WOOO AFRICA!!

Apologies for how apparently awful I am at blogging...and for what will, I'm sure, will be another marathon post, as it's been about 3 weeks since the last one.

For those of you that want the short version:

It's really challenging here, but I wouldn't trade this experience for the world. I've very quickly fallen in love with the people, the culture, and the place. I'm already beginning to dread the day when the trip ends, and I have to head home.

For those of you that want the very short version:

WOOOOOO AFRICA!!!!!

For those of you that want the long version:

I'm definitely finally settling into the rhythm of life here. Wake up, walk 20 minutes to Haley and Julian's, stopping along the way to talk to my security guard friends that work along the way, walk 20 minutes to the sotrama stop, yell at people in bambara to try to find the right one, get in the back of a gutted out VW van with 20 other people, repeatedly tell the apprenti (who doesn't speak french) what stop we're getting out at, and pray that he actually hits the van so the driver stops there, yell at him when he doesn't, walk 10 minutes to school. Go to class, eat lunch, try to hail a sotrama to get to Cherif's for dance by hailing another sotrama, hope it goes to the right place, walk to Cherif's from the sotrama stop, dance or play the djembe for 2 hours, try to hail a taxi because it's late and we don't want to take the 2 hours to get home, have the taxi driver quote us some ridiculously high price, negotiate him down to the actual price (in Bambara), get dropped off at Haley and Julian's, walk 20 minutes home. Oof. On days we don't have dance, we take a sotrama to the grand marché, about an hour walk from Haley and Julian's, and quite an experience every time. We stand out quite a lot, being the only white people there, and are constantly bombarded by vendors trying to sell us items, at vastly inflated prices, of course.

Even that long-winded explanation of life here doesn't do it justice. Saying hi to everyone you pass in the street, trash everywhere, small children yelling "toubabu!" as you walk by, people drinking tea, selling fruit, washing clothes, dodging piles of trash, open sewers, push carts, motos, sotramas, people, cars...there's just  so much going on all the time! But never so much that people won't stop to greet you and invite you to sit and drink tea with them. Never so much that people are not friendly and welcoming.

This trip so far has definitely been really challenging in a lot of ways. Always sticking out wherever we go, never blending in, much lower standards of living and sanitation, lots of walking, still not really knowing what's really culturally acceptable, and what we're just given a pass on because we're foreigners, and so many others. That being said though, I would not exchange this experience for the world. I love how friendly people are here, and how easy it is to talk to them. I'm starting to learn bambara and love to watch people's faces light up when you know say even the smallest phrases to them in it. Even how they laugh at you when it becomes quite apparent that, no, you can't actually speak bambara. I find myself looking forward to my walk home every day, in anticipation of the people I'll see, and the potential conversations I'll have. About a week ago, I ended up having a religious debate with some random man on the street for almost an hour, precipitated simply by the fact that I said hi to him. It was truly fascinating! I find myself wishing that people in the US would be as open as people here a lot.

I'm not going to have time, and I'm sure you won't want to read about everything that's happened in the last 3 weeks, so I'll give some highlights.

Highlight 1: The people. I know that's a super broad topic, but I've had the opportunity to meet so many amazing people in the last 3 weeks, it's a little ridiculous. Whether it's the security guard I pass who gets a huge smile on his face every time I walk by, the drivers who took us to Kita, the pool cleaner I talked to for 3 hours, the aforementioned man I debated religion with, or any number of others, the people of Mali are definitely some of the friendliest, nicest, most open people I've met.

Highlight 2: Cherif seems to know everyone here, and this allows us to have some incredible opportunities. We've had the chance to have 2 private concerts, each with famous Malian musicians, meet all the important families and the Imams of Kita, a world-famous photographer, a world-famous sculptor, and so many more. It's almost gotten to the point where meeting famous/important people has become a norm, and it'll be hard to adjust back to life in America where that's not as possible.

Highlight 3: I've gotten to know my host brother really well, thanks to a 3 hour, 8 mile trek across most of Bamako a couple of weeks ago. It really provided the opportunity I needed to get past the initial getting to know you stages to actual friendship with him. He's definitely the member of my host family I'm closest to, and  I spend a lot of my time at the house talking with him. I'm hoping that soon I can become as close with my sisters as well, but am finding it harder to do so.

Highlight 4: Marriage proposals. While also a little weird, and kind of intimidating, I've come to really enjoy the marriage proposals, as I know they don't expect anything to come of them. It's a little flattering when someone you just meet asks you to marry them, despite knowing that it's just because you're white, and they want to use you as a ticket out of Mali. Slightly less fun are they guys that ask you for your number. It's hard to know how to say no without giving offense. So far my record for marriage proposals in a day is 2, and for people asking for my number is 3.

Highlight 5: I've really been diving into trying to learn bambara, and have been really enjoying it. I'm taking extra lessons, and have started understanding the structure of the language, and am able to have short conversations in bambara with people, as long as they speak really slowly and enunciate a lot. I had a great personal victory yesterday when I bought bananas completely in bambara, and was given an extra banana by the lady selling them. Doesn't sound like much, I know, but was a great step for me.

Obviously I can't highlight everything that happened, and truth be told, I'm saving all my best stories for a more personal setting, but I hope this gives you a little taste of my life here.