Rosie in Burkina

Welcome to my weblog,

2007-05-27T12:21:00.000Z

From January to April 2006 I did research in Ouahigouya and surroundings, in northern Burkina Faso (West Africa) on access to water resources in the Sahel region. After three months of fieldwork I wrote my Master's thesis about this subject for the Vrije Universiteit of Amsterdam.

During my stay in northern Burkina Faso, I wrote a diary of which much is published on this weblog. It gives an insight on rural African life, how I did my field research and the problems I faced.

This is me on my motorbike going from my 'home' in Ouahigouya, to the village.

Field Research:

This year, 2007, we face the half-way point of the MDG's (Millennium Development Goals) set by the UN to reduce poverty in the world. In my thesis it becomes clear that access to water is a crucial factor for the improvement and development of rural livelihoods in the Sahel region (one of the poorest areas in the world).

While most scientific research concentrates on water management and irrigation systems, I was more interested in the social effects of water scarcity: the dry season lasts eight months per year!

I focused on three forms of social constraints :
- Ethnic differences (Mossi farmers and Fulani pastoralists);
- Gender differences (men and women);
- Hierarchical differences (social strategy).

African rural livelihoods are based upon strong social structures which enables communities to survive in vulnerable environments. In times of drought and other crises, villagers rely upon their institutes for collective-action, and conflict-solving mechanisms.

At the moment I am designing my own website, on which you can soon find a full summary of my Master's thesis.
rosien.nl

National Culture Week

2006-04-02T17:18:00.000Z

A trip to south-west Burkina Faso
Just two more days before I will go back to the Netherlands! Therefore, this is my last report from my ‘adventures’ in West Africa!
Last week I have finally left Ouahigouya and visited the National Culture Week (Semaine Nationale de la Culture). This is a festival held in the south-west of the country, where the ‘Bobo’ live, who speak Dioulla: their main city is called: Bobo-Dioullassou (or short: Bobo).
I got a lift to the capital Ouagadouguo from where I took the bus to Bobo. The environment between Ouaga and Bobo has the same red colour as in the north, but here there are more hills, trees and even lakes! I arrived early in the evening. Salif Sodré (my contact person in Ouahigouya) was already there for a few weeks, because his uncle is in a hospital there.
After 3 months living in the ‘brousse’, Bobo seemed like a big city to me: there are motorways, streetlights, people everywhere (even some ‘white’ ones!) and there is no dust in the air. The hotel room also was one big party: for the first time in three months I have used a toilet! There is glass in the windows, so I do not hear the traffic outside, and the bed… it is soft and I do not feel the bottom!
At night we have been to a open-air theatre where there was a performance of traditional music, dance and singing. It was terrific!
The next day I spent all my time ánd my money in a fair just across the street from the hotel. Entrance fee is 100 CFA (about 30 cents). There are markets, bars, music and cooking matches. Lunch (a big plate of rice) costs 350 CFA (50 cents). Everybody in West Africa seems to have come visit here: there are politicians, famous people, all hotels are full, and on the market sometimes people even speak English. During the night we have visited the open-air theatre again to watch a show.

Going ‘home’
On Friday we left Bobo at 5 o’clock in the morning to return to Ouahigouya. Salif mainly drove in the middle of the road to avoid the holes. It was very cloudy that day, and we even had a bit of rain! First we drove to Ouagadougou. (There is a road from Bobo to Ouahigouya, but it is hardly used by cars, because the road is very bad). After the capital, we drove to the north: there were clouds here as well, but instead of rain, they only brought a lot of dust and sand. The more north we got, the hotter, dryer and emptier it got. Here we needed to look out for cows, sheep, donkeys or pigs that cross the road.
When we arrived in Ouahigouya, I realised that everything here has become so familiar to me: and it felt like coming ‘home’ when I saw the sandy streets and clay houses.
The next day I was ill: probably from a salad that I ate in Bobo, so I took some medicines and stayed in bed. I wonder whether those medicines are still working in this hot climate!

Preparing to REALLY go home!
The last three months I have learned a lot of rural Burkinese and West African culture and the daily live of a Mossi family. My research in the villages did not go exactly as I wanted it to, but maybe there would simply not have been an other way. I took decisions that at that moment seemed the best. Besides, life here is quite hard, especially for a ‘white woman’ and in this time of the year!
However, in a short time I have become familiar with the local life, food, climate, customs, music, the Islamic lifestyle, the street sounds and sights… There are cows and sheep in the streets and on every corner there is a small mosque or a water point. The men walk around in long robes (especially on Fridays) and the women wear colourful long skirts and head cloth. The people around me have become like my family and I am certainly going to miss them!
Of course, there are also things that I still cannot get used to: for example that everybody throws his litter on the streets, people burn their house litter during the night on small fires in the streets (which stinks horribly!), people make noises while eating and drinking, they spit on the floor and empty their noses in the sand….I will be so happy to go back ‘to normal’ again!
I will be leaving Burkina with mixed feelings: it is absolutely NOT a beautiful country. However, it is an impressive country and its people are very interesting. Honestly, for the next coming months I will probably not have the feeling of going back to Burkina Faso, but I know from my experience in 2001 that I will start to miss Africa sooner or later. It has truly been an adventure, a unique and unforgettable experience.
So for the last time I send you all ‘greetings from Africa’ with in mind that on April 4th at 8:30 am I will arrive safely on Dutch ground again!

Love, Rosie

Time for evaluation

2006-03-27T16:23:00.000Z

Only 8 more days to go… time is going fast now. Tomorrow I am going to Ouagadouguo (capital of BF) to do some tourist shopping! This will be the second time that I will visit the capital and it will be good to spend a day in ‘city atmosphere’; because while they call Ouahigouya a city, you cannot actually call it that way: there is only one main road where there are street lights. The rest is sandy streets with no lights and most people have to get their water from a waterpoint in the streets.

Most of the anthropology students will return at the VU on 3 april. Well, I will be in the airplane at that moment! So I will not be able to attend the first class of Graduate Seminar and listen to all your stories about your experiences!!! This is why I have made a short ‘evaluation report’ to share my experiences anyway.

The first month was full of new impressions, everything was so interesting and wonderful, even though it cost me a lot of energy. I was warmly welcomed by the contact person in Ouahigouya and his family and in fact I have spent most of the period with them. I have lived in a small house on their court and they have been like a family to me.

Because I stayed with an African family; I got to know their culture pretty much from ‘inside’. I had to learn some of the local language Mooré because not everybody spoke French and I did not meet any white people for three months (except some times at a hotel, but I did not get to talk to them much.)

The family lives in the city of Ouahigouya, but they were born in village nearby; and they still have many relatives there. I decided to do my research in this village, called Nimpouya, and a neighbouring village: Risci.

In February I started to feel more ‘adapted’ to the food, the climate, the customs of the people and the life here in general. I could greet people in the local language; and understand a little of what they were saying.

I started to do profound research in the villages. There are two main ethnic groups in the region: the Mossi peasants and the Peul pastoralists. There is no electricity or running water. Because in the rural areas people only speak local languages, I have worked with an interpreter.

In March I got more and more problems with my interpreter. In fact, he assumed that after three weeks my research would be finished. Because he had a daily job as well, it got more and more difficult to find time for my research. Finally this resulted almost in an argument by the second week of March. I felt very frustrated, misunderstood and angry. I had the feeling that I did not control the situation anymore; and I did not know what was happening to me. I started to wonder why I chose Africa as my research site in the first place and I seriously wanted to go home!

The situation with my interpreter, in combination with the constantly rising temperature (during the day over 40 degrees! ), the food, the people and their way of communicating, the environment, the language… All the things I found so wonderful at first; now I was completely fed up with everything! This feeling lasted for almost a week and it felt like this week would never end.

But, fortunately, it passed, of course. And in the last weeks I could enjoy most things again, although the feeling of homesickness did not go away completely. Now that the end is near, I realise what a wonderful and unique experience this has been. It gives me a certain dramatic state of being: every time I pass something, I think this might be the last time I see those things. I have taken many pictures and have written everything down in my diary. This will hopefully help me after my return home, to deal with this experience.

See you all soon! Bye, Rosie

Pictures!

2006-03-23T21:29:00.000Z

After a terrible 'culture shock crisis' week, I feel much better now. Thanx everyone for your lovely emails and telephone calls: they really work!!

Now, finally, it is time for some pictures:

This is what the villages look like here: square mud houses for the villagers and round barns for stock.

The day starts early in the village: women fetch water for the family and often their children give them a hand. Fetching water is a tough and dangerous job. This well is located in the village where I did most of my research, so I spent much of my time sitting here and watch the activities.

Most villages now also have a waterpump, like this one. It is further away than the wells, but fetching water from the pump is less dangerous and less exhausting. Besides, the water is cleaner: healthier to drink.

This was the view from my house in the village: flat, arid and dry...

These women are going to the market in a village a few kilometres away, to sell their goods.

In this area live two ethnic groups: Mossi farmers and Fulani pastoralists. This little girl is a Fulani, and her house is in the background.

These girls are on their way to the waterpump to do the dishes.

Back 'home' in Ouahigouya, I live with a guest family. These are my 'brothers': the oldest is Cheick (6) and the little one is Amir (2). I also have two 'sisters': Raicha and Faida.

This is me little Farice, who is scared of me!

Communication problems: “Is this a piece of your brain??!”

2006-03-15T08:11:00.000Z

After 2 months; some problems have come up... And they are not solved yet. However; I try to get a hold on the situation and to spend the last 2 1/2 weeks as good as I can.

Together with my interpreter I planned to spent the last week of February in Nimpouya. However, some unexpected activities came up which resulted in my interpreter being too busy to join me to the village. When we discussed this it turned out that for the coming weeks eight and nine he also did not have time to help me. However, in weeks five and six we had discussed this, also with his supervisor, and we agreed on a certain programme which gave us the chance to spend time in the villages for two more weeks.

These discussions got more tense in weeks seven and eight and finally resulted almost in an argument. The African way of communicating began to work on my nerves as well: all the time my interpreter kept saying ‘no problem’ but there were indeed serious problems! I have the feeling that nobody understands me and my interpreter, who just had begun to become a good friend, I saw now as only an obstacle for my research.

Maybe these problems are being ‘feeded’ also by the fact that since these weeks I have seriously had the feeling of ‘culture shock’. Everything costs too much energy, everybody gets on my nerves all the time. The food, the temperature, the people, the environment, I have been fed up with basically everything and I long to see, hear and taste something familiar for a change.

Besides, I find doing research with an interpreter is very difficult. Sometimes it works fine, but there are times that it does not work at all. This has, in my opinion, several reasons. First of all, my interpreter is familiar with the villages where I am doing research. In the beginning I regarded this as an advantage. The interviewed persons often were relatives or friends. Which made that we had good conversations with these people. But a disadvantage is that my interpreter often chit-chatted with this person, in between my questions. This made me feel that, when I posed another question, I interrupted in their conversation. I talked about this with my interpreter, but he does not seem to understand the problem. If the interviewed person was not familiar with my interpreter, the conversations were more formal and my interpreter kept the translations short, which made me feel that he did not translate all that had been said.

Besides this, I find it also difficult to do research with an interpreter because I do not only have to make sure that the interviewed person has told me everything he or she knows about the subject, I also have to check whether the interpreter has translated everything that has been said, or even, whether he has not added some information himself to make the answer more complete! Now that I start to learn more and more of the local language, I have discovered this.

I have therefore tried to find an other interpreter for the time that is left. I found someone and we went to the villages together. But it was not the same. He did not understand me quite well, he did not understand my purpose of research and the way that the interviews should be held. Moreover, I had the feeling that he did not translate the responds exactly as the interviewed person had answered them. Besides, this man does not speak the language of the pastoralists, so I could only do interviews with Mossi people. Therefore, I found this was not the solution to my problem.

But all in all I try to make the best of it and to solve the problems as soon as possible. You have to think possitive; especially when you're on your own and there is no one who can encourage you. I think many other people would have given up on the situation long ago; or they would have gotten angry (which actually might have helped to solve the problem sooner than it does now, but I am not a person that gets angry often.

Well, that's it for now. I am going to relax a bit and read a book! (about Africa, of course...)

Access to water resources in practice

2006-03-07T11:44:00.000Z

Still alive and kicking in northern Burkina! I see in Holland the weather forecast is 3 degrees, sunny and snow! Well; it’s a little different here: the sun is not shining: it is BURNING! Temperature still keeps rising. I have problems sleeping, because even during the night it is 35 degrees now. I have a fan in my room; but this does not seem to help anymore. And when I want to take a cold shower; even the water seems warm now. Working during the day is even worse!!! So I get up at 6, like everyone else: while the sun is not yet high in the sky. Between 10 and 16 it is best not to ‘travel’ long distances on a motorbike, or to go outside at all! Between 12 and 15 it is lunch time: people eat their lunch (lots of rice!) and have a nap. (I am still not fed up with the rice and I am actually learning how to cook Burkinabe dishes now!)

I have visited Nimpouya and Risci a few more times the past week for interviews and observations. Today I had a follow-up interview with the director of the Regional Office of the Ministry for Water and Agriculture in Ouahigouya which was very interesting. Something very interesting for my research has come up exactly in ‘my field’ region of research! The ministry is constructing a dam in the region; but one whole village needs to move: because when the dam is finished; the village will get flooded in the rainy season. Of course these people do not want to leave their homes, and although the government has arranged an alternative solution they do not for pay everything, so people need to pay themselves as well. However; this dam brings a lot of opportunities for the population: it means more water for everyone, possibilities for irrigation and therefore more agriculture, as well as more drinking water for the cattle of the pastoralists in the region. However; the village contains a holy mosque; which of course they can not take with them. Interesting stuff for anthropologists! I am going to visit the site and the village to interview the people there as well. It seems that everyone already knew about this for months, and even while everybody knows that I am doing research on WATER resources in rural areas, no one had gotten the idea to tell me about it, even my one interpreter! So I keep wondering; Why? And: are there more things that I still not know that might be essential for my research??! Africans have a very difficult way of communicating!

A few more interviews are planned the coming weeks, for example with ONEA; the national water association and the head of the department of Tangaye – where Nimpouya and Risci are based, as well as the village that gets flooded by the dam: Bossomnooré.

After all that, my research will be nearly finished! I really hope to have collected enough information and that my research gives a complete picture of the rural life in northern Burkina Faso, especially focussed on water resources.

I find the local language Mooré still difficult; but my French has improved pretty much. The director of the regional office of the ministry is interested in my report; but I doubt whether he will be able to read it; because it is in English!

Tomorrow it is the National Day for Women in Burkina Faso: the women do not work. And the men go to the market to buy groceries and they actually are about to prepare diner! This is a great exception in traditional African culture, where the men NEVER cook! There are parties; ceremonies and special things organised for women all over the country. Should be pretty interesting…

I have tried to check my emails on hotmail and gmail; but again the system does not work properly and I haven’t been able to read any messages since 25 Feb!
That’s all for now. Béogo!

Daily life in the village

2006-03-01T10:32:00.000Z

Last week there was a fire in Tangaye, a neighbouring village of Nimpouya. I witnessed it because I was visiting the ‘market’ there. A woman had been trying to make fire for here cooking place, but a burning piece of wood fell on a hay mat. It caught fire and it spread to the wooden roof of a small house where they store stock: bags of corn and millet. The house itself is made of clay so that did not catch fire, but some of the bags inside did: half the stock was burnt. This is a disaster for the family because they use this food to get through the ‘winter period’ (which is from December to May – it is not cold like our winter, in fact it is only getting hotter! But it is the dry season, where nothing grows.) From all over the neighbouring encampments women brought buckets with water to stop the fire. People now wonder how the family is going to get through the months April and May, because if half of your stock is burnt, it is going to be difficult. People cannot give some of their food away, because they have barely enough themselves. By the time that food is finished, these people probably need to visit relatives and beg for food.

Besides from this, nothing special happens really in the village. Women prepare dinner, get water and search for wood in the fields, men go to the market, feed the cattle, go to the mosque five times a day and play cards under a tree while drinking tea…. ‘the usual stuff’!

For people who wonder how do I survive in these small villages?! Well I’m only here for a few days, and then I am one or two days in ‘the city’ of Ouahigouya to ‘recharge’, after which I am in the village again for a few days. So it isn’t really that bad! ;-) But of course my research takes place in the villages (Nimpouya and Risci) so I will try to explain a bit of daily life here:

At 5 o’clock in the morning the women get water. They prepare breakfast (leftovers from yesterday’s diner) and wash and feed the young children.

Meanwhile the men are washing themselves and go for the morning prayers to the mosque. After this they feed their livestock: cows, goats and chickens. They get water for the animals and give them hay. Some of them get on their bikes to go to the market in the neighbour village Tangaye or in Ouahigouya. Others construct a house or other building together.

The women get water again and go into the fields to collect wood. They also crush millet to make flour – with which they make almost every dish that they eat in the village. For lunch and diner they usually eat the same thing. At noon, after the prayer, the women bring the food to the men who all eat together out of the same bowl with their right hand. The women and the smallest children eat together in their houses. After lunch everybody goes for a nap. The men sleep outside in the shade.

The younger boys who do not want to go to sleep make tea (which takes an hour or two) or go to the fields together to look for wood. Children are getting water and playing around in the sand. At three o’clock it is time for the afternoon prayer and then the men will visit relatives, (elderly or ill people) or play cards in the shade.

The women are preparing diner, making zonkoom (a drink of millet flour and water) or working on cotton that they bought on the market other handcraft stuff. During the rainy season they work on the land. Now it is dry season and the fields are dry and empty. The cows and goats have eaten all that was left over after the harvest. Fortunately there is now still enough water available from the pump. Busy hours of the day at the water points are 5 am, 10 am and 4 pm.

I cannot drink this water straight away: I have to boil it first, when it has cooled down a bit I add a few drops of purification liquid and after half and hour I can drink it. But it is not always that bad; I usually bring loads of bottled water with me or sent somebody away to buy a bottle for me. Luckily there is a ‘shop’ in the village which sells Coca Cola (although not chilled). And there is always somebody that is going to Ouahigouya, so they can bring me water.

People go to sleep usually very early: at about 9 pm, because they get up between 4 and 5. However, I still find it very difficult to get used to this. There is no electricity but most houses have an oil lamp (?) or sometimes a torch. Some houses have also a small radio. There are many local radio stations here, and the most listened to are: Radio de l’Amitié, which is based in Ouahigouya, and an other one which is in Mooré.

Now that it is end February it is getting warmer and warmer, although the wind is still blowing: at noon it might get up to 40 degrees. So when you’re in the shade, where it is 30 degrees, it feels quite cool there!

I am now on the verge of an Africa-culture-crisis: I can feel it coming up. The more I do things the past few days; the more energy they take. I’m a bit fed up with the landscape, the temperature, the people, the food…. Basically everything! However, I still have 5 more weeks to go, so I try to stay positive and happy: because being fed up with everything does not really help with doing research! So from dry and hot Burkina Faso I hope everything is alright back home and that everyone is doing fine.

Love, Rosie

Burkina Blues

2006-02-27T08:58:00.000Z

After two months of research I still have to say: I do not understand one bit of this country! How on earth do people survive under these conditions?! In the villages where I am doing research, temperatures rise up to 40 degrees around noontime and they drop under 20 during the night: truly desert climate here. Everybody has a cold, because of the constant wind that blows and brings diseases and dust clouds that covers everything in dust and sand all the time. I sometimes cannot leave my house because the wind is so strong that I cannot stop coughing, my nose is bleeding all the time because of the dust, and sand blows into my eyes constantly. In the village daily life continues just as usual. Only five more weeks to go and I have still so much to do! But I have made a scheme and hopefully everything will work out just fine. Now I must be going to the villages again! Béogo! (= Bye)

Vlechtjes

2006-02-21T14:04:00.000Z

Back to Nimpouya

2006-02-21T08:08:00.000Z

Hi everyone,
Half of my research period is already over, and: so far so good. I have been in Nimpouya for a week to collect more material; but I haven't finished yet; so I'm going back this week one more time. By then I hope I have gathered enough information on Nimpouya in relation to water resources and will continue my research in March in Risci; a village not far from Nimpouya. Went to Ouagadougou for a day last week (capital of Burkina Faso). It was an interesting experience. While I have lived in this city four years ago for four months, so I know my way around pretty well. It was nice to see 'my house' and neighbourhood again, the supermarket; the cinema, the great Mosque... all sorts of things that I do not have in far away Ouahigouya! Bought some Dutch cheese and chocolate, hooray! Both are already finished of course... :-)
Everything is fine. Not much else to mention, so I'll just leave it up here. Bye for now. Rosien
PS I've tried to send some photos again; but everytime the computer gets stuck!

Happy Birthday to ME!!!

2006-02-07T16:18:00.000Z

Hey everyone,
Last Saturday was my birthday! Did not really do anything special, but went to see a cave in a village near by with a friend. I expected to see a cave such as the ones I know from France and Belgium: but this turned out to be only a small underground space which someone built himself. There were millions of bats in side so I was scared to death; but still went along with the guide. There was an underground Mosque.
On Sunday we had an name initiation ritual of a child that was born last week in Nimpouya. The mother had given birht to a daughter while the whole village was partying for the man whom returned from the Hadj to Mecca last week: she was all along in her hut; crying for help; but no one could hear her. So she gave birth to the child all alone... Pretty impressive that she and her child are in good health. Especially because it now becomes clear to me that many people die: last Friday an old man in Nimpouya died; his younger sister who was ill, died on Sunday. And yesterday the younger sister of the woman who gave birth to the daughter on the party; she died while giving birth to her second child: the child was 8 months old and already dead. Very sad stories today, I m sorry. But that is life that I discover here now today.
Bye for now

Rob en Rita / Suus / Aaron : super cool dat jullie gebeld hebben!!!
De rest: bedankt voor de mails maar heb nog geen tijd gehad ze allemaal te lezen.

Keep in touch
Rosien

Terugkeer van Hadj uit Mekka van Nimpouya inwoner

2006-01-28T10:40:00.000Z

(Nederlandse versie)

Vrijdag was een heel belangrijke dag: een van de bewoners van Nimpouya is op Hadj pelgrimstocht naar Mekka geweest en teruggekeerd. Bijna twee weken was iedereen opgewonden bij het idee dat hij terug zou komen en vooral wanneer: want zodra hij terug was gekeerd zou er een groots feest worden georganiseerd. Omdat de vluchten naar Afrika niet zo goed gestructureerd verlopen als bij ons, is Salif Sodré (is neef van de man die op Hadj is geweest) wel drie keer naar het vliegveld van Ouagadougou gereden om te kijken wanneer het vliegtuig aan zou komen. Afgelopen woensdag kwam het vliegtuig eindelijk aan.

Donderdag 26 januari
Op donderdag was het een drukte van jewelste: alle vrouwen van de familie kwamen bij elkaar om een feest maal te bereiden: manden vol kippen, sla, en courgettes en emmers met aardappelen. Daarnaast zou er in het dorp een koe worden geslacht: echt iets heel groots voor deze mensen. Vrienden en familie met kleine kinderen kwamen langs om te helpen. Er werden peterselie en peper gestampt. Peterselie werd in een grote teil gedaan en allemaal vrouwen er om heen zaten op krukjes met een zak Maggie bouillonblokjes uit de verpakking te halen. Deze blokjes werden verpulverd en bij de peterselie gestrooid. Daar ging een pot Dijon mosterd bij en een halve fles azijn. Dit werd met de handen door elkaar gemengd tot een fijn papje. Met dit papje werden even later kippen met de hand ingewreven. De maggie blokjes openmaken, knoflook pellen, uien schillen… We zitten wel met meer dan 10 vrouwen te schillen. Allemaal uit de hand en vaak met een vlijmscherp vleesmes zonder handvat. De vrouw van Daouda is er ook en de secretaresse van DSF, en de vrouw van Moussa (broer van Sodré met wie ik veel op stap ga – hij geeft les in Risci waar ik ook onderzoek ga doen). Al die jonge moeders vinden het wel gezellig met elkaar geloof ik. Om de haverklap hangt er een uitgezakte borst naar buiten waar een kind aan loopt te zuigen. Tegen het eind van de middag komen Moussa en Sodré terug met de oom vanuit Ouaga. Hij overnacht die donderdag nacht in het gastenverblijf naast mij want morgen rijden we met z’n allen naar Nimpouya. Moussa, Ceydou (de chauffeur die me steevast ‘nang-saraa’ blijft noemen, omdat dat beleefd is), Daouda (mijn tolk), Pascal, Noe, Isu, Ishakka, Aruna, Salif en andere mannen lopen in en om het huis. Ik realiseer me zelf ook hoe ik eigenlijk al best gewend raak aan het wonen hier bij Sodré. De meeste mensen ken ik al en ik weet een beetje hoe het er aan toe gaat, waar dingen staan en wat de bedoeling is. Toch blijft het vermoeiend de hele dag Mooré te horen. Ik moet aan Renske denken die wat dat betreft in het zelfde schuitje zit: de hele dag hoort ze Fins om zich heen, en als tussentaal wordt Engels gebruikt. Maar dan bedenk ik me dat zij één groot voordeel heeft; de Finse cultuur verschilt niet zo drastisch veel met die van de Nederlandse. Het is gewoon West Europa.

Vrijdag 27 januari 2006
Dan is de grote dag aangebroken. Om 6 uur ’s ochtends lopen er al mensen bedrijvig rond op het erf. Om 10 uur komen allemaal jeeps en auto’s bij het huis van Sodré tezamen, en mensen springen achterin de laadbak of op de achterbank met z’n 6en. In een stoet rijden we naar Nimpouya. Ik mag voorin de witte Mercedes van Sodré zitten, want ik ben ‘nang-saraa’. De Hadj oom zit achterin. Hij heeft een lang wit gewaad aan, witte muilen aan zijn voeten, een Palestijnse sjaal om zijn hoofd met een zwarte band en een zonnebril op. Aan weerszijden van hem zitten twee mannen die er precies zo uit zien als hij. Als we in Nimpouya aankomen (ligt ong. 15 km verderop) is het hele dorp (lees: alleen de mannen) uitgelopen om de oom te verwelkomen. Vóór het dorp stappen we uit en lopen door een boog van mensen die zich achter de oom aansluiten, er word gezongen (in het Arabisch denk ik) en in een stoet lopen we naar het dorp. In het dorp aangekomen gaat de stoet direct naar de moskee (een heel klein moskeetje) en wordt er in de openlucht gebeden. Daarna vertrekt de stoet al zingend naar een ander ‘kwartier’ van het dorp waar ook een moskee(tje) staat, en wordt er weer gebeden.

Iedere familie heeft een speciaal pak laten maken om aan te trekken vandaag, en de stof is steeds hetzelfde. Daardoor kan ik ineens heel makkelijk zien wie er familie is van wie. Ik zelf heb ook een blouse en een broek aan van de stof van de familie Sodré. Het is een leuk gezicht dat iedereen een soort ‘kostuum’ draagt, maar iedereen heeft een andere vorm. Sommigen hebben mooie jurken, anderen een broek en een hesje. Het hangt er ook maar net vanaf of je geld genoeg hebt voor een heel pak of alleen een blouse of rok.

Dan gaan de mannen in de schaduw op stoelen zitten en gebeurt er eigenlijk gedurende twee uur niks anders dan begroeten van familieleden die aankomen en thee slurpen. De vrouwen van het dorp zijn gewoon hun dagelijkse werkzaamheden aan het doen: water halen, hout sprokkelen, eten maken. Om 14 uur beginnen de formaliteiten: een man schalt door een microfoon (die wordt versterkt door een aggregaat want er is hier nergens stroom) het is een imam die eerst een soort toespraak houdt waarin uitgelegd wordt wat het precies inhoudt om op Hadj te gaan en hoe fantastisch het is dat deze man in goede gezondheid is teruggekeerd. Dan wordt er uit de Koran geciteerd en door een vrouw (véél te hard door de microfoon) gezongen.

Daarna gaan we naar de school (die ligt iets buiten het dorp) om te eten. Daar is Azeta (de vrouw van Sodré) met alle andere vrouwen die gisteren het eten hebben voorbereid. In grote pannen en schalen word het eten op plastic bordjes geschept. Er zijn plastic lepels maar de meeste mensen eten met hun handen. We zitten in de klas lokaaltjes in ouderwetse schoolbanken te eten.

Na het eten gebeurd er weer ongeveer 2 uur niks. De mannen zitten een beetje in de schaduw Coca cola te drinken en sigaretten te roken, terwijl de vrouwen het eten opruimen en de kinderen in de gaten houden. Tegen het eind van de middag gaan we terug naar het dorp om thee te slurpen. Dan in eens hoor ik geluid van muziek. Ik ga kijken waar het vandaan komt. Nu blijkt het feest voor de vrouwen te zijn aangebroken: ze zijn in het dorp in grote kringen aan het dansen en zingen en klappen met hun handen en stampen met hun voeten. Het dansen in het zand doet enorme stofwolken opwaaien. Hierdoor is het lastig foto’s te nemen, en krijg is bovendien last van mijn neus en moet steeds niezen. Twee vrouwen staan in het midden met een microfoon, die het soms even niet doet als iemand op het snoer stapt. Daouda (mijn tolk!) komt langs en bekijkt de technische voorzieningen. Hij loopt de hele dag al van alles te regelen, net als de broers van Salif Sodré. Hij loopt met iedereen te lachen en heeft behoorlijk wat invloed. Hij is erg grappig en ik kan ook erg met hem lachen. Bovendien heeft hij gevoel voor talen want als ik hem iets in het Nederlands vertel kan hij het direct bijna accentloos herhalen en onthoud het ook. Ik besef dat ik het met deze man als tolk heel erg getroffen heb. Als het allang donker is zijn de vrouwen nog steeds aan het dansen en zingen. Maar nu is iedereen er omheen gaan zitten in een hele grote kring, en een man speelt op een Afrikaanse gitaar die versterkt wordt.

Dan gaan de families uit Ouahigouya naar huis. Ik ben blij want de hele dag al die mensen en indrukken zijn erg vermoeiend geweest. Maar wel super gaaf om te hebben mee gemaakt!!!

Return of the Hadj villager of Nimpouya

2006-01-28T10:34:00.000Z

English version
* For pictures; see Dutch version

Thursday 26 January
One of the villagers of Nimpouya has been on Hadj pilgrimage to Mecca and returned safely. For two weeks people have been quite excited by the idea that he would come back and when exactly he would come back: because when he returns a big party is organised. Since the flights in Africa are not well scheduled as in Europe, Salif Sodré (who is the nephew of the man who went on Hadj) has been driving three times to the Ouagadougou airport to see if and when the plane would arrive. Finally on Wednesday his uncle arrived.
On Thursday all the women of the family got together in different locations to prepare the feast meal. Since Friday is the most religious day of the week for Muslims, and the timing was right, the party was held on this day. From 6 o’clock in the morning until late in the night, the women have been preparing loads and loads of food in the house of Salif: crushing parsley, making sauce for the baskets full of chickens (with loads of Maggie bouillon lumps and Dijon mustard), buckets with potatoes and salad. And in the village people killed a cow for this occasion. Of course I had to help. So I sat with the women, who were all talking, laughing and chatting together (in Mooré) while little children were playing around it. Cutting potatoes, pealing garlic, and other stuff. We are working together with more than 10 women to cut the potatoes. And next to us are again some 10 other women pealing onions and garlic or doing something else! The rest of the day we are busy preparing the food and in the afternoon Salif Sodré arrives with his uncle from the airport of Ouagadougou.

Friday 27 January
As from 6 am people are walking busy around the house. Then, at 10 am people are driving together to Nimpouya: many of them are in the back of a jeep or with many people in one car. Just before we arrive in Nimpouya we have to stop and get out of the car: all the men of the village are here to welcome this man: while they form a long line of singing people they walk to the village. In Nimpouya we walk to the Mosque where the men immediately start praying in the open air. Then we walk to another quarter of the village, with an other mosque, where they start praying again. Then the men go and sit down in the shade and for the next 2 hours or so nothing special happens. They just sit there, greeting family members and friends that have just arrived and drinking tea.
At 2 pm the formalities begin: in front of the mosque all men are sitting together while an Imam speaks through a microphone; first he talks about what it means to go on Hadj and how wonderful it is that this man has returned safely and in good health. Then he starts citing Koran. After this, we are going to the school – which is located just outside the village – to eat. All the women that were preparing the food yesterday are there, they serve the food and drinks and clean up afterwards. Then for the next two hours nothing special happens. Some people leave already. At the end of the afternoon we go back to the village. Now the party has started for the women: they are dancing, singing and clapping their hands in large circles in the sand. They have been dancing and singing until late at night, while there is no light: so in complete darkness under the stars. It was a very interesting day and I realise that I have been very lucky to have taken part in this.

Nimpouya

2006-01-24T17:22:00.000Z

Hallo allemaal,
Hier is alles goed en ik leef nog. Ik heb (alweer) niet veel tijd om te mailen; maar toch zal ik in het kort even een verslagje van Nimpouya geven: ik ben drie dagen met mijn gids in dit kleine dorp geweest. Het ligt op ongeveer 20 min per brommer van Ouahigouya. Het dorp bestaat uit 6 kleinere ‘wijkjes’ die op kleine loopafstand van elkaar verwijderd liggen. In ieder wijkje woont een andere familie. Ik heb mijn verbijf voornamelijk in Samandin doorgebracht, waar de mensen Sodré heten: jawel dit is familie van mijn contact persoon: zijn vader is hier geboren. Ik heb het dagelijks leven van de mensen mogen volgen: het water halen uit de waterput, graan malen en stampen, de dieren (schapen en koeien) naar het land brengen en ophalen, hout sprokkelen, het eten, de bouw van een moskee en de aanbouw van een latrine, de lessen die kinderen volgen op school, de lessen die ouderen in het Moré volgen op een centre d’alphabétisation. Daarnaast heb ik een soort focus groep gesprek gehad met de mannen uit het dorp en heb één diepte interview afgelegd met een vrouw uit het dorp. Maar verder heb ik de hele dag mensen gesproken en veel dingen ook aan mijn gids gevraagd. Hij komt uit het naburige wijkje Toogin, daar woont zijn moeder en zijn tweede vrouw (ja ja, hij heeft er ook een in Ouahigouya!). Vandaar dat Salif van mijn gids Daouda zegt dat ze broers zijn: ze komen uit hetzelfde dorp.
Er is zo veel te vertellen over die drie dagen alleen al: bijvoorbeeld dat mannen en vrouwen niet in hetzelfde huis wonen en ook niet samen eten, dat de mensen op de grond slapen en dat kinderen hier spelen met oude fietsbanden. Iedere dag moet ik vele handen schudden want iedereen komt bij mij langs om de ‘nang-saraa’ te begroeten, en iedereen geeft me te eten en vraagt me van alles over Holland. Toch was ik blij dat die drie dagen er op zaten en dat ik weer brood kon eten en een kop thee kon drinken en een douche nemen!!!

Maar blijkbaar hebben deze drie dagen toch zo’n energie gekost dat ik de volgende drie dagen letterlijk gesloopt was! Ben heftig ziek geweest en ben nog herstellende. Waarschijnlijk ligt de oorzaak bij het eten in het dorp Nimpouya; zo overmoedig moet ik dus niet meer zijn. Echt zwaar diarree gehad, oververmoeid, en maagkrampen (en nog ongesteld ook!) Sodré was zelfs boos op mij dat ik niet beter had opgelet; hij voelt zich toch een beetje verantwoordelijk voor mij…Daouda voelde de bui al hangen dat Sodré boos op hem zou worden omdat hij mijn gids is, maar heb duidelijk gezegd dat ik zelf de schuld aan mijn gezondheid heb. Misschien is het wel de hele situatie van aanpassen, ander klimaat, ander eten en ander ritme. Ik weet het niet. Wel heb ik door die malaria pillen ook last van slapeloosheid en daardoor ben ik weer oververmoeid. Jeetje, je moet er wat voor over hebben hoor om antropologisch veldwerk te doen! Haha! Maar goed, we houden de moed er in, tot nu toe heb ik het ondanks alles ontzettend naar mijn zin en ik weet dat dit een ervaring voor het leven is.

Overigens iets heel anders: de zoon van Sodré heeft een probleem met zijn ademhalingsorganen: hij kan moeilijk door zijn neus ademhalen. Het ligt aan de ontwikkeling van zijn schedel en hierdoor komen zijn voortanden ook niet goed door. Ja ingewikkeld maar waar. In Nederland zou je zo iemand naar de orthodontist sturen; maar die heb je hier natuurlijk niet. Maar papa Sodré is met zijn zoon naar een arts helemaal in Ouagadougou gegaan en deze heeft hem het volgende voorgeschreven: hij moet twee maal per week gaan zwemmen. Dan moet hij namelijk door zijn neus gaan ademen en zo spieren ontwikkelen die nu niet goed ontwikkeld zijn. Aangezien er niemand in de familie of in de wijde omgeving kan zwemmen…… ben ik gevraagd zijn zoon, en dan ook gelijk zijn dochter als we toch bezig zijn, te leren zwemmen!! Dus voor zover het mogelijk is naast mijn veldwerk (want dat gaat natuurlijk nog steeds voor J ) ga ik twee maal per week in het zwembad van het duurste hotel van Ouahigouya ‘ hotel de l’Amitié’ zwemmen! Hoera water!!! Dat is bizar als je onderzoek doet naar beperkte watervoorzieningen in de dorpen. Het is niet zoals het dakzwembad van het Krasnapolski in Paramaribo, maar toch een aardig bad met diep en ondiep, douches; kleedhokjes en een barretje. We gaan morgen zwembandjes en een bal kopen; want ik ben al één keer met ze wezen zwemmen; maar ondanks dat ze er kunnen staan vinden ze het dood eng en als ze kopje ondergaan, komen ze niet vanzelf weer boven. Er is gelukkig ook een badmeester in de buurt.

Verder leer ik al aardig wat Moré –de lokale taal hier. En op dit moment volg ik een beetje de African Cup of Nations (voetbal) in Egypte via de tv. Als je je grieperig voelt en niks anders kan is het heerlijk dat er voetbal op tv is!! (Suus: ik zie een groen scherm dus daar wil je zijn!!) Verder heb ik hier nauwelijks last van muggen gelukkig en het eten is op zich ook redelijk lekker. (veel rijst en tô: deeg van rijst) en saus van bladeren (dit is niet te vreten) maar met gebakken banaan ('bananda') erbij gaat het nog ;-)Maar nu is mijn maag weer rustig, en ben weer redelijk uitgerust.

Dus hopelijk gaan we dan nu toch echt beginnen met het onderzoek. Ook al is er al veel gebeurd, toch heb ik het idee dat ik nog steeds niet ‘echt’ begonnen ben met het daadwerkelijke veldwerk. Ohja heb ook ondertussen nog gesprek met de regionale directeur van het ministerie voor agricultuur en water (hydraulique) gehad. En jààhàààà (op z’n Aaron’s) er moeten fotos komen!!! Ga mùn best doen..
Yellekaye! ( geen probleem, op z’n Moré)
Knuffels;
Rosien

Fête des Moutons

2006-01-14T10:07:00.000Z

Last Tuesday was Tabaski : an Islamic feast (Eid al-Kebir) in Moré called Kibisi, and in French the Fête des Moutons – the Feast of the Sheep. Well, for the Sheep itself it wasn’t such a feast! For Sodré’s family alone four were killed. (Halal procedures, of course).
Originally the feast commemorates Ibrahim’s (yes, Abraham is the same guy!) readiness to sacrifice his son on God’s command, and the last-minute substitution of a ram. It also coincides with the end of the pilgrimage to Mecca, and is the most important Muslum event, marked in most countries by great feasts with roast sheep and a two day public holiday. Since the Islamic calendar is based on 12 lunar months, the day of Tabaski varies every year. For Sodré’s family this day is extra special, because Salif Sodré was born on the day of Tabaski. His mother therefore often calls him ‘Kibisi’. This is why he celebrates his birthday on this day as well. It is apparently a great honor to give birth to a son on Kibisi, and this son is supposed to be very special. So my contact person Sodré is indeed an extraordinary man!
Two weeks before Tabaski, sheep prices rice steeply, as every family is expected to provide one during the celebrations. The feast started at 5 am and lasted until late in the night. The women were all day at the back of the house preparing a great meal: salads, rice, couscous, rice, spaghetti, grilled chicken and more rice!

At 10 am I went with Sodré and the children to ‘the prayers’: everybody wore his newest and best clothes. Women wore a headscarf, and so did I….! On a huge square thousands of people gathered together. Men and women separated. First there were rows of men after which the rows with women followed. Everybody had brought a carpet for the prayer and you had to take your shoes off. In the open air with the sun burning in my neck. The ceremony took one hour. I found it very strange to participate in it and to kneel for a God that I do not know. I felt extremely uncomfortable and honestly speaking I did not like it at all. However, this is such an important event to the inhabitants of this region, that I am glad that I did it.
When we got home the meal was almost ready. While the women were preparing the meal, the men were busy with the sheep. Unfortunately I missed the slaughtering part… But suddenly a man walked to the back of the house with a completely skinned sheep over his shoulder! Only the head was untouched. He hung the sheep with a rope around his neck in a tree. After that he did the same with another sheep. One-third of the slaughtered animal is supposed to be given to the poor, one-third to friends and one-third is left for the family. Because I am white I have to sit and eat with the men. While the women were eating at the back. However, whenever possible I try to be with the women and see what they’re doing. We have been eating all day. No really: ALL DAY! I couldn’t see any sheep or rice anymore afterwards! But it was a good experience and I was lucky to be part of it and to take loads of pictures. Unfortunately I am not yet able to put pictures on the web... hopefully next time.
à plus!

Bonjour tout le monde!

2006-01-06T19:52:00.000Z

This is my diary for the next three months, while I'm staying in norhtern Burkina Faso to do research for my study Social & Cultural Anthropology. Three days ago I arrived in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso.

Everything is going well so far. Mr Sodré (whom I have met four years ago) has picked me up from the airport and we drove to Ouahigouya: which is 3 hours' drive from Ouaga. Mr Sodré and his family have offered me to stay in a guesthouse next to their house for the coming three months. This is a good 'home base' for me to do my fieldwork research: I can visit villages in the Yatenga province whenever I want, but still can come home to my own place with electricity, internet connection, privacy and a nice shower! Besides I get to eat with the family, play with the three children, join them to special ceremonies (such as the 'fête de mouton' - the feast of the sheep - next week) and I learned some words in Moré; the local language.

Today we have visited Nimpouya - a village where I have been 4 years ago. This is hopefully going to be one of the villages that will be my research site.

Next Monday I am going to visit the Ministre des Eaux et Environnement together with Mr Sodré (who knows basically everybody here in Ouahi and is a well respected man).

A la prochaine!