How’s The Cold? It’s Here

Everything is going well in my neck of the woods. It is cold here, something I never thought I’d be saying. It has been getting down into the 40’s, but that’s just what I hear—I don’t have a thermometer. I received my new Christmas present, a sleeping bag, this week. I've had such great sleeps. I just still can’t believe that it is this cold in the Sahel. This past week it hasn’t even been hot during the middle of the day because the winds have been so strong. Of course that's a whole new problem.

On several mornings when I’ve gone out to buy breakfast I’ve been wearing my sweatshirt, windbreaker, beanie, pj’s under my pants, and socks (!!!). I’m still cold. Usually I go get food and greet people then scurry back to my house to eat inside. You can see what my new beanie looks like in the cook stove pics (we all got matching hats). It’s the time of the year where “Ina dari?” is a common greeting. How’s the cold? It’s here.

I have been assisting other volunteers with their projects. This has been really good because I get to meet Nigeriens and learn new language and logistics of projects. I helped with a fistula training for Nigerien Scouts (Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts) who will in turn go out into the bush and do sensibilizations. I went with three other volunteers from my cluster to greet a village 2.5 k north of mine who really wants to have a Peace Corps Volunteer. Also with other volunteers in my cluster, I went to greet the Serki, to inform him that Katie would be working on a project to build a water chateau in her village—this is a formality that you do out of respect to the traditional power structure. He even donated the 65,000 CFA ($115-120) for the estimate to be done and invited us to lunch where he roasted a lamb. I also helped with the construction of improved cook stoves in the village chief’s concession in Lachlan’s village.

I think that is it for the sort of formal activities I’ve helped with/been present at.

I have to get shots so, I’ve gone back into Niamey. But, it’s not all bad I’ll get to see some of my friends while I’m there. I’ll also be able to get on the internet and try and do some communicating with the outside world. Which is always nice. Hello outside world!

I'll be heading back out to the village in about a week and on February 4th I'll return to do some small town radio. After that I'll be helping out with a mural project.

I've started to gather resources because I would like to do a youth leadership conference. If anyone has any ideas feel free to email me. I think this will take up my time for a while, but I hope to continue doing radio once a week.

Yesterday, I went to my friend Vicki's village. She is in Zarma speaking village but it wasn't difficult for me to find people who spoke Hausa. She is also by the river so it's so beautiful and green there. I took a bunch of pictures on her camera and will link to them or post them soon.

That's all I've got for now, but I'll make sure y'all are the first to know if anything else happens.

Take care and thanks for reading. Check out the new pictures... More to come.

Bush Walk Pics
Fistula Training Pics
Improved Cook Stove Pics

Barka Da Sabon Shekara (Happy New Years)

I hope y'all had a great holiday season and I missed being there terribly, but we managed here.  I'm headed back to my village tomorrow and I just wanted to let everyone know what has been going on in my (our) world.

 

If you've been reading, you'll remember that I went into Niamey at the beginning of December to prepare for In-Service Training at the training site in Hamdallaye.  IST was supposed to run from the 5^th – 17^th.  It was so good to see all of my fellow stagieres and the training staff. 

 

On the 10^th of December we receive word that a land mine was run over in Maradi and the explosion injured several people.  The driver died the following day from his injuries.  The Bureau acted and we were all put on Standfast (read: stay where you are).  For those of us at the training site, this meant we would continue doing exactly what we were doing… training.

 

The next day we wake up and hear reports that a second landmine was hit late on the 10^th, this time in Tahoua. 

 

We find out we will be on Standfast until at least the 18^th which is the Republic Day celebration.  The celebration was in Tahoua and was without incident.

 

In Dosso about two weeks before these incidents there was allegedly a land mine found undetonated at a petroleum depot.  Reports are mixed about the validity of this incident and if it did take place whether or not it was staged. 

 

On the 19^th, two men were discovered while trying to lay a land mine north of Zinder.  The land mine was never armed and was dismantled before doing any harm. 

 

Standfast was lifted on the 21st and nothing else has happened.

 

It is my understanding that no one ever claimed responsibility for these incidents and it was never proven that there was a link between any of these incidents.  This is by no means an exhaustive report and if you are itching for more information I encourage you to do some research. 

 

Niger has a history of peace and no precedent for large scale political violence. Throughout all of this I never once felt as if I were in danger.  So, if you were worried about me before… worry the same amount (no more, no less) and if you weren't worried about me before, stand the course.

 

During this time, we also celebrated Tabaski.  None of us at IST were able to spend Tabaski in our villages, which is a bummer, but the training staff made sure we didn't miss out completely.  Tabaski was described by our training manager as, "Bigger than Christmas".  From what I could see it was a huge deal.  People traveled to be with their families.  They've been fattening up rams for months.  Everyone is wearing new clothes.  If people don't eat meat any other day of the year, the eat meat for Tabaski.  It's a big deal, meat is expensive.

 

We were able to get three rams.  Those that cared to watch, watched the staff "prepare" the rams.  I was there and I took too many pictures.  Probably won't post too many of those, a bit graphic.

 

I spent Christmas in Niamey.  All of the people from our stage had a Secret Santa gift exchange and I received an awesome new button up shirt made from local fabric.  You will see soon enough in pictures because this brings my total shirt count to somewhere around seven.

 

New Years I spent in Maradi which was also a lot of fun and I've been waiting on my shuttle since then.  Today, I did have a meeting with the other MCD volunteers in Maradi at the Eastern Regional Office about project ideas.  It went really well. 

 

Fun note:  Several people went out to eat tonight and we all had on jackets and were complaining of the cold.  It couldn't have been any colder than 60-65 and was probably closer to 70.  Barka da parka!

 

I'm running out of steam typing (sorry, I'm out of practice) and I want to thank everyone who sent packages, Halloween cards, Thanksgiving cards, Christmas cards, or cards for no reason.  It means so much to be able to read what those of you at home are thinking.  Also they all have the tendency to arrive at the same time.  So, I celebrate all of my holidays at once.  Thanks!

Merry Christmas

Wishing everyone a very merry Christmas. I just wanted to let you know that I added captions to all of my the pictures I put up in the last few posts and I added links to my friends blogs so that you can see what they are up to. So, check out all the new stuff and I'm sorry I haven't gotten a good post up lately, but there has been a lot going on and I'll get you updated soon.

Enjoy your friends and family for me during the holiday season. It's a strange/difficult time to be away from home. Fortunately, we will all be back into our normal routines soon enough. I'll be heading back out to my region in a couple of days. Hopefully from there I'll be able to sit down and really type a detailed post.

New Pictures

I've posted some new pictures. I hope you enjoy them.

Most of them are of my house and concession and things around it. I don't want to start pulling my camera out in the village just yet. But, soon I'll have a well documented account of what every thing looks like. You know all the hot spots and places I frequently pass, like the water pump, the office, the market, the road, the guy with the horse. You know, stuff like that.

There are also some shots of the food we had for Thanksgiving. ***Warning*** There is a picture of a headless turkey.


http://picasaweb.google.com/william.e.jones/NigerSecondMonth

Right now, I'm back in Niamey. Tomorrow we get picked up to go back to Hamdallaye for In-Service Training (IST). We will be there for two weeks doing technical training sessions.

I'll have pretty "regular" internet access and I'll have my phone charged and on and with service for at least the next two weeks. So I'll be easier than normal to get in touch with if anyone needs me.

Well, this is taking longer than I thought to post the pictures, so I'll get y'all something to read soon.

Take care and thank you so much for all of your support.

Why Are There No Thanksgiving Songs?

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.  Thanksgiving here was surprisingly normal, minus all the extra work that wouldn't be necessary in America.  We started with a live turkey and did all of the work ourselves. It takes a lot longer than picking up one cleaned and plucked from your local grocer's frozen food section.  This turkey accepted its fate quite nobly.  He probably never expected this end.  Certainly, he was unaware he would end up on the dinner table (actually we sat on mats on the floor) of some Americans and their guests.  Oh well, such is life.

 

We had an amazing spread of food which everyone contributed different culinary skills to.  In addition to the turkey we had such traditional Thanksgiving goods as stuffin', green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, potato salad, mac-n-cheese, banana bread, "spinach dip" (made with hibiscus leaves) in a bread bowl, a relish tray, pumpkin bread, squash bread, a couple of cobblers, and a few other deserts.  I carved the turkey and also carved a turkey into a pumpkin and we had a Thanksgiving jack-o-lantern of sorts. In true Thanksgiving fashion we watched some old football games we found on tape and ate leftovers for breakfast.  We sat around taking our tryptophan naps and everyone told stories about how their family does Thanksgiving, which was not like being at home, but it was comforting to be able to talk about home.  And, a good time was had by all.

 

 

I had a sad course of events happen just before coming in to the hostel for Thanksgiving.  One of my best friends in my village passed away from meningitis. He was only about 15.  Last Monday I was coming back from doing a radio show.  The bush taxi made really good time and I was able to ride in the cabin so it didn't matter much anyway.  So, I got back to my village at a decent hour (read: sun still up).  Upon arriving my neighbor Hashem told me that his son, Lawali, was sick and at the likita (doctor's office).  I went to put my stuff down with the intention of stopping in and saying hello.  Then, on my way there I enquired to make sure he was there.  I was told he was sleeping.  The sun was about to drop below the horizon so I decided I wouldn't disturb him and would wait to go see him in the morning.  I thought he'd be feeling much better by then anyway.

 

The next morning I was woken around 5:00am to the sound of the usual animals.  There were roosters begging for the sun, guinea fowl squeaking like wobbly tires, and donkeys braying.  There was also the occasional goat or sheep, but nothing volume-wise compared to the other animals.  Then, there was an unfamiliar sound, women wailing.  I haven't heard anyone cry in this country, so to hear these loud cries was a bit disturbing.  My heart immediately sunk, for I feared the worst. 

 

I rubbed my eyes and got out of bed. It was "cold" but I had to know what was going on. I began thinking of all the possibilities of what could have happened, but I knew it was Lawali.  I threw on pants and a sweatshirt and began to look over my wall.  Many women in groups of twos and threes were walking very solemnly into the concession of Lawali's family.  Then several of the neighbor men brought an amalanki (donkey cart) with straw mats and a few other things which I couldn't see.

 

I went outside and asked a friend what had happened.  He told me that one of the children had died.  I was stunned.  Even though I had already guessed what was happening, having the truth unfold in front of me like that was terrible.  Not only did I not know what to say in English, I definitely didn't know what to say in Hausa. 

 

I glanced over and saw one of the brothers.  He walked over and I greeted him. It looked as if he was using the facial expressions of anger to hold back the tears.  Lacking the language skills, I just touched my heart with my hand and shook his again.  He understood.

 

I sat with Hashem, Lawali's father, for a while after he called me over and went back to my house to fix the mornings breakfast.  This wasn't a situation I wanted to deal with on an empty stomach.

 

By this time, around 7:30 or 8:00 am, of what was already feeling like a long day, people had begun to gathered outside to greet the family.  So I took my mat out so that a few more people wouldn't have to sit in the dirt.  All the women met inside the concession and all of the men gathered outside.

 

The imam, a religious leader, showed up and the body was brought out on a wooden stretcher of sorts.  Some prayers were done with the family (men).  Then, we went out to a field where more prayers were done and the body was lowered into the ground. 

 

I was not in anyway prepared for this death.  Lawali had been one of my best friends here.  He is part of the larger adopted family who I live with and has treated me like a brother.  My language skills can be partly contributed to his help.  Most importantly with language, he defended me when others would say "Rabé, doesn't hear Hausa".  That meant a lot because people throw that around like dust here. He walked with me everyday when I went to play soccer.  He didn't play but loved to watch.  Every evening we walked to the market where the soccer match happens and every evening we walked back.  He would force a path through the kids who are still amazed by the boy with white skin and I would be thanking him and joking around about how he's going to have to play my position when I can't make it. 

 

It just makes me incredibly thankful for the opportunities I've been given in life.  As you reflect over your Thanksgiving, remember to be thankful for what you have and if you feel you have nothing to be thankful for, be thankful about the things that you don't have that you don't want.  Thank you for reading and thanks for all of your support.  I've enjoyed reading everyone's comments and apologize for not being able to comment on your comments, but I don't have much time on the internet and it is terrible slow and frustrating. Soon, I'll have more pictures posted too. 

 

Go Tigers!  Actually while I was in the market in Hamdallaye I saw I boy wearing a Auburn wool cap.  They have a different sense of hot and cold here.