Cultural Corner: Burkina

October 14, 2009

Since someone who will remain nameless, L.G.!, ragged on me for writing an entire blog about food, which I would like to say I did because an old professor requested me to write a guest blog for her about food, I find it necessary and appropriate to fill this blog with more cultural tidbits and interesting facts to know. And of course it will include an update on my life and my first two weeks, officially, as Madame professeur.

Cultural point number one: I believe I've already touched on this, but greeting people is very important in this culture. In fact, as my previous homologue told me, if you do not saluer someone, they are likely to wonder why you are upset with them or they will become upset with you, either way the result is no good. Plus, it's nice because you don't have any of those awkward I'm-looking-right-at-you-and-we're-in-very-close-proximity-and-yet-I'm-going-to-keep-on-without-acknowledging-you-even-though-we-both-know-the-other-is-there moments one has so often in the states. Now, I just have those oh-shoot-I-just-said-the-greeting-for-the-evening-and-it's-still-9-am-in-the-morning moments or the moments where I greet someone in Jula and they keep going beyond the few phrases I know: the basic greeting for each of the 4 times of day (morning, afternoon, evening, and night), how's your family more specifically those in your home or courtyard, how's work or your services. I also know the phrase where are you going, because people here always walk with a purpose as my buddy L.S. explained it. She explained this to me while we were just taking a walk one day in her town, something the Burkinabè don't really do. I guess that's cultural point number two.

Cultural point number three: I haven't heard it quite as much here, in my village, yet, but I have heard it, even today, Vous êtes invité (You're invited). This is said whenever someone is eating and you greet them, walk by, or just happen to be in their general vicinity. And here, unlike in the states when so-and-so is enjoying their candy bar and this person politely asks if you want some, with the known implication that it isn't really an offer. Here, they actually mean it. I asked about that. At my marché last week a man sitting with a friend of mine on the main road invited me to share his fried patates. I politely declined, because I feel bad eating other people's food (perhaps I should say stranger's food or people I don't know very well!). He gave me a hard time about it saying oh, you'll eat patates, but you won't eat mine. So, I sat next to him and shared his plate and had a chat. I thought I had strategically left him the last big piece by taking the smaller one, but my plans were foiled when he told me I should take the bigger one and then left it there for me to eat. Don't ever let anyone tell you they can't share or be generous here.

Cultural point number four: Typically, especially in more rural areas, women keep their knees covered. Often times the only women who will show more than that are prostitutes or those living in bigger cities where the implications aren't the same, much like in the states. The irony in all of this is that you'll see women topless, with shirts falling off, pagnes falling down to reveal the twins, rather frequently. Additionally, breast feeding is viewed in a much healthier way over here, meaning that women will just whip out the twins whenever their baby or small child is hungry. I also think breasts aren't as sexualized over here as they are in the states which is nice change of pace. Although, coming from my culture, it's been an adjustment and still is. It's just different for me to have women freely and openly show off their ladies. I'm glad about the breast feeding though: women should have to hide it or severely inconvenience themselves just because people think it's inappropriate or whatever to reveal their breasts in public. I'm sorry, but can you explain to me how a child her or his mother's breast for food and nourishment is in any way sexual? I just don't see it.

Cultural point number five: Men hold hands with other men. Women and girls hold hands with other women and girls. To show their affection for each other, but now like you'd think. Here, it's completely platonic. It's ironic, too, considering that married couples will never hold hands or take part in any form of public displays of affection. Heck, it'd be difficult to know if two people were married if you just saw them on the street. I had a conversation with a volunteer who is COS-ing (close of service) within the next month and she said that in general, romance isn't the main goal in marriages here from what she's seen. That's not to say those types of relationships don't exist here, but often people marry for stability and children. The man wants someone to have kids with, to cook and clean for him, etc. The woman wants someone to support her and her children. It's an interesting concept, but being the romantic that I am, and being that I found the love of my life, I don't think I could ever fit into that mold.

Cultural point number six: Women carry everything on their heads: water jugs? Yes. Large metal bowls filled with anything and everything? Yes. Large bundles of wood probably as long as she is? Yes. Food or whatever item she is selling? Of course. Buckets filled with anything and everything? Definitely.

Babies? No. (Okay, fine. Maybe they don't carry everything on their heads, but they do a lot.) Women, teenage girls, and even younger girls bend over, prop the baby on their backs piggy-back-style, then wrap a pagne or piece of cloth around the baby and her body, so the baby's head and often arms and shoulders are sticking out of the top. Then she ties the top of the cloth together around her chest and the bottom around her belly. Next she proceeds to carry on conversations, walk wherever she needs to go, and do her daily tasks. It's interesting. I worried that when the babies were young, especially, that perhaps it's be bad for their heads because nothing was supporting them, so they could just be flopping around, but they've been doing this forever and I have yet to see signs of brain damage associated with such phenomena. That was cultural point number seven.

Cultural point number eight is that the brain damage is more likely to be caused in schools where the children are taught to merely memorize material and regurgitate it back. Hence, Peace Corps aim of incorporating critical thinking and warning that the students may not get nor like any attempts at first. But by golly, my kids will use their heads if it totally exhausts me and leaves me a frustrated lump on some days!

That's all I have for you know, more to come later.

I have a couple cell phone towers in my village that look totally out of place. Take this beautiful southwestern Burkina village where you're surrounded by a green paradise accented by the clay-colored earth and put in two giant bright unnaturally white and red metal structures. But even though these monstrosities clash with my pretty little village, I thank God for them every day, even if the reseau is unreliable and it seems to block incoming calls from the states whenever it rains, even though my phone continues to show full bars.

So, school started last week, for me and our other woman teacher at least. She teaches math and PC (physics and chemistry) which is a big deal here, because not a lot of women do. That's great, but then again, not so great for me who wanted to teach those subjects. I certainly don't want to take those classes away from her. Maybe I'll get a math class or two. I'm thinking I can kiss teaching chemistry goodbye. Oh, well. Ça va aller.

Since the third woman teacher or second before I got here, is enceinte aka pregnant, she can't teach this trimester and I seriously wonder about the second trimester as well. I also wonder why the word trimester doesn't exist in French and that even though there are three, they still call them semesters or semestres to be more exact. So this pregnant teacher is the only English teacher and has therefore left me with teaching English for each of the four different levels at our C.E.G. (middle school equivalent). I'm okay with that for now. The plan is that she'll return to teach during the second trimester when I will give up two English classes and hopefully take an one or a couple math or science classes. We'll see what happens. I feel as though I may end up with the same schedule for the rest of the year. Although by the time switching time comes, I may prefer that. I've been teaching nearly 2 full weeks now. So far it's going decently well. I was a ball of nerves my first week, because that is how I am, but I think my energy would be better suited and spent lesson planning, finding ways to get students to learn and retain information, and finding ways to make classes fun and appeal to many different learning types including right and left brain learners. As you can see, I've got my work cut out for me.

Today I did my first sensibalization in 3 of my classes. Tomorrow is Global Handwashing Day, didn't you know my birthday was a big deal?! Since I only have one class tomorrow, I talked about handwashing with soap and why it's important, especially before you eat and after you use the bathroom. Statistics show that not washing your hands causes 3.5 million children deaths each year due to pneumonia and diarrhea. The class was discussion-based and I had decent participation. Try explaining all of this in a second language of which you have a limited vocabulary – yeah, not so easy is it? But I think I got the point across. I hope at least one student goes home and talks to his family about the importance of using soap, especially during those 2 times. The best part or most fun part of the class was when I taught them the song. It goes to the tune of Micheal row your boat ashore and the lyrics go something like this: Si tu veux la bonne santé, lave toi les main. À l'eau et du savon, lave toi les mains. It's cute and cheesy. My students loved it. I'm not sure what they enjoyed more, however, singing the song themselves or hearing me sing it first. It's a good thing I have a sense of humor and just went with it. Good times had by all.

Cultural point number nine: When you buy things in Jula you must multiply the number you said by 5 and that is how much it costs in CFA. Example: If I ask how much the small piles of tomatoes are, the woman selling them will point to a few piles and say duru, duru and then point to another pile and say tan, tan (you don't pronounce the 'n' of course). Duru is 5 in Jula and tan is 10. Does that mean that the first pile costs 5 CFA and the second costs 10? Absolutely not. The first costs 25 CFA and the second 50. Now try to hear a number, figure out first what it means in Jula and then multiply that in your head by five to get the amount it actually costs. Not so easy. I'm getting used to the simple numbers like duru, tan, keme (100=500 F). With time I'm sure I'll have it down like the back of my hand. Speaking of, do a lot of people really stare at the back of their hands so much that they could tell you every tiny little detail, because if so, I am not one of them. Who has time to stare at the back of their hand all day anyways? Just a thought.

Today, my closest neighboring Peace Corps Volunteer, biked in for a visit. It was a nice change of pace. Plus it was interesting getting her perspective on things considering her 2 year service is up in a month and mine has barely just begun. We bought some popcorn (that they do not eat with butter, but do eat with salt, although we think they used enough oil to make it taste like they used butter) and some gateaux. I found a kind I like that look like mini cinnabuns without the cinnamon and super sweet glaze. I mixed up the cost of one thinking one cost 50 F when actually you get 2 for that mean, so we ended up with at least 20 of these little guys, too many for even 2 of us to finish. So, tonight, because I hate wasting food, I walked out of my courtyard, looked around, and headed to my nearest neighbor. She's a really sweet woman with a couple kids and a friendly young husband. I handed her the bag after greeting her, of course, and she naturally said Aw ni ce. Her husband came by my place not too long later to thank me as well. He then proceeded to point out my weed problem and that it is particularly bad when it grows near walls. So, he started to pull up the weeds along nearly half of my courtyard wall before saying he'd be back the following morning to get the rest. All this because I bought too many gateaux and didn't want them to go to waste. The people in my village really do take care of me and spoil me a bit. After all, I'm the lazy one who didn't want to weed her courtyard and was perfectly content to find out if a jungle could actually grow in my Burkina backyard. I guess I'll never know.

Until next time.