I am moving house

Finally I am moving house. This is because of

Firstly, lack of privacy. The world and their wives come visiting from 5.30am until 12 midnight and they walk about 2ft from where I am trying to sleep and STARE plus talking and lights until well after midnight.

Secondly, Hadjaa (polite name for Muslim who has been to Mecca) has been slagging me off to all and sundry because I have said I don’t want to eat with her every day for the next 2 years – millet (stodgy dough ball with gelatinous fluid of green bits, 1-2 lumps of meat or fish). I looked on the internet before I came here and basically millet is dream good for you food and is edible, but let’s just stay I’d rather mangoes and tomatoes even though they all went rotten in my fridge after the power cut. On top of that she says I don’t greet her enough.

The final reason is the night guard has taken a shine to me and has tried stroking my hair, tickling me and just generally trying to hug me at every available opportunity. Anyway VSO came rushing out to see me immediately and are going to look for another house and were amazingly nice ( bear in mind I have yet to get another house) but said that all this greeting stuff is ridiculous which was comforting as I thought she might have a point there because while I wouldn’t be rude I am not exactly Ms Sociable either.

 

There are moments when the joie de vivre of this place is infectious. Bear in mind as I write my body is covered with insect bites, I am losing weight, but have discovered where they sell boxes of wine which is back on the slippery road to liver annihilation. What makes my heart sing every time is generally in the shitty public transport that breaks every health and safety rule imaginable. Last Tuesday I went to a neighbouring village to see a Dutch guy and his wife who are doing exactly the same work as me and it has taken him 5 months to do what I did in 6 weeks so it could be worse. It was an amazing day and I travelled back in a dodgy old bus that had about 40 of us crammed inside and on the roof plus chickens and goats. At these times I see the best of Africans with their kindnesses, story-telling and such film star smiles – Cheryl Cole eat your heart out to see their real perfect teeth.

 

Will I last 2 years? I honestly can’t say. About 20 volunteers are leaving in June and about 10 going back to home countries for 2-3 months over the summer (which they pay for themselves) with no new arrivals until September so I am going to be lonely!