Every New Beginning Comes From Some Other Beginnings End

Monday, March 29, 2010

Take Your Daughters To Work Day 2010

During the week of March 22-25 twenty middle school aged girls came from all around the Segou region for our first annual girl’s conference. The theme of this year’s conference was “Take Your Daughter to Work Day!”

On Monday, we split the girls into 4 groups of 5 girls to go to a work shadow. I was one of the volunteer chaperones to go to my work and interview female working women. Unlucky for me, two women from my work weren’t there that day which left us with one woman to interview. The girls spent several hours the night before preparing questions so passing the four hours was easy.

My favorite question:
Jeanne “How do you work all day and manage a family?”
Fatimata “I wake up at 4 to start making breakfast for the morning and preparing rice for lunch. I go to work from 8-4 and then come home, sweep the floors, wash dishes and start making dinner. Then every Sunday, my only day off of work, I do laundry for my three kids, husband and myself.” (Not to mention, laundry is all done with a washboard and bucket, sweeping is with a small hand broom and preparing food is three rocks with burning wood underneath.)

After being here this long, it is still hard to believe that this is possible. These women work sun up to sun down literally everyday with out complaining once in their life. After hearing that, it isn’t hard to see why there isn’t a large work force of women in West Africa. But at the same time it is motivating to hear that it can be done.

Because of the style of the conference, we did some of the conference in local language and then about 2/3 in French. Lucky me, I was the only volunteer who spoke good French and I was also the volunteer that had the highest language skills period so I got stuck running most of the sessions or at least translating sections of sessions. That is something we need to work on for next year. The sessions were supposed to be run in bambara but children are never taught to write in bambara, only French. So as soon as anything needed to be written, class had to switch over to French. But it worked out somehow.

We also had a student panel from the trade school where 2 student secretaries, 1 student accountant, and 2 student public health personnel came to talk to the girls. Tons of questions were asked about what is accounting? What does a secretary do? How many boys are in your classes? Where do you get money for school? How can I become a secretary? These were great questions and with the motivating answers the students gave, the girls started to open their eyes to the idea of continuing school and getting a real job.

We did tons of team building exercises including; human knot, human chair, sharks and minnows, limbo (just for fun), telephone, and name game. These girls have never been exposed to crazy games like this and they were very hesitant to trust us at first, but once we did an example and they started opening up everyone had tons of fun.

Overall the week went very well. Information was traded between the girls and volunteers about women’s roles in the house, work, Africa and America. Hopefully we opened the eyes of some of these girls that there is more to life than marrying at 16, having babies and then running a house (sadly this is normal). We showed them women that can do both, women that go to university and wait for marriage, women who were married that are now widowed or divorced and work for a living.

Playing Telephone

Human Knot

Human Chair

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Marketing in Markets, radio stations, bogalon and tea

Yesterday, my boss asked me what we were going to do for the day. I know in america your boss rairly asks you what you want to do and more tells you what to do but here i have a unique situation. I told Diarra, my boss, I have no idea and reminded him that he is the boss. This went on for a bit and finally i suggested that we go to the market and talk to women about finance.

So Diarra and i go over to one of the three markets in my town. I can tell that he wasn't very comfortable just walking up to people talking about our micro-credit institution so i started us off. I saw some lady sitting infront of a mountain of lettuce and hot peppers and i used my very limited local langue to strike up a conversation. I quickly ran out of things i knew how to say and thankfully Diarra took over and started promoting Miselini (the name of my work) and explaining how micro-credit works. Once he got the hang of it i started wondering around the market. I have learned to love markets, all the bright colors, piles of foods i've never seen and keep saying "I should try that" but rarely do. Once Diarra and I had talked to about six people he said we were done for the day and would return another day. I enjoyed walking around, making friends, and doing a little bit of work.

Then Diarra wanted to go and visit a friend at a radio station, so away we went. Surprisingly his friend was an english teacher too so he was very interested in what ever i had to say, as long as it was in english. I got shown around the station and even got to go on air for a hot second... yikes, me in french on the air. Someone there even told me I look like Alicia Keys with my hair braided. (Ha, last time i checked, i look nothing like her)

Next to the radio station is a bogalon cloth dyeing place that Diarra wanted to show me. Bogalon is using different types of mud from the rivers, bark and leafs from the trees to dye white cotton cloth. Its very traditional african. They explained some of the symbols and what gave the different colors and then we were given our own little square of cloth to africanize. I painted my yellow cloth with the mud and set it out in the sun to dry while i was given a tour of where they make the dyes and how they apply it. Very cool! By the time the tour was done my cloth was dry and it was time to leave since the sun was getting high in the sky and it was time for a nap!

With the heat it is impossible to do anything in the afternoon so i use that time for my daily mid-afternoon nap! Around 5 when it started cooling off a little more i dared to go out and find tea. When i say tea, its nothing like what you are picturing. Tea is a traditional past time that takes hours to prepare. It is very strong sugary green tea surved in a shot glass. I love it! Normally you share three glasses, however i only stayed for the first two and then i got hungery. I have fallen in love with "cho furu furu" which i guess is bean cake is how you would translate it. Maybe i've just been in Africa too long but i swear it tastes like hush puppies from Long John Silvers. So i get some of those with hot peppers and call it a day.

I know it doesn't sound like much, but overall this may have been one of the best days i've had in Mali.

Oh i also want to thank
-Grandma for the People's magazine i just got
-Aunt Mary for the nice letter and photos

Keep the letters and love a coming!

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

International Women's Day

Most of you may not realize that March 8th is International Women’s Day. I had never heard of it until Africa so don’t feel too bad if you had never heard of it either. Last year, my small Guinean village didn’t celebrate it (sadly), whoever this year in Mali we did.

To start off all of the women from my work and I had traditional outfits made with festive fabric. I even went and got my hair braided, partly for the holiday and mostly because it’s too hot. On the morning of the 8th I was told to meet my work ladies by the parking place somewhere by a stop sign. I know real specific. So I find the stop sign I think I’m supposed to be at and hope for the best. There are tons of people there and I know there is no way I am going to find who I am looking for. At that point I am just relying on my white skin to stand out and for them to find me. I get bored of waiting so I start to wander around a bit and then some man comes up to me and grabs me by the arm and kindly leads me over to a bunch of chairs and tells me to sit. So I figure at least if I can’t find my friends at least I’m sitting in the shade.

Surprisingly enough they did find me and we all sat down together. I asked what was going on today since a huge stage was set up and a crowd was forming. No one had any idea. So we sat. Eventually my complimentary water baggie (yes they put water in square plastic bags here) showed up, followed by my free coke and then the most surprising thing of all, my free can of beer. Yes Castel (one of the “brewers” here) was publicizing a new beer and was handing out cans. Mind you, I’m still in a Muslim country where drinking is very much frowned upon. I had no idea what to do. Do I take it or not… Once the ladies next to me took their cans I figured it was ok. Its 10 o’clock in the morning and people are cracking open bottles of beer in public. That just never happens here. I’m looking at the can a little bit closer and I realize it is 0% alcohol. They handed my alcohol less beer. Now mind you, I don’t like Castel, it kind of tastes like pee, formaldehyde and what I imagine anthrax to taste like all in one. So I kindly just left my can on the ground to see a little kid run up and take it.

The events that day were 4 speeches in French that were given by different governmental men thanking women for all of their work around the house and in the community followed by 15 speeches given by different women all in bambara (local language that I can barely understand). I kind of fell asleep during those. Once all those speeches were over there was a skit that I once again couldn’t understand but gauging the laughter of everyone else it was hilarious.

Even though I didn’t understand the majority of what was going on (what else is new) March 8, 2010 turned out to be a great day honoring the women of Segou for all of their hard work.

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Festival Sur le Niger

A boat race on the Niger river

An African puppet dancer

This man came down from Timbuktu for the festival. He danced and sang traditional Malian songs for the crowd.

A dance in the middle of the festival

A monkey mask dancer

African mask dancing with stilts

African mask dances

cheke (or spelled something like that) dish. Pounded manioc with onions, green peppers, tomato, salt, oil and a fried fish. Mmmm so good

Saturday, February 27, 2010

W.A.I.S.T 2010

Every year in February the expat (ex patriots otherwise known as Americans living over seas) community of Dakar Senegal host a soft ball tournament for the American community living in West Africa. It is a chance for us Peace Corps volunteers to wash off the village dirt, un-braid our hair, put on those old pair of jeans that have been collecting dust and be American.

In case you don’t know, Senegal is right next to Mali however it is one LONG bus ride away. Since there were so many Mali volunteers going we were able to rent an entire bus with 70 some odd places, five to a row. Not even going to lie. It was one hellish ride. The road is rough, the seats were ungodly uncomfortable and it was hot during the day and cold at night and not to mention we left Bamako at 5 in the morning and didn’t get into Dakar until 9 the next morning. One long bus ride. But some how we all made it nearly intact.

Arriving in Dakar, everyone on the bus was ewwing and awing over everything. Dakar is so much more developed than Mali and ten fold more so than Guinea. They have nice restaurants, hotels, and best of all and American Club. I never knew this until I came to Mali but there are these clubs set up around the world set up for Americans or other Westerners so it’s like a little America away from home. They serve hotdogs, nachos, chicken wraps and ice cream. This is also where the games were held for the softball tournament.

You guys know me, I was not going to show off my softball skills and make everyone else feel under par so I along with some others were the camera people along with the cheering squad. The team that I cheered for was the “Refugees” otherwise those known as the former PC Guinea and Mauritania people who are still in Africa. It was great to see some of my former stage mates (people I served with in Guinea) who are now in The Gambia, Benin, Senegal and Burkina Faso. Our team sucked, there is no two ways about it but we all had fun playing the three games in two days.

In all of our extra down time we hung out at the pool, went to the beach and climbed to the light house. We found a cozy little beach called the “Secret Beach” where the waves were big, the surf boards were plentiful and the sun was never setting. Some of my California friends were explaining to me how to surf, I was assured by them it wasn’t that hard and it is fun. Everyone was going out to at least try to ride a wave back in so my turn came up…. I didn’t want to chicken out but I wanted to live too. Adrenalin and some liquid courage started flowing and I decided it would be alright to try it once. I get on the board and start to paddle out and some guy starts screaming for me to come in because the waves were too big. Saved by the gods! I didn’t have to chicken out or look like a fool trying to surf. Relatively quickly the waves turned into these massive crushing beasts of the sea taking down anything it could and I didn’t want to be a part of that so I sat my little butt on the beach working on my broze.

Another morning Mark and I went up to the light house of Dakar. We walked the two miles from our home stay and climbed up the hill along with some other expats in their little track suites while we are in tanks and pants. The light house is open to the public so we got to climb the three flights of stairs to the landing to look out over the massive city. We saw the ports, the mansions, downtown and the islands. It was gorgeous. The lighthouse is also right by the international airport (that I actually flew into when coming to Guinea oh so long ago) so we watched some planes land over the water then the man asked if we wanted to see the light bulb. Um duh I do so Mark and I crawl up this little latter and see the massive spinney thing that rotates and a tiny light bulb around tons of mirrors. I figured it would have been a huge light bulb but sure wasn’t. Then Danielle, another Wright State grad turned Guinea volunteer turned Mali volunteer showed up to take a look at the city, so the three of us took tons of photos and then started to climb down back to the games.

A few eatery highlights of Dakar
-N’ice Cream: an amazing American style ice cream place that had 3 dozen different flavors
-Indiana: an Indian restaurant that made delicious authentic meals
-Magiadore: a little French/Seafood place that was pricy but so worth every bit of it
-Times Cafe: an American diner where you can order a club sandwich and mozzarella sticks
-Chez Lucia: a Portuguese place that served meals so large that it took three people to eat one plate

My softball team didn’t place so we were done early so we had some time to plan a vacation for a few days before we had to get back to Bamako for a wedding. A decent size group of us decided we wanted to go to Touba Djallo, a beach town about an hour from Dakar where the hotel rooms were cheap, the food was fresh, and the beach was stunning.

When we get out to the beach, everything was surprisingly good. Maybe I just have lower expectations after spending so much time in Africa but the people were nice, the food tasty and the hotel room was small, but nice (especially for the price). We spent three nights there and had an amazing time playing in the ocean, jumping in the reasonably tame waves and just hanging out.

Sadly it was time to go back to reality and vacation was over and the long and trying journey back to Mali started again. This time since everyone was going back at different times we didn’t rent an entire bus which means it takes longer. The bus was suppose to leave at 7 but didn’t end up leaving until after 9 and then around 3 in the morning a tire blew out. So there we are, about 14 volunteers and a bus load of Africans on the side of the road, in the middle of the night, in the middle of no where. We were stuck there until morning when someone could find a new tire for a bus once again in the middle of no where. We tried to sleep on the bus but couldn’t get comfortable, some tried to sleep outside but the passing cars were a little too scary. Six hours later a truck finally pulls up with our tire and shortly after we are back on the road. In its entirety it took us 40+ hours to get back to Bamako.

It was a long eventful week that was worth every Franc that I saved up while I Guinea. I had the time of my life, took some amazing photos and got tons of stories that I will remember for the rest of my life.