Ramadan

At festival times you see a lot of sheep riding about on motor bikes no doubt about to get killed and eaten.

It’s the end of Ramadan and I went to see the big pray at the Maroua Mosque – a crowd that could fill Hyde Park.  On the way back we got hedged into a high wall and some fit Muslim in his 30s was literally trying to lift me over it to much hilarity.  They are a sexist bunch the blokes, but they also treat me like a mum and can be very kind.  In the week I went to look at this amazing lily pond near Bogo that has just sprung up out of the desert.  The bike chain fell off on the rutted ground and not realising this I was peddling in mid air until I lost my balance.  Next thing I know some bloke has appeared from nowhere to help me up and fix the chain!

The chicken had babies on Wednesday night.  I heard them cheeping in the middle of the night, but when I went to look at them in the morning one was dead and another was in its death throes – I don’t know if they trod on them or what – they looked quite big.  Only one was still living and the mum was laying on more eggs still.  I was quite upset!  I don’t do the reality bit of ‘elevage’ very well!  The moutons are fine and like going out en brousse in the day.  They come back, a bit like children coming back from the childminder, with the desire to get home, but tired and happy to chill rather than being a bit nervy and bleating all the time which they did before.  As whoever I give them to when I leave is going to chop them up and eat them, I want them to have a nice life first!

I am also thinking again about sacking the guardian de nuit who turned up over an hour late again mid week.  I just don’t know if I am not going to have the same problem whoever I have.  Men don’t expect to ‘take orders’ from a woman and then there is potentially some antagonism as the rich nassara.  VSO expect him to be there from 6pm – 6am.  I ask him to be there for 10pm so it’s not unreasonable.  It seems like there is a problem every week, not wanting to do what I want with the moutons, pooing in indiscrete places etc etc. I have come into Maroua for 3 nights as it is the fete and there has been no electricity in Bogo all week so no access to emails.  Gwendoline, my 60 plus mate is back.