Tim and I enjoy writing about our time here in Niger. Unfortunately, there never seems to be enough time to write about everything and download the pictures we'd like to share with you.
So, while you wait for the next installment of articles from Christine and Tim, I (Christine) want to share with you some interesting stories, fun pictures and excellent websites that I have come across through friends/colleagues here in Niger.
For a starter, you might want to begin at the Sahel Academy website. Browse around and learn more about my school and the community that makes it so special.
http://www.sahelacademy.com/home.html
Don't forget to click on the link to the "Sahelian", the school on-line newspaper. You'll find some recent articles about the "Sahel Games" held in November (our version of the Olympics or Track and Field Day), the softball tournament in October that brings expats to Niamey from the neighbouring countries, and the story behind the construction of our new library building (media centre) over the summer. If you want to know what makes Sahel Academy a truly unique school, read about the graduating class of 2008. My favourite picture is a "Where's Waldo" photo of math teacher Ben Stam on top of a humungous baobab tree. Scroll down to read the article called "God's Provision for Sahel's Math Teacher" posted in April 2008. http://www.sahelacademy.com/sahelian/
On the "Sahelian" webpage, you can find links to past and present staff. There is also a link to our Mattimoe website.
You will find Anisa Blomquist's blog very interesting. She was my neighbour before Tim and I moved houses (you'll find some pictures of Snowy and Missy if you scroll down some). She has some recent entries about the grade 3/4 drama (I watched it and enjoyed pumpkin pie afterwards), the Student Council fundraiser evening called "Bella Notte" (an evening for the kids to dress up formally), great pictures of the "Sahel Games" and an excellent overview of the many construction projects that happened over the summer at Sahel. There's even a picture of my French room being gutted and tiled and re-painted.
Bob (high school History and Science teacher) and Lois Gillespie (Computer teacher) also have a great website. The article called "Bridge Building" just about sums up the reason for our work here in Niger. And if you're wondering how computer technology can be used to bless others, read Randy (SIM computer technician) and Wanda's website.
If you're interested in botany and horticulture, here is a link to the Niamey Gardening Club. http://www.plantsahel.org/page/Niamey+Gardening+Club I attended one of their meetings last year and enjoyed meeting other expats interested in gardening in the Sahel region. Although I would enjoy being a member of this club, I have chosen to spend my energies and free-time in other areas. What makes the Niamey Gardening Club interesting is that they're putting together an encyclopedia of plants found in the Sahel region of West Africa. The site provides pictures and information about trees, flowers, vegetables, fruits, herbs, and plants in the Sahel. http://www.plantsahel.org/
Another activity Tim and I would like to do more often (if it weren't for other committments on Saturday afternoons) is to join the Hash House Harriers club for a walk/jog in the fields and sand and rocks outside Niamey. The club is made up mostly of francophone expats who enjoy exercise and the outdoors. We went last January with some friends of ours. They have a very detailed blog of their weekly outtings if that interests you. http://hashniamey.blogspot.com/ Come and join us for a hike in Niger!
Friday, December 19, 2008
Monday, December 1, 2008
Hippo Watching
Do you have the courage it takes to look into the face of the most dangerous animal in Niger?The animal that kills more humans in Africa that any other animal? If so, then join me on a potentially perilous adventure up the Niger River for a closer look at hippos in the wild.
In October, a number of friends and I (Christine) took a pirogue ride (canoe ride) up the Niger River. The 7 of us along with our guide had this entire motorized pirogue all to ourselves during the 3-hour trip! Complete with cushioned reclining seats! Come along for the ride!
We leave around 9:30am during the cooler part of the day. It’s quite pleasant on the river, especially with the covered roof to protect us from the hot sun.
HIPPO! Our first hippo sighting is less than 5 minutes into our trip, right next to the bridge only a few metres from where men are washing clothes!
Apparently, this hippo is frequently seen around the bridge and seems quite accustomed to having people around (or is it the other way around that people are used to having the hippo nearby).
We continue up-stream. 
Garden plots line the edge of the river. We wave to farmers working in their gardens and women and children washing along the banks of the river. The kids excitedly jump up and down in the water and wave back at us.The banks of the Niger River are an oasis in the midst of the dry Sahel and encroaching desert. Tall grass grows along the banks and is cut for hay to feed livestock.
Another type of long “grass” growing at the edge of the river is actually rice that will be harvested in late November. The “scare-crow” in the rice paddy is not to scare crows, but rather to keep hippos from raiding the fields for food during their nightly “snack attacks”.
A few kilometres up-stream, we see the Presidential palace grounds up on a hill. Next, we come to the dam which helps to control the water level in dry season. The water pump station for the city is located here (actually, only a 15 minute walk from our present house). At the moment, the water level is very high so our boat can go right over the dam. In low water season, boats need to go through the little set of locks.
Fishermen congregate just below the dam to cast their nets from their little canoes. I never quite understand how they can manoeuvre a canoe so easily while standing up! And here I was always taught to stay sitting (or kneeling) in a canoe for stability!
Further upstream, we pass by a herd of cows grazing on one side of the riverbank and a large flock of egrets (or herons) lined up along the other side the riverbank and in the trees.
At the halfway point, our guide points us to the eating and breeding grounds of another herd of hippos. We sit quietly in the pirogue hoping to get another glimpse of the dangerous beast (“underwater mines” as Tim likens them to).
Phhoosh!
The sound of a hippo surfacing for breath. There are two hippos this time, but they don’t stay at the surface for long before they disappear out of sight.“Just be careful,” our guide warned, “if you ever hear 3 loud blows of a hippo surfacing for breath. That means the hippo is angry and is ready to charge you!”
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Human encounters
People in Africa – what are they like?
One of my (Tim) personal quests here in Niger is to understand the culture here, how do people think, why do they do what they do.
That is an especially challenging and even dangerous thing to discuss, but very interesting. We show you 2 dimensional photos but the full image – well I will try to share a little bit although obviously this question really warrants writing a book to do it some justice.
One of the fellows in this photo at right is a guy I know, I work with him, we are funding a couple of his projects. He is not just some stranger that I snapped a photo, he is a friend and associate. He came from a nomadic and muslim background, but he is today a Christian and works in development to help his fellow man.
People in general often figure that they know themselves well, they know who they are and their neighbours, how untrue – once you spend some time in another culture then you see things in your own culture that you never really knew, or not well.
Asking the question “what is African culture like” also begs the question “who are we” or “who am I”.
Everyone has their own personality of course, and some attributes are genetic, but there is a lot that we might consider common sense or common to “regular” people, and yet they are not universal but rather specific to your culture or your group of people. There are also universal or absolute values that we can find through all cultures, attributes common to all humankind, yet these values express themselves differently and have different boundaries.
Stories help make a point:
I am reminded of a visit I made once to a village where we work helping locals in nutrition and safe water amongst other things. In customary fashion we sat down and had tea with the local officials. We chatted for quite awhile with the head of the military there, le Commandant, a tough gritty fellow overseeing a dangerous job as we are in the dangerous zone near the border and near rebel and bandit activity (this town was months later invaded by rebels and the military overtaken).
After discussion for quite awhile, a man entered our compound and greeted us. He was not with our staff or a familiar face, he was just visiting. The visitor was dressed from head to foot in a pink flowing outfit. The military chief gave his goodbyes to us, and then walked out with the visitor, walking hand and hand with him slowly and chatting along the way. If two men were walking casually hand and hand down the street in any town in Canada with one dressed mostly in pink, that might raise a few eyebrows, but here in the African context it is of course different. Here brothers and close friends hold hands, it is like a hand shake that is simply extended in time, and also to mention that the colour pink has absolutely no symbolism different than say red or orange, it’s just another colour.
Actually a man and a woman would generally not hold hands in public here even if married, that would be morally questionable by some, but a man will frequently hold hands with another man he knows well and may walk hand in hand. It always takes us Westerners some time to get used to that, actually we don’t get used to it.
The big point from this story though is not the holding hands; it is the “common sense” of Africans to greet everyone and anyone, an extroverted culture. If you are a person and people see you, they will greet you, it just what everyone does. Even more so for those who are from the nomadic tribes it seems, maybe that comes from being more rural and more dispersed. When you are greeted by a Tuareg it will take some time to complete it as he will ask you about 8 questions (how’s the health? the wife? The heat? The sleep? The …) There is no one alone unless they are trying to be that way. This of course is different in western big cities where people are often alone and generally you don’t greet people you don’t already know (and often walk past people that you do know).
Christine remembers well a faux pas (goof up) of hers – she entered a taxi and sat down, and didn’t greet the other passengers (the taxis are private cars that operate like free lance buses – they fill up with people and the driver sets the route.) Christine got critiqued and chewed out by the other passengers because she didn’t greet all of them! One can be rude without knowing it! But she learned her lesson.
Canadians pride themselves as being very polite, even thinking themselves as superior in politeness and highly valuing this, and some dare to call themselves friendly (‘friendly Manitoba’). But despite that Canadians are only really polite within their own definition; they are not as polite as they think. If you would “cut and paste” them into Africa they would be considered somewhat rude. What is rude? Rude, by African culture, is to not greet anyone within close proximity. So for instance to walk into an office you work, if you pass anyone’s desk and did not greet them, you are snubbing them.
Unfortunately in Niger the idea of “forming a line” has not caught on, which is frustrating for us who know the obviously benefits of order and taking turns.
Most Nigeriens will not recognize a line and most will not sporadically form a line when there is a need. There is always the chaotic scrambling with pushing and aggressive behaviour to get your turn.
I’ve learned that in Canada the people have learned to “buy into” efficiency by agreeing to a first-come-first-served concept whenever there is a group of people waiting for something. If you see a line of people in front of what you want, you agree to join the back of it.
A perfect example is the 4 way stop. Christine mentioned to me once that Niamey needs some 4 way stops. However culturally this cannot work. A 4 way stop means you have looked to see who arrived before you and you wait for them to go first – that is strange and even laughable in this culture. Laughable because you would be waiting forever or until you are alone as the others will all rush into the intersection and honk and squeeze their way through! Ah the joys of driving. Actually the occasional person may notice your plight and take pity on you and stop traffic to wave you through. Which really involves other cultural traits! one of which is vigilantism.
It is well known that in Niger if a guard sees an intruder trying to break in, they will whistle to call in the neighbouring guards, and then they will capture the intruder and then … call the police? … ask questions?... no- they will beat and kill the intruder on the spot and then burn or dispose of the body. Ahh – nasty! I’ve seen this already once by chance, a man was getting beaten to death beside a mosque by a vigilante mob, one can presume an intruder (thief). This is the “common sense” here, community vigilantism, people taking the law into their own hands and issuing a punishment. No judges or lawyers present of course. This is due in part to a lack of confidence and lack of presence of police and the courts.
Nigeriens are generally honest and trust-worthy in matters of money and with regards to stealing, at least no less than Canadians, but the boundaries and definition of this are not exactly the same. To steal or not to steal? It is more complicated that you might think. An awful lot of Canadians out there would swear that they never steal and yet their computer software and music they are using was never purchased by them! So when does the definition of stealing start and end – at least in the serious sense of it?
When in a new culture you try things out and observe, willing to lose out a little if necessary at least to learn something. One thing is with change and verbal agreements. If I go to a crowded market and buy something there for 800 CFA francs ($2) and give the guy a 5000 F bill, he will likely say – I’ll go get some change. And off he goes with his wares and then he is out of sight deep in the crowd. Note that the average person in Niger earns less than 5000 F per day, and so this is no small peanuts. The thought of course crosses your mind that “some guy I’ve never met before just took my 5000 bill and disappeared, without leaving anything behind - is this person really coming back?”.
Many minutes may go by, and you wonder, hmmm, am I waiting for nothing? However the merchant will always come back and give you the correct change and off you go. Honouring a verbal agreement is culturally very important here, and so it is really the dignity attached to it that has force.
So although person x may look for ways to cheat and even steal, he will not breach a verbal agreement. Canada is a “writing” society, Niger is more verbal, and so verbal agreements have more weight with people here than say in Canada. In many ways a verbal agreement in Niger has more weight than a written agreement, even though it is harder to prove something verbal, but they are taken with great seriousness.
These are just some snippets, I could go on and on, but I won’t, and so to wrap up: There is beauty and ugliness in every culture, but each one different, and through this it magnifies the nature of our human condition.
There is the goodness there, the image of God in us that occasionally shines through and which is rooted in compassionate love, and in which collectively each culture adopts some of that goodness as normative. Then there is the fallen nature of mankind, the sin and selfishness that is rooted the absence of love, and which each culture adopts some of that and then puts these “bad” aspects as normative and acceptable.
The morality that Jesus calls us to, especially in the Sermon on the Mount in the Bible, is a new culture that embraces all goodness. The new culture is like no other and so naturally counter cultural to every human culture yet not in the same ways to each. It is a lofty goal that is not attained but nevertheless set out before us. Particularly the counter-cultural aspects are the hardest to follow, as it is always easy to follow a crowd. In this Jesus calls us to two things, one: to choose to seek and live out a life of goodness that is counter-cultural; 2) accepting his offer of forgiveness and reconciliation along the way as we fail.
One of my (Tim) personal quests here in Niger is to understand the culture here, how do people think, why do they do what they do.
That is an especially challenging and even dangerous thing to discuss, but very interesting. We show you 2 dimensional photos but the full image – well I will try to share a little bit although obviously this question really warrants writing a book to do it some justice.
One of the fellows in this photo at right is a guy I know, I work with him, we are funding a couple of his projects. He is not just some stranger that I snapped a photo, he is a friend and associate. He came from a nomadic and muslim background, but he is today a Christian and works in development to help his fellow man.
People in general often figure that they know themselves well, they know who they are and their neighbours, how untrue – once you spend some time in another culture then you see things in your own culture that you never really knew, or not well.
Asking the question “what is African culture like” also begs the question “who are we” or “who am I”.
Everyone has their own personality of course, and some attributes are genetic, but there is a lot that we might consider common sense or common to “regular” people, and yet they are not universal but rather specific to your culture or your group of people. There are also universal or absolute values that we can find through all cultures, attributes common to all humankind, yet these values express themselves differently and have different boundaries.
Stories help make a point:
I am reminded of a visit I made once to a village where we work helping locals in nutrition and safe water amongst other things. In customary fashion we sat down and had tea with the local officials. We chatted for quite awhile with the head of the military there, le Commandant, a tough gritty fellow overseeing a dangerous job as we are in the dangerous zone near the border and near rebel and bandit activity (this town was months later invaded by rebels and the military overtaken).
After discussion for quite awhile, a man entered our compound and greeted us. He was not with our staff or a familiar face, he was just visiting. The visitor was dressed from head to foot in a pink flowing outfit. The military chief gave his goodbyes to us, and then walked out with the visitor, walking hand and hand with him slowly and chatting along the way. If two men were walking casually hand and hand down the street in any town in Canada with one dressed mostly in pink, that might raise a few eyebrows, but here in the African context it is of course different. Here brothers and close friends hold hands, it is like a hand shake that is simply extended in time, and also to mention that the colour pink has absolutely no symbolism different than say red or orange, it’s just another colour.
Actually a man and a woman would generally not hold hands in public here even if married, that would be morally questionable by some, but a man will frequently hold hands with another man he knows well and may walk hand in hand. It always takes us Westerners some time to get used to that, actually we don’t get used to it.
The big point from this story though is not the holding hands; it is the “common sense” of Africans to greet everyone and anyone, an extroverted culture. If you are a person and people see you, they will greet you, it just what everyone does. Even more so for those who are from the nomadic tribes it seems, maybe that comes from being more rural and more dispersed. When you are greeted by a Tuareg it will take some time to complete it as he will ask you about 8 questions (how’s the health? the wife? The heat? The sleep? The …) There is no one alone unless they are trying to be that way. This of course is different in western big cities where people are often alone and generally you don’t greet people you don’t already know (and often walk past people that you do know).
Christine remembers well a faux pas (goof up) of hers – she entered a taxi and sat down, and didn’t greet the other passengers (the taxis are private cars that operate like free lance buses – they fill up with people and the driver sets the route.) Christine got critiqued and chewed out by the other passengers because she didn’t greet all of them! One can be rude without knowing it! But she learned her lesson.
Canadians pride themselves as being very polite, even thinking themselves as superior in politeness and highly valuing this, and some dare to call themselves friendly (‘friendly Manitoba’). But despite that Canadians are only really polite within their own definition; they are not as polite as they think. If you would “cut and paste” them into Africa they would be considered somewhat rude. What is rude? Rude, by African culture, is to not greet anyone within close proximity. So for instance to walk into an office you work, if you pass anyone’s desk and did not greet them, you are snubbing them.
Unfortunately in Niger the idea of “forming a line” has not caught on, which is frustrating for us who know the obviously benefits of order and taking turns.
Most Nigeriens will not recognize a line and most will not sporadically form a line when there is a need. There is always the chaotic scrambling with pushing and aggressive behaviour to get your turn.
I’ve learned that in Canada the people have learned to “buy into” efficiency by agreeing to a first-come-first-served concept whenever there is a group of people waiting for something. If you see a line of people in front of what you want, you agree to join the back of it.
A perfect example is the 4 way stop. Christine mentioned to me once that Niamey needs some 4 way stops. However culturally this cannot work. A 4 way stop means you have looked to see who arrived before you and you wait for them to go first – that is strange and even laughable in this culture. Laughable because you would be waiting forever or until you are alone as the others will all rush into the intersection and honk and squeeze their way through! Ah the joys of driving. Actually the occasional person may notice your plight and take pity on you and stop traffic to wave you through. Which really involves other cultural traits! one of which is vigilantism.
It is well known that in Niger if a guard sees an intruder trying to break in, they will whistle to call in the neighbouring guards, and then they will capture the intruder and then … call the police? … ask questions?... no- they will beat and kill the intruder on the spot and then burn or dispose of the body. Ahh – nasty! I’ve seen this already once by chance, a man was getting beaten to death beside a mosque by a vigilante mob, one can presume an intruder (thief). This is the “common sense” here, community vigilantism, people taking the law into their own hands and issuing a punishment. No judges or lawyers present of course. This is due in part to a lack of confidence and lack of presence of police and the courts.
Nigeriens are generally honest and trust-worthy in matters of money and with regards to stealing, at least no less than Canadians, but the boundaries and definition of this are not exactly the same. To steal or not to steal? It is more complicated that you might think. An awful lot of Canadians out there would swear that they never steal and yet their computer software and music they are using was never purchased by them! So when does the definition of stealing start and end – at least in the serious sense of it?
When in a new culture you try things out and observe, willing to lose out a little if necessary at least to learn something. One thing is with change and verbal agreements. If I go to a crowded market and buy something there for 800 CFA francs ($2) and give the guy a 5000 F bill, he will likely say – I’ll go get some change. And off he goes with his wares and then he is out of sight deep in the crowd. Note that the average person in Niger earns less than 5000 F per day, and so this is no small peanuts. The thought of course crosses your mind that “some guy I’ve never met before just took my 5000 bill and disappeared, without leaving anything behind - is this person really coming back?”.
Many minutes may go by, and you wonder, hmmm, am I waiting for nothing? However the merchant will always come back and give you the correct change and off you go. Honouring a verbal agreement is culturally very important here, and so it is really the dignity attached to it that has force.
So although person x may look for ways to cheat and even steal, he will not breach a verbal agreement. Canada is a “writing” society, Niger is more verbal, and so verbal agreements have more weight with people here than say in Canada. In many ways a verbal agreement in Niger has more weight than a written agreement, even though it is harder to prove something verbal, but they are taken with great seriousness.
These are just some snippets, I could go on and on, but I won’t, and so to wrap up: There is beauty and ugliness in every culture, but each one different, and through this it magnifies the nature of our human condition.
There is the goodness there, the image of God in us that occasionally shines through and which is rooted in compassionate love, and in which collectively each culture adopts some of that goodness as normative. Then there is the fallen nature of mankind, the sin and selfishness that is rooted the absence of love, and which each culture adopts some of that and then puts these “bad” aspects as normative and acceptable.
The morality that Jesus calls us to, especially in the Sermon on the Mount in the Bible, is a new culture that embraces all goodness. The new culture is like no other and so naturally counter cultural to every human culture yet not in the same ways to each. It is a lofty goal that is not attained but nevertheless set out before us. Particularly the counter-cultural aspects are the hardest to follow, as it is always easy to follow a crowd. In this Jesus calls us to two things, one: to choose to seek and live out a life of goodness that is counter-cultural; 2) accepting his offer of forgiveness and reconciliation along the way as we fail.
Keeping the Zoo
Every morning, the first thing the zookeeper (Christine) does before eating breakfast herself is feed the “starving” animals. Snowy, the young feline, gets a small scoop of dry cat food mixed with some water. Snowy gets special treatment as an orphaned kitten and is allowed to eat indoors safe from the new dog. Although Snowy is already close to 5 months old, she still likes to crawl onto “momma’s” lap and snuggle with her. 
Next comes Oreo, the energetic canine (half lab and half bush dog) who can leap over bushes with such ease that it makes one wonder if she has some greyhound in her. She gets a large bowl of homemade mash. Christine makes a huge pot of mash every couple of days and keeps it in the fridge. Dogs in Niger are content eating the gruel, which is a mix of various ground grains and beans (corn, millet, sorghum, white bean, peanut pulp). It’s actually quite nutritious and smells like peanut butter! Mmmmm. I add some dried fish while it’s cooking to make it even more appealing to the dog (and the cat). Oreo found a foster home at the “Mattimoe Zoo” – her owners are in the USA for a few more months. She had been living in the countryside with another missionary family, but they (and their neighbours) didn’t appreciate her particular craving for live chicken!
Finally comes Mango Cream (MC), the Senegalese parrot that can imitate the kitten’s meow perfectly. Poor Mango lost 2 of his long tail feathers the day Oreo arrived at the “Mattimoe Zoo”. Mango has learned to move quickly to the centre of his cage whenever Oreo is around (thanks to the extra bamboo poles that Tim stuck in there). Mango is the easiest to feed: a handful of millet and fresh water in his bowl. He loves a good neck scratching when Tim or Christine come nearby, but he sometimes has a bad attitude and likes to tip over his food and water dishes. A heavy rock in each doesn’t deter him either, so now we’ve resorted to tying the dishes down with wire!
Feeding times are twice a day. Play times and training are in the afternoons and evenings. Tim and Christine have spent many days and evenings working with Oreo and Snowy to help them learn to be friends. The main problem is that Oreo is too hyper and her quick moves scare the cat. Progress: they have gently touched noses, Snowy has given Oreo’s nose a playful swat, and they even eat out of the same bowl from time to time.
Each animal has their own nickname. Snowy is “Squeaky” since she usually has a small squeaky meow. We also think she fits the name “Miss Piggy” since she’ll eat anything, even the dog’s mash! She sometimes doesn’t know when to stop eating and ends up with a large round stomach afterwards! Mango Cream is “Squawky” for his raucous sounds, and Oreo is “rangy” since she is a bit too excited to play and chase anything. She adds her voice to the chorus of neighbourhood dogs barking in the night!
Next comes Oreo, the energetic canine (half lab and half bush dog) who can leap over bushes with such ease that it makes one wonder if she has some greyhound in her. She gets a large bowl of homemade mash. Christine makes a huge pot of mash every couple of days and keeps it in the fridge. Dogs in Niger are content eating the gruel, which is a mix of various ground grains and beans (corn, millet, sorghum, white bean, peanut pulp). It’s actually quite nutritious and smells like peanut butter! Mmmmm. I add some dried fish while it’s cooking to make it even more appealing to the dog (and the cat). Oreo found a foster home at the “Mattimoe Zoo” – her owners are in the USA for a few more months. She had been living in the countryside with another missionary family, but they (and their neighbours) didn’t appreciate her particular craving for live chicken!
Finally comes Mango Cream (MC), the Senegalese parrot that can imitate the kitten’s meow perfectly. Poor Mango lost 2 of his long tail feathers the day Oreo arrived at the “Mattimoe Zoo”. Mango has learned to move quickly to the centre of his cage whenever Oreo is around (thanks to the extra bamboo poles that Tim stuck in there). Mango is the easiest to feed: a handful of millet and fresh water in his bowl. He loves a good neck scratching when Tim or Christine come nearby, but he sometimes has a bad attitude and likes to tip over his food and water dishes. A heavy rock in each doesn’t deter him either, so now we’ve resorted to tying the dishes down with wire!
Feeding times are twice a day. Play times and training are in the afternoons and evenings. Tim and Christine have spent many days and evenings working with Oreo and Snowy to help them learn to be friends. The main problem is that Oreo is too hyper and her quick moves scare the cat. Progress: they have gently touched noses, Snowy has given Oreo’s nose a playful swat, and they even eat out of the same bowl from time to time.
Each animal has their own nickname. Snowy is “Squeaky” since she usually has a small squeaky meow. We also think she fits the name “Miss Piggy” since she’ll eat anything, even the dog’s mash! She sometimes doesn’t know when to stop eating and ends up with a large round stomach afterwards! Mango Cream is “Squawky” for his raucous sounds, and Oreo is “rangy” since she is a bit too excited to play and chase anything. She adds her voice to the chorus of neighbourhood dogs barking in the night!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
INFO on helping us help Niger
We appreciate your encouragement, prayers, and donations to the work. Christine is with Volunteers in Mission (VIM) ELCIC, through Resurrection Lutheran Church in Orleans, ON. If you are interested to donate to the work- please click on the photo to expand (on the right) for more info.
Thanks for partnering with us!
ELCIC Mission in the World
302-393 Portage Ave,
Winnipeg MB R3B 3H6
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Back to School
In Canada, you can tell that the new school year is around the corner when you begin seeing sales in stores for school supplies. In Niger, you can tell that the new school year is around the corner when you begin seeing billboards advertising bank loans to help cover the school fees and school supplies (notebook, pencils/pens, slate, chalk, and any textbooks that will be used that year) needed to send your children to school.
The public school system in Niger is really struggling. It’s frustrating that the government doesn’t put more emphasis on education. A mere 10% of the population is literate! The school year is from October to the end of June, with a 3-4 month vacation over the rainy season! Children in rural areas often help in their family fields during the vacation. Some city kids visit family in the countryside over their break, but many city kids end up bored and on the streets during their school vacation. There is a LARGE, GLARING NEED for children’s programs and sports camps during this time.
A German lady we know who is living in Niger for a few months has been volunteering at one of the orphanages we have connections with. Recently she visited the public school where the orphans attend. They were eager to show her their classrooms. She was appalled at the teaching/learning conditions. Small, dark classrooms with holey chalkboards. Very few teaching resources for the teacher to work with! Desks for 2 seating instead 3 to 5 students. One teacher for 60 or more students!
That day, the teacher arrived very late…maybe 20-30 minutes late! Meanwhile, the students were getting restless and starting to misbehave. This is a common occurrence in many schools. In fact, often times teachers may not even show up for classes and the students end up walking home. Lately, there have been some teacher strikes regarding increasing their salary.
Teachers are paid less than most security guards, who often have little education and are some of the lowest paid people along with house maids.
Many students just can’t make it through the public education system and end up dropping out. With so many students per class, the teacher cannot individually help each and every student who may have problems with the material. Those students who master the work will succeed. Those who fall behind have little hope of receiving the help and support they need, especially since many of their parents may not have much education either. Furthermore, students easily become discouraged from rather strict teachers who tend to be harsh and belittle the students who don’t know the answers. Kids learn at an early age not to ask questions if they don’t understand (or if they happen to be inquisitive and want to know more) because questioning the teacher would be considered showing disrespect towards authority. Learning by rote and drill practice work is encouraged. One final exam covering the material learned throughout the year determines whether a child moves on to the next grade or has to redo that level again. It’s very stressful on students.
If a family has the money, they will make an effort to send their child to a private school or pay for a tutor. It’s very common in Niger to find families with 5 or 8 or even more children. With so many children to feed, most families can’t afford to send each child to school. Sometimes girls and boys have to drop out of school in order to help at home or in the fields. With a high failure rate from grade to grade and a low student retention rate, many girls and boys don’t complete their schooling and graduate with a high school diploma. Such are the challenges for students, teachers and parents in Niger.
Education in Niger may look very bleak and the system extremely discouraging, but there are signs of hope. Some NGOs and Christian missions are offering affordable education and quality teaching within the reach of the average Nigerien. Horizons Ministries, the Southern Baptist Mission and the Association Cornerstone are all doing great work in this area. Horizons runs a Christian school for Nigerien kids and Tim is looking into arranging for Samaritan’s Purse Canada to finance paying for the lunches for the kids at that school.
I have become somewhat involved with the Association Cornerstone (led by passionate Nigeriens) through my colleague, Hajara, with whom I teach French at Sahel Academy.
She and her brother are two of the principal organizers of the association.
The main objective of Cornerstone is to offer affordable Christian education led by qualified teachers. They would like to establish elementary schools in throughout Niamey as well as around the country. It has taken over 2 years for Cornerstone to acquire the green light from the government to open just one kindergarten (with plans to offer all the elementary levels). The bureaucracy and paperwork required has been a formidable task. In the meantime, Cornerstone has been offering evening adult education classes which prepare adults for the “baccalaureat” exam required for high school certification.
In August, Cornerstone received the exciting news that they had received approval to open a school in Niamey. Cornerstone had already begun renting a piece of property with a home and large yard to house the kindergarten (2 classes of 30 students max.). The plan was to begin classes in early October, but unfortunately they have come across yet more government red tape. God willing, the school will open in the next week or two.
The high school students at Sahel Academy spent a Saturday morning recently helping to construct a playground for Cornerstone’s new kindergarten. This act of love and service earned them community service points required for graduation.
The orphanage has a publically funded kindergarten attached to it with a qualified, enthusiastic Christian teacher. She has a BIG heart for the children.
The day I visited, she was planning activities to teach the concept of quantity: “a lot”, “a little”. She had 3 stations set up with various activities involving counting, colouring and manipulating objects.
NOTE: this classroom has more resources than your average kindergarten thanks to the support of the local church and other missions.
This year there are about 15 students in the orphanage kindergarten (half are orphans and the other half are children from the community). The school can hold between 25-30 students maximum.
Kids during recess at the orphanage kindergarten and playground.
This year, I’m teaching 4 classes of intermediate level French to students from grade 1 to 12. My schedule is lighter than it was last year, but I still manage to keep myself busy planning lessons and doing other “teacher-related” tasks. I miss not having a homeroom class where I can get to know the students more intimately over the year, but I certainly don’t miss having to teach 5 subjects. I’ve just started helping out two mothers organize the afterschool elementary girls club called “God’s Girls”. This year, we’re planning on incorporating activities from the Girl Scout/Girl Guide program since a couple of us have some background with Scouting/Guiding. I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences in Girl Guiding and my love of nature, knowledge of camping, and enthusiasm for campfire songs!
The public school system in Niger is really struggling. It’s frustrating that the government doesn’t put more emphasis on education. A mere 10% of the population is literate! The school year is from October to the end of June, with a 3-4 month vacation over the rainy season! Children in rural areas often help in their family fields during the vacation. Some city kids visit family in the countryside over their break, but many city kids end up bored and on the streets during their school vacation. There is a LARGE, GLARING NEED for children’s programs and sports camps during this time.
A German lady we know who is living in Niger for a few months has been volunteering at one of the orphanages we have connections with. Recently she visited the public school where the orphans attend. They were eager to show her their classrooms. She was appalled at the teaching/learning conditions. Small, dark classrooms with holey chalkboards. Very few teaching resources for the teacher to work with! Desks for 2 seating instead 3 to 5 students. One teacher for 60 or more students!
That day, the teacher arrived very late…maybe 20-30 minutes late! Meanwhile, the students were getting restless and starting to misbehave. This is a common occurrence in many schools. In fact, often times teachers may not even show up for classes and the students end up walking home. Lately, there have been some teacher strikes regarding increasing their salary.
Teachers are paid less than most security guards, who often have little education and are some of the lowest paid people along with house maids.Many students just can’t make it through the public education system and end up dropping out. With so many students per class, the teacher cannot individually help each and every student who may have problems with the material. Those students who master the work will succeed. Those who fall behind have little hope of receiving the help and support they need, especially since many of their parents may not have much education either. Furthermore, students easily become discouraged from rather strict teachers who tend to be harsh and belittle the students who don’t know the answers. Kids learn at an early age not to ask questions if they don’t understand (or if they happen to be inquisitive and want to know more) because questioning the teacher would be considered showing disrespect towards authority. Learning by rote and drill practice work is encouraged. One final exam covering the material learned throughout the year determines whether a child moves on to the next grade or has to redo that level again. It’s very stressful on students.
If a family has the money, they will make an effort to send their child to a private school or pay for a tutor. It’s very common in Niger to find families with 5 or 8 or even more children. With so many children to feed, most families can’t afford to send each child to school. Sometimes girls and boys have to drop out of school in order to help at home or in the fields. With a high failure rate from grade to grade and a low student retention rate, many girls and boys don’t complete their schooling and graduate with a high school diploma. Such are the challenges for students, teachers and parents in Niger.Education in Niger may look very bleak and the system extremely discouraging, but there are signs of hope. Some NGOs and Christian missions are offering affordable education and quality teaching within the reach of the average Nigerien. Horizons Ministries, the Southern Baptist Mission and the Association Cornerstone are all doing great work in this area. Horizons runs a Christian school for Nigerien kids and Tim is looking into arranging for Samaritan’s Purse Canada to finance paying for the lunches for the kids at that school.
I have become somewhat involved with the Association Cornerstone (led by passionate Nigeriens) through my colleague, Hajara, with whom I teach French at Sahel Academy.
She and her brother are two of the principal organizers of the association.The main objective of Cornerstone is to offer affordable Christian education led by qualified teachers. They would like to establish elementary schools in throughout Niamey as well as around the country. It has taken over 2 years for Cornerstone to acquire the green light from the government to open just one kindergarten (with plans to offer all the elementary levels). The bureaucracy and paperwork required has been a formidable task. In the meantime, Cornerstone has been offering evening adult education classes which prepare adults for the “baccalaureat” exam required for high school certification.
In August, Cornerstone received the exciting news that they had received approval to open a school in Niamey. Cornerstone had already begun renting a piece of property with a home and large yard to house the kindergarten (2 classes of 30 students max.). The plan was to begin classes in early October, but unfortunately they have come across yet more government red tape. God willing, the school will open in the next week or two.
The high school students at Sahel Academy spent a Saturday morning recently helping to construct a playground for Cornerstone’s new kindergarten. This act of love and service earned them community service points required for graduation.
The orphanage has a publically funded kindergarten attached to it with a qualified, enthusiastic Christian teacher. She has a BIG heart for the children.
The day I visited, she was planning activities to teach the concept of quantity: “a lot”, “a little”. She had 3 stations set up with various activities involving counting, colouring and manipulating objects.
NOTE: this classroom has more resources than your average kindergarten thanks to the support of the local church and other missions.
This year there are about 15 students in the orphanage kindergarten (half are orphans and the other half are children from the community). The school can hold between 25-30 students maximum.
Kids during recess at the orphanage kindergarten and playground.
This year, I’m teaching 4 classes of intermediate level French to students from grade 1 to 12. My schedule is lighter than it was last year, but I still manage to keep myself busy planning lessons and doing other “teacher-related” tasks. I miss not having a homeroom class where I can get to know the students more intimately over the year, but I certainly don’t miss having to teach 5 subjects. I’ve just started helping out two mothers organize the afterschool elementary girls club called “God’s Girls”. This year, we’re planning on incorporating activities from the Girl Scout/Girl Guide program since a couple of us have some background with Scouting/Guiding. I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences in Girl Guiding and my love of nature, knowledge of camping, and enthusiasm for campfire songs!
Friday, July 18, 2008
The Mattimoe Zoo
Welcome to the Mattimoe Zoo!
Kitty-Kitty was the pampered “king” of our apartment and compound….that was, until Snowy arrived. Kitty-Kitty is NOT impressed with this new arrival. “We are NOT amused!”, growls Kitty-Kitty with his ears back. Maybe one day, Kitty-Kitty will learn to like or, at the least tolerate, another of his own species living in the same compound.
Snowy, our little orphan kitten. We found her under some thorns in a ditch while out for a walk behind the school. We almost past her for dead, but Tim noticed movement and a feeble cry. Tim thought it was a rabbit at first, as it was a small white curled up furry ball. She was covered with ticks (eyes, ears, body) and her eyes were closed with puss. Thankfully, an animal-loving colleague of Christine’s was able to help us clean up the kitten and give us some instructions on how to care for her and make kitten formula.
Within one to two days, Snowy was already getting noticeably stronger. It was hard to keep her in the laundry bin. She preferred to climb up the cushion ramp and sleep on the couch (she’s already learning a bad habit!). She also learned how to “surf” down the ramp (she’s a pro at it now!) and explore the rest of the place. 
After only 3 days, she was already well into exploring every nook and cranny of the apartment, playing with her shadow, tackling our feet, and following Christine around the apartment. She loves to play in our pile of sandals at the door. She tackles them and crawls in and out of them like her own jungle gym. After some hard play and a stomach full of warm milk, Snowy can nod off to sleep in almost any location! She particularly likes to meditate on "the Word of God".
Snowy was introduced to a not-so-welcoming “Kitty-Kitty”, and an overly welcoming “Missy”. The dog showed considerable restraint and gentleness with Snowy, although it’s hard to know what she would do with the kitten unattended! Snowy was scared at first by the big, wet tongue, but soon became curious and even affectionate towards Missy. Snowy has enjoyed her daily time exploring the outdoors...chewing on grass, hopping over "kitty-sized" weeds, climbing "every mountain" and "leaping over every branch".
Snowy loves to snuggle up to Christine’s neck, play with her hair and nibble her ears after a feeding of warm formula. Snowy is learning from instinct how to wash her paws and face after each feeding. She’s even found a “thumb” to suck on! The exhausting part for Christine has been keeping up with feedings every few hours, even at night! Welcome to the joys and challenges of “motherhood” and "fatherhood", Christine and Tim. J 
Our resident Senegalese parrot Mango Cream or “MC” for short. Not so lovingly nicknamed “Squawky” by Tim. MC will be with us for a year while his owners are in the USA. He’s good at imitating sounds and making a racket early in the morning or when we’re trying to sit down for a peaceful dinner. He also enjoys playing with his jingle bells and shredding to pieces any branch that he gets his claws and beak on. He’s very affectionate towards Christine and loves getting his neck rubbed.
Our ever vigilant and loyal guard dog, Missy. 
Tim and Missy sharing a moment together. (How scandalous!)
The marriage proposal.
Missy accepts the proposal with a kiss on Tim’s face.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Domesticated Human Life in Niger
Daily life in Niger is quite a big change from life in Canada. We live a “small-town” existence in the capital “city” where livestock mixes with traffic and one is just as likely to be woken up by a rooster as by a loud radio. Simple, ordinary tasks seem to take longer here in Niger: from grocery shopping and cooking to doing laundry and using the internet.
Our daily chores often involve cooking the meals, sweeping up the sand that blows in through the windows, emptying the compost bucket into our compost pile, and washing dishes by hand. The dish water is never hot, but sometimes it might be lukewarm from being heated up by the afternoon sun. Having a life partner in this rural developing country where the pace of life is slower makes life a lot more exciting. I am very lucky to be married to a modern husband who joins me in the kitchen or who cooks up a delicious soup while I take a nap after a long day. He willingly helps around the house and washes the morning’s dishes so I come home to a clean kitchen (in exchange for a shoulder massage that night).
We use a gas stove/oven to cook, although heating up leftovers is a lot easier with the modern kitchen appliance called the microwave. It was apparently “almost brand new” when we bought it second-hand, but it is a much older and simpler model than we had in Canada. We also have a toaster, but we do miss our toaster oven.
Thank God we have an electric refrigerator, a brand new Eco-friendly one too! We certainly need it in this hot weather! A cold beverage with ice is much appreciated on a hot day. Tim has created several of his own tasty versions of iced tea. Sometimes he might brew a big pot of citrus tea with lemon. Other times he brews a mix of fruit teas and the flower of a native plant (called bissap or zima) which has a taste somewhat like that of cranberry juice. An inviting bowl of fresh fruit sitting out on the dining table just isn’t practical here in Niger. Fresh food goes bad in no time if it isn’t kept in the refrigerator. In the hottest of weather, bananas can’t stay out longer than a day or two before they have to be frozen or placed in the fridge. Unfortunately, an electric refrigerator isn’t very efficient when the power is cut for hours at a time!
Luckily, I don’t have to wash my clothes by hand (or very often that is) or use one of those old ringer washing machines I grew up with in Cameroon. We have an electric top-load washing machine conveniently placed in our bathroom. It’s an old clunker that makes a noisy racket and “jumps” around while on the spin cycle. Tim usually jams a chair in between the machine and the wall so that the machine won’t fall into the shower stall. The wash water is always “cold” since the sole hot water pipe goes to the shower and not to the washing machine. Whites never get perfectly white again, even with powerful detergent. Hanging the clothes on the line out back is the chore that sometimes makes me feel like a 1950s housewife…damp clothes on my shoulder, clothes pins in my hands and one in my mouth. All that is missing is a scarf on my head and a baby on my hip!
Grocery shopping, preparing food and cooking take a lot more time in Niger than they do in Canada. The first step is surviving the crowded market where I often buy fresh fruit, vegetables and eggs. It can be rather draining and frustrating to always have vendors and beggars flock around you even before you get out of your car! For a quieter shopping experience, I go to the Lebanese grocery store near our house which has a small market stall nearby. The second step is food preparation. The majority of our meals are made from fresh ingredients, except for canned goods. Processed food and imported packaged goods are highly taxed so we buy them only when we feel we need them. We bleach all our fruits and vegetables before eating or cooking them.
All our drinking water comes from a Katadyn water filter attached to the sink. The city water is drinkable, but it tends to have a high concentration of iron and other particulates in the pipes that aren’t good for the body over long periods of time, so we prefer drinking filtered water. We have learned to be patient with the filter as it often gets so clogged up with silt that water only comes out as a trickle. Tim faithfully scrubs the filter every week to keep the water flow at a decent rate. We keep several litres of water in our fridge or freezer since we probably go through about 3-5 litres of water a day! Stored water has come in handy a few times when water pressure to our upstairs apartment has been so low that we can’t get a drip from our tap for several hours! It’s a necessity of life here in the semi-desert to carry a bottle of ice-water wherever you go. I learned this lesson early-on after coming out of a 2-hour church service parched and feeling faint.
Making whole wheat muffins is an example of how complicated and challenging cooking can be here in Niger. First of all, I need to be sure I have all the ingredients. Eggs. Check that they are still good. If they float in bowl of water, they could have gone bad. Be cautious. Crack one egg at a time and double check the smell. Floating eggs may still be fine since the extreme heat here can dehydrate them quickly. Flour. White flour is easy to get, but I often like to make muffins that are half and half white and whole wheat flour. I can’t just go and find a package of whole wheat flour in the grocery store. No! I need to go to the market, ask directions to the area where grains and dried legumes are sold, and buy a heaping bowl of wheat. Processing isn’t included. Next, I must wash the wheat numerous times in a strainer to remove the dirt, bits of sticks and grass, other seeds and even pebbles! Then I need to lay it out in the sun, or in the oven, to dry. When the wheat is dry, I need to bring it to a grain mill in the market to grind it into flour. Afterwards, I sift the flour just to be sure all the pebbles are out, those that weren’t ground into dust in the mill. Finally, I have flour to make my muffins! But that’s not all…whole wheat flour tends to go rancid in the heat, and also attract insects unless it is kept in the freezer. Just one more thing that needs to find a place in the freezer.
It was my mom who passed on to me a love of cooking and baking. I’m no restaurant chef, as Tim can certainly attest to, but my meals are tasty and healthy. When the creative juices are stirring on a lazy Saturday morning, I like to cook/bake or try my hand at making new things. My first attempt at making a batch of yogourt was botched – I misread the recipe and added too much liquid for the amount of milk powder and starter. The second time, it turned out just right! Now Tim and I are enjoying yogourt on fresh fruit and cereal and in smoothies.
There are a number of affordable restaurants in Niamey with good food. Tim and I often frequent the Lebanese restaurant or the two Chinese restaurants all located in our neighbourhood. Be prepared to wait a bit. It’s normal to have to wait an hour for your food, and these aren’t even high-end European restaurants either! They tend to make food on an “as requested” basis. I often wonder if they need to go and catch the chicken first, then kill it, remove the feathers and then cook it! One time, one of the cooks came out of the kitchen in a panic. They had just run out of gas for the stove and they had to go find a replacement bottle. Tim and I have learned to entertain ourselves (e.g. card games, conversation, and reading materials) while waiting for food to arrive. If we’re hungry and feel like a quick and simple meal, we drive to our favorite Senegalese restaurant near the market. The menu is simple: your choice of sauce (meat, peanut, or vegetable) on rice. It’s served in a matter of minutes. We find the food tasty, filling and very affordable (a large plate of rice, meat sauce and a bottle of pop for only about 3 dollars)!
Besides cleaning the bathroom, one chore I hate doing is ironing. At one point, Tim and I were ironing almost all of our laundry to be certain no insects had laid their eggs in our clothes. Later, we learned from other missionaries that this precautionary measure is not needed here in such a hot and dry climate. Still, I have no patience when it comes to removing all the wrinkles from my cotton or rayon dresses and skirts. Nor do I want to be around a hot iron when it’s 38 degrees inside our apartment! Suddenly, I made the realization that “I” didn’t have to iron my own clothes. That could be the job of our house help! That’s one of the perks of living in Niger. We can actually afford to have a house help, and most expatriates do anyways. I don’t know how we could ever go back to cleaning our own place! Over the Christmas vacation we went back to cleaning our own apartment for two weeks since most of the time we were away traveling anyway. But things still get dirty, especially when you live in sandy Niger. Without a house help who was going to sweep all the dirt that accumulated and then wash the floor? Whose turn was it to clean the toilet and shower during these 2 weeks? Silence…hesitation…then I spoke up “Sure I’ll clean the house Tim, but how much are you going to pay me?”
Our daily chores often involve cooking the meals, sweeping up the sand that blows in through the windows, emptying the compost bucket into our compost pile, and washing dishes by hand. The dish water is never hot, but sometimes it might be lukewarm from being heated up by the afternoon sun. Having a life partner in this rural developing country where the pace of life is slower makes life a lot more exciting. I am very lucky to be married to a modern husband who joins me in the kitchen or who cooks up a delicious soup while I take a nap after a long day. He willingly helps around the house and washes the morning’s dishes so I come home to a clean kitchen (in exchange for a shoulder massage that night).
We use a gas stove/oven to cook, although heating up leftovers is a lot easier with the modern kitchen appliance called the microwave. It was apparently “almost brand new” when we bought it second-hand, but it is a much older and simpler model than we had in Canada. We also have a toaster, but we do miss our toaster oven.
Thank God we have an electric refrigerator, a brand new Eco-friendly one too! We certainly need it in this hot weather! A cold beverage with ice is much appreciated on a hot day. Tim has created several of his own tasty versions of iced tea. Sometimes he might brew a big pot of citrus tea with lemon. Other times he brews a mix of fruit teas and the flower of a native plant (called bissap or zima) which has a taste somewhat like that of cranberry juice. An inviting bowl of fresh fruit sitting out on the dining table just isn’t practical here in Niger. Fresh food goes bad in no time if it isn’t kept in the refrigerator. In the hottest of weather, bananas can’t stay out longer than a day or two before they have to be frozen or placed in the fridge. Unfortunately, an electric refrigerator isn’t very efficient when the power is cut for hours at a time!
Luckily, I don’t have to wash my clothes by hand (or very often that is) or use one of those old ringer washing machines I grew up with in Cameroon. We have an electric top-load washing machine conveniently placed in our bathroom. It’s an old clunker that makes a noisy racket and “jumps” around while on the spin cycle. Tim usually jams a chair in between the machine and the wall so that the machine won’t fall into the shower stall. The wash water is always “cold” since the sole hot water pipe goes to the shower and not to the washing machine. Whites never get perfectly white again, even with powerful detergent. Hanging the clothes on the line out back is the chore that sometimes makes me feel like a 1950s housewife…damp clothes on my shoulder, clothes pins in my hands and one in my mouth. All that is missing is a scarf on my head and a baby on my hip!
Grocery shopping, preparing food and cooking take a lot more time in Niger than they do in Canada. The first step is surviving the crowded market where I often buy fresh fruit, vegetables and eggs. It can be rather draining and frustrating to always have vendors and beggars flock around you even before you get out of your car! For a quieter shopping experience, I go to the Lebanese grocery store near our house which has a small market stall nearby. The second step is food preparation. The majority of our meals are made from fresh ingredients, except for canned goods. Processed food and imported packaged goods are highly taxed so we buy them only when we feel we need them. We bleach all our fruits and vegetables before eating or cooking them.
All our drinking water comes from a Katadyn water filter attached to the sink. The city water is drinkable, but it tends to have a high concentration of iron and other particulates in the pipes that aren’t good for the body over long periods of time, so we prefer drinking filtered water. We have learned to be patient with the filter as it often gets so clogged up with silt that water only comes out as a trickle. Tim faithfully scrubs the filter every week to keep the water flow at a decent rate. We keep several litres of water in our fridge or freezer since we probably go through about 3-5 litres of water a day! Stored water has come in handy a few times when water pressure to our upstairs apartment has been so low that we can’t get a drip from our tap for several hours! It’s a necessity of life here in the semi-desert to carry a bottle of ice-water wherever you go. I learned this lesson early-on after coming out of a 2-hour church service parched and feeling faint.
Making whole wheat muffins is an example of how complicated and challenging cooking can be here in Niger. First of all, I need to be sure I have all the ingredients. Eggs. Check that they are still good. If they float in bowl of water, they could have gone bad. Be cautious. Crack one egg at a time and double check the smell. Floating eggs may still be fine since the extreme heat here can dehydrate them quickly. Flour. White flour is easy to get, but I often like to make muffins that are half and half white and whole wheat flour. I can’t just go and find a package of whole wheat flour in the grocery store. No! I need to go to the market, ask directions to the area where grains and dried legumes are sold, and buy a heaping bowl of wheat. Processing isn’t included. Next, I must wash the wheat numerous times in a strainer to remove the dirt, bits of sticks and grass, other seeds and even pebbles! Then I need to lay it out in the sun, or in the oven, to dry. When the wheat is dry, I need to bring it to a grain mill in the market to grind it into flour. Afterwards, I sift the flour just to be sure all the pebbles are out, those that weren’t ground into dust in the mill. Finally, I have flour to make my muffins! But that’s not all…whole wheat flour tends to go rancid in the heat, and also attract insects unless it is kept in the freezer. Just one more thing that needs to find a place in the freezer.
It was my mom who passed on to me a love of cooking and baking. I’m no restaurant chef, as Tim can certainly attest to, but my meals are tasty and healthy. When the creative juices are stirring on a lazy Saturday morning, I like to cook/bake or try my hand at making new things. My first attempt at making a batch of yogourt was botched – I misread the recipe and added too much liquid for the amount of milk powder and starter. The second time, it turned out just right! Now Tim and I are enjoying yogourt on fresh fruit and cereal and in smoothies.
There are a number of affordable restaurants in Niamey with good food. Tim and I often frequent the Lebanese restaurant or the two Chinese restaurants all located in our neighbourhood. Be prepared to wait a bit. It’s normal to have to wait an hour for your food, and these aren’t even high-end European restaurants either! They tend to make food on an “as requested” basis. I often wonder if they need to go and catch the chicken first, then kill it, remove the feathers and then cook it! One time, one of the cooks came out of the kitchen in a panic. They had just run out of gas for the stove and they had to go find a replacement bottle. Tim and I have learned to entertain ourselves (e.g. card games, conversation, and reading materials) while waiting for food to arrive. If we’re hungry and feel like a quick and simple meal, we drive to our favorite Senegalese restaurant near the market. The menu is simple: your choice of sauce (meat, peanut, or vegetable) on rice. It’s served in a matter of minutes. We find the food tasty, filling and very affordable (a large plate of rice, meat sauce and a bottle of pop for only about 3 dollars)!
Besides cleaning the bathroom, one chore I hate doing is ironing. At one point, Tim and I were ironing almost all of our laundry to be certain no insects had laid their eggs in our clothes. Later, we learned from other missionaries that this precautionary measure is not needed here in such a hot and dry climate. Still, I have no patience when it comes to removing all the wrinkles from my cotton or rayon dresses and skirts. Nor do I want to be around a hot iron when it’s 38 degrees inside our apartment! Suddenly, I made the realization that “I” didn’t have to iron my own clothes. That could be the job of our house help! That’s one of the perks of living in Niger. We can actually afford to have a house help, and most expatriates do anyways. I don’t know how we could ever go back to cleaning our own place! Over the Christmas vacation we went back to cleaning our own apartment for two weeks since most of the time we were away traveling anyway. But things still get dirty, especially when you live in sandy Niger. Without a house help who was going to sweep all the dirt that accumulated and then wash the floor? Whose turn was it to clean the toilet and shower during these 2 weeks? Silence…hesitation…then I spoke up “Sure I’ll clean the house Tim, but how much are you going to pay me?”
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Our Trip to Cameroon Over Easter
“Planes, Trains, Automobiles, Buses, Taxis, and Motorcycles…
CAMEROON!! (or Cameroun as they say in French).
March 15 – 29, 2008
Getting ready to go
It was hard for me to believe that this dream was finally a reality – we were actually on our way to
Now I was going to visit
The Incredible Journey :-)
Traveling itself was quite a ride as well, here's all the places we visited: Cotonou & Grand Popo (Benin); and in Cameroon: Douala, Yaounde, N'Gaoundere, Meiganga, and Garoua-Boulai.
Time was rather tight throughout our entire vacation, but we had a great 2 weeks none-the-less. Tim was delayed by 4 days coming back from
We took a day of R & R at the beach in Grand Popo Benin to recover from the long bus ride. Ah – jumping in the ocean waves, so nice!
Photo of the fishing boat we saw regularly at the beach, the "Philosopher's boat" with wise sayings on the side.
Then we drove back to
Our first impressions flying over
We were greeted in
Yaoundé the capital!
On our way out of
The curvy, uphill road was paved from the coast to the capital city, Yaoundé, located at high altitude, surrounded by beautiful hills and having a very pleasant climate. Along the way, we passed by small farms, lush forest and rusted out car wrecks at what seemed like break-neck speed.
We were met at the Yaoundé bus station by Pastor Samuel Frouisou, a (tall!) man who spent a week at our place in Ottawa a number of years ago. See photo at left. He took us to his office, located conveniently a 5-min walk to the train station, where we dropped our bags. Then we spent almost an hour waiting in line to get a train ticket for the evening train. We were only able to get 2 seats in first class rather than a double sleeper car. (Once we were on the train, we were able to upgrade to a 4-person sleeper.)
Pastor Frouisou arranged for a driver to take us around Yaoundé during the afternoon. Issa took us up
Yaounde is on a plateau and is mountainous, making for a great climate!The presidential palace was nearby, and an expensive-looking golf course was directly below us. Rainy season had already started a couple weeks earlier than normal in the south of
From Yaounde we took the overnight train to N'Gaoundere in the north, 16 hours train each way.
We sat in our assigned seats in first class until sometime after the train started moving (after an hour delay). First class was okay with its padded seats, but it was run down and dirty. If this is 1st class, I wonder what economy class is like! We were entertained (annoyed) by traveling salesmen who were selling everything from ginseng miracle products, to magazines, CDs and snacks/drinks. Luckily, we were able to move to a quieter 4-person sleeper early on in the trip. Horizontal sleep was much appreciated, even if the cabin was rather stuffy.
It was fun being a kid again and sleeping on the top bunk, but eating meals from a tray and drinking tea was a bit of a challenge! I wasn’t too impressed with the bathrooms on the trains. Stinky. Sticky. Smelly. We were a little more comfortable on our return trip a week later. We were able to reserve a 2-person sleeper which had its own sink and running water (although still not drinkable). Unfortunately, I still had to deal with stinky toilets!
One thing I enjoyed about the 16-hour train ride was watching the changing geography: from lush rainforests to grassy savanna pocketed by forested river valleys. The grasslands we passed looked so much like a wildlife reserve that we half expected to see antelopes or lions and giraffes in the distance! No such luck. Furthermore, Tim and I were rather surprised to see so much grassy bush land yet very little livestock grazing on the abundant grass. In
I also enjoyed watching the vendors at the various stops along the way selling food through the windows to passengers. It appears that the entire community comes out to watch when the train passes through town! It’s great business for them. You could buy water, bananas, mangoes, pineapples, peanuts, roasted pumpkin seeds, mandarins, doughnut holes (beignets), wild honey in bottles, dried fish, baguettes, ground fish wrapped in banana leaves (pistache) and cassava starch wrapped in banana leaves (baton de manioc). Men, women and children learn early on how to balance a load on their heads. One little girl amazed me at how she was able to balance a 1 ½ litre bottle of water perfectly on her head!
Bottle, Bottle!
One picture will forever remain etched in my mind. As the train slowed down to approach villages, we could see children from our window children who were running exciting alongside the train yelling “bouteille” (bottle) or “Tangui vides”. They were asking for passengers to throw them their empty plastic water bottles. You could see from their faces that it was a thrill to have someone chuck a bottle their way, like receiving a gift. Empty bottles are valuable in
Familiar Faces and Places
I could tell we had arrived at the outskirts of N’Gaoundéré when I saw the familiar chain of hills and one hill in particular with a large rock balanced on top that gives the town its name. 
In the local language, N’Gaoundéré means “Belly button” because the chain of hills looks like a person lying on their back with an “outy” bellybutton protruding from their stomach.
This photo with the moon taken where we attended a Easter morning sunrise church service with the English Cameroon church there.
Jim Noss met us at the station and drove us to the mission station where we met his wife, Karen. Jim and Karen are long time missionary friends of our family who will be retiring this summer. Karen, our amazing hostess, set us up in a comfortable guesthouse just next door and served us most of our evening meals.
It was fun telling stories around the dinner table of our years together in
We spent 5 days in N’Gaoundéré. Tim and I visited two families who were friends of my family (Salatou Paul, Etienne and Jeanne Fomgbami). One afternoon, we went exploring the paths behind the station which led us past people’s vegetable fields and several active soccer games. We also went hiking in the hills behind the station with some of the doctors (Tim and Wen Bartholomew) and medical students who were living there.
Photo of us from up top of Ngoundere mountain, with the town in the background.
One of the "cool" adventures we had was visiting and jumping into the crater lake. On Saturday, a number of us drove out to the large, deep crater lake called Lac Mbalang where the Norwegian missionaries have a little cottage for a picnic. 
As a kid, I remember swimming from a raft in the middle of this lake on special outings. Tim and I joined Jim and two others (Dr. Jim and Marianne Menges) on a hike around the rim of the lake.
I couldn’t resist the cool, blue water. So we took a motor boat out to the middle of the lake for a swim. Refreshing! I felt like I was back in
And guavas too! Christine could not resist, Tim caught her in the act...
Easter morning found us at the base of “
English-speaking Lutheran congregation (FYI, Joseph Barya is the pastor at the moment). Photo of Christine sitting with the congregation at the outdoor service.
Later that day, Tim and I climbed and conquered “Bellybutton Mountain” to gain a beautiful view. Sunday evening, we attended a concert of the high school choir “Gospel Singers” at the new church.
I’m Home!
Monday morning, Tim and I drove the 300 or so kilometers to my hometown of Garoua-Boulai (GB).
A missionary family needed us to drive their truck down to GB so that saved us having to take a public bus. We left at 7:30am, had a 2 ½ hour stop at Meiganga to visit my friend and didn’t arrive in GB until 5:30pm! The roads were pretty rough all the way: very bad potholes from N’Gaoundéré to Meiganga, none-stop washboards from Meiganga to GB. Although many vehicles chose to pass us along the way, Tim drove carefully, for which I am very thankful.
We were fortunate to be offered a truck to drive; unfortunate to get a flat tire! Tim was covered in red dirt after changing the tire. It gets everywhere!
In Meiganga, we visited my best childhood friend, Anne Yadji, and her family.
Life is difficult in
Excitement was mounting in me as we got closer to my hometown. When we crossed the
Photo of us below on a bridge over the Lom river. It's tropical th
ere!It had been cloudy and threatening rain all day, and was starting to rain when we arrived.
At GB, we settled into our guesthouse (which we shared with the noisy bats in the attic) and then headed over to have supper with Dr. Solofou and his wife Joely. Gado, another childhood friend, also joined us for supper.
Walking back to our guesthouse that evening, I felt like I had never left
In the daylight, I noticed that some trees that I had remembered so well were now gone, but most were just taller and showing their age.
The avocado tree that Glenn planted from a seed was still beside our house (photo below). Alas - the tree is too big for the photo!
The 
frangipani trees were blooming. The bark looked well-loved from years of kids climbing on their branches. My favourite guava trees behind the dorm had long ago been cut down. Gado helped Tim and me find the only remaining rubber tree planted on the station where we kids used to gather the sap to make little bouncy rubber balls. The towering kapok tree that used to be at the centre of the station had been cut down since it was dangerously close to several houses. Fortunately, there still remains one healthy kapok tree with fruit pods that will provide cotton fuzz and little wooden boats for kids to play with for years to come. :-)
It was a rather sad for me to notice many of the buildings on the station looking more run down than I had remembered them. It felt rather empty, not like I remembered when the station was bustling with missionary activity. It’s harder to keep things maintained now that the local church has been handed over that responsibility due to fewer missionaries in recent years. Our house where we lived for so many years is showing its age, but at least it’s still standing firm. I was happy, though, to see that my 4-room school, which was closed about 10 years ago, is now being used by the
Our time in GB was way too short. We caught a ride back to N’Gaoundéré that afternoon with Dr. Salofou and his wife who were planning on going to the city for business. Tim and I had only the morning to walk around, take pictures, and meet friends who knew me or my family. Gado was our “guide” and “interpreter” of memories.
We met his older sister, Ina, in the market and he introduced us to many others like Pauline, who babysat Glenn and me and had many funny stories to tell. He also brought us to his house and showed us the dirt mounds where family members were buried. Just this past January, his youngest baby daughter, Christine, (named after me) died from eating improperly prepared cassava that still had traces of cyanide in it (normally found in the variety of cassava grown in this region but removed through soaking the root in water for a few days). Disease, poor nutrition, AIDS and death are so familiar to many in
The Hospital
Dr. Salofou gave us a nice tour of the hospital where my father worked for many years and where I was born! Photo of Christine and Gado (Glenn's friend) in the Lutheran mission hospital, standing by the mural painting, painted by an anthropologist in 1980 when they were kids.
There were only 2 older nurses’ aides who had known and worked with my dad. Dad sure left such a wonderful legacy and witness of Christ’s love! I felt honoured to have such a rich heritage. Everywhere we went, whether in the hospital or the market, people remembered my father’s name. Some Fulani women were sitting in the maternity hall, and when they heard that I was Dr. Jacobsen’s daughter, their ears perked up and they started chatting amongst themselves and smiling at me. Insufficient funding is making it hard for the church-run hospital to provide the quality of care that used to be available.
The orphanage is now being used as a nutrition centre where severely malnourished children and adults live for a month and are provided a special diet and basic classes in nutrition. Since GB is a boarder town, it has received many refugees from neighbouring
Changes
Much has changed in the 24 years since I lived in Garoua-Boulai. It is no longer a little town of 10 000, but has expanded in all directions. The main road running through town is now paved and runs all the way to the next biggest town of
Return to Reality
The 3-day return trip to
Our two week vacation went by too fast. The time was too short to spend very long with any one person or family. Although I didn't feel like I came with much to offer or many material gifts, people thanked me over and over again for the gift of friendship that our family had maintained over the years. Their words to us were “Thank you for remembering us here in
Favourite Food:
Plantain everywhere! One of our first snacks in
Food for the Adventurous:
In Yaoundé, while waiting for Pastor Frouisou, we had a late breakfast/brunch at a little kiosk at the side of the road. Fish in tomato sauce (with the head still on) and bread for dipping. Now doesn’t that sound appetizing?
On the way back Tim ate a hot plate of crocodile! There are very unusual bones in a plate of crocodile. Tasty and worth trying again!
On the train to N’Gaoundéré, I was looking for something to eat with our baguette. I asked a vendor from the train window about a little package wrapped in banana leaves. It looked like something I had eaten as a kid. I was hoping it was pound cassava leaves with spices. He called it “pistache”. Hmmm. Sounds kind of like pistachios. “Should be good,” I thought. Well, it ended up being fish pate with bones and all. Even though Tim and I enjoy eating fish, one bite of this was enough for both of us!
Lessons learned:
In
It’s good to check your tires often while driving.
Meiganga does not have tonic soda.
What to do? No Public Phone Booths.
No need to have public phone booths when you have “call boxes” at almost every street corner. A call box is a small open booth/kiosk where you can borrow a cell phone to make a call for a small fee. You can even find call boxes in small towns since many places now have cell phone reception.
Favourite Roadside Attraction:
Little knee-high mud termite mounds in the shape of toad stools. Cute! You could see large “cities” of these toad stool homes in the fields at the side of the road. Some of the termite mounds had 2 “mushroom caps” on one stalk: maybe an upstairs suite for the in-laws! J
Talking about mushroom caps, the rainy season happens to be the start of mushroom picking season. As we were driving to and from GB, we passed by a couple roadside kiosks where they were selling large mushroom caps the side of a dinner plate! And when you buy the monstrous mushroom, you don’t just get the top, you also get a foot or more of the root! Imagine how many omelets or bowls of soup you could make with it!
Faces I will Never Forget:
Word got out quickly that Dr. Jacobsen’s daughter was in town. On our last day in N’Gaoundéré, a Fulani woman named Mariama came looking for me. Her face and arms were all covered in scars, but she beamed with joy and hugged me like a long lost daughter. She told me her story. Many years ago she had fallen into the fire and had received severe burns all over her body. She was brought to the GB hospital where my father treated her and gave her skin grafts to cover the opened wounds. She was now completely healed, and even more exciting was that she had found Jesus as her Healer and Saviour. She had made the big jump from Islam and was beaming with an indescribable joy. Before we departed, she took my hands in hers and prayed a passionate prayer.
Planes, Trains, Buses, Motorcycles, and Trucks!
- Flying 3 hours; Waiting in airports: 11 hours
- bus: 45 hours
- Train:32 hours
- Truck: 13 hours (8 driving); Motorcycle: 1 hour
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)