I lose my camera

7 months through West Africa - 6 countries with countless markets, trotro stations, crowded cities and now it has finally happened. Some of my well-wishing critics who know me only too well will say "What took you so long?". Well, i wish it had happened earlier. It's not so much the camera itself (which, though it was 4 years old, was working well enough) but all my priceless pics. The smiles from Ghana, the magical Dogon countryside, nights out in Accra, the sunsets on the Niger river, foosball on the streets on Ouidah, the blue and white medina of Chefchaouen - all gone.

And this is how it all came to be. I was walking around Marrakesh taking pictures. Seeing the snow capped High Atlas mountains forming a surreal backdrop to this crazy city I reached into my bag for my camera... but it wasn't there. I have given myself a fright like this many times but each time a more thorough search results in me finding it under the fat Lonely Planet or the can of deo. But this time it didn't. The only time I stopped between here and the last time I took a picture was to fiddle with my Ipod in front of a bank. Thinking maybe it fell out of my bag there I backtracked the 400 meters... nothing.... but 5 minutes in long time in Marrakesh to leave something lying around. Did someone reach into my bag and snag it? I'm paranoid about people getting near my backpack so it's hard to imagine someone putting their hand in without me noticing. On the other hand I was having too much fun singing along to my ipod and maybe didn't notice. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I lost my appetite and went back to my room and after another search of my bag, feel asleep depressed. So stupid!

I have few pics on Nana Yaw and Prince's computer which I can try and retrieve I guess but the newer ones are gone... and then there's Egypt still to come. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

So I need your help in finishing this sentence... "It's kind of for the best that you lost your camera because..."