One minute, he was offering directions to a stranger, the next, his cameras and negatives were gone.
Before proceeding, a word of caution: Tourists are routinely stopped by friendly men offering directions or advice.
The soldiers are respectful, offering directions, but they will intervene the moment a camera is turned in the wrong direction: toward the presidential office downhill.
At Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, the "holiday helpers" who volunteer during holiday seasons will help some passengers by offering directions.
As tourists passed by, they called out and smiled often, far more outgoing than the average Japanese worker — sometimes offering directions or handing out business cards with their contact information or that of their company.
Londoners have defied every stereotype by talking to each other on tube trains, offering directions to visitors whether they needed them or not, and blubbering over the British athletes' triumphs.
These days, if a stranger, a shopkeeper, a person offering directions learns that you are Armenian and of Diyarbakir ancestry, you will be ushered into a home, welcomed with tea, treated like a long-lost relative deserving honor.
Soumouni sits about 20 miles from the nearest road, with wandering cattle herders in their distinctive pointed straw hats offering directions like, "Bear right at the termite mound with the hole in it".
