U.S. Embassy Update

Since I've signed up for the State Department's STEP program, I receive emails from the US Embassy. If you are interested in signing up, just Google search: State Department STEP. Schools are closed nationwide all week, so I'll be finishing up my site analysis report and just generally getting to know my site better!

U.S. Embassy Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Security Message for U.S. Citizens:

Reminder National Day of Protest and Additional Demonstrations

October 28, 2014

The U.S. Embassy in Burkina Faso reminds U.S. citizens of the upcoming demonstrations planned in downtown Ouagadougou October 27 – 30.

The U.S. Embassy will remain open during this period.  

Planned Demonstrations:

October 28 at 8:00 am: The political opposition plans to hold a day of protest to commence its “civil disobedience campaign.”  The march will likely proceed along the following route:  Place de la Nation-Avenue Gamel Addel Nasser-Avenue Monseigneur Joanny Thevenoud-Avenue de la Cathédrale-Avenue Kwame N’Krumah-UN Plaza, and back to Place de la Nation.  In Bobo-Dioulasso, a rally will commence at 8:00 am at the Place Tiefo Amoror (Station Square) and proceed to City Hall.  Additionally, the opposition calls for the closure of Burkinabe government facilities, commercial establishments, and schools. 

October 29 at 6:00 am: The Coalition Contre la Vie Chere (Coalition Against a High Cost of Living) or the political opposition hold a march and gathering in downtown Ouagadougou

October 30: The National Assembly will reportedly vote on the proposed constitutional change.  The opposition has called for a sit-down strike surrounding the National Assembly building to block voting members from casting their vote.

The U.S. Embassy anticipates additional spontaneous demonstrations will occur with little to no advanced warning throughout Burkina Faso until a resolution is reached.  Additional organized events are also expected.

It is reasonable to expect large demonstrations similar to those supported by the opposition in January and July 2014.  The National Police have increased patrols and established fixed positions throughout Ouagadougou to enable a shorter response time to spontaneous demonstrations.

The U.S. Embassy urges all U.S. citizens to maintain situational awareness and exercise good judgment.  The U.S. Embassy urges U.S. citizens to exercise caution if in the vicinity of any large gatherings, protests, or demonstrations.  Please remember, even demonstrations or marches intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational and escalate into violence.  Be alert and remain aware of your surroundings.  Stay informed and abreast of local media reports.

The closure of roads and businesses associated with the “civil disobedience campaign” may limit the purchase of supplies.  The U.S. Embassy urges all U.S. citizens to stock enough food, potable water, and other essential supplies at your home for your entire family.

Update on Burkina Faso's Politics

We've been receiving security texts more often about avoiding the big cities in case of protests. October 28 has been decided to be an official day of protest. No volunteers are to travel to the big cities that weekend. Here's an update on what's going on from Reuters, with the link below:

"(Reuters) - Opposition parties in Burkina Faso called on Wednesday for nationwide protests against moves to lift a two-term limit on the presidency, accusing President Blaise Compaore of preparing a "constitutional coup d'etat".

In power for over 27 years, Compaore has positioned himself as a senior regional mediator and his landlocked country is an important base for Western counter-terrorism operations in West Africa. However, the referendum plan has split his nation.

Opposition leader Zephirin Diabre urged people across Burkina Faso to close market stalls and walk out of private and public sector jobs on Oct. 28 to launch a civil disobedience campaign to prevent a referendum being organized.

There were pockets of unrest in the capital Ouagadougou late on Tuesday after the government said it would submit a bill for parliament to call a referendum on constitutional changes to allow the president to stand for re-election next year.

The streets were calm during the day on Wednesday. But as night fell protesters, most of them young men, set up makeshift barricades, blocking several of the city's main thoroughfares before police negotiated an end to the protests in the early hours of Thursday morning.

"Twenty-seven years in power is too much. What you haven't done in 27 years, are you going to be able to do it in five more years?" said one protester, asking not to be named.

There is concern that other leaders in West and Central Africa may be tempted to seek constitutional changes to prolong their mandates in the coming years, and events in Burkina Faso are being closely watched abroad.

"The government is in the process of carrying out a constitutional coup d'etat," Diabre told a news conference, flanked by leaders of Burkina Faso's main opposition parties.

"Burkina Faso's political opposition reiterates its rejection of a referendum," Diabre said. He accused the government of preparing to pay off members of the National Assembly to vote in favor of a referendum.

A government spokesman was not immediately available for comment. The government has not yet said when it will table the bill in the assembly, where it needs a simple majority to pass.

Compaore has not publicly said he wants to stand for re-election but his party has. The proposed constitutional revision has raised political tensions in the cotton- and gold-producing nation of 17 million people, living on the edge of the Sahara.

Compaore, who took power in a 1987 military coup, won 81 percent of the vote in the last election in 2010 but was confronted by protests by the usually loyal military in 2011. Dozens of members of his party have defected to the opposition this year, underscoring the potential for crisis.

(Writing by David Lewis and Joe Bavier; Editing by Daniel Flynn/Ruth Pitchford)"

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/23/us-burkina-politics-idUSKCN0IC11120141023

Harvest

Rice

I got to harvest rice for the first time with my community counterpart. I followed him on my bike to someone's rice fields and helped harvest rice with 30+ other men. I was way slower at it then them, obviously. So after 20 minutes, someone took my tool so that someone else could work more quickly. Fine by me! They managed to harvest all of the fields in one morning since there were so many friends there to help.

Look at me go!

It was seriously the most bizarre sight for me. Watching PBS and the Discovery Channel and any other informational programming, it always seemed to be Asia harvesting rice. I had no idea that riec was harvested in Africa, too. I'm not quite sure which type of rice it is because, as you can see, the fields aren't submerged in water. But, the rice still grows. So, I'm not quite sure about that! It's in the works. But, the soil is fertile because these fields have been producing rice for this family for over 80 years!

The harvest starts by grabbing the groups of stalks and chopping them, then placing them in piles. After that, the women and children follow to bundle together the piles.

Many hands make light work!

The women and children bundle together the piles. 

The tool used to chop the stalks!

Peanuts and corn

As I explained in an earlier post, my community planted peanuts and corn in my courtyard before my arrival over 2 months ago. Well, they're harvested! I'd never eaten raw peanuts before, but they're really good!

The peanuts grow in the dirt. Once the leaves turn yellow and start to wilt, they're ready!!

The corn didn't get very big because it was planted too late in the year, but that's okay! Corn is corn!

You can tell that rainy season is over. This is what my courtyard looks like now, after 2+ weeks of no rain, but continued 100+ degree weather. I don't even notice how much I sweat anymore. This heat...man.

Penny and my new rooster Leonard in my drying up courtyard

Speaking of Penny. I would just like to mention that my crazy hen is like a cat. She flies up onto the 5ft. wall and goes into my neighbors' courtyards as she pleases. She then returns whenever she feels like it. Leonard, my rooster, is too heavy to fly over the wall. He likes to crow and wake me up at 3am some mornings. Thanks Leonard, but the sun won't be up for another 2.5 hours.

Sesame

My neighbor grew sesame this year. The sesame seeds are in the pods.

Tabaski: Feast of the Sacrifice

The men pray in the front and the women pray in the back.

Wikipedia's story behind Tabaski:

When Abraham attempted to cut Ishmael's throat, he was astonished to see that Ishmael was unharmed and instead, he found a dead ram which was slaughtered. Abraham had passed the test by his willingness to carry out God's command.^[1][13]

This is mentioned in the Quran as follows:

100 "O my Lord! Grant me a righteous (son)!"

101 So We gave him the good news of a boy ready to suffer and forbear.

102 Then, when (the son) reached (the age of) (serious) work with him, he said: "O my son! I see in vision that I offer thee in sacrifice: Now see what is thy view!" (The son) said: "O my father! Do as thou art commanded: thou will find me, if Allah so wills one practising Patience and Constancy!"

103 So when they had both submitted their wills (to Allah), and he had laid him prostrate on his forehead (for sacrifice),

104 We called out to him "O Abraham!

105 "Thou hast already fulfilled the vision!" – thus indeed do We reward those who do right.

106 For this was obviously a trial–

107 And We ransomed him with a momentous sacrifice:

108 And We left (this blessing) for him among generations (to come) in later times:

109 "Peace and salutation to Abraham!"

110 Thus indeed do We reward those who do right.

111 For he was one of our believing Servants.

112 And We gave him the good news of Isaac – a prophet – one of the Righteous.

—Quran, sura 37 (As-Saaffat), ayat 100–112^[14]

So, every year, Muslim families sacrifice a sheep as part of their second largest religious celebration after Ramadan. Aïsseta's family is Muslim, so I asked if I could go with them to pray and celebrate on Tabaski. She was more than happy to bring me! 

Their family purchased this ram for the equivalent of $70 USD a few days before the celebration. 

I'd just had a new dress made by the tailor across the street from her boutique. The material cost the equivalent of $4 and it cost $5 to make. $9 for a perfectly fitting dress? Yes, please! I take full advantage of having a tailor here! I wanted to buy a scarf I found in the market. The vendor asked $4 for it. I brought Aïsseta with me and I only ended up paying $3 for it. Win! It's very helpful to have a local come with me so I don't get the foreigner's price.  I'd also had my hair braided the day before the celebration. I was ready for a world of pain after watching the little girls cry while getting their hair braided, but I think all of those years of sports increased my pain tolerance because it really didn't hurt that bad. The hair dresser asked every 5 minutes if it hurt because it hurt all of the other whites she braided. But, it was totally fine!

I went to the mosque with the family in the morning. Everyone was dressed in their new clothes for the celebration. Since it's such a large community, the prayer was held on a soccer dirt field. The boys went to the front to pray with the men and I followed Aïsseta and her daughter and small son to pray with the women. We shared a prayer mat and it was time for me to follow the masses. The prayer ceremony was short and silent. I followed all of the bending and kneeling and bowing. There was one point where everyone starting humming at the same time, breaking the silence. It gave me chills, it was so beautiful. I'm easily moved by large groups of people sharing moments together. The silence of the prayer was incredibly powerful!

The women finishing praying on Tabaski in Burkina Faso

After the prayer, the festivities began! All of the children ran over to the side where people had setup their carts to sell homemade snacks and candy and toys. I took full advantage of this time to take a ton of pictures!

Aïsseta's mini boutique to sell goods

And then I took a lot more pictures!

My favorite people to hang out with in the evenings in town :)

The females of the family...and little Abadou!

The day of Tabaski was also the day of the market, so I went with Aïsseta into town and sat at the boutique for a little bit. That was when the dad had gone home to kill the ram. Again, so glad I didn't have to watch. Around lunch time, we headed back to her house and I sat under a tree with her neighbors' kids and my puppy. And then we FEASTED! And I say 'we' because Simba was so excited about all of the bones and meat to chew on. My body was just so stoked to have so much protein! I spent most of the afternoon chatting with people and enjoying the shade.

Later that evening, there was a dance at one of the main restaurants in town for the teens and young men and women. I stopped by to check it out and those kids were having so much fun! They'd been looking forward to it for weeks because one of Burkina Faso's rappers would be performing there. I was exhausted and gearing up for the celebration the next day at the Catholic church, so I hung out at the boutique and then went home.

You would never guess, but these are actually some of the happiest people I know. Smiling for pictures is not a thing here...

Me and my friend who is a volunteer in Boussé from Japan

I got a puppy!

My October definitely started off with a woof! A fellow Peace Corps Volunteer, Amy, has been in country since last year. She acted as a Peace Corps Volunteer Facilitator during my group's training in Léo, so we got to know her well. Her dog had puppies toward the end of our training and she let me claim one! I met her in Ouagadougou on the last day in September to receive the puppy. I've never had a dog before, so I cracked up when I saw "I Just Got a Puppy. What Do I Do?" in the volunteer library. The internet connection is so slow or nonexistent at my site that my questions are no longer just a Google Search away, so this book has been fantastic!

Me and my puppy in Ouagadougou

Simba in her basket

I taxi'd to the bus station to catch my bus home. To my horror, the bus station was packed like I'd never seen before. Everyone was travelling for 3 main reasons: going home for the start of school, affecting to teach in the assigned school district and travelling for 2 big religious holidays that weekend. I went into Ouagadougou on the absolutely worst day! Usually I just go up to my bus and hop on without having to formally by tickets ahead of time. This was the first time I had to go to the ticket booth. Burkina Faso does not have a concept of lines. It is first come first served and that means mass chaos. I thought we were standing in a line at the ticket booth, but when the worker returned to sell more tickets everyone pushed forward like we were at a rock concert. Of course my money wasn't easily accessible, so I took off my backpack and set the puppy's basket down, praying that she wouldn't try to jump out. Everyone was watching me because I stick out like a sore thumb being so pale, but I also had a giant backpack and a puppy and my money wasn't ready. Hot mess. I eventually got my ticket and headed over to the other line of mass chaos loading the busses. As a bus backed in, I asked one of the workers if he could put my bike on the bus. He said yes, but make sure you can find a seat. To my horror, the bus had just been unloaded and people were already shoving their way on. Are you kidding me? So I hugged the puppy close like a football and pushed my way head first into the crowd like I was going for the touchdown. You bet I got that touchdown! All Burkina hospitality for the nasara is lost when it comes to first come first served scenarios. I fought for my middle seat between one large woman and another mother with her 8-year-old son on her lap. We became 5 sweaty peas in a 3 seat pod. Oversize lady, me, puppy on my lap, mother and son on her lap. Wow. The puppy slept and I sweated for the next hour until I got home. But, we made it!

For being 8 weeks old, the puppy was so tiny! But, the mother had been sick and the puppy was fighting for milk with her brothers.  She had a few scabs on her body and other volunteers that were also at the Transit House (Peace Corps Burkina Faso dorms) mentioned that she might have worms. I believe it, she slept the entire way from my friend's house to Ouagadougou, didn't play or act curious in Ouagadougou, then slept the whole way to my house. This was also the first time that she was separated from her mother and brothers, but her energy was insanely low. I took her to my neighbor to show her my new puppy and she immediately saw the scabs and said that she had worms. IF YOU'RE SQUEAMISH DON'T READ THIS NEXT PART. Go to the next paragraph. What happened next is gross. My neighbor squeezed the scab area like it was a pimple and out popped a worm. I was mortified, but totally intrigued at the same time. I held down the puppy and she proceeded to pop out at least 10 more worms. My poor little puppy was crying and wimpering and it was so sad to put her through so much pain. My neighbor heard my awws and said I know this is hurting her, but she will die if these worms don't come out. I don't know who was braver, my neighbor or my puppy. Every worm she took out, she then threw into the fire. She has a dog too, so she knows how dangerous these worms are.

It was a amazing to see the difference the next morning in the puppy's energy level. Granted, she woke me up a million times throughout the night whenever she heard loud wind, rain, dogs fighting and donkeys braying. But, she had an appetite and way more energy. I took her to the vet and he gave her a small injection to prevent further worms and washed her with a toxin made for animals to kill any further worms. Sure enough, he found more than what my neighbor had found. He told me my puppy was actually a boy and said that the service was free of charge. People here are seriously so nice.

Such a curious little puppy!

I wanted to wait a few days to make sure he was healthy before naming him. Animals are so fragile here, especially young animals. But, when I took him to my neighbor's house, he curiously walked up to my neighbor's 8-year-old dog and barked the quietest, cutest little bark I've ever heard. It reminded me of Simba in The Lion King when he tries to roar at the hyenas. So his name became Simba. And, he's growing into his name quite nicely! One of his favorite games is to hide in the tall weeds, crouch and then pounce and chase my neighbor's chickens. It's adorable to watch and reminds me of the Lion King character pouncing on Zazu. It's also pretty legit that many of the locals here pronounce Simba's name "Seemba," like Rafiki.

Simba loves chasing chickens!

Simba likes to play with her crepes and fried eggs.

The informational book about getting a puppy has been pretty helpful. But, raising a puppy here is a lot different that in a developed country. In house training, the book emphasizes the importance of regular meals to regulate the digestive system. I wish that was an option. Dogs here eat what the humans eat. I can find dog food in the capital, but it is insanely expensive and my Peace Corps stipend isn't really setup to support that. So, I bought a small bag of off-brand adult dog food to supplement what I feed him. What's been successful so far is NIDO. NIDO is fortified powdered milk produced by Nestlé to promote healthy growth and development in children. It's basically like Pedia-Sure with the proteins and vitamins children need. Simba loves that stuff! It doesn't have lactose in it, so he digests it without a problem. He also really likes scrambled eggs. And of course he LOVES meat. I often take him over to my neighbor's house where I eat lunch every day and she'll give him some tô or rice with sauce and he eats it all! 

Okay, so I don't care what the vet says. After three weeks with me, my puppy has more than doubled in size. She's a girl, not a boy. I picked her up and looked at her side-by-side with my friend's male puppy and there's kind of a big difference. Good one, vet. 

I puppy sat for my community counterpart while he was in the capital working for a few days. Simba is way bigger than his puppy, so when they played she'd usually end up hurting him. If I didn't separate them into two different rooms in the house, I wouldn't have ever slept through the night. Simba just loves playing too much! 

Simba loves to play!

I love my puppy! It costs more than 800 euros to fly a dog back with me to the United States, so I'm making sure Simba gets to know my neighbor really well so she doesn't feel as confused about loyalty when I leave. Every time I lock to the house door, she wags her tail and runs to the gate and then runs into my neighbor's courtyard to play and follow her around. I'm super attached to Simba, but $2,000 can fly me back to Burkina to visit after my service is done. And there are plenty of puppies for me to choose from in the US!

I love my puppy!!

Pre-Service Training Video!

Here's a video I put together of all 31 of us during the first 3 months in country with our host families. Enjoy and please share!

Harvesting in Burkina Faso

Friday, Aïsseta didn't come to the boutique in the morning because she was at the fields harvesting beans. She explained that a lot of them have dried up and so she needs to go to the field for a few days until they harvest all of them. I asked if I could come along and she was more than happy to take me.

Saturday morning at 6:45am, Sabane, her oldest son, arrived to accompany me to their house. When I arrived at their house, Aïsseta had already left with her younger sisters on the donkey cart. I played Nemata, Abadou and their kitten until their grandmother was ready to leave. I thought this would be the same field that's only 1-2km away. Nope, it ended up being 8km roundtrip! The fields aren't even in Boussé, they're in Goabga, the next village north. That grandma has stamina! Aïsseta and her sisters rolled up on the donkey cart after 10 minutes of my arrival. They immediately got to work!

The bean plants grow between the tall millet. The women placed the beans in woven baskets and then dumped the baskets into the cart.

My entire time in Burkina, I've been surprised by the multitude of cornfields. Well, I had one of those face palm moments when I found out that millet fields look exactly like corn fields. The only difference is what they produce. Corn is produced in husks along the stalk of the plant and millet is grown toward the top. When I called my friend to tell her my revelation, she had the same facepalm moment and immediately left her courtyard to see if she was indeed surrounded by corn fields as she'd thought. 

You can see the millet grains on the long rods that grow at the top of each stalk.

Aïsseta's family grows millet, beans and peanuts. The prepared the fields in June and once rainy season start mid-June to July, they planted everything. Harvest season is usually September/October. Aïsseta's family harvests for their family household. Only if they have excess will they sell their harvest in the market. Aïsseta has 4 kids of her own, plus her husband's other son, plus her two younger sisters that live with her and the grandmother. That's 9 mouths to feed all year long! They also have their family boutique for school and miscellaneous fees. However, an estimated 92% of Burkina Faso's population participates in subsistence agriculture to survive. They do not often have a family business as backup income. They rely solely on their harvest, which is very dependent on the soil and rain.

Once the beans are dried, they pull out the beans!