In honor of International Youth Day (at least that's what we were told though nobody has ever heard of this holiday) last Thursday August 12, Peace Corps was asked to participate in a tree planting and ceremony organized by the Minister of Youth held in Dori, the capital of the Sahel region. About 30 PCVs participated along with a few Japanese & French volunteers and at least 500 Burkinabe from around the country.
Everyone met up in Ouaga and traveled in a large convoy north. Due to threats in the north we were actually an armored convoy with several trucks of military and an armed soldier in our bus. His gun scared me more than the threat but I guess we were safe! The drive which normally takes 4 hours took more than 7 due to numerous stops and a very slow pace. At one stop for people to pee on the side of the rode, I counted 15 coach buses, 2 mini buses for PC, and about a dozen SUVs. We definitely made an impression along the road!
That evening was a bonfire and program led by the Boy Scouts of Burkina Faso. I didn't even know they existed but made me think of Jason. The bonfire was out of the city and the buses had a hard time on the roads. One bus had tried turning around and got stuck perpendicular to the road so everyone had to drive in the ditch to get around. In the process another bus got stuck and started tipping. Thankfully everyone got off safely. The program included lots of singing, dancing, and cheering but most of us were too tired to enjoy it much. It didn't start until after 10 PM, way past my bedtime! We did find it ironic that a big bonfire (i.e. burning trees) was planned the night before a huge tree planting.
The next morning was time for tree planting. We were told we would be planting 20,000 acacia trees in 15 minutes but that morning it was increased to 65,000. Seems impossible, huh? We laid out many of the trees in advance and some big piece of equipment had dug trenches to plant in so it wasn't as much work as it might seem. Hundreds of brand-new dabas (a hoe with wooden handle) were handed out and again it seemed ironic to use so much wood to plant more trees. I think in reality we spent about an hour and a half planting but there were a lot of trees! When we first arrived there was lots of dancing and singing and several balafones and drums. This continued during the planting so we had entertainment as we worked. There also was a long program like at any event here and none of us found it too interesting.
I guess it was a successful event though many of us felt it was a publicity stunt. Blaise Compaore, the current president who is running for re-election in Nov, was mentioned repeatedly and everyone was reminded this event was thanks to him and to remember to vote in a few months.
On a side note, many of us did a little shopping and bought blankets. Dori is famous for its blankets and there is a little custom I found quite interesting. They're called marriage blankets and a woman receives one at her wedding. They are made from thin strips of fabric which are partially sewn together but there are still many holes. The couple is suppose to have sex through the blanket and afterwards sew up that hole. When all the holes are sewn up, they say the couple should have enough children so not need the blanket anymore.
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