Horray for Youth!

Well this past weekend was the 11th of February, and in Cameroon that means La Fete de la Jeunesse... the National Youth Holiday. So in my village everyone went to the town hall to watch students from all of the schools march and sing and dance and do all sorts of fun things for the town officials and everyone else. So it was like a big fun street fair, with people selling food and dancing, and the like. But of course, in Cameroon no party is a party without some booze. So of course there were a bunch of people hiding in the shade getting drunk on bil-bil at 10 in the morning.

Bil-bil is like this homemade booze that people make at their house with Sorghum, and it's pretty much the cheapest way to get drunk in my village. And since there's not a whole lot of money to play around with, it's therefore the most popular way to get drunk in my village. Every day around 3-4pm there is a migration of people in the direction of the bil-bil market in the center of town. Everyone has already come back from the farms, so it's time to start drinking. And you see women with these HUGE ceramic pots on their heads heading for the market to sell their bil. When you buy some, they put it in these little trash cans, maybe the size of a 2 liter of coke, and they give you a dried out gourd bowl to drink it with. Cost of said trash can: 200 francs (roughly 40 cents American) You usually share with others, and people drink until it's all gone. So every day in the late afternoon you can hear all the noise from the bil-bil market, and as you walk by EVERYTHING smells like booze. Everyday is a frat party... and these people sure can drink.

So anyway, everyone told me that Sunday night there would be a party at the bar in my village, and that I should come. I said, "Well, sure, but how old is too old to celebrate for this holiday?" My friend thought for a bit, and said to me: "54". Great. So in the end it's really just another chance for everyone to party... Fine by me! So Sunday night I went to the bar for the party, and everyone danced and drank and celebrated youth. Let's just say I had quite the headache Monday morning. I found myself a coke and some fried food.

Meanwhile my work has been going really really well. I've already presented on trees and agroforestry to over 300 farmers, and there's quite a few who are planning on getting started this planting season. I'm also working on a reforestation project with the World Wildlife Fund, and I'm working with a farmer group to help them to start planing soybeans. So I've been keeping pretty busy in that side of things too.

The heat, however, is on its way. March-May is the hot season, and I've been told that it gets to be 40-45 degrees celsius in the shade (45C = 113F). Ouch. People tell me that everyone sleeps outside during this time of year, because it's just too unbearable to stay inside. And these are the same people that were hiding next to the fire every morning when it was 60F degrees! If they can't stand the heat, how the hell am I going to surivive this!? AAAH! I'll keep you posted.

I've also been really happy to realize how habituated I've become to my life and the culture here. I've started thinking and dreaming in French (and sometimes Fufulde!). I don't really crave American food anymore, just more African food (except I've really been wanting a milkshake lately). Things have become less and less like "profound cultural exchanges", and have become more of just my everyday life. It's really fulfilling to realize how far I've come, and it's amazing to think that I'm going to fall even deeper into the culture. I've started to realize already how hard its going to be at the end of this to leave my village and to have to transition back into American culture.

So for now, I've already been in my village for two months, and it's really gone by pretty quickly. And now that I'm settled in and have found my niche, I'm really making a point not to "wish the days away" or count down until the end. Instead I'm just making sure that I take every opportunity that is offered, and soak it all up. A bientot, mes amis.