a drunk man or two do just that. 

  3. Gabon Loumboulenga

    I took this photo during an environmental education tour around the Banio Lagoon villages, south of Mayumba, Gabon. This grandmother and her granddaughter allowed me to take their portrait in front of the bamboo cooking shack. It is my favorite photo of my entire stay in Gabon because her eyes seem to communicate the endurance a woman needs to survive village life. I imagine that I see the little girl's future - hope and innocence transformed into weariness and pride - in the old woman's eyes.

  4. Namibia My New Best Friend

    Once a year, the clinic I volunteered at provided inoculations for polio.  This brought people out from deep in the bush, that I normally would never meet.  When this little girl came into the clinic, I knew immediately, she had Downs' Syndrome.  None of the health professionals at my clinic recognized or knew what it was.  She and I bonded immediately.  She giggled and laughed as she sat on my lap waiting for her injection.  People from the community treated her differently because of the wa...

  5. Mexico Dress for Success

    On my first day of service at my new site, I reported to the SEMARNAT office in Tepic, Nayarit, Mexico.  SEMARNAT is the Mexican equivalent of the US Environmental Protection Agency, and my assignment was to contribute my experience as a Coastal Engineer to a large wetland restoration project.  SEMARNAT wanted me to help design hydraulics, erosion, and water quality projects. Now I don't mean to brag, but I am a professional Engineer.  The work sounded very similar to projects I had worked on...

  6. Mexico Crocodile Farming in Nayarit

    Releasing farmed baby crocodiles into the swamp, the "Marismas Nacionales" in Nayarit, Mexico.

  7. Niger Nap Time

    While helping out with a Girl's Camp I came across this beautiful sight. I love it because it is so counter cultural. All of these girls, some had just met each other a few days ago, all squished together on this mat taking a rest in the afternoon. Can you imagine this happening in the USA?

  8. Niger Movie Night

    I was visiting a friend and went to a little store to get some cold drinks. When I stepped in I looked to my right and out the side door I saw all these faces staring back at me (well sort of). Then I realized all these people were watching TV, not me. They really could have cared less about be standing there, well that is until I pulled out my camera, then I got a little more attention.

  9. Mozambique Playing House

    My host sister loved to play house with the neighbor boy.  Even though they're practically the same size, she was the Mama and he was the baby.

  10. Mongolia Looking for the right word in Zuunmod

    Communication can be challenging. Mongolia PCV Jocelyn Sarmiento tries to find the right word to convey what needs to be done as she shows it to her counterpart in a dictionary. Jocelyn serves in the health sector and is attached to the local Health Department for the Mongolian Ministry of Health. She lives and works in Zuunmod in Mongolia's Central Province, Töv aimag.   I took this photo while traveling around the world documenting Peace Corps volunteers for a book, "Making Peace with...

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“Sunset at the Railroad” by PCV Nicholas Baylor Hall. Namibia, 2011.