I'm doing well over here, forced to get into a bit more of a schedule with class and work and structure, but for the most part my life is going very well. The food is very basic, like normal, but for some off reason I have definitely not lost weight. A standard diet of rice, sugar, bread, butter and ketchup with bananas and cucumbers. Sounds delicious, doesn't it?
The 14 other students (in my group) are absolutely wonderful and Nick (program director) is rather swank himself. We all get along miraculously well (is that possible?). The work is good, a lot of reading which I am doing (surprise!), interspersed with hearty discussions and interesting tangents. In our free time we all jam and make all kinds of art together. Amongst the group we have yoga instructurs, wine drinkers, guitarists, #1 old-time banjo player in Florida, painters, drummers, dancers and watchers. Music and art are all over--many people brought instruments and there are plenty of drums and koras around for those of us that don't have anything. the house is always pretty lively! We spend a lot of time on the roof, which overlooks Bamako (the capital city). Our house is located at the foot of a small mountain (more like a big hill) that affords an even better view of the city and the surroundings. The area is pretty pretty from up above; on the street life is exciting but pretty polluted (think serious exhaust and not great sewage and no trash cans). At night there are enough lights to make for a beautiful view of the surrounding area but not too much to pollute some seriously intense stargazing. Sometimes we (me and others in the group) do a bit of yoga on the roof before a glass of cheap, not-so-great red wine and gaze out into the wild world of West Africa.
During the day we have language class in the AM (I take Bamana, the local language, with a few others while everyone else works on their French), followed by lunch and then the afternoon lecture/seminar arts and culture class. The class is pretty interesting, and a few students present the assigned articles each day followed by a joint lecture by Nick and Sekou (lecturer/translator--into english/french--for researchers). Sometimes we have afternoon activities (dance class, museum trip...) or we have free time.
Meals are cooked nearby and delivered. We all eat together and clean-up duties are divided up each day. The house we are all residing in belongs to Sedou Coulibaly, who is a Malian man, married to an American woman. He teaches West African drum and dance and culture at Brown University but he is back here, helping Nick with some technical details of the program. He is creating the space for future groups to be able to come and do similar projects and spend time in Mali.
20 September 2007
There are a lot of annoying people here that pretend to be very friendly and stop tubabus (white people/gringos/muzungus) on the street and try to be friends and talk with us and what not, but most have ulterior motives (selling drugs--i am a "rasta", selling drums, food, tours, CD's....). there is one malian man in particular who is very not like this. he is my Bamana (local language) teacher and we have this very quirky, joking relationship. he's very bright and a quick thinker. I was talking about how I don't like children and explaining in frambana (a mix of Français and Bamana) about how I worked in Israel as an aupair. He quickly asked me if I knew about the lost jews in Mali. I perked up and said, "do you mean Uganda?" He replied with a smart, "Non ma amie (no my friend), if I meant Uganda I would have said that. There are a lot of Jews in Timbuktu (Northern mali)!" He told me all about his trip with the Klein and Berkson (sounds jewish, eh?) families to Northern Mali to meet these jewish communities.
I smiled.
There was no more to the story besides the part where he mentioned that they come from Washington DC and will be playing at this years music festival (which I will be attending with ma famille)!
I smiled.
There was no more to the story besides the part where he mentioned that they come from Washington DC and will be playing at this years music festival (which I will be attending with ma famille)!
16 September 2007
10 September 2007
description and fotos
hello. so its raining a lot here in bamako..contrary to popular belief not all of mali is total desert (yes, the sand kind, not the after-dinner kind).
all i have to communicate is that today on the bus the man who takes the money had to take his shirt off and wipe the window clean (broken wipers) when it was raining while the bus was moving, by hanging out of the "door" (there is no actual door, its just an opening.
its hard for me to explain this in terms that i think will be understood. does that mean that this place is so different (yet equally amazing and wild) from home that i dont think i can really explain it to people who haven't been here??
oh well, enough deep thoughts.
im posting pictures check out: http://www.avivalaloca.smugmug.com/AFRICA
i played drums today, it was so inspiring and refreshing.
sitting in the courtyard at lunch with a guy playing a drum like a doon-doon and an awesome girl playing balafones (debby!!! i talked about and your gamalon work at wesleyan, where nick is doing his PhD)...jamming together in the strong sun before lunch and lecture.
happy monday to all
all i have to communicate is that today on the bus the man who takes the money had to take his shirt off and wipe the window clean (broken wipers) when it was raining while the bus was moving, by hanging out of the "door" (there is no actual door, its just an opening.
its hard for me to explain this in terms that i think will be understood. does that mean that this place is so different (yet equally amazing and wild) from home that i dont think i can really explain it to people who haven't been here??
oh well, enough deep thoughts.
im posting pictures check out: http://www.avivalaloca.smugmug.com/AFRICA
i played drums today, it was so inspiring and refreshing.
sitting in the courtyard at lunch with a guy playing a drum like a doon-doon and an awesome girl playing balafones (debby!!! i talked about and your gamalon work at wesleyan, where nick is doing his PhD)...jamming together in the strong sun before lunch and lecture.
happy monday to all
08 September 2007
order...
sorry the last posts had some problems because the internet connection died partway through so i didnt get to check them all out.
to read the "story" correctly the trip went like this:
namibia, botswana, south africa, swaziland, moçambique, south africa
now i am in mali. i will write about that soon, i promise/hope.
to read the "story" correctly the trip went like this:
namibia, botswana, south africa, swaziland, moçambique, south africa
now i am in mali. i will write about that soon, i promise/hope.
swazi and south africa
Swaziland
After tough days in Jo’burg we headed through Swaziland, one of the 2 little countries “in” South Africa. Swaziland is run by a king, who has many wives. Every year (in late august) there is a reed dance where many virgin (young) women dance and parade in front of the king, before he picks his next wife. That’s about all most people know Swaziland for, but they are missing out on the wonderful parts…a very relaxed lifestyle, much less racial tension, beautiful hills/mountains, cool crisp, fresh air and wonderful, friendly, helpful people. Yes, Swazi has a ridiculously high HIV/AIDS rate and other similar problems, but it’s still an awesome place for some R&R and a change from the tense air in SA. We spent 2 days there just hiking, swimming in mineral pools and having BBQ’s. I met Chantel, a Canadian, at the hostel we were staying at and then met up again with her in Cape Town.
South Africa
On Wednesday, August 15 we arrived in Johannesburg, affectionately known as “the worst of SA (South Africa).” We went straight to our hostel and set up camp, before the extreme cold wind gust of winter (“near” Antarctica) hit us and we froze ourselves to sleep—no heat, just a blanket and mine had holes.
I had a very hard time in South Africa, similar to some of what I felt in Rwanda. Both places are countries that are just beginning to clean up after huge ethnic/racial divisions that only “ended” 14 years ago. I felt this a lot walking/driving around Jo’burg; you see white people driving their huge, fancy cars and non-white (black, colored) people walking and riding public transport. The division is so apparent; white people live in the suburbs in huge, extremely guarded/gated houses and everyone else lives in metal boxes/tin shacks with no running water or electricity. Every restaurant/business (that I observed) is owned by white people, and then black/colored people work there. For me, it was very hard to deal with this and see it. I was left feeling guilty for being white (although not South African) and didn’t feel comfortable. On a personal level, people from all “groups” were friendly, welcoming and helpful and I had interesting conversations with all different people, but as an outsider/observer I felt personally guilty for what white people (Dutch and English) have done. These feelings were only reinforced by visits to Constitution Hall and the prisons where black and colored people (think: Nelson Mandela) were imprisoned during apartheid. The conditions of the prisons and the information and stories in the museum are despicable. The “food” they were served, the treatment, the living conditions…I could go on for pages about what they were like. The next day we went to the apartheid museum, which also reinforced my disgust for white supremacy and racism.
After tough days in Jo’burg we headed through Swaziland, one of the 2 little countries “in” South Africa. Swaziland is run by a king, who has many wives. Every year (in late august) there is a reed dance where many virgin (young) women dance and parade in front of the king, before he picks his next wife. That’s about all most people know Swaziland for, but they are missing out on the wonderful parts…a very relaxed lifestyle, much less racial tension, beautiful hills/mountains, cool crisp, fresh air and wonderful, friendly, helpful people. Yes, Swazi has a ridiculously high HIV/AIDS rate and other similar problems, but it’s still an awesome place for some R&R and a change from the tense air in SA. We spent 2 days there just hiking, swimming in mineral pools and having BBQ’s. I met Chantel, a Canadian, at the hostel we were staying at and then met up again with her in Cape Town.
South Africa
On Wednesday, August 15 we arrived in Johannesburg, affectionately known as “the worst of SA (South Africa).” We went straight to our hostel and set up camp, before the extreme cold wind gust of winter (“near” Antarctica) hit us and we froze ourselves to sleep—no heat, just a blanket and mine had holes.
I had a very hard time in South Africa, similar to some of what I felt in Rwanda. Both places are countries that are just beginning to clean up after huge ethnic/racial divisions that only “ended” 14 years ago. I felt this a lot walking/driving around Jo’burg; you see white people driving their huge, fancy cars and non-white (black, colored) people walking and riding public transport. The division is so apparent; white people live in the suburbs in huge, extremely guarded/gated houses and everyone else lives in metal boxes/tin shacks with no running water or electricity. Every restaurant/business (that I observed) is owned by white people, and then black/colored people work there. For me, it was very hard to deal with this and see it. I was left feeling guilty for being white (although not South African) and didn’t feel comfortable. On a personal level, people from all “groups” were friendly, welcoming and helpful and I had interesting conversations with all different people, but as an outsider/observer I felt personally guilty for what white people (Dutch and English) have done. These feelings were only reinforced by visits to Constitution Hall and the prisons where black and colored people (think: Nelson Mandela) were imprisoned during apartheid. The conditions of the prisons and the information and stories in the museum are despicable. The “food” they were served, the treatment, the living conditions…I could go on for pages about what they were like. The next day we went to the apartheid museum, which also reinforced my disgust for white supremacy and racism.
MOçAMBIQUE!!!!!
Moçambique
Ayy, eu podia falar português e tambem havia algums cariocas (people from Rio) em nossa albergue! Finally, I found lusophone Africa and I was ecstatic from the minute we arrived at the border. We spent 5 nights in Maputo with the group, working with the CNJ (centro nacional juventude- youth center). The CNJ is a government sponsored program that works with the youth and provides training for job skills and many other opportunities. We had various meetings with different youth groups and the week ended with a big conference/banquet where we divided into groups (art, communication, social development) and made connections that could potentially turn into cultural exchanges and cross-cultural projects. I didn’t participate that much in the conversations because I was the only member from our group who spoke Portuguese, so I spent the majority of the time translating, but very much enjoyed it. I quickly learned/acknowledged how challenging and tiring it is to be a translator! My Portuguese to English was fine, but English to Portuguese was quite a challenge.
The group left Moz on Saturday, August 25 heading back to Jo’burg for their flight and I headed up the coast about 7 hours for some last minute sun and beach and total relaxation. I didn’t find all of that, but nevertheless enjoyed my time on the beach under the clouds. The sun was nowhere to be found, however, I met up with a wonderful French guy, another hilarious South African/German and 2 Americans and we agreed to not let ourselves be annoyed by the weather situation.
Ayy, eu podia falar português e tambem havia algums cariocas (people from Rio) em nossa albergue! Finally, I found lusophone Africa and I was ecstatic from the minute we arrived at the border. We spent 5 nights in Maputo with the group, working with the CNJ (centro nacional juventude- youth center). The CNJ is a government sponsored program that works with the youth and provides training for job skills and many other opportunities. We had various meetings with different youth groups and the week ended with a big conference/banquet where we divided into groups (art, communication, social development) and made connections that could potentially turn into cultural exchanges and cross-cultural projects. I didn’t participate that much in the conversations because I was the only member from our group who spoke Portuguese, so I spent the majority of the time translating, but very much enjoyed it. I quickly learned/acknowledged how challenging and tiring it is to be a translator! My Portuguese to English was fine, but English to Portuguese was quite a challenge.
The group left Moz on Saturday, August 25 heading back to Jo’burg for their flight and I headed up the coast about 7 hours for some last minute sun and beach and total relaxation. I didn’t find all of that, but nevertheless enjoyed my time on the beach under the clouds. The sun was nowhere to be found, however, I met up with a wonderful French guy, another hilarious South African/German and 2 Americans and we agreed to not let ourselves be annoyed by the weather situation.
south africa (a bit)
South Africa
Wednesday, August 29 I took an overnight bus from Maputo to Jo’burg and then went straight to the airport with a very nice born-again Christian man who I met on the bus. I flew to Cape Town, and left the airport, hoping to find a ride to town…met up with a south African dude who was in the navy and then quit but got a job working as a dive instructor in Saudi Arabia. He just arrived in Cape Town for 2 weeks of holiday and his friend picked him (and me) up and we hung out with some of his friends at the navy base, drank condensed milk and played a traditional board game.
I will write the rest of South Africa later, must sleep now.
Wednesday, August 29 I took an overnight bus from Maputo to Jo’burg and then went straight to the airport with a very nice born-again Christian man who I met on the bus. I flew to Cape Town, and left the airport, hoping to find a ride to town…met up with a south African dude who was in the navy and then quit but got a job working as a dive instructor in Saudi Arabia. He just arrived in Cape Town for 2 weeks of holiday and his friend picked him (and me) up and we hung out with some of his friends at the navy base, drank condensed milk and played a traditional board game.
I will write the rest of South Africa later, must sleep now.
WOW!
A long time since writing, and I’ve been up to a LOT; so much that I’ll divide the posts up by country.
Namibia and Botswana
I wrote last when I was in Zambia, and all about Vic falls. Well, the next day (Sunday) I left Zambia, a bit frantic and scattered. I arrived at the post office/bus station and decided that I would stop people driving and ask for rides (hitching is very common in Southern Africa…lots of people rent cars and drive everywhere), or take the first bus heading anywhere. I sat down, and was greeted by two german girls; they invited me to go to Windhoek, Namibia with them. The bus arrived about 20 minutes later and I was off.
The next morning (Monday, August 13) I arrived in Windhoek at about 5.30 am. They lent me 5 Namibian $ (about 80¢) and told me to stay at a hostel called “The Cardboard Box.” We had plans to meet later that night to see Shrek III, but that changed.
I arrived at the hostel and sat on the couch, next to an older man and three other younger people. I started talking to them (rather groggy and slightly out of it, from the long, 15ish hour, ride) and they invited me to join them. I will refer to them as “the group.” The group is a group of 40 Americans who are traveling under the guidance of Prexy (the older man on the couch), who is a teacher of Southern African politics pre and post colonialization. He was very impressed with my português skills (he worked with Frelimo in Moçambique for a long time!). He, and everyone else is from Chicago, or has some connection to Chicago.
About three hours after arriving in Namibia I was on my way out, riding on a luxury coach! We spent the first days driving: one night in Ghanzi, Botswana and the next night in Gaborone (the capital). Saw lots of nice roads and amazing street lights and gas stations that had mini-marts and one sold cheetos. I was in huge shock, but loving every minute of it. Big countries, but I didn’t see anything besides the beautiful paved, lined roads.
Namibia and Botswana
I wrote last when I was in Zambia, and all about Vic falls. Well, the next day (Sunday) I left Zambia, a bit frantic and scattered. I arrived at the post office/bus station and decided that I would stop people driving and ask for rides (hitching is very common in Southern Africa…lots of people rent cars and drive everywhere), or take the first bus heading anywhere. I sat down, and was greeted by two german girls; they invited me to go to Windhoek, Namibia with them. The bus arrived about 20 minutes later and I was off.
The next morning (Monday, August 13) I arrived in Windhoek at about 5.30 am. They lent me 5 Namibian $ (about 80¢) and told me to stay at a hostel called “The Cardboard Box.” We had plans to meet later that night to see Shrek III, but that changed.
I arrived at the hostel and sat on the couch, next to an older man and three other younger people. I started talking to them (rather groggy and slightly out of it, from the long, 15ish hour, ride) and they invited me to join them. I will refer to them as “the group.” The group is a group of 40 Americans who are traveling under the guidance of Prexy (the older man on the couch), who is a teacher of Southern African politics pre and post colonialization. He was very impressed with my português skills (he worked with Frelimo in Moçambique for a long time!). He, and everyone else is from Chicago, or has some connection to Chicago.
About three hours after arriving in Namibia I was on my way out, riding on a luxury coach! We spent the first days driving: one night in Ghanzi, Botswana and the next night in Gaborone (the capital). Saw lots of nice roads and amazing street lights and gas stations that had mini-marts and one sold cheetos. I was in huge shock, but loving every minute of it. Big countries, but I didn’t see anything besides the beautiful paved, lined roads.
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