Happy New Year from Rawfi!
2007 has been kind to me so far. I find myself in the capital (Niamey) on a short weekend break from my new duties as a Peace Corps Trainer. A new group of 37 volunteers has arrived to Niger and I've been assigned to helping them get acclimatized. So for the past week it's been cafeteria, electricity, and running water - with a heavy dose of naive questions. Getting coddled at the training site has its perks.
It was a year ago that I arrived here, and it's a TRIP to come back to Hamdallaye (the training site) with the new volunteers. It actually felt strange (the first night they all arrived) to be hanging out with Americans who haven't been living in Niger. Their eyes, their humor, and their energy all felt foreign to me. The old cliche of having come full circle applies rather nicely here.
I got to spend most of December out in my little Hausa village. And since December really brings in the cold-season it was heavenly out there. The garden I've been working on with the women's groups is doing really well. We've got a ton of cabbage, onions, and carrots. By the time I return to Rawfi most of the plants will have be transplanted from their seed beds to the field.
I felt like my language skills really improved in December. Spending extended periods of time out there I really get integrated into the village - and it's language. Whereas I would get tired earlier on trying to keep up with the conversations around me, it's much easier to follow what people are saying. And as a result, I can socialize longer without getting tired. It took about a year, but I really feel comfortable speaking Hausa now. (It feels amazing to write that down.)
Christmas was spent out in Zinder with my friends in the Peace Corps. And while I was missing Vermont and my family, we did have a nice pot-luck on Christmas day. After returning to Konni I spent New Year's Day out in Rawfi. The Muslim holiday of Tabaski (Eid ul-Adha in Arabic) was celebrated right around New Year's Day so I got to attend the prayer service at our outdoor mosque. It was actually really cold and windy that morning, and visibility was at a minimum due to all the dust and sand in the air. The above picture was taken the morning of Tabaski - I got all dressed up in local clothes for the holiday. The village chief is right behind me in the photo. People who can afford to slaughter livestock, typically sheep, on Tabaski. So as we slumbered and talked on mats all day, we ate fresh meat and drank strong green tea.
Shortly after the New Year I came to Niamey for a training on "how to train trainees". And now I find myself in the midst of that training. I'll be spending 5 more days with the group before I return to Konni. So the plan is to fatten up on the cafeteria food as much as possible and then hibernate in my village for a while. It will be really nice to get back to Rawfi, where the pace of life is at a standstill compared to Niamey.
It was a year ago that I arrived here, and it's a TRIP to come back to Hamdallaye (the training site) with the new volunteers. It actually felt strange (the first night they all arrived) to be hanging out with Americans who haven't been living in Niger. Their eyes, their humor, and their energy all felt foreign to me. The old cliche of having come full circle applies rather nicely here.
I got to spend most of December out in my little Hausa village. And since December really brings in the cold-season it was heavenly out there. The garden I've been working on with the women's groups is doing really well. We've got a ton of cabbage, onions, and carrots. By the time I return to Rawfi most of the plants will have be transplanted from their seed beds to the field.
I felt like my language skills really improved in December. Spending extended periods of time out there I really get integrated into the village - and it's language. Whereas I would get tired earlier on trying to keep up with the conversations around me, it's much easier to follow what people are saying. And as a result, I can socialize longer without getting tired. It took about a year, but I really feel comfortable speaking Hausa now. (It feels amazing to write that down.)
Christmas was spent out in Zinder with my friends in the Peace Corps. And while I was missing Vermont and my family, we did have a nice pot-luck on Christmas day. After returning to Konni I spent New Year's Day out in Rawfi. The Muslim holiday of Tabaski (Eid ul-Adha in Arabic) was celebrated right around New Year's Day so I got to attend the prayer service at our outdoor mosque. It was actually really cold and windy that morning, and visibility was at a minimum due to all the dust and sand in the air. The above picture was taken the morning of Tabaski - I got all dressed up in local clothes for the holiday. The village chief is right behind me in the photo. People who can afford to slaughter livestock, typically sheep, on Tabaski. So as we slumbered and talked on mats all day, we ate fresh meat and drank strong green tea.
Shortly after the New Year I came to Niamey for a training on "how to train trainees". And now I find myself in the midst of that training. I'll be spending 5 more days with the group before I return to Konni. So the plan is to fatten up on the cafeteria food as much as possible and then hibernate in my village for a while. It will be really nice to get back to Rawfi, where the pace of life is at a standstill compared to Niamey.
ON TO THE PHOTOS!
Sorry about the angle. Here's Rawfi's imam giving the Tabaski prayer.
Say hello to the chief's new baby. I gave her the name Emily, and it has actually stuck! Believe it or not Emily sounds like a Hausa word so it bridged the language gap pretty well.
A local Hausa girl in a neighbouring village. This was taken at a traditional wrestling match - a big sport in the Nigerien bush.
The Band, who kept the wrestling match hopping.
The chief and I on Tabaski.
Rawfi's friday mosque. (Friday's the Muslim holy day. And this mosque, by far the largest in Rawfi, is used for the Friday service.)
Niger's not all fun and play (wink): A couple of weeks ago some friends and I toured the local beer factory (Biere Niger). We soon found out Yousef the tour-guide loves drinking while giving the tour. And we also discovered a free and steady source of unfiltered, fresh Biere Niger coming out of a hose in the room pictured above. It was nothing short of a small miracle.
2 comments:
Matthew,
Love your new blog addition and thanks for the larger photos. They have a lot more detail.
Your birthday is coming up next week. Wishing you a happy and healthy 25th. See you in April.
Dad
Hi Matthew,
You look so handsome in your new robe. It makes me think of Crosby, Stills, & Nash singing "striped djellabas we can wear at home" from The Marrakesh Express song.
Congrats on becoming a Peace Corp Trainer - that's quite an honor.
Happy Birthday on Sunday!
Love,
Mom
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