I just returned from an amazing vacation to Accra, Ghana, Lome, Togo and the beach with Dylan! We started our trip with a 28 hour bus ride from Ouaga to Accra. At times it seemed we may never arrive but that's how African travel goes.
We were amazed at this city - it felt so Western and developed. We saw tall, nice buildings, fast food, fancy restaurants and even gelatto though we couldn't afford it. There really isn't a beach in the city of Accra even though this capital is right on the coast. Mostly its just cliffs down to the ocean but we did enjoy a few beers overlooking the water.
Along with many a cold beer during the trip, we also enjoyed great food during our trip including Chinese, fast food chicken sandwiches, pizza, Coke floats, chicken curry, fresh fish and shrimp,and lots of cheap fried rice on the street. We also tried to have at least one Fan Choco or other frozen Fan product every day. Does it sound like I talk about food a lot? Probably because that's what is often on my mind since joining Peace Corps and vacation to me means eating well. Its nice to be able to live it up even if this means eating fast food I wouldn't even touch in the US.
In Accra we saw the National Museum which was small but interesting, Independence Square, and the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park. I tried to shop at the National Cultural Center, their artisan market, but was too annoyed by vendors constantly harassing me. I did but a few things at the outskirts of their huge market.
After Accra, we traveled east on an amazing toll road - I didn't know roads in such good condition existed here! We drove by hundreds of huge mansions and realized once again that there definetly is some money in this city!
Our next destination was Keta, an isthmus between the ocean and huge lagoon. At its most narrow point I'd estimate there were less than 500 sandy meters between these two bodies of water. We stayed at a nice beach resort that I don't think gets a lot of foreign visitors but seems to be busy with locals especially on the weekend. The beach was gorgeous here and we enjoyed laying out in the sun even if we were the only ones in swimsuits. There were hundreds of people along the beach though - fishermen, women selling stuff and others out buying whatever was caught that day, and lots of kids playing. I know we were entertainment for them but I also really enjoyed the people watching. One day we took a bush taxi a short ways to see a local lighthouse and try out another yummy restaurant.
After a few days on this beach we were ready to move on to a new beach. We took a bush taxi to the border and crossed on foot into Togo where we had to start using French again. Lome is a crazy city and I have to say I really didn't enjoy it. The taxi drivers were rude and we never once were able to get where we asked without having some type of problem. We did enjoy the grocery stores and food though!
In Togo we stayed at a little place on the beach called Chez Antoinne. Its not listed in any of the guidebooks so is really advertised by word of mouth. For less than ten bucks a night we had our own little shack on the beach with private courtyard and straw mattress. There are only 5 shacks there so not many night guests. We were surprised at the number of locals that came to enjoy the beach during the day though. We ran into a group of Togo PCVs enjoying one last weekend together before they COS. It was fun to swap PC stories. Our last night we had a bonfire on the beach in celebration of one of the guy's birthdays.
The trip seemed to be over much sooner than we would have liked as vacations always are. We again had a long bus ride home though this time on a crappy bus with no air conditioning and seats 5 across. Don't think we got any sleep that night.
I promise to post pictures as soon as I get on good internet though I don't know when that will be.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Planting Trees in the Sahel
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.
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.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Biking Across Burkina for Gender Equality
I am excited to announce that next month from Sept 6 - 9 I will be biking a little over 300 km from Po to Fada including passing a few kilometers from my village to raise money for gender equality activities organized by Peace Corps Volunteers in Burkina Faso. Over the last two years many people have asked how they can support the work that I am doing here and up until now, there haven't been many fundraisers or activities that I felt comfortable promoting. I totally support this bike tour though and encourage anyone that feels like giving to know their money is going to good use.
Peace Corp's Gender and Development (GAD) Committee funds a variety of activities put on by volunteers including girls camps and the family planning conference camp I participated in with two girls from my village. As you probably know, I have done a lot of work with girls in my village including a girl's camp last summer which became a weekly girls club so these are activities I really believe will help toward Burkina's development.
Below is a letter from GAD which I think explains what an amazing activity this is or check out their website for more information and to donate.
Dear family and friends of Peace Corps Burkina Faso,
Beginning September 5, 2010, Peace Corps Volunteers from around Burkina Faso will be participating in Sur nos Vélos, pour le Faso! , a country-wide bike tour to raise money for Gender and Development projects in Burkina Faso and celebrate Peace Corps’ 50th anniversary.
Gender and Development projects, be they creating a girl-friendly classroom or helping a women's group conduct an income generating activity, are of critical importance in Burkina Faso and represent a significant component of each Volunteer’s work. The sole function of the Gender and Development (GAD) Committee is to support volunteer-initiated, gender equity projects around Burkina Faso; however, the committee’s capacity is currently limited by a lack of funding. The primary goal of Sur nos Vélos, pour le Faso! is to generate funds so the GAD Committee can once again begin giving small-scale project grants and Volunteers can continue the essential work of promoting gender awareness and equality in Burkina Faso.
Please help us reach our fundraising goal by visiting our blog and making a donation:
burkinabiketour.blogspot.com
In Burkina Faso, one dollar goes a long way, so even the smallest contribution will make a big difference! Follow our blog, and we will keep you updated on the road!
In addition to supporting future GAD projects, the bike tour will kick-off Burkina Faso’s “Peace Corps at 50 Years” celebration. Riding from village to village, visiting as many Volunteers’ sites as possible, we will have a unique opportunity to interact with communities, raise awareness of the presence and purpose of Peace Corps, and celebrate the many gender equity projects that Volunteers have performed in collaboration with local associations.
Thank you in advance for your support!
Sincerely,
The Bike Tour Team
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Ghana Vacation
The second half of my mom's West African adventure was spent in Ghana. I have been looking forward to a beach vacation for at least the last year and had even planned a trip with some girls in April but had to cancel because of too much work. As I have said many times, Burkina is usually very hot and very dry so I often sit in village dreaming of when I can jump into the ocean, play in the waves, walk in the sand, and eat good food. I was able to do all this during our two weeks in Ghana and more.
We took a bus from Ouaga to Kumasi, a long bumpy ride lasting 16 hours only made worse by the fact I was sick and my whole body ached. I wasn't able to do anything our first day in Kumasi but my mom enjoyed walking around this huge, busy city so unlike Ouaga. The next day we traveled several more hours by bus to Cape Coast and I started feeling better and was fine the rest of the trip. In Cape Coast we got our first view of the ocean and it was magnificent!
Cape Coast Castle is one of the most well preserved of dozens of slave castles located along the West African coast. This also happens to be where President Obama and his family visited on their first official visit to Africa last summer. This fort was built by the Swedes in the mid 1600s, later taken over by the Danes, and then the British before Ghana gained its independence about 50 years ago. It wasn't originally built for the slave trade but later dungeons were built to house hundreds of captured slaves before being led out the Door of No Return to a waiting ship and transported across the Atlantic to the Americas. The castle had a great museum with information about the slave trade and our tour guide was also well informed. Its difficult to imagine the cruelties carried out in this place and the effects on the rest of the world including the changes in African societies, the industrialization of the US, and the power held by the Europeans.
From the castle, you can look down on the beach and see hundreds of fishermen with their wooden boats and green nets. Mom and I were fascinated by watching these men go about their work preparing boats to go out to sea and untangling their gigantic nets. One afternoon as we sat at a restaurant on the beach, we watched over 50 men spend at least 2 hours trying to get a large boat from the beach, over the breaking waves, and into the calmer sea. We were told this was the inaugural voyage for this boat which is why it took so much more work than normal but were still surprised and how difficult it was to get the boat past the cresting waves.
Another day we took a side trip to Elmina, a fishing village just down the coast. They were holding an annual fishing festival so thousands of people and their boats were in town for the huge event. This village is also home to the oldest European structure in Sub-Saharan Africa, a trading fort built by the Portuguese in 1482. This fort, like in Cape Coast, was later converted into a slave castle and housed thousands of enslaved Africans before they were transported across the ocean to a life of servitude if they survived the passage.
From Cape Coast we traveled west along the coast to Takoradi, a large port for ships bringing cargo that spreads throughout West Africa. We then took a long taxi ride on a dirt road to find a small hotel called the Hideout which had been recommended by a friend. It definitely did feel well-hidden and we were happy to arrive after wondering just where we were trying to go. The Hideout is across the river from the village of Butre and usually its easy to go between the two. Unfortunately it had been raining a lot and the river was swollen and had washed out the bridge the morning we arrived. There were small wooden canoes that could take you across but even locals told us they were scared of the river now so we decided to just look at the village and the ruins of another castle from the distance. In Cape Coast and Butre, we stayed in small huts very close to the beach and heard the roar of the ocean and crashing waves all night long. Awesome!
From Butre we went to the town of Busua just a few kilometers down the coast but another long ride because of the flooded river. It seems like Busua is the place to go in Ghana if you want to hang out at the beach. Unfortunately it was cold, gray, and occasionally windy most of the days we were at the beach. I still put my bikini on every day and played in the water. I had been dreaming of this for months! I did find it ironic that it was cold at the beach after months of sweltering in the heat and imagining how good it would feel to go swimming.
We headed back to Kumasi a couple days before Mom flew out and did some last minute shopping. The Kumasi market has been called the largest market in all of West Africa and I would believe it. We spent several hours and saw just about everything imaginable for sale except for arts & crafts or other souvenirs. I also was impressed that we weren't ever really hassled here which I have found to be the case at every other market I've visited. We visited the National Cultural Center the afternoon before our night bus left for Ouaga and found lots of souvenirs including clay beads, batik and tie-died fabrics, a carved wooden statue, and other jewelry.
It was a great trip and I'm happy to have been able to spend time with my mom. We ate lots of great food, played in the ocean, saw some live music and dancing, learned some history, did lots of shopping, and had time to lay around the beach and read. I've been wondering why I couldn't have done Peace Corps in Ghana since we heard there were PCVs in several of the towns we visited. I guess you probably appreciate it more when its vacation though!
We took a bus from Ouaga to Kumasi, a long bumpy ride lasting 16 hours only made worse by the fact I was sick and my whole body ached. I wasn't able to do anything our first day in Kumasi but my mom enjoyed walking around this huge, busy city so unlike Ouaga. The next day we traveled several more hours by bus to Cape Coast and I started feeling better and was fine the rest of the trip. In Cape Coast we got our first view of the ocean and it was magnificent!
Cape Coast Castle is one of the most well preserved of dozens of slave castles located along the West African coast. This also happens to be where President Obama and his family visited on their first official visit to Africa last summer. This fort was built by the Swedes in the mid 1600s, later taken over by the Danes, and then the British before Ghana gained its independence about 50 years ago. It wasn't originally built for the slave trade but later dungeons were built to house hundreds of captured slaves before being led out the Door of No Return to a waiting ship and transported across the Atlantic to the Americas. The castle had a great museum with information about the slave trade and our tour guide was also well informed. Its difficult to imagine the cruelties carried out in this place and the effects on the rest of the world including the changes in African societies, the industrialization of the US, and the power held by the Europeans.
From the castle, you can look down on the beach and see hundreds of fishermen with their wooden boats and green nets. Mom and I were fascinated by watching these men go about their work preparing boats to go out to sea and untangling their gigantic nets. One afternoon as we sat at a restaurant on the beach, we watched over 50 men spend at least 2 hours trying to get a large boat from the beach, over the breaking waves, and into the calmer sea. We were told this was the inaugural voyage for this boat which is why it took so much more work than normal but were still surprised and how difficult it was to get the boat past the cresting waves.
Another day we took a side trip to Elmina, a fishing village just down the coast. They were holding an annual fishing festival so thousands of people and their boats were in town for the huge event. This village is also home to the oldest European structure in Sub-Saharan Africa, a trading fort built by the Portuguese in 1482. This fort, like in Cape Coast, was later converted into a slave castle and housed thousands of enslaved Africans before they were transported across the ocean to a life of servitude if they survived the passage.
From Cape Coast we traveled west along the coast to Takoradi, a large port for ships bringing cargo that spreads throughout West Africa. We then took a long taxi ride on a dirt road to find a small hotel called the Hideout which had been recommended by a friend. It definitely did feel well-hidden and we were happy to arrive after wondering just where we were trying to go. The Hideout is across the river from the village of Butre and usually its easy to go between the two. Unfortunately it had been raining a lot and the river was swollen and had washed out the bridge the morning we arrived. There were small wooden canoes that could take you across but even locals told us they were scared of the river now so we decided to just look at the village and the ruins of another castle from the distance. In Cape Coast and Butre, we stayed in small huts very close to the beach and heard the roar of the ocean and crashing waves all night long. Awesome!
From Butre we went to the town of Busua just a few kilometers down the coast but another long ride because of the flooded river. It seems like Busua is the place to go in Ghana if you want to hang out at the beach. Unfortunately it was cold, gray, and occasionally windy most of the days we were at the beach. I still put my bikini on every day and played in the water. I had been dreaming of this for months! I did find it ironic that it was cold at the beach after months of sweltering in the heat and imagining how good it would feel to go swimming.
We headed back to Kumasi a couple days before Mom flew out and did some last minute shopping. The Kumasi market has been called the largest market in all of West Africa and I would believe it. We spent several hours and saw just about everything imaginable for sale except for arts & crafts or other souvenirs. I also was impressed that we weren't ever really hassled here which I have found to be the case at every other market I've visited. We visited the National Cultural Center the afternoon before our night bus left for Ouaga and found lots of souvenirs including clay beads, batik and tie-died fabrics, a carved wooden statue, and other jewelry.
It was a great trip and I'm happy to have been able to spend time with my mom. We ate lots of great food, played in the ocean, saw some live music and dancing, learned some history, did lots of shopping, and had time to lay around the beach and read. I've been wondering why I couldn't have done Peace Corps in Ghana since we heard there were PCVs in several of the towns we visited. I guess you probably appreciate it more when its vacation though!
Friday, July 30, 2010
Visit With Mom
My mom spent a month in West Africa to see what my life was really like. We were able to do quite a lot but also see the realities of my day to day activities. After a morning sleeping in to catch up on jet lag, we headed over to the Ghana embassy to request visas for the second half of her trip. That night we had dinner at Gondwana, one of the nicest and most expensive restaurants in Burkina Faso. Not exactly an authentic experience but definitely worth it. My friend Yoshi joined us so she and my mom could meet and we could celebrate Mom's arrival and her departure. Yoshi finished her 2 years in Burkina a few days later and is back in Japan now. I'm very sad to see her leave since she has become one of my closest friends here but I look forward to a trip to Japan in the next few years!
My mom's first full day was spent participating in an activity sponsored by Catholic Relief Service to plant 1200 trees in a new neighborhood built by NGOs to house the victims of last September's floods. It seemed to be a big publicity stunt since after an hour or so of 30 PCVs sporting fancy new shirts planting trees, we all were sat down as a group to listen to all the bigwigs talk about this great project. The truck bringing water in got stuck in the mud and tipped over so I don't think the trees were ever watered. Also only half of them got fences put around so I'm sure the other half were eaten by cows and goats within the first week. Anyways we had a good time and Catholic Relief Service along with other NGOs has done an amazing job of creating this huge new community where six months ago there were only fields. A barbecue was held that evening for all the PCVs and included a balafon (like xylophone made with gourds) band, the traditional music of southern Burkina. I think it was a great introduction for my mom to development work as well as many of my friends here.
A day later we headed to my site where we spent two weeks hanging out and mostly following my normal routine if I actually had a routine. Everyone in village had been hearing me talk about how my mom was coming to visit for at least the last year so were very excited. Visitors are always important here but I was told its an especially big deal that my mom came since she is the one that gave birth and raised me.
We made the rounds at my family compound meeting the women and children who weren't in the field that day. Baby Sakinatou was home so I handed her to my mom even though she was naked. Of course she had to shit right on Mom. Welcome to village! After a change of clothes we went to town to see my CSPS and meet many of my friends. The next day was market day as well as Sunday so I had a girl's club meeting. We made rounds at the market and then decorated visors my mom had brought with the girls.
Throughout her time in village we also helped my friend Dabre with the three day process of making and selling dolo. That's along with drinking lots of dolo made by other women so she was able visit many of the local cabarets! We also weighed babies, made enriched porridge, watched health talks on malaria, the prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV/AIDS, and malnutrition. We went to church and danced with the women and children in Dabre's courtyard. Another Sunday we made liquid soap with my girls club and discussed the importance of good hygiene. Dylan came for a couple days with his friend Chris who was also visiting from the US. We all biked out to one of my Peulh villages to see how it is different from the Bissa village. It had rained that morning and the route isn't great on a normal day plus we had all kinds of bike problems so it was quite the adventure.
Before leaving, many people stopped by to wish Mom well and give her small gifts to take home. If I can remember correctly, she received 2 live chickens, 50+ guinea fowl eggs, 2 huge containers of onions, a large bowl of dried beans, a bag of peanuts, 2 local baskets, several calabashes, a small leather purse and sandals, and some traditional woven cloth. She was shocked at the gifts, especially since there was no way for her to take many of the things home, but I explained they are so excited to have her visit and want to show their appreciation. It is the time of year when people don't have much money so they give whatever they have which in this area happens to be peanuts, onions, and eggs right now.
Mom also brought many gifts for my friends and family including tshirts, baseball caps, headscarves, balls, toy cars, a badminton set, and a variety of other toys and games. She had bright yellow shirts made that say Kirstin is my sister so we gave them out to all 30 kids in my compound.
Back in Ouaga, I took Mom to Village Artisinal where you can watch local crafts being made and purchase souvenirs including bronze statues, cloth wove on a loom, beaded jewelry, leather purses, wood carved items, batiks, and beautiful bags made from old plastic sachets. We also went to the huge new Grand Market in the city center to purchase other souvenirs.
We celebrated Fourth of July at my country director Shannon's home with some other PCVs and Americans living in Burkina.
The next day we were off to Ghana and watch for a blog about that coming soon!
My mom's first full day was spent participating in an activity sponsored by Catholic Relief Service to plant 1200 trees in a new neighborhood built by NGOs to house the victims of last September's floods. It seemed to be a big publicity stunt since after an hour or so of 30 PCVs sporting fancy new shirts planting trees, we all were sat down as a group to listen to all the bigwigs talk about this great project. The truck bringing water in got stuck in the mud and tipped over so I don't think the trees were ever watered. Also only half of them got fences put around so I'm sure the other half were eaten by cows and goats within the first week. Anyways we had a good time and Catholic Relief Service along with other NGOs has done an amazing job of creating this huge new community where six months ago there were only fields. A barbecue was held that evening for all the PCVs and included a balafon (like xylophone made with gourds) band, the traditional music of southern Burkina. I think it was a great introduction for my mom to development work as well as many of my friends here.
A day later we headed to my site where we spent two weeks hanging out and mostly following my normal routine if I actually had a routine. Everyone in village had been hearing me talk about how my mom was coming to visit for at least the last year so were very excited. Visitors are always important here but I was told its an especially big deal that my mom came since she is the one that gave birth and raised me.
We made the rounds at my family compound meeting the women and children who weren't in the field that day. Baby Sakinatou was home so I handed her to my mom even though she was naked. Of course she had to shit right on Mom. Welcome to village! After a change of clothes we went to town to see my CSPS and meet many of my friends. The next day was market day as well as Sunday so I had a girl's club meeting. We made rounds at the market and then decorated visors my mom had brought with the girls.
Throughout her time in village we also helped my friend Dabre with the three day process of making and selling dolo. That's along with drinking lots of dolo made by other women so she was able visit many of the local cabarets! We also weighed babies, made enriched porridge, watched health talks on malaria, the prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV/AIDS, and malnutrition. We went to church and danced with the women and children in Dabre's courtyard. Another Sunday we made liquid soap with my girls club and discussed the importance of good hygiene. Dylan came for a couple days with his friend Chris who was also visiting from the US. We all biked out to one of my Peulh villages to see how it is different from the Bissa village. It had rained that morning and the route isn't great on a normal day plus we had all kinds of bike problems so it was quite the adventure.
Before leaving, many people stopped by to wish Mom well and give her small gifts to take home. If I can remember correctly, she received 2 live chickens, 50+ guinea fowl eggs, 2 huge containers of onions, a large bowl of dried beans, a bag of peanuts, 2 local baskets, several calabashes, a small leather purse and sandals, and some traditional woven cloth. She was shocked at the gifts, especially since there was no way for her to take many of the things home, but I explained they are so excited to have her visit and want to show their appreciation. It is the time of year when people don't have much money so they give whatever they have which in this area happens to be peanuts, onions, and eggs right now.
Mom also brought many gifts for my friends and family including tshirts, baseball caps, headscarves, balls, toy cars, a badminton set, and a variety of other toys and games. She had bright yellow shirts made that say Kirstin is my sister so we gave them out to all 30 kids in my compound.
Back in Ouaga, I took Mom to Village Artisinal where you can watch local crafts being made and purchase souvenirs including bronze statues, cloth wove on a loom, beaded jewelry, leather purses, wood carved items, batiks, and beautiful bags made from old plastic sachets. We also went to the huge new Grand Market in the city center to purchase other souvenirs.
We celebrated Fourth of July at my country director Shannon's home with some other PCVs and Americans living in Burkina.
The next day we were off to Ghana and watch for a blog about that coming soon!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Dogon Country
I have just returned from the most amazing vacation. I haven't taken a vacation since meeting my parents last July in Egypt and haven't even done any traveling around Burkina since Anna visited in November so was really ready for a break. I feel the need to mention I wasn't all that excited about this trip though because the idea of visiting the beaches in Ghana where several groups of friends have recently gone seemed much nicer than traveling closer to the Sahara Desert and hiking around in the heat for 4 days. I agreed to go though because I've heard Dogon Country in Mali is one of those must-do places and I figured I'd never be back. Boy was I in for a surprise!
My vacation started in village with a visit from my Japanese friends, Yoshi & Miki. Yoshi is leaving next week so wanted to see my village one more time and Miki had never been here before. My friend had made dolo that day so we enjoyed a few calabashes and visited lots of folks. The next day we headed to Tenkodogo for a small going away party for Yoshi. I then continued on to Ouaga for a night before catching a very early bus to Ouahigouya in order to sit around for 4 hours or so waiting for a bush taxi to Koro in Mali. I went with 6 other health PCVs though we lost one after the first day since she was sick and couldn't handle the hiking. Our bush taxi made 5 stops along the border for customs, visas, etc before arriving in the town of Koro. We had lunch then piled into an old station wagon to drive several more hours to reach the Bandiagara Escarpment. This is basically a small mountain or cliff that is a 150 km long. Originally the area was inhabited by the Tellum people who the guidebooks described as pygmies that mythology says could fly to crevices in the escarpment where they built houses. Our guide Oumar who works with PCVs from all over West Africa strongly disagreed with this though. Their houses are still visible in the sides of the cliff and reminded us a lot of the cliff dwellings in Arizona if anyone has seen those.
The Dogon people arrived in this secluded area about 500 years ago in an attempt to escape Arab invasions and converting to Islam. They again attempted to escape conquering by the French and Christian missionaries. They were unsuccessful on all fronts though their geographical location has allowed them some protection from outside forces and ability to keep their culture and animist religion. Some Dogons are now Muslim or Christian but many continue to practice animism and fetishes and black magic are a big part of their culture.
We visited about 8 villages along the escarpment located both at the top and the bottom of the cliff. Most villages are small with only several hundred people. We also saw several abandoned villages because water had become too difficult at the top of the cliff.
Every day we hiked for several hours in the morning climbing up, down and along the cliffs. We then rested several hours in a village during the hottest part of they day before hiking several more hours in the late afternoon. We slept in small villages on the roofs of people's houses. We walked about 10 to 15 km a day which I know isn't so far but these were difficult routes that often involved climbing rock to rock on a steep path. We found it was more difficult to go down then up because it seemed so easy to make one misstep and go tumbling a hundred meters to your death. Did I say how much I loved this adventure?
In my village in Burkina, houses are made of mud or cement bricks so it was interesting to see how things were done differently in Dogon. Here we have dirt and can make mud easily but there they have lots of rock so use that to build houses and walls around their compounds. It was fascinating to see how well built they were when it seemed one little tap would knock them all down. Because many people farm on the side of a cliff, they have also developed ways to prevent erosion and better use the local resources. I'm not an ag person so can't describe them all but one way I noticed was to put stones around small plots where they would grow crops to prevent the topsoil from blowing or washing away.
Dogon Country is north of my village and therefore closer to the Sahara so although rainy season has started here it was still hot season there. This means it was very sunny, hot, and dry. Not such an exciting change after having it cool down by me. There was a huge storm, their first real rain for the year, our last night though so the next morning we saw lots of flooding. We had slept on a village at the bottom of the cliff so didn't see the effects of the rain at the top but did see huge waterfalls formed by rain running off the cliff sides. We also had to cross a river that had formed over night. We jumped rock to rock and formed an assembly line to carry our bags across. Our station wagon to return to Koro broke down as well after having to cross two small rivers. This meant waiting two hours on the side of the road for another vehicle. Gotta love African transport!
We spend 4 days in Dogon and only saw a part of this amazing area. I would love to return in the future to explore even more. Maybe I will try to return in rainy season to see the changes in the landscape though it does seem even scarier climbing around wet rocks!
Pictures will be posted in a few days when I'm back in Ouaga to pick up my mom who will be visiting for a month!
My vacation started in village with a visit from my Japanese friends, Yoshi & Miki. Yoshi is leaving next week so wanted to see my village one more time and Miki had never been here before. My friend had made dolo that day so we enjoyed a few calabashes and visited lots of folks. The next day we headed to Tenkodogo for a small going away party for Yoshi. I then continued on to Ouaga for a night before catching a very early bus to Ouahigouya in order to sit around for 4 hours or so waiting for a bush taxi to Koro in Mali. I went with 6 other health PCVs though we lost one after the first day since she was sick and couldn't handle the hiking. Our bush taxi made 5 stops along the border for customs, visas, etc before arriving in the town of Koro. We had lunch then piled into an old station wagon to drive several more hours to reach the Bandiagara Escarpment. This is basically a small mountain or cliff that is a 150 km long. Originally the area was inhabited by the Tellum people who the guidebooks described as pygmies that mythology says could fly to crevices in the escarpment where they built houses. Our guide Oumar who works with PCVs from all over West Africa strongly disagreed with this though. Their houses are still visible in the sides of the cliff and reminded us a lot of the cliff dwellings in Arizona if anyone has seen those.
The Dogon people arrived in this secluded area about 500 years ago in an attempt to escape Arab invasions and converting to Islam. They again attempted to escape conquering by the French and Christian missionaries. They were unsuccessful on all fronts though their geographical location has allowed them some protection from outside forces and ability to keep their culture and animist religion. Some Dogons are now Muslim or Christian but many continue to practice animism and fetishes and black magic are a big part of their culture.
We visited about 8 villages along the escarpment located both at the top and the bottom of the cliff. Most villages are small with only several hundred people. We also saw several abandoned villages because water had become too difficult at the top of the cliff.
Every day we hiked for several hours in the morning climbing up, down and along the cliffs. We then rested several hours in a village during the hottest part of they day before hiking several more hours in the late afternoon. We slept in small villages on the roofs of people's houses. We walked about 10 to 15 km a day which I know isn't so far but these were difficult routes that often involved climbing rock to rock on a steep path. We found it was more difficult to go down then up because it seemed so easy to make one misstep and go tumbling a hundred meters to your death. Did I say how much I loved this adventure?
In my village in Burkina, houses are made of mud or cement bricks so it was interesting to see how things were done differently in Dogon. Here we have dirt and can make mud easily but there they have lots of rock so use that to build houses and walls around their compounds. It was fascinating to see how well built they were when it seemed one little tap would knock them all down. Because many people farm on the side of a cliff, they have also developed ways to prevent erosion and better use the local resources. I'm not an ag person so can't describe them all but one way I noticed was to put stones around small plots where they would grow crops to prevent the topsoil from blowing or washing away.
Dogon Country is north of my village and therefore closer to the Sahara so although rainy season has started here it was still hot season there. This means it was very sunny, hot, and dry. Not such an exciting change after having it cool down by me. There was a huge storm, their first real rain for the year, our last night though so the next morning we saw lots of flooding. We had slept on a village at the bottom of the cliff so didn't see the effects of the rain at the top but did see huge waterfalls formed by rain running off the cliff sides. We also had to cross a river that had formed over night. We jumped rock to rock and formed an assembly line to carry our bags across. Our station wagon to return to Koro broke down as well after having to cross two small rivers. This meant waiting two hours on the side of the road for another vehicle. Gotta love African transport!
We spend 4 days in Dogon and only saw a part of this amazing area. I would love to return in the future to explore even more. Maybe I will try to return in rainy season to see the changes in the landscape though it does seem even scarier climbing around wet rocks!
Pictures will be posted in a few days when I'm back in Ouaga to pick up my mom who will be visiting for a month!
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
One Woman's Story
Unlike many PCVs around the world and in many ways against the wishes of Peace Corps, I really haven't focused on HIV/AIDS because it really doesn't seem like a big problem compared to everything else I see here in Burkina. Malnutrition, malaria, and respiratory infections are all much more serious health issues here and I think its more important to focus on these. People in my community are worried about AIDS but I think its mostly because other groups have talked about it so much. In reality, very few people I know are infected with (or really even affected by) this virus. A little fact that's often tossed around by BF PCVs is that there is a higher percentage of people living with HIV in our capital, Washington DC, then in Burkina Faso.
Even if it doesn't seem like a big issue or concern, I do include some information about this disease when I give health talks and my health center offers to test pregnant women that come in for prenatal consultations. Also twice in the last year, we've had health workers come in from Ouaga and test anyone that wants to be. We have found a few cases and try to work with those individuals to get the help that's needed. There is little that can be done in our village though so they are sent to our regional hospital for further testing and counseling as well as free medication to prevent transmission to their child if its a pregnant woman.
Basically I haven't had many situations involving this disease that really affected me until recently. I'd like to share this story with you to explain just how difficult life can be and to help everyone remember just how lucky we are.
A friend recently asked me to speak with a girl that she said was really sick but didn't really explain the situation. The girl came to meet me and it was obvious something was seriously wrong-she was very skinny with sunken eyes. We talked a bit and she tried to tell me about herself but seemed very confused and her stories didn't all add up. At one point she said she was 18 and later she said 22. She had lived in Cote d'Ivoire for a while with her mom but was most recently with her father in Fada. She met a man at the gold mine there and came with him when he returned home to my village. She said she'd been here 7 years, a year, and later 3 months so who really knows though my friend said she thought she's been here a year. The girl said she didn't have a lot of energy but wasn't too sick. She had been hospitalized a few months ago and they told her she had an illness that she could have got from a cut or wound. (This is true since the virus is spread through blood contact with an infected person but I suspect she became infected through sexual contact.) She said she had medication but it was out and her boyfriend hadn't gotten more.
Over a few weeks and multiple conversations with my friend and I, we learned that her boyfriend refused to help her and she had nothing to eat. He would buy alcohol and meat for himself and make her cook but wouldn't share. He also was forcing her to continue to have sex with him even though she was very weak and tried to refuse. He is aware that she is HIV+ but doesn't use a condom. She wanted to return to her father's in Fada so I agreed to help since this seemed like an awful situation for her here and I was concerned she was near the end of her life.
My friend and I spoke with her boyfriend and his mother and they agreed it was best for her to leave but he said he couldn't help. We tried to contact her family but the number she had was wrong. I asked the PCV in Fada to ask around and we contacted the church there but nobody knew her father. Finally we decided she needed to go since we couldn't contact her family to come get her. I didn't think she was mentally capable of traveling on her own (I learned that mental confusion is common in AIDS patients) and my friend was concerned that her boyfriend would pretend to take her but just leave her on the road somewhere with nothing. I thought about taking her to Fada but have been very busy and traveling a lot for PC stuff plus didn't really feel comfortable doing this. I wasn't sure how her family would react and didn't know if having her show up with a white foreigner would help the situation. Thankfully my friend agreed to take her and I said I would pay for both their transports.
They arrived at the bush taxi lot about midnight and the girl didn't recognize anything after swearing she knew how to find their house. A man approached my friend and asked if she needed help. She explained that they were looking for someone. He said he didn't know the family but would find them. He gave them each a bench to sleep on at the parking lot and said not to ask around because he'd take care of it. The next morning he returned with a man from the girl's family. They recognized each other and he asked what was wrong since she was obviously very sick and had lost a lot of weight. My friend explained she had AIDS and needed to go to a hospital. She told him the problems with the boyfriend and that she needed to eat better. This relative promised to take care of her and to go to see a doctor the next day. He said no one in the family had a phone so my friend gave her number to contact us. We haven't heard anything but she felt the man was sincere and I believe that anything is better than the situation she was in. I don't really think there is a lot that can be done to save her life but hopefully she can be more comfortable, relax, eat well, and know that there are people that love for her.
I felt so frustrated and helpless in this situation because I didn't really think I could do anything. In so many cases here, I have found that all I can do is fight for the underdog and let them know someone does care and wants to help. It never feels like enough though.
I am still concerned about her boyfriend. He said he was tested and is negative but I don't believe this. My friend is concerned that he will start sleeping with other girls in our village and spread this awful disease. She calls him half-crazy but I'd say a jerk is more appropriate. It seems even his mother is concerned about this. I plan to talk to him again and try to convince him to be tested. I want him to understand the severity of this and that he could be giving girls a death sentence if he has unprotected sex with them. Its frustrating that I can't just tell girls that he is HIV+ and to stay away from him. I understand the need for confidentiality but also am disgusted that someone would knowingly put another's life at risk. Again I am frustrated at how little I really can do.
Even if it doesn't seem like a big issue or concern, I do include some information about this disease when I give health talks and my health center offers to test pregnant women that come in for prenatal consultations. Also twice in the last year, we've had health workers come in from Ouaga and test anyone that wants to be. We have found a few cases and try to work with those individuals to get the help that's needed. There is little that can be done in our village though so they are sent to our regional hospital for further testing and counseling as well as free medication to prevent transmission to their child if its a pregnant woman.
Basically I haven't had many situations involving this disease that really affected me until recently. I'd like to share this story with you to explain just how difficult life can be and to help everyone remember just how lucky we are.
A friend recently asked me to speak with a girl that she said was really sick but didn't really explain the situation. The girl came to meet me and it was obvious something was seriously wrong-she was very skinny with sunken eyes. We talked a bit and she tried to tell me about herself but seemed very confused and her stories didn't all add up. At one point she said she was 18 and later she said 22. She had lived in Cote d'Ivoire for a while with her mom but was most recently with her father in Fada. She met a man at the gold mine there and came with him when he returned home to my village. She said she'd been here 7 years, a year, and later 3 months so who really knows though my friend said she thought she's been here a year. The girl said she didn't have a lot of energy but wasn't too sick. She had been hospitalized a few months ago and they told her she had an illness that she could have got from a cut or wound. (This is true since the virus is spread through blood contact with an infected person but I suspect she became infected through sexual contact.) She said she had medication but it was out and her boyfriend hadn't gotten more.
Over a few weeks and multiple conversations with my friend and I, we learned that her boyfriend refused to help her and she had nothing to eat. He would buy alcohol and meat for himself and make her cook but wouldn't share. He also was forcing her to continue to have sex with him even though she was very weak and tried to refuse. He is aware that she is HIV+ but doesn't use a condom. She wanted to return to her father's in Fada so I agreed to help since this seemed like an awful situation for her here and I was concerned she was near the end of her life.
My friend and I spoke with her boyfriend and his mother and they agreed it was best for her to leave but he said he couldn't help. We tried to contact her family but the number she had was wrong. I asked the PCV in Fada to ask around and we contacted the church there but nobody knew her father. Finally we decided she needed to go since we couldn't contact her family to come get her. I didn't think she was mentally capable of traveling on her own (I learned that mental confusion is common in AIDS patients) and my friend was concerned that her boyfriend would pretend to take her but just leave her on the road somewhere with nothing. I thought about taking her to Fada but have been very busy and traveling a lot for PC stuff plus didn't really feel comfortable doing this. I wasn't sure how her family would react and didn't know if having her show up with a white foreigner would help the situation. Thankfully my friend agreed to take her and I said I would pay for both their transports.
They arrived at the bush taxi lot about midnight and the girl didn't recognize anything after swearing she knew how to find their house. A man approached my friend and asked if she needed help. She explained that they were looking for someone. He said he didn't know the family but would find them. He gave them each a bench to sleep on at the parking lot and said not to ask around because he'd take care of it. The next morning he returned with a man from the girl's family. They recognized each other and he asked what was wrong since she was obviously very sick and had lost a lot of weight. My friend explained she had AIDS and needed to go to a hospital. She told him the problems with the boyfriend and that she needed to eat better. This relative promised to take care of her and to go to see a doctor the next day. He said no one in the family had a phone so my friend gave her number to contact us. We haven't heard anything but she felt the man was sincere and I believe that anything is better than the situation she was in. I don't really think there is a lot that can be done to save her life but hopefully she can be more comfortable, relax, eat well, and know that there are people that love for her.
I felt so frustrated and helpless in this situation because I didn't really think I could do anything. In so many cases here, I have found that all I can do is fight for the underdog and let them know someone does care and wants to help. It never feels like enough though.
I am still concerned about her boyfriend. He said he was tested and is negative but I don't believe this. My friend is concerned that he will start sleeping with other girls in our village and spread this awful disease. She calls him half-crazy but I'd say a jerk is more appropriate. It seems even his mother is concerned about this. I plan to talk to him again and try to convince him to be tested. I want him to understand the severity of this and that he could be giving girls a death sentence if he has unprotected sex with them. Its frustrating that I can't just tell girls that he is HIV+ and to stay away from him. I understand the need for confidentiality but also am disgusted that someone would knowingly put another's life at risk. Again I am frustrated at how little I really can do.
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