The Diafarabé cattle crossing festival is the biggest Fulani festival of the year, and girls dress up to welcome their boyfriends when they return from months herding cattle in the desert. Most important to them are their hair decorations.

"It takes about four or five days to dress my hair for the festival," explains Aissata Diallo. "It depends on how busy the hairdresser is. It takes about two days to plait the braids, and then two or three more to weave in the coins and the amber.

"All the girls who have got married since the last crossing wear the amber arranged in a circle around their head. Girls often receive gifts of amber when they get married. Some unmarried girls also wear amber in their hair, but arranged in rows across the top of their heads rather than in a circle. It is just a tradition, a tradition that we continue without really knowing what it means."