mardi 17 juillet 2007

Tougou - quoi?



Last Wednesday I traveled to the glorious town of Tougouri. Tougou what? Tougouri (too goo ree with emphasis on the too)! I spent several days there seeing the sights - there weren't many to see so I got bored pretty quickly. The region is called the Centre-Nord and is at the edge of the Sahel. The Sahel is a geographical feature where the Sahara meets savannah and it is characterized by brown dirt and small trees. yay! Actually I will take this time to list for you the types of trees that i see all the time: Baobabs, Tamarins, Nins, Eucalyptus, Papaya, Mango, and a few others I have yet to identify but I have to years so dont lose hope! That is a Nin tree you see up above - he's just a baby.
So that is a picture of my home for the next two years! I have two rooms and a cozy courtyard. I am inheriting this house from another volunteer and you can tell that a twenty-something guy used to live there. I am super-psyched about all the home improvements I will get to make. First on the list is fixing my hangar (that is the straw-roofed porch that you see) and second on the list is painting the inside. Before the other volunteer lived there some missionaries did and they painted some pretty creepy pictures of Jesus on the wall with scary religious phrases so that is getting painted over the first day. See all that green in my yard? That is really green by Tougouri standards so I am thankful for that. The picture on the right is of the right side of my house and shows my douche on the left (thats a shower) and my latrine on the right (thats a hole in some concrete).
So my courtyard is a courtyard inside of a bigger courtyard. Inside the bigger courtyard are three small houses where three single men live. Yes, I live in what is called a celibatairium - a singles community (I wonder what Gob Bluth would call it? Anyone?). So thats fun. They will be very protective of me and they are my co-workers at the Lycée so thats cool. There are 8 teachers at the Lycée and I am one of two SVT (biology) teachers. Tougouri doesn't have any official restaurants but there are some places that sell cold beer. The village is really spread out and there seems to be a lot of people - 6,000 or so - but no restaurants. I live on a pved road which is a glorious things because transport on non-paved roads is interesting. Basically you would have to hitch a ride on a cargo truck with a herd of goats and a donkey or take Bush Taxis which are never predictable. But hey, what about Africa is predictable?
The best thing about Tougouri is the barage. A barage is a man-made resevoir that basically collects water for the village in the rainy season and then stores is for the rest of the year. It is a gorgeous place. I got bored so I went biking around Tougouri and decided to go see what the barage was like. What was it like? A giant oasis of gloriousness!! There were tons of huge trees and grass and people bathing and huge groups of women carrying things on their heads shouting "Zaabre kebaré!!" (good evening). It was awesome. My new favorite place in Africa.
So that's Tougouri. Next time i will tell y'all about transport in country. It should be a riot.

7 commentaires:

Unknown a dit…

I am so happy that you are only a bike ride away from an oasis of gloriousness!! I just hope that you always remember to boil your water, particularly if people bathe in the drinking water. Yay for the trees! I love you, boo!

Katelyn Kirnie a dit…

What a pleasant little abode you will have boo! I will have to plan a visit to see how you will surely make it a comfy home. Maybe I can come nap on your bed. It will be just like old times except in Africa and no movie for me to sleep to. I miss your company friend! I owe you a long email on what I've been up to. I love your blogs! I'll write soon. Love you boo!

Anonyme a dit…

Rebecca, when I look at your "home" I think WTF????
and where is that concrete hole.
Mom

Molly a dit…

I call it "Swing City." I'd send you paint, put I can't afford it. Your house looks nice- too bad it comes with a douche. Can you tell him to go away? I kid!

Anonyme a dit…

It is funny that there is Jesus painted on your wall since they asked in your interview could you live without any affiliation with religion. I am glad you had a group of people to eat lunch with. I miss our breakfast, lunch and dinner dates!

Unknown a dit…

Hmmm... Gob Bluth? Singles community?

I would call it F*** City. The Bluths would love a vacation in Africa, don't you think? Possibly a ride down Cheney highway, or Condeleeza Rice causeway?

Oh Becca......do you miss me all the way in Africa? I miss you. Oh, by the way, I think your house is bitchin. You could do wonders with it.

Lauren a dit…

Becca! I have just recently found your website and I LOVE it. I'll take a study break, read your blog, have a good laugh, and go back to the books. It really makes my day. My favorite are your WTF moments. I thought I had them, but you win. Glad that things are going well, keep in touch and keep the blogs coming.... love ya!

 
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