11-13 December 2009
Population: 45,000 (Or so I’ve been told; it feels like little more than 10,000)
Dominant religions: Islam, 70%, Christianity: 25%
Hottest temperature recorded since arriving at post: 93 degrees, Fahrenheit (keep in mind, though, that this is technically the beginning of the cold season)
I’ve been at post for a little less than a week now and it’s certainly been interesting. Spouts of boredom followed by periods of frustration, and every once in a while a little fun and joy thrown in the mix. I kid, it’s been mostly good here so far. My language barrier is now much higher here than it was during training and I think there’s a few reasons for that: firstly, I don’t speak Fulfulde, the dominant language here. Secondly, I find those that do speak French harder to understand—probably a combination of the fact that I got used to the accent near Bangante and that I’d estimate only about 50-60% of people speak conversational French here. But I’ve been asking around about finding a tutor here in Ngong, so hopefully I can start learning Fulfulde soon. And if I can’t find one here, Garoua is only 30 minutes away, though that’d be more expensive. Regardless, I’ll be fine. These first few months just might be a little slow as I gain (or re-gain) my groundings in these languages.
Ngong is definitely an interesting place. As I noted earlier, it seems a lot smaller than it is and I think that is mostly because it isn’t as developed as, say, Bangante which is smaller than Ngong, but with many more amenities (internet, for one). The market, however, is amazing. It’s kicking every day, but I think I wrote about that before so I’ll let it be for now. Anyway, it’ll be the place that I learn a lot of Fulfulde, because most people there speak that.
I also have my first sort of program planned. There’s a French Catholic Mission in town and one of the sisters does a lot of health projects, mostly focused on sensitizing the population on issues relating to HIV/AIDS. She invited me to come along to a meeting she has with a community group this Saturday. I don’t think I’ll do very much this time but it will be good to observe how these groups work and also to simply work on my French.
Some people have also expressed interest in mailing me some things. Apparently flat-rate boxes from the post office are the cheapest, though padded envelopes get here the quickest and with the least amount of hassle. See the previous post for more info on mailing. My parents are sending me a few of these things but I think there’ll be a continuous need. Here are a few things I could go for:
Incense. You can find it here, I’m told, but the quality isn’t too great and the scents are pretty hit or miss. I have also been told that it is impossible to find Nag Champa here, so there’s that, too.
Mac and Cheese! Or, really, just the cheese packets. I can find elbow noodles in Garoua, but the actual cheese for mac and cheese is virtually impossible. I think some people even looked in Yaounde without any luck.
Deoderant. Yes, maybe an odd request but it’s also impossible to find here. I also grossly underestimated my deodorant consumption when I only brought three sticks with me. The one person I talked to who found it in Yaounde, once, at the market said it was 10,000 CFA (or about 20 clams). If you feel so inclined, I like the Old Spice white stick stuff (I’m allergic to most others).
PHOTOS! I have a few photos from the states but I would really like to have some more photos of everyone! Gimme some photos of what you all have been up to since I saw you last or maybe some photos of us together, too! I plan on decorating at least one wall with them.
Music! Maybe an MP3 CD or something of some new bands you’ve been getting into or some new music that’s come out.
And really, anything any of you send me will be greatly appreciated. Especially a letter letting me know how you are.
It’s been two days since I started writing this post and petite-à-petite, things are getting a little easier. I’ve found some friends in the community, some people who are patient with my crappy French, and some people who are more than willing to help me, l’étranger, figure things out. Last night I was at a bar with some friends, eating some fish and sipping on a coke, and thought, “this is just such a trip.” And it is, it really is.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
The Present Obvious
A peculiar new phenomenon is on the rise here in Cameroon, and scholars take note, it is actually a brand new verb tense: the present obvious. It is incredibly easy to pick up and many people don’t even know they’re using it until somebody points it out. To do it, you simply take an obvious question which you already know the answer to, and stick it in the present tense. Here are a few examples:
Tu es la? (You are there?)
Tu est ici? (You are here?)
Tu part comme ca? (You leave like this?)
Tu arrive déjà? (You arrive already?)
This striking phenomenon is sweeping the nation, and is particularly infecting Peace Corps Volunteers who pick up on this amazingly useful new tense and use it with one another, both in French or English (Yesterday I heard somebody walk into the kitchen and say: “You’re cooking?”).
Another useful phrase which, while not in the present obvious, is in a similar vein is “patience.” Now, patience (pronounced: pah-see-anse), from all of my investigations into my French-English dictionary and questions posed to language trainers, has the same meaning as it does in English. However, when I hit my head getting into a van, somebody told me “patience.” When I tripped over my homestay brother’s foot he said calmly, “patience.” When one girl had to get stitches in the hospital and the nurse was scrubbing her wound with soap and water, the nurse told her “patience.” As far as I can tell, it’s somewhere between “be careful,” “don’t worry about it” and “calm down, it’s not a big deal.”
So if the present obvious is taking you some time to get the hang of, patience.
Tu es la? (You are there?)
Tu est ici? (You are here?)
Tu part comme ca? (You leave like this?)
Tu arrive déjà? (You arrive already?)
This striking phenomenon is sweeping the nation, and is particularly infecting Peace Corps Volunteers who pick up on this amazingly useful new tense and use it with one another, both in French or English (Yesterday I heard somebody walk into the kitchen and say: “You’re cooking?”).
Another useful phrase which, while not in the present obvious, is in a similar vein is “patience.” Now, patience (pronounced: pah-see-anse), from all of my investigations into my French-English dictionary and questions posed to language trainers, has the same meaning as it does in English. However, when I hit my head getting into a van, somebody told me “patience.” When I tripped over my homestay brother’s foot he said calmly, “patience.” When one girl had to get stitches in the hospital and the nurse was scrubbing her wound with soap and water, the nurse told her “patience.” As far as I can tell, it’s somewhere between “be careful,” “don’t worry about it” and “calm down, it’s not a big deal.”
So if the present obvious is taking you some time to get the hang of, patience.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
I wanted to sail around the world, just ‘cause it’s round. Ya know?
11.28.09
Today is my last day of language instruction before swearing in, which will be on December 3rd. I passed out of needing to take any more French last week, so I started studying Fulfulde earlier this week and I’m basically just getting a basic understanding of it before I begin to head up to post on Thursday (12/4). Fulfulde is a language spoken across much of the Sahel region of Africa, although it does differ from country to country. It seems like a pretty rad, easy language so far. None of the greetings use verbs and every verb is conjugated the same way, regardless of subject. The grammar is pretty straightforward too, it’ll just take a while to get used to the vocabulary because it’s like nothing I’ve ever studied before. I also realized a few days ago that Fulfulde is now the 5th language I’ve studied, 6th if you include English. (The others are Spanish, Swedish, French and German. I guess I could through in Danish and the local patois here in Bamena, too, but I’ve never properly studied them.)
Anyway, it’s been a pretty wild ride so far. No, that’s not quite right. I can’t really say it’s been wild, yet. I’ve had some pretty crazy experiences, some VERY interesting conversations, and also been given some cool names. I’m currently known in my neighborhood as Tanji. That’s a name my homestay mother gave to me, because it’s also the name of my homestay brother and the nephew of the chief of Bamena. I also found out when I went to the chefferie (chief’s palace) and an old Mama called me Tanji that it is a title given to somebody that means “father of twins”. Well alright then. One of the language instructors for PC has started calling me “le Prince de Bamena.”
My homestay family has gotten me a couple shirts made out of panye, the local fabric which is rich in vibrant colors and patterns. Joey, I know how you feel about white people dressing up in African garb but to this I say: too bad. My family loves it and tells me I’m a real African (un vrai africain!), especially when I greet them and their friends in the patois. I can’t wait to get some boubous once I get up North.
A couple quick notes on communication: I have a cell phone and I’m sorry if you tried to call me on the original number I posted on facebook, I wasn’t too clear on the area codes and whatnot. Anyway, my number, to the best of my knowledge, is 011-237-70143164. I think. Maybe if that’s not right, Joey or Jacob or my parents can comment on what to do. I would really like to talk to you all. If you’ve been waiting for me to call you, then, well, keep waiting. It costs me over a dollar a minute to call anyone in the states and I don’t usually have more than 5 bucks worth of credit at a time. Also, it is free for me to receive calls and I believe it’s the same price for you in the states to receive or make calls. So really….call me. Also, here’s an address you can send me stuff to, starting now:
HH, PCV
B.P. 1825
Garoua, Cameroon
Africa
It might be useful to write on the letter in red ink, apparently that makes it less likely to be tampered with or stolen. Also, if you feel so inclined, draw some crosses or religious symbols on it and maybe write “Rev. or Fr.” in front of my name. It’d be great to get some mail from you guys in the states. If you mail something, it seems to take about a month to get here, so don’t be expecting an immediate thank you, though it will come. Also, padded envelopes seem to get here the quickest if you wanted to send something more than just a letter, though the flat rate boxes from the post office are the cheapest.
We had a great Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday. We cooked a couple turkeys, made mashed potatoes, stuffing, and loads of other stuff. Then we read off a bunch of superlatives that we’d voted on, secret-ballet-style last week. I got a few: Most likely to write a book about their experiences, Most likely to have an unsual pet at post, Least likely to be able to speak English at the end of service, and then Paul, the only other male trainee in the health program, and I got most likely to become a couple. Good stuff. Guess I’ll be writing a book about my pet giraffe in French (or Fulfulde).
Well, I must be off, but I’ll try to post again in a few weeks, once I’m at post and can make it up to Garoua to utilize the internet.
Today is my last day of language instruction before swearing in, which will be on December 3rd. I passed out of needing to take any more French last week, so I started studying Fulfulde earlier this week and I’m basically just getting a basic understanding of it before I begin to head up to post on Thursday (12/4). Fulfulde is a language spoken across much of the Sahel region of Africa, although it does differ from country to country. It seems like a pretty rad, easy language so far. None of the greetings use verbs and every verb is conjugated the same way, regardless of subject. The grammar is pretty straightforward too, it’ll just take a while to get used to the vocabulary because it’s like nothing I’ve ever studied before. I also realized a few days ago that Fulfulde is now the 5th language I’ve studied, 6th if you include English. (The others are Spanish, Swedish, French and German. I guess I could through in Danish and the local patois here in Bamena, too, but I’ve never properly studied them.)
Anyway, it’s been a pretty wild ride so far. No, that’s not quite right. I can’t really say it’s been wild, yet. I’ve had some pretty crazy experiences, some VERY interesting conversations, and also been given some cool names. I’m currently known in my neighborhood as Tanji. That’s a name my homestay mother gave to me, because it’s also the name of my homestay brother and the nephew of the chief of Bamena. I also found out when I went to the chefferie (chief’s palace) and an old Mama called me Tanji that it is a title given to somebody that means “father of twins”. Well alright then. One of the language instructors for PC has started calling me “le Prince de Bamena.”
My homestay family has gotten me a couple shirts made out of panye, the local fabric which is rich in vibrant colors and patterns. Joey, I know how you feel about white people dressing up in African garb but to this I say: too bad. My family loves it and tells me I’m a real African (un vrai africain!), especially when I greet them and their friends in the patois. I can’t wait to get some boubous once I get up North.
A couple quick notes on communication: I have a cell phone and I’m sorry if you tried to call me on the original number I posted on facebook, I wasn’t too clear on the area codes and whatnot. Anyway, my number, to the best of my knowledge, is 011-237-70143164. I think. Maybe if that’s not right, Joey or Jacob or my parents can comment on what to do. I would really like to talk to you all. If you’ve been waiting for me to call you, then, well, keep waiting. It costs me over a dollar a minute to call anyone in the states and I don’t usually have more than 5 bucks worth of credit at a time. Also, it is free for me to receive calls and I believe it’s the same price for you in the states to receive or make calls. So really….call me. Also, here’s an address you can send me stuff to, starting now:
HH, PCV
B.P. 1825
Garoua, Cameroon
Africa
It might be useful to write on the letter in red ink, apparently that makes it less likely to be tampered with or stolen. Also, if you feel so inclined, draw some crosses or religious symbols on it and maybe write “Rev. or Fr.” in front of my name. It’d be great to get some mail from you guys in the states. If you mail something, it seems to take about a month to get here, so don’t be expecting an immediate thank you, though it will come. Also, padded envelopes seem to get here the quickest if you wanted to send something more than just a letter, though the flat rate boxes from the post office are the cheapest.
We had a great Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday. We cooked a couple turkeys, made mashed potatoes, stuffing, and loads of other stuff. Then we read off a bunch of superlatives that we’d voted on, secret-ballet-style last week. I got a few: Most likely to write a book about their experiences, Most likely to have an unsual pet at post, Least likely to be able to speak English at the end of service, and then Paul, the only other male trainee in the health program, and I got most likely to become a couple. Good stuff. Guess I’ll be writing a book about my pet giraffe in French (or Fulfulde).
Well, I must be off, but I’ll try to post again in a few weeks, once I’m at post and can make it up to Garoua to utilize the internet.
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