Travel Photographs by Rosemary Sheel

"Do ya wanna dance?" Older Woodabe man participates in a warm-up dance before the Geerewol competition.

Woodabe men watch the Geerewol. They are too old to participate.

More Geerewol watchers. The ceremony is serious business to these tribesmen.

These Woodabe had ridden their camels a great distance to see the Geerewol.

A Woodabe chief wears an indigo chech (turban) and gandoura ( the flowing garment that is worn over their pants and shirt). The cloth is dyed with indigo and because it is simply pounded into the fabric, the dye rubs off on the skin of the wearer. It turns the skin a bluish color.

A Woodabe chief's son.

Applying makeup in preparation for the beauty contest.

All ready to be judged. He wears all of his finery and makeup. The Woodabe love pretty things...anything shiny or colorful. They compete with each other to decorate their costume in a unique manner.

Woodabe men line up to be judged.

A little Woodabe girl dressed in clothing embroidered by the women of her family.

The women of the Woodabe take pride in their homemaking skills such as embroidery and calabash carving . They too like pretty, colorful things and use them in their decorating themes. Even a tuna can wrapper can look pretty used in a collage.

Young Woodabe (Bororo) in all their finery.

Some examples of Woodabe embroidery are worn by these women.

These hats are necessary in the hot sahel sun. After a few minutes at noontime, you will soon have a headache and nausea.

Returning home from the Geerewol. Shepherds carry their stick over their shoulders and drape their arms over it as a typical posture.

A Woodabe woman fans the flame under her cookpot.

Two men pass by the Grand Mosque of Agadez in the early morning.

The round bee-hive graneries of the Hausa tribe.

Some people take a little more work to be pretty enough for the beauty contest. I'm not sure how much time this man will need, but she is trying her best.

The elders of the tribe sit and chat.

He is huffing and puffing trying to sound like a camel who is running.

A group of men put on the last minute touches.

A Bororo is never without his teapot when he goes into the bush.

A pictorial lesson in how to mount a camel. First, get him to 'couch' or lie down, then grab his nose and step into your saddle.

A Woodabe elder with his magnificent chech. It takes skill to wrap these tall head coverings.

A young boy pauses in the Baker's house in Agadez. This house was used in the movie Sheltering Sky. It is filled with imaginative sculpture.

These Woodabe women debate the price of goods at market.

The sand dunes near Iferouane

Woodabe men dressed for Geerewol. They remind me of American Indians.

A race at a festival where any animal is fair game, horses, camels or donkeys.

Another bush beauty parlor...this young boy seems to be worried about the circles under his eyes.

This boy has two girls beautifying him.

The decorated face of a Woodabe man.

A Woodabe woman lifts a sack of millet to her head.

Three boys all ready to compete. They seem young. Maybe this is their first time to compete in the Geerewol.

Woodabe group at Geerewol.

You can see that the Woodabe do not all have the same features.

Showing off their teeth.

A very handsome Woodabe man.

A million dollar smile. She seems very friendly!

This costume is worn during the Yaake celebration.

The Bororo girl who has the honor of judging the Geerewol. She pretends to be shy, keeps her eyes cast down and points to the winner with a half-hearted gesture.

He just oozes confidence!

This is the winner and he knew he would be all along.

With his chech tied in a manner resembling a Turkish Pasha, this man demonstrates his artistic talents.

A rather haughty cattle herder.

Taking the cattle to water. Each man waits his turn. I think they only water the cattle every other day. They are a breed similar to a Zebu and perhaps do not need so much water.

These men came to our camp to observe us, just as we had gone to their camp. The man in the center was quite intelligent. He could spell English words phonetically even though he had never been to school. Later I visited his 'house' which was his bed and his belongings placed under a tree.