Animist Dances & Songhai Horses

Our entrance into the village of Sarafone was an epic one. As we came bouncing over the dried out bed of the seasonal river, crowds of villagers dressed in their best clothing and jewelry came pouring out of their huts and concessions to greet us. As the evening light grew lower, throngs of children chased after us as the car wound through the narrow mud wall alleys. Some hung onto the back of our Land Rover, some beat on the windows and all cheered wildly as we came driving past. Our exit from the car found us surrounded by the kicked up dust from the drive in and the stampede behind. Looking over the walls to the surrounding alleys, we could see the clouds of dust moving our way even before we saw the young African faces round the corner.
The village pulled out all the stops for us. Skits and dancing were attended by hundreds of people where traditional Nigerien music was played and a trio of women entered into an animist possession dance, kicking up dust all around them and building increasingly with the music. The sounds of drumming and clapping could be heard from our camp late into the night.

The morning met us with 50 eager children wanting to learn how to plant live fencing right along side us so they could hopefully grow successful trees to mark the boundaries of their school yard. Our attention was quickly diverted however upon first sight of the camels and decorated Songhai horses. Demounting the camel was the scariest part of riding it, as the camels have a deep bellowing whine that sounds somewhat prehistoric which they cry out while bending down from their great height to laying flat on the ground. Clinging tightly to the harness, my body was pushed almost parallel to the sand as I looked straight down the camel's neck, like coming over the hill of a roller coaster.

A trio of drummers played for us all morning and the entire crowd of children, horses, camels and elders followeds us back to our vehicles to send us off.

"NRM's - Hardcore!"

Peace Corps Niger has had the incredibly unique experience of operating nonstop for 45 years without having to evacuate volunters or temporarily close the program for safety reasons. The Natural Resource Management sector has benefited from this consistency and helped contribute to Niger's success in combatting desertification and growing every more trees over the past 30 years. (See Feb 11 NYTimes article:)

Haoua Petite, our incredible Program Training Assistant, has boundless energy and a tough, hands-on, get dirty attitude. She constantly tells us with her thick almost rastafarian accent; "NRMs, mon, we're hardcore!" She put together an incredible 3 day training trip where we learned applicable technical skills such as dune stabilization, tree plantations, invasive species removal, and live fencing, among others. As the circus master of our hardcore NRM group, she showed us the most backwoods parts of the bush, introduced us to some of the most connected people in the country and imparted her wisdom and experience through projects that kept us moving and inspired.

Early on the first day our caravan of Land Rovers - fondly called ambulances - had to shovel out or Japanese counterparts, the JIKA volunteers, from sand dunes and cheer wildly - Tahi, Tahi!!! Allez Allez!!!!- to inspire our driver and vehicle up and over the steep rocky ravine to see the rock lines and banquettes serving to catch water for plant reclamation. Later, the feathery switches of the Moringa made for a peaceful afternoon stop and our constant drive by the Niger River gave me a sense of comfort with its lushness and calm. The afternoon continued with an inspiring visit to a grade school class where despite our tiredness and the pressing afternoon heat, I was awed by the energy of the class and their pure gratefulness for the lesson and our presence. The students were dressed in their best clothing and looked anxiously for our reactions.

(Photo index: Off roading in the bush. Me, Jamie and Haoua in our ambulance. Planting live fencing.)

Pictures upon arrival

(Index of photos: Current PCV's greeting us on arrival from Paris at the Niamey airport. NRM program director Chris Burns and Country Director, Mary Abrams. Our mosquito nets! The training compound in Hamdallaye (bisa dutsi). Ag/NRM Stage 2007!)

Greetings, Time and Greetings Again

The most apparent indication of Nigerien friendliness and humility is their propensity to make repeated long greetings that are always answered positively and with thankfulness to Allah.

Barka da zowa! (Blessings on your coming!)

Barka kaddai! (Blessings to you!)

Ina Gida? (How's the family?)

Gida duka lahiya lau. (The family is in health.)

Ina aiki? (How's the work?)
Aiki da godiya. (I am thankful for the work.)

Ina gajiya? (How's the tiredness?)

Babu gajiya! (There is no tiredness!)

Any similar series of greetings is done whether you've seen the same person in the morning and return only and hour later. They are exchanged with strangers in the street and in the market. Any truthfulness about whether you are tired or someone is ill is offered only after your blessings and thankfulness are given.

The length of the greeting is matched only by the length of the day, and the gratefulness for each moment became clear to me on one occassion when I was walking with my host mother, Mariama, and sharing these greetings. I knew she had much work to do - hauling water from the well, pounding millet into flour and prearing dinner for her family. As we walked slowly together towards home I thought, "My god, is it possible to walk any slower", and as the African sun began to rest hazily upon the horizon, I discovered that indeed, it was.

Cashing the Blank Check

So far the most daring thing I've done was to agree to volunteer for two years with very few details of what that actually meant. At times it felt like I had signed my name to a blank check on my life's account. While there are still many lingering questions about what my village post will look like, who I'll work with and what I'll accomplish, this first month of training has been very intense and well thought out. There are multiple daily sessions of language, cross culture and medical training. Our tainers are almost exclusively Nigerien's who have incredible reserves of motivation, patience and humor. Their introduction to the culture and country has been incredibly hospitable and the warmth and forgiveness of Nigerien's comes through in every class and conversation.

My first few days in Niger were spent on the training compoung with the 36 other Peace Corps trainees, getting over jet lag, getting used to sleeping under the stars with our mosquito nets and getting to know each other. I have since been renamed Sahiya by my wonderful host family where I am awoken before sunrise by the call to mosque that is broadcast over loudspeakers placed around Hamdallaye, a village of 4,000. This is often accompanied by the sounds of nearby roosters, donkeys and goats that walk freely through the dirt streets.