Culture shocks are something that occur when you move to a new place. They are a discomfort that is produced when we witness the behaviors of a people with a drastically different way of living. Personally; I havent had many thus far as I try to keep an open mind, and many of my friends at home have lived in close to third world conditions (waters edge, cedar village, 532 come to mind).
The oddities that Ive experienced have typically been on the lighter side; Burkinabe fashion for example. While the country was colonized by the French; there is a lack of Haut Couture.
Popular T-shirts here include; GIANT middle finger hand with several flashy rings, (I saw this number being worn by a kid of about 8), A sleevless white T (manufactured sleeveless, not altered) reading First Lady Fanclub Hillary Rodham Clinton (I saw a grown man sporting this one), a Pulaski Family Reunion Peoria IL shirt, and last but not least, my personal favorite, the pink Tshirt with Daddys Girl written in pink sparkles (seen on a hip younger male on his way to the club). I dont know that I quite understand the process that went in to spotting, buying, and eventually wearing the shirt. Though to a young burkinabe guy trying very hard to look hip, something with a little bling goes a long way.
There is a contest going to see if people can find a tshirt from their university. A few people have been successful.
(((DISCLAIMER!!! Dont get me wrong though. Typically Burkabe dress to the nines. I am constantly surpised at how crisp and clean their clothes are despite the dirt and dust. Men usually wear collared button down shirts and dress slacks with nice shoes and women get clothes made from fabric available at the markets. )))
The fashion oddities that occur here raise an interesting point. They highlight the fact that there is a worldwide cycle of materials. The items that are most desirable are held onto for a longer period of time while those less desirable are given away (why throw out perfectly good clothes when someone else could use them!). However, there are certain items that nobody ever wanted...ever. They are either in very bad taste or totally missed their mark, the giant middle finger shirt for example. Perhaps one misled teenager somewhere in Iowa thought it to be cool for a summer until his mom made him stop wearing it and it ended up in a church donation bin. While these donation bins exist with the purpose of clothing the naked, they inundate the third world with the remnants of our fashion-forward throw-away culture. This doesnt mean I dont crack a smile or even laugh just a little bit when I see a grown man in a Hillary Clinton sleeveless T.
Moving on... Children here are very creative. At the risk of sounding like a curmudgeon, they have fun without fancy toys, video games, or expensive fads. They make most of the toys that they play with. The classic toy ¨a tire¨ is very popular, especially when propelled down the street with ¨a stick¨. My personal favorite though is the (blank) on a string, the item could be a rock, a bag, a box, a bit of plastic, another bit of string, or my personal favorite; the avocado. Another volunteer described a perpetually naked boy in his village that ran around for two days with a pet avocado on a string before eventually caving in and eating it. One volunteer sighted a group of 3 children with pet boxes followed by a child dragging a computer motherboard on a string. So they arent all completely low tech.
Villages usually have a few people with TVs. And some people even have a DVD player. The movie selection consists of bootleg kung-fu flicks. The young boys here LOVE Ong-Bak, The Thai Warrior (and lets be honest I do to). You cant take a picture of them without them striking a killer martial arts pose. However their love of Ong Bak has led to a bit of brand recognition and concurrent imitation. I saw a movie labeled Ong Bak 6 at the marché, and I know for a fact that there have not been 4 new Thai Warrior movies made since I left the U.S. (yes I know The Protector is not technically Ong Bak 2, but lets be honest...it is Ong Bak 2).
Well thats enough cultural oddities for the day. Ive experienced some others but I dont want to give away all of my good material at one time. Thanks for reading!
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Saturday, July 25, 2009
In Dori
I am currently in Dori on my site visit. Im spending four nights here; meeting and greeting people. In the words of our Country Director it is important to ¨genuflect at all the tabernacles¨. I believe he was quoting someone else.
So I met the director of the school; as well as some Japanese volunteers working on environmental projects. We did a bit of a tour of the city and my counterpart (man who is showing me around) even bought me some cold yogurt. It is pretty much the closest thing to ice cream readily available here and its damn good on a hot Sahelien afternoon.
Im very excited about my house. Im living large by peace corps, an burkinabe standards. Ive got a living room, kitchen, AND bedroom. Also another random detached room that is supposed to be for cooking that I dont really use. Around back there is another structure with a toilet (hole) and shower (bucket and hole). Everything has concrete floors (a luxury here); and i even have (drum roll) ELECTRICITY. I nearly shoved my index finger in the socket I was so excited but my counterpart advised against this. I also have a gang of boys ages 7-11 that I can give pieces of gum to in exchange for them hauling water. Only they can get overly excited and bring me roughly 100 gallons of water expecting 50 pieces of gum in return. My neighbors are very friendly and have been keeping an eye out for me during my stay. The house is extremely well furnished with a gas stove, tables, and plenty of seating. I expect guests on their way north to Mali and the Sahara. As soon as I am able Ill post pictures though the heat has been messing with my camera.
Ive been reading alot. I just finished Dont Lets Go to the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller, 2001 A Space Odessy by Arthur C. Clarke, Foundation by Issac Asimov, and The Demon Haunted World; science as a candle in the dark by Carl Sagan, Im about to start Far From the Maddening Crowd by I Forget, and To Sail Beyond the Sunset by Robert Heinlein.
It is hard to believe that in a short 4 weeks I will be in Ouaga dressed in Burkinabe attire swearing in as a full fledged volunteer. Go me. Questions or comments I would love to answer them.
So I met the director of the school; as well as some Japanese volunteers working on environmental projects. We did a bit of a tour of the city and my counterpart (man who is showing me around) even bought me some cold yogurt. It is pretty much the closest thing to ice cream readily available here and its damn good on a hot Sahelien afternoon.
Im very excited about my house. Im living large by peace corps, an burkinabe standards. Ive got a living room, kitchen, AND bedroom. Also another random detached room that is supposed to be for cooking that I dont really use. Around back there is another structure with a toilet (hole) and shower (bucket and hole). Everything has concrete floors (a luxury here); and i even have (drum roll) ELECTRICITY. I nearly shoved my index finger in the socket I was so excited but my counterpart advised against this. I also have a gang of boys ages 7-11 that I can give pieces of gum to in exchange for them hauling water. Only they can get overly excited and bring me roughly 100 gallons of water expecting 50 pieces of gum in return. My neighbors are very friendly and have been keeping an eye out for me during my stay. The house is extremely well furnished with a gas stove, tables, and plenty of seating. I expect guests on their way north to Mali and the Sahara. As soon as I am able Ill post pictures though the heat has been messing with my camera.
Ive been reading alot. I just finished Dont Lets Go to the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller, 2001 A Space Odessy by Arthur C. Clarke, Foundation by Issac Asimov, and The Demon Haunted World; science as a candle in the dark by Carl Sagan, Im about to start Far From the Maddening Crowd by I Forget, and To Sail Beyond the Sunset by Robert Heinlein.
It is hard to believe that in a short 4 weeks I will be in Ouaga dressed in Burkinabe attire swearing in as a full fledged volunteer. Go me. Questions or comments I would love to answer them.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Big News
So Im well into my fourth week here in Burkina; and I have acclimated pretty well. I now consider 85°F to be a cool day, though I still miss the food in the U.S. Here is a brief run down of what Ive been eating;
Benga. Its rice and beans and for a few CFA extra you can get onions and cukes on it. Its filling and cheap though they use far too much oil in its (and everythings) preparation.
Riz Sauce. Just like the name says Rice with ¨sauce¨. This can vary from excellent to inedible depending on the sauce. Peanut sauce is usually pretty safe but the sauce ¨viande¨(meat of some sort. goat is pretty common) can cause problems.
Bread. straight up french bread, usually really good in larger cities. Some of the stores even carry laughing cow cheese if you want to drop come coin on lunch.
Brochettes. Meat on a stick best thing ever with a cold Brakina.
Cous Cous. Hopefully not with fish. Burkina is a landlocked country and the poisson can sometimes be questionable.
To. To is eaten by the burkinabe and is hard to describe. It is ground mill mixed with water that is boiled down to a white substance the consistency of playdoh. It is served with a few different sauces usually fish, baobab, and piment (pepper). you eat it with your hands and dip it into the sauce. Unlike anything ive ever eaten.
CHICKEN IN A BAG. This is the penultimate dining experience in Ouahigouya. A whole chicken placed in a paper bag flash fried and then grilled with sweet onions. Expensive but worth every CFA. usually around 2000 CFA. This is roughly 4 USD. Consider benga is usually never more than 150 CFA.
Moving on; I GOT MY SITE INFORMATION. This is huge news. Im going to be serving in the city of Dori, a desrt city through and through. This city is the regional capital of the Sahel region. The Sahel is in the north and borders Mali and the Sahara desert. While the placement itself is pretty ¨hard corps¨, Im going to be replacing another volunteer. Because of this Ill have a nice place with electricity and other amenities. It has been described to me as ¨a very cool city¨ and as ¨a sandbox¨. Apparently a lot of volunteers visit Dori so I can look forward to hosting people.
Things are going pretty well out here. Ive been playing the harmonica alot and singing parody songs about To and the runs at community meetings. Aside from this we like to pass the time by torturing each other with near pornographic descriptions of food. We held a meeting with a parent teacher organization recently and it went very well. We did a sort of needs assessment. I was slightly disappointed that no mothers of students could attend as the women were all still out working the fields. It had rained that day so the ground was soft. Most people in my village use this opportunity to get a ton of cultivating done. Nonetheless it was sucessful.
We had a fourth of july party and I did a good amount of food prep. I made pasta salad for an army. We even had burgers, fries, and beer. Anyway its about lunch time. Give me some sugestions or questions for next time Im able to sit down in front of a computer.
Au Revoir!
Benga. Its rice and beans and for a few CFA extra you can get onions and cukes on it. Its filling and cheap though they use far too much oil in its (and everythings) preparation.
Riz Sauce. Just like the name says Rice with ¨sauce¨. This can vary from excellent to inedible depending on the sauce. Peanut sauce is usually pretty safe but the sauce ¨viande¨(meat of some sort. goat is pretty common) can cause problems.
Bread. straight up french bread, usually really good in larger cities. Some of the stores even carry laughing cow cheese if you want to drop come coin on lunch.
Brochettes. Meat on a stick best thing ever with a cold Brakina.
Cous Cous. Hopefully not with fish. Burkina is a landlocked country and the poisson can sometimes be questionable.
To. To is eaten by the burkinabe and is hard to describe. It is ground mill mixed with water that is boiled down to a white substance the consistency of playdoh. It is served with a few different sauces usually fish, baobab, and piment (pepper). you eat it with your hands and dip it into the sauce. Unlike anything ive ever eaten.
CHICKEN IN A BAG. This is the penultimate dining experience in Ouahigouya. A whole chicken placed in a paper bag flash fried and then grilled with sweet onions. Expensive but worth every CFA. usually around 2000 CFA. This is roughly 4 USD. Consider benga is usually never more than 150 CFA.
Moving on; I GOT MY SITE INFORMATION. This is huge news. Im going to be serving in the city of Dori, a desrt city through and through. This city is the regional capital of the Sahel region. The Sahel is in the north and borders Mali and the Sahara desert. While the placement itself is pretty ¨hard corps¨, Im going to be replacing another volunteer. Because of this Ill have a nice place with electricity and other amenities. It has been described to me as ¨a very cool city¨ and as ¨a sandbox¨. Apparently a lot of volunteers visit Dori so I can look forward to hosting people.
Things are going pretty well out here. Ive been playing the harmonica alot and singing parody songs about To and the runs at community meetings. Aside from this we like to pass the time by torturing each other with near pornographic descriptions of food. We held a meeting with a parent teacher organization recently and it went very well. We did a sort of needs assessment. I was slightly disappointed that no mothers of students could attend as the women were all still out working the fields. It had rained that day so the ground was soft. Most people in my village use this opportunity to get a ton of cultivating done. Nonetheless it was sucessful.
We had a fourth of july party and I did a good amount of food prep. I made pasta salad for an army. We even had burgers, fries, and beer. Anyway its about lunch time. Give me some sugestions or questions for next time Im able to sit down in front of a computer.
Au Revoir!
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