My Courtyard

Sunday October 18, 2009

There is a custom here of when eating and someone walks by, you say “Vous-etes invitee” (You are invited), basically inviting them to share with you. The polite response is to decline by saying “Merci, Bon Appetit” and I have never seen anyone actually take someone up on the offer. However, the other day I saw someone in my courtyard actually take someone else up on the offer and come back a few minutes later with a bowl and serve themselves. Now I’m a little nervous to say “Vous-etes invitee” because I don’t want them to actually take my food, but I also don’t want to be rude by not saying it. What to do, what to do…

So I share a courtyard with 6 other houses, 5 of which are currently inhabited. In the one closest to me (they are all actually very close) lives Mr. Sodre (goes by Sodre) who teaches English at the lycee. Sodre shares a latrine and shower area with me, which I am still a little skeptical about, but seeing how it goes for awhile before trying to get that changed. Sodre lives in the house Becca, the volunteer before me lived I for a year, before my current house was built. I am very glad I have this newer house, because the old one is made of mud with low ceilings and a crazy mural on the wall-not sure who put it there…In the mud house directly across from me lives Valerie. She just arrived this week and I think she’s another teacher at the school but I’ve only ever seen her sitting outside the Surveillant’s office, so I’m not exactly sure what she does. Then comes Madame Diallo’s house. Madame Diallo teaches French and is a very nice woman who I already like a lot. Her son, Sied (I’m spelling that wrong) was born last December and is really wonderful, despite having peed on me twice already. He already smiles when he sees me (ok and maybe everyone else too), so how can I not like him? And he hardly ever cries, which I see as another definite plus.

Then comes Mariame. Mariame is the school secretary and is very African in that everyone is part of grande famille and therefore your stuff is her stuff. One day I told her she could use some of my vinegar because she was saying that she was out. So later that night, I’m in bed on my porch asleep, Mariame comes up and wakes me up to ask me if she can use my vinegar, I sleepily respond and then she just walks right in my house and starts looking for it. Granted, I should have locked my door, but someone would have to wake me up and literally step on my mattress to get inside, so the door was unlocked. But still, you don’t just walk into someone’s house, even here you don’t do that. Mariame is very nice, but doesn’t seem to understand that I’m different and gets a little frustrated when I don’t understand what she is trying to say. She has a son Salmad, who is 2 or 3 I think and is a crier (not that much fun). Needless to say, even if I wanted to sleep in late, my courtyward would wake me up.

Last is David’s house, which shares a common wall with mine. So I guess you could say that I live in a duplex. David is the Censeur at the lycee and seems nice, but I don’t know him all that well yet. He has been in Tougouri for at least 4 years already (that’s a long time when teachers get affectated generally every 2 years) and is very hard working. Although I don’t know him that well, I think I could go to him with any questions.

So that’s my courtyard and the people I will be surrounded with for the next two years (unless they get affectated). I hardly have any privacy, but can escape into my hot house if I really need to. And I think living with people will be good for my French because I will be forced to talk to people outside of school on a daily basis.