Political unrest, hippos, curtain, et al

Hello All,

First, my apologies for being so eradic. Some of you have expressed concern over the political unrest in Niger. I was trying not to let the cat out of the bag so as not to alarm you, but my well versed friends are tuning in anyway:) Yes, the president of Niger has declared emergency rule -basically a coup by the etat because he doesn't want to leave just as uranium and oil are getting hot in Niger. It's greed, plain and simple. He was denied by the congress and all his political allies are leaving him high and dry- hence the emergency. There are speculations that the military may just get rid of him, like they've done with every president before him who tried to pull a stunt like this. It's pretty odd really, the president is not concerned that all but two or three of Niger's presidents were killed in power because they wouldn't leave.

But, the funny thing is that life goes on as normal and nobody seems particularly concerned. I guess it's like when news of the student riots were all over the news when I was in Dakar, but the most I saw of it was a burning tire. Cheikh is the security officer for MC Niger and has just been given a sattelite phone, so if anything needs doing, we'll be the first to know.

So, while the cauldron bubbles, Cheikh is in Agadez, falling in love with the desert. He is visiting field offices to train new teams, while K and I prepare to move into our house on Wednesday, when Cheikh will join us. I have been quite literally picking out curtains (and bargaining for everything from buckets to sheets, and an iron.) We should have all the essentials before we move in. Today, the workmen came to measure the pool to build the fence and to "treat" the house for bugs.

Yesterday was magic. K and I ventured out with our friends, Jackie and her son, BJ to see hippos in the river. Wow. Just 20 minutes out of the city, we climbed into a pirogue and set off on the river. It was wide and beautiful, but low, so there were still a lot of rocks to navigate. We stopped on a little beach island in the middle of the river, where we walked to where we could see the hippos. Wow, wow and wow. First we just saw ears, flicking abover the water, then whole heads and half a body. There were six of them there, all bobbing up and down, grouped all together. K and BJ didn't give a hoot about the hippos, but they were enthralled with running in the water and digging in the sand with sticks. Luckily we had two wonderful piroguiers to assist. I think it was just what we needed, this beautiful breath of Africa.

Apparently, you can do all sorts of touristy things out there, like camp, grill, and picnic. Oh, and ride camels to the local market. All for a price, of course.

Last weekend, we saw giraffes in the wild. This is the most, besides goats, I've ever seen in Africa! That was really cool too. K and I both wanted to chase them, but were told not to. They were so big and bright and beautiful. When the car pulled up they all froze like they thought they might pass as trees, and we wouldn't even notice them. But, once we got out, they started walking. It didn't seem like they walked very quickly, but their long strides covered a lot of ground and we couldn't keep up without the car.

Karim will be starting his new school later this week, so I'm holding my breath and second guessing all my school choices. hmph! But, we'll give it the old college try and see how it goes at Ecole Alliance. Carine, our landlady is coming home today, so we'll be staying all together for two nights. Only in Africa, right? Anyway, she's bringing her 2yr old daughter, so that should be fun for K. Carine's daughter also goes to Alliance, so I will pick her brain about that as well.

We are all happy and healthy and hope you are the same. Of course we miss Papa/Cheikh and are looking forward to our reunion on Wednesday. With him, hopefully, will come the camera and videos of Agadez.
Love to All! Send me your news!

Cheery Blue for Karim's room

Hi All,

Hmmm, well I haven't written because I am mortified that I haven't yet posted any giraffe video. No excuse for that. Soon, I promise. This week, I've balanced my time between surveying the work on our house and reading The Russian Concubine- LOVE IT!!! So, literary crack aside, the house is coming along nicely. Karim's room is a bright, happy blue- his choice. Today we're starting construction on the pool enclosure so it will be all safe and secure before we move in next week.

Cheikh is heading out on his first work trip to the field on Saturday. He's flying to Agadez (up north, home of camels and Touaregs) to train the new team there for a few days. In the meantime, K and I are venturing out with Jackie and BJ to see hippos from a boat on the river- yay! We should all be packed up and happily reunited for our big move to our new house on Wednesday.

I am weighing the pros and cons of composting and trying to decide if I want to raise chickens for fresh eggs-yum. We have giant mango trees in the yard, but I haven't seen any mangoes on them- maybe they're all done for now. Oh well, maybe next time.

Sorry this is so dull, my brain is kinda mushy today. More next time. Love to all!

False Alarm- no strike

Hi All,

I guess by saying there would be a strike today, and getting prepared for it, we somehow avoided it. It's like carrying an umbrella on a cloudy day to ensure sun. Today, K and I took a taxi to school- then I walked for about two hours, just exploring. I discovered the private language institute and the post office. Hmmm, which language to study? That is the question.

This afternoon, after nap, K and I headed to Cocochouland for Thursday mama-baby group. yay. Sad that this is the highlight of my week. But, hey the truth hurts. It was a lot of fun. Today, I met a mom from Burkina Faso, and one from Central African Republic- as well as getting to chat with my Senegalese friend and the usual French ladies. It was quite a crowd with all the moms (and one brave dad) and nannies and kids. whew! K is getting more comfortable with the kids, since they are all in his class at Petits Pas, but he still keeps to the fringe a lot too.

It's interesting to ponder all of the different lives I have lived in Africa- first as a student, then as a PCV, now as an Expat. Each is its own world and each carries its own set of glasses from which to view very similar places and realities. As a student, I wanted to really connect with people, make friends, and "learn" from the experience. I was interested in it as a trial or a rite of passage. I was offended if people mistook me for a Peace Corps volunteer (translate American Slob.) Dakar was more than I could have ever dreamed and it formed me into an adult in a way that no other isolated experience could have done. Hence, in each trip back to Africa, it is Dakar that I carry with me.

As a PCV, I was proud to be rugged, to be en brousse, to be soooo hard core! I studied the Fulfulde language until I could talk about hemphilia and politics. I pulled water from the well and walked 20 K toward the regional capital to prove that I could. I almost went crazy with the isolation and fell completely in love with the desert.

Now, as an expat mom, there are bits of both these previous experiences in my daily life, combined with something entirely new- nothing to prove. I am delighted to talk with people, to make serendipitous connections and to delight in shared laughter. I am at ease in an odd way. Things happen and I'm curious to see what may come out of my interactions, but I'm not forcing anything. An example of chilling and letting it be is our house. We looked and looked and pushed and pushed- then one day, Cheikh had a work meeting on the way home, so we stopped off for a quick meeting at the gentleman's house. Thanks to our driver's questions, that house is now going to be our house.

I still struggle with the loneliness and need for "purpose" that I felt in Peace Corps, but it is strangely wed to the joy and liberty of living in a city like I did in Dakar. For me, the greatest challenge is that we are doing this ourselves. We have no built-in network of people sharing this experience. Nobody is holding our hands. This is both empowering and frustrating.

hmmm, late night reflections. Sweet dreams.

The Elephant in the Room

Hello All,

If any of you are following Nigerien politics, which who knows, you may be since you care about us, and we're here:) then I feel obliged to address it here. Presently, the president is vying for an unconstitutional 3rd term in office. Maybe power is so tasty it's hard to let go, but his ideas are getting a chilly reception from the public. If you look at the history of military coups in this country, you'd probably rethink jerking around this particular population. Somehow however, this little bit of history eludes the current president. On Friday, the court ruled (again- this is the 2nd time) against the president changing the constitution in order to run for a third term and to do so would constitute a "political coup." On Sunday there was a demonstration in Niamey, but we the people simply stayed home and ignored it. There was a march yesterday in support of the opposition to the president's referendum, which we could hear, but did not attend. As folks here say, "ca chauffe!" yes, it is heating up and making us a little bit, but not terribly nervous. Cheikh is the Security Agent for MC, among everything else, so the good part is that he's kept very well informed and if things get hairy (more than college kids chanting slogans and breaking stuff,) we'll be the first to know (via C's sattelite phone:)

Here's a link to Niger 1's website for more in depth political info: http://niger1.com/?p=866

On a more personal note, K is enjoying school now. He didn't even wait for his bisou this morning before running off to find his buddies, sniff. I've started to write and make friends, but that part is complicated since all the Euro ladies I've met are headed back there for the summer. lame. Next summer, we too plan to head back to the states for vacation, but for now, we're looking as hard as we can for local friends. Just a typical week in paradise so far. Went to the market again today, since I was told there may be a strike tomorrow. Mangoes are still in season and heavenly as ever. We're all happy and healthy. Alhamdoulilah!

love to you and yours!

A Friday Market Adventure

Hello All,

Last week, we admitted defeat to time, dust, and African life, and . . . hired a cook and a house keeper. Yup, you heard right. So, Friday morning, the cook, Bachir (MC driver) and I hit the local market to buy what we hoped would be a week's worth of food for the equivalent of $100. And let me tell you, it was tough! First, I had to draw a hard line with the cook about where to buy food and what to buy. Since everyone knows money grows in American closets, he couldn't grasp why I would prefer to go to the local market when I could easily buy everything I needed at Score in comfort for 3X the price. But, once that was cleared up - ie, "I want a lot of food for a lot of people and I don't need it to be fancy." We hit the market. Describing a west African market is tough for those who have never visited a developed country, but for those who have, it's much like any other market in the developing world. People lay out blankets covered with mangos, melons, tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, manioc etc. What makes this market unique is that it's all enclosed- or mostly, with a big sign that reads "Petit Marche" (excuse the lack of accent)- which is funny, since it seems pretty big to me. The stalls are divided into sections for meat and fish with veggies and fruit around the outside. There are walkways through the labyrinth that are covered with raggedy tarps and blankets. We spent a while picking out the right fish, which they then cleaned and filleted right there for us!

We were buying juice, chicken and canned goods in a little interior shop when the rain started. And it came down hard. First, the sky turned orange with the dust that the wind stirred up. Quickly following that, the water poured down hard and fast. We waited in the shop for more than half an hour while it showered. Suddenly the tarps made a lot more sense. When the rain let up enough, we made a dash for it. We waded ankle deep in nasty street water to get back to the car. I scrubbed my feet when we got home. All I could think about were Bachir's Friday boubou and nice shoes! terrible. Whew, what an adventure! but we have food for the week now!

Yesterday, Cheikh worked most of the day, so Karim and I met up with our new friends Jackie and BJ(almost 2yrs) at Cocochouland. Can I say enough good things about this playground? It's where I've met most of the people I know, where I got involved with the mom's group and where K and I go at least 4X a week if not more. After 2 hrs of playing, we picked up brioches at the bakery and gourmet that I am, I whipped up pb (Skippy) & J (Bonne Maman Strawberry) on brioches for the boys while Jackie and I sat down to baked pasta, with salad and flan. I could get used to a cook:)

Today, we had a nice family Sunday. We spent the morning having brunch and doing puzzles on the terrace. No cook today, so I got to whip up omelets with eggs laid this morning by our landlady's hens, mango and Earl Grey tea we got in London. This evening we went out for fantastic Lebanese food on our way home from Cocochou:) It was such a treat to see Dad, Rosella and Deb on Skype, even if they were blurry.

Love to all! Now that I have internet at home, I will try to post more videos.

Niamey Notes

Hello All,

First, forgive any typos that appear as this is a French keyboard. It's so funny to me that technology constantly butts up against camels and sand. For example, I'm sitting in an airconditioned cybercafé with excellent speed and contectivity while two little goats ram their heads into the glass door three feet from me. Nevermind, the owner just opened the door and kicked them.

It never ceases to amaze me that realities are so different from person to person, from house to house. Unlike Dakar or Portland, there don't appear to be wealthy neighborhoods in Niamey. I know I've mentioned it before, but the house we're staying in is pretty nice by local standards, but once you walk out the front door, you step into the "vide" which is essentially a huge vacant lot (about the size of a city block) where people dump garbage, play futball and hang their laundry. Karim yells whenever he sees a naked toddler, which is often. Sometimes it's a blessing that he makes his observations in English.

On Tuesday, I went to a maman bébé play group at someone's house. And believe you me, I've never stepped into a house like that. They had a lawn with palm trees, a pool, and a tortise. The house felt like a hacienda- or so I imagine one, with polished tile floors, long halls and big open spaces. Expat life is definitely not peace corps life, or student life either, for that matter.

The most disconcerting factor about expats is that they're always coming and going. One maman and I really hit it off. She's a freelance journalist who hasn't lived in the states since college, and her husband works for an NGO, but oh bummer, they're moving to Madagascar on Sunday. And the family that lives in the house just moved here last year from Lebanon. It's a flowing, changing, international community of people. Another woman that I've been spending time with is from Cambodia, but she moved here last year from Myanmar. Her family will likely be moving on to France at the end of July. It's funny to think about it because the world is such a big place, but the circle is small.

Yesterday, I had the most serendipitus experience. After confiding in Cheikh the night before that I was lonely and could really use a friend, I met a mom at Karim's school who called out to me because she heard me speaking "American sounding English" to K as we were leaving. She gave us a ride home and I invited her and her 2yr old son for dinner. They came. We talked while K played with her son. It's funny how forward you can be here. I giggle when I think about doing that in the states.
"Hi, I don't know you. I don't have any friends, wanna come over for dinner?" "Sure!" We have a date to go see giraffes with them this weekend. They're from DC and they just moved here. The dad isn't here yet, but will be soon. The good news is that they'll be here for at least two years-yay!

Yesterday evening, Cheikh saw our house for the first time. I was a bit nervous since I pushed for the contract and everything's done and he hadn't even seen it yet. How's that for trust? But, it was a take it now or lose it kind of deal and we weren't going to let this house slip through our fingers. It turned out well though because Cheikh is impressed with the house and we're all excited to move in July1. So, now I'm focussing on the task of picking out furniture. Do we want the furniture that's in the house? If so, how much of it? Do I want to have our own made? MC is furnishing the house for us, which is nice, so I just get to point- like Pretty Woman:) oh, and bargain of course.

So, off to the market . . . love to all. You are in our thoughts.

Chez Carine il y a une piscine. . .

Hello All,

Sorry for the long silence. No internet, no computer, the usual excuses. This has been a very exciting week for us. We have a house!!! Yay! We'd just about given up last week when we got a mysterious call from a woman named Carine. Neither Cheikh or I had a clue who this person was, or why she called MC, but did we really care? Nope. She said she had a house to show us, so off K and I went to see it. It turned out that Carine worked at MC before and heard through the grapevine that we needed a house. Gotta love that. We hired people to find us a house and they didn't find us jack. The only good houses we saw were through people we just happened to meet at K's school, at the restaurant, in taxis. . . that's the way it is here though.

Wow!! That's all I can say. It's beautiful- with a white tile foyer, a little pool and big, perfect trees to hang a swing. The only catch is that, uh, somebody lives there. But, he's leaving June 30, which could have been terrible, but in the way things come together in Africa sometimes, it turns out that Carine left on Saturday for a month in Benin. So, we're renting her house till June 30. All contracts have been signed and paid for, so I can confidently say that we do indeed have a home.

It was with great joy that we packed our bags and piled into MC's landcruiser on Saturday afternoon. Bye Bye hotel! Cheikh made mafé on Sunday and I'm making Rabo Encendido today (thank you Gaea for giving me those recipe cards- all our cookbooks are on the boat!)

Carine has a 2yr old, so there are toys in the house and a little bed for K. He calls his mosquito net, his "tent" and has been sleeping under it since we got to the house. He's liking school a bit better now, but it's still a daily struggle to get him out the door, but he didn't want to leave when went to pick him up yesterday. Whatever the pros and cons of Petits Pas, I think it's good for him to be around other kids every day.

We can't access our internet at the house, so my online activities will likely be patchy until we move into our house. wow, our house. That looks good in writing. well, internet time's almost up. Love to all and thank you for your news! miss you.