Gotta Love the Bush

The following pictures and video are from this past week in my bush village “B”.  I was informed by the ladies when I visited Wednesday to bring some American money and my camera. I also told them I would bring some American coffee for them to try.  When I returned on Thursday I had all my items for show and tell.  The first to show was the American dollar which is the equivalent of 500cfa in money here.  They looked at the picture of George and repeated numerous times, “Barak Obama.”  I repeated numerous times “No.”  I said that Obama was the president now but the first president of America was George Washington.  They asked if George was a man or woman because they didn’t understand why he had so much hair.  I didn’t know how to explain fake hair or wig in Fulfulde so that will be a conversation for another day.

Next was coffee time, or should I say a disgrace to the American coffee drinker.  I had my coffee apparatus with me that I bought from Great Outdoor and started to take it out.  They asked what it was and said that they could put the coffee in their ashai teapot.  I told them coffee wasn’t made the same as tea.  They finally understood and let me make it.  I pressed the ground coffee after the hot water was added and tasted it to see how much sugar I needed to put in there.  I added about a tablespoon and was completely satisfied with the taste.  I handed the finished coffee to one of my friends and she spit it out saying it was not good.  Another girl tasted it and said the same thing.  They then proceeded to pour the entire cup of sugar into the coffee which was only 2 oz of coffee.  After that they all drank the coffee and said it was so good.  I told them that they don’t like coffee, they like sugar. 

While we drank coffee and tea in the afternoon they made me promise to send them pictures of my wedding and my innde (baby naming ceremony) when I return to America in a year and a half.  I told them I would but that it might be a while before I marry and have kids.  They were confused and tried to solve my “problem” by trying to give me one of their husbands.  Oh how life is so different here.

"T" making ashai for me.

My favorite little one!

The Troublemaker