so i will start this post with a little news from the homeland. i was just informed by karina that my favorite dancer on this season's so you think you can dance was voted off. will. that dude was masterful. i don't know what happened...
anyways, back to mali. ne be mali. "i am in mali."
dance classes have been my saving grace here. when i was lonely, sick, whatever....dance has always made me feel better, whether i was too sick to participate fully in class or i was full of energy and ready to go. we have thus far done several different dances: sandia (a griot dance), sogo nin kun (my favorite so far) and tansole (very aerobic...kills me every time, haha). it's great feeding off of the energy of the drummers, my teachers mba and sali, and of course my fellow dance students. i'm in class with two others, michael and omilade. michael is another brown student and lade is going to arizona state in the fall to start an mfa program in dance choreography. playing with the drummers is especially fun. there is a part of sogo nin kun where we have a clapping rhythm and the djembe player will make his drum "clap" in time with us.
i went to the tailor's with lade yesterday. mah sold us fabrics for the panafrican women's day on the 31st, and we went to have outfits made so we could join all of the women in the parade. mah was saying that on this day, none of the women work. it's the men who will do the cooking while the women get to party. i have a feeling that i'm going to really enjoy thursday....
oh, here's an update for those of you who know my dietary habits. in the u.s., i became a pesco-vegetarian a couple years back, mostly because i have issues with the meat industry in the united states. when i came to mali, i ate similarly, only eating fish as a source of meat. my reasons for being a vegetarian, however, don't really apply in this context. meat production is totally different here. animals are raised locally, often right down the street from where they are eaten. there isn't the same issue with deforestation. animals are not couped up in cages, nor is meat stored for days in freezers. it's fresh. i had the pleasure of watching some of the men prepare a sheep one morning that we ate for dinner later. the flies had a field day that morning, circling the men as they dissected the sheep's meat.
i've been living for some time now in the coulibaly house, but michael, lade and i have been bonding and well, it's time we got serious and i moved in with them to yeredon (the school that my professor and her husband seydou built). we have this running joke that i'm slowly getting into a commited relationship with them. first it was the extra tube of sunscreen. then i took the key to one of the rooms. then a fitted sheet so i could nap occassionally.
the official move-in day will be tomorrow. i will certainly miss being at the coulibaly's. it has been a pleasure spending time with them and since i know how to walk there from yeredon it shouldn't be a problem visiting the house from time to time.
my time is almost up! got to go.........
lovelove,
djene
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Monday, July 21, 2008
finally feeling settled here in bamako
last friday i felt a new level of comfort here in mali. after having been sick, without many english speakers or well-nourished friendships around, i was tettering between bouts of loneliness and of extreme happiness - usually when i was dancing, out on the moped, or seeing the sights around town. my bambara is much better, but still not anywhere near where it needs to be. ne be bamanankan kalan = i am learning bambara. ne be bamanankan men doni = i understand bambara...a little.
so what happened last friday? in the morning i went to a conference with mah, the woman i'm shadowing who does a lot of work with women and children in bamako. the topic was the exploitation of child workers. while i couldn't understand the bambara and rapid french, we told some literature with us and i've been reading it doni doni since. quantitatively, mali has one of the lowest human development indices in the world, and poverty is enfanticized as well as feminized, as women and children bear a large portion of the daily burdens that accompany low-income living. i would have to disagree with my friend amadou, who said that americans work harder than malians (because we have machines), and say that malians are extremely hard workers. the women especially.
after the conference i went with my friend djibbi to watch a local dance troupe practice at a children's center in doumanzana. it was fun to watch but les répétitions didn't last long because we were missing a djembe player. we talked with the director about working at the center, where any child can come to play, have fun and just be a kid dammit. the center also helps children without birth certificates register for school by working to get their dossiers in order, catching them up with school work, etc. hopefully i can start going to play and do what else i can (dance classes, writing classes) this week. we tried to ride djibbi's friend's moto back home, but it wasn't running too well. there was a ché guevara sticker on the seat. i felt a little weird sitting on ché's face.
we came back to the house to see a dj set up in the street. uri, one of the older daughters in the house, was celebrating her 21st birthday. her actual birthday is during ramadan (from what i understood), so we had the party last friday. it was soooooo much fun. there was a large rectangle of chairs set up around the "dance floor". the dj played a lot of music i didn't recognize mixed in with teasers of songs i did recognize - like, lip gloss, soulja boy, lean wit it. nafi (another daughter) pulled me up to dance with her and from then on i danced a bit every so often. the dj wanted to do a duo later in the night so i did random dance moves while he copied. i schooled him on the hair whip, because he had no hair. i tried to do a little whaking, but he accused me of trying to use karate on him and there was a running joke with that. it felt great to be dancing, joking around with friends and acquaintances. i really felt a part of something. a community. a space.
yesterday was sunday. and sunday means no work (for most) and lots of weddings. i went with my professor's husband, a malian named seydou, and another brown student named michael who just arrived. we saw two wedding ceremonies, but no bride or groom at either? even though we were there for hours. seydou knows the musicians, so we sat with them at both ceremonies. boy, were they parties. everyone was there to amp up the mood before the happy couple was to arrive. the drummers, the singers, the guests, people dancing... also - lots of people giving out money. to the drummers, who serenade the important guests. to the singers, who sing praises of the guests' families. and...sometimes to people (mostly, if not solely, women) who dance.
i knew going into this experience that i was expected to dance. seydou told me so. it was a part of my dance lessons, a sort of initiation if you will. at the first ceremony, as the drummers played i tried to think of steps we had learned in class...tried to think of one that would work well with the beat. despite the large amount of spontaneity i've seen thus far in malian dance and music, i didn't quite feel like jumping up and dancing unless seydou or one of the musicians invited me to. an hour or so later, one of the younger women who kept approaching the drummers to dance grabbed my arm to pull me to the dance floor. i handed my bag to michael and followed her, hoping that i was to be dancing with her rather than alone. haha, wrong. so i'm there alone, with a steady beat and i do a step from class but it doesn't feel quite right. an older lady approaches me and starts to dance. i change up my movement and the rest remains a blur that end in my falling into this old lady's arms from having moved my torso and head so fast that i lost my balance a bit on the dirt. i returned to my seat rejuvinated and feeling at ease. the drums kept going as more women took to the dance floor. later on, an older woman was motioning for me to come to her. i went over and she handed me 2000 CFA, which is about 5 USD. i was shocked. the whole day the drummers and singers had been raking in the cash and now i made...money? whether it was respect, acknowledgement...i felt so good having known that she appreciated my dancing enough to have made a gesture like that, and i dont know if this happens often when toubabs dance.
i'm out of time at the cyber café, but a similar experience happened at the second wedding. as i left the dance floor, a lady dabbed the sweat of my forehead with a 1000 CFA note and left it there as i passed.
til next time,
djeneba
so what happened last friday? in the morning i went to a conference with mah, the woman i'm shadowing who does a lot of work with women and children in bamako. the topic was the exploitation of child workers. while i couldn't understand the bambara and rapid french, we told some literature with us and i've been reading it doni doni since. quantitatively, mali has one of the lowest human development indices in the world, and poverty is enfanticized as well as feminized, as women and children bear a large portion of the daily burdens that accompany low-income living. i would have to disagree with my friend amadou, who said that americans work harder than malians (because we have machines), and say that malians are extremely hard workers. the women especially.
after the conference i went with my friend djibbi to watch a local dance troupe practice at a children's center in doumanzana. it was fun to watch but les répétitions didn't last long because we were missing a djembe player. we talked with the director about working at the center, where any child can come to play, have fun and just be a kid dammit. the center also helps children without birth certificates register for school by working to get their dossiers in order, catching them up with school work, etc. hopefully i can start going to play and do what else i can (dance classes, writing classes) this week. we tried to ride djibbi's friend's moto back home, but it wasn't running too well. there was a ché guevara sticker on the seat. i felt a little weird sitting on ché's face.
we came back to the house to see a dj set up in the street. uri, one of the older daughters in the house, was celebrating her 21st birthday. her actual birthday is during ramadan (from what i understood), so we had the party last friday. it was soooooo much fun. there was a large rectangle of chairs set up around the "dance floor". the dj played a lot of music i didn't recognize mixed in with teasers of songs i did recognize - like, lip gloss, soulja boy, lean wit it. nafi (another daughter) pulled me up to dance with her and from then on i danced a bit every so often. the dj wanted to do a duo later in the night so i did random dance moves while he copied. i schooled him on the hair whip, because he had no hair. i tried to do a little whaking, but he accused me of trying to use karate on him and there was a running joke with that. it felt great to be dancing, joking around with friends and acquaintances. i really felt a part of something. a community. a space.
yesterday was sunday. and sunday means no work (for most) and lots of weddings. i went with my professor's husband, a malian named seydou, and another brown student named michael who just arrived. we saw two wedding ceremonies, but no bride or groom at either? even though we were there for hours. seydou knows the musicians, so we sat with them at both ceremonies. boy, were they parties. everyone was there to amp up the mood before the happy couple was to arrive. the drummers, the singers, the guests, people dancing... also - lots of people giving out money. to the drummers, who serenade the important guests. to the singers, who sing praises of the guests' families. and...sometimes to people (mostly, if not solely, women) who dance.
i knew going into this experience that i was expected to dance. seydou told me so. it was a part of my dance lessons, a sort of initiation if you will. at the first ceremony, as the drummers played i tried to think of steps we had learned in class...tried to think of one that would work well with the beat. despite the large amount of spontaneity i've seen thus far in malian dance and music, i didn't quite feel like jumping up and dancing unless seydou or one of the musicians invited me to. an hour or so later, one of the younger women who kept approaching the drummers to dance grabbed my arm to pull me to the dance floor. i handed my bag to michael and followed her, hoping that i was to be dancing with her rather than alone. haha, wrong. so i'm there alone, with a steady beat and i do a step from class but it doesn't feel quite right. an older lady approaches me and starts to dance. i change up my movement and the rest remains a blur that end in my falling into this old lady's arms from having moved my torso and head so fast that i lost my balance a bit on the dirt. i returned to my seat rejuvinated and feeling at ease. the drums kept going as more women took to the dance floor. later on, an older woman was motioning for me to come to her. i went over and she handed me 2000 CFA, which is about 5 USD. i was shocked. the whole day the drummers and singers had been raking in the cash and now i made...money? whether it was respect, acknowledgement...i felt so good having known that she appreciated my dancing enough to have made a gesture like that, and i dont know if this happens often when toubabs dance.
i'm out of time at the cyber café, but a similar experience happened at the second wedding. as i left the dance floor, a lady dabbed the sweat of my forehead with a 1000 CFA note and left it there as i passed.
til next time,
djeneba
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
more insights from my first week
i've just been chatting online (gchat!) with marisa and typed what could arguably be the most ridiculous sentence to come out of my finger tips: "mmm i've got to concentration on my blog right now."
marisa responds: "i think your english is getting worse from those foreign keyboards, dear."
----------------------
i spoke earlier about my love for tea and how visiting people's homes includes often the offering of tea, normally taken 3 times as is custom (from what i've heard it's custom in many muslim cultures). i had the impression that much of what i had been drinking was some special mint tea leaf grown locally. that would be partially true. also brewed is a chinese tea that comes in little boxes with chinese, arabic and french written on them. for fun, at my dance teacher's home i picked up one of these boxes from the ground (because trash is often just thrown on the ground/dirt here, to be burned later) and made an origami crane from it. i gave it to mba and told her it was for good luck. bonne chance. mba has some mild form of pneumonia, but she continues to dance and work. her son, who can't be more than 2 yrs old, has a rash on his back. a friend is getting her medication and he should be in town soon.
sadly, i encounter flies more often than i do tea and mba. it's rainy season and they are everywhere, except indoors (usually). they like to land on things, especially people and food. i think i saw one try to suck on my arm sweat from dance class before i swatted him/her away. wait, do flies have genders?
i spotted my first american yesterday. well, "spotted" isn't really the right word, because we had arranged to meet for lunch. it was so wonderful to see and talk to another non-african, to have a conversation in english, which i'm slowly forgetting as marisa pointed out. after talking with her, i feel it's best not to try and do any research this summer, but dance, learn languages, use my french, work with children at a couple different NGOs, and of course, explore, live and continue building the friendships that have begun to blossom already. i also bumped in two brown students at the restaurant who are working with the mali health organizing project in sikoroni, which is a quartier near where i am in doumanzana. anyways, we are planning on getting dinner and perhaps going out to a club sometime...yippee.
i'm starting to see how it's good in mali to be friends with the musicians. being "with" the drummers at a ceremony, we were feed and well taken care of. i'm certain my white(ish) skin also gave us better treatment - like how i was offered tea in the middle of the ceremony but no one else was - but it is true that good musicians have perks at the places they work. like our friend papice. he plays the djembe and the guitar at an outdoor concert venue ibrahim has taken me to 3 times now, and papice gets drinks free of charge, seats up front, the works. the first night we were there he pointed out ibrahim to the singer and on the next song the guy began to sing praises of members of ibrahim's family who have being doing good for other malians. we're going to see papice again tonight. for the wonderful live music. and the free drinks. non-alc.
the american who i met for lunch has been frequenting the country since 2004 and thus has learned a lot about malian society and the language. she tells me that between different families in mali there is this practice of teasing cousins in which, due to histories of one family/ethnic group enslaving another and other histories of not-so-happy exchanges between them, two families who have had bad relations in the past will often tease each other. depending on the relationship, or the history of a certain family, this may include saying, "you are my slave" or "go call the horses" or "you eat beans". from what she tells me, this practice is a way of forging bonds between groups whose histories may try to dictate otherwise. she said that the family i'm staying with, coulibaly, is the little cousin of everyone, meaning the coulibalys have joking relationships all malians. i'll have to ask at the house to confirm.
over and out,
djene
marisa responds: "i think your english is getting worse from those foreign keyboards, dear."
----------------------
i spoke earlier about my love for tea and how visiting people's homes includes often the offering of tea, normally taken 3 times as is custom (from what i've heard it's custom in many muslim cultures). i had the impression that much of what i had been drinking was some special mint tea leaf grown locally. that would be partially true. also brewed is a chinese tea that comes in little boxes with chinese, arabic and french written on them. for fun, at my dance teacher's home i picked up one of these boxes from the ground (because trash is often just thrown on the ground/dirt here, to be burned later) and made an origami crane from it. i gave it to mba and told her it was for good luck. bonne chance. mba has some mild form of pneumonia, but she continues to dance and work. her son, who can't be more than 2 yrs old, has a rash on his back. a friend is getting her medication and he should be in town soon.
sadly, i encounter flies more often than i do tea and mba. it's rainy season and they are everywhere, except indoors (usually). they like to land on things, especially people and food. i think i saw one try to suck on my arm sweat from dance class before i swatted him/her away. wait, do flies have genders?
i spotted my first american yesterday. well, "spotted" isn't really the right word, because we had arranged to meet for lunch. it was so wonderful to see and talk to another non-african, to have a conversation in english, which i'm slowly forgetting as marisa pointed out. after talking with her, i feel it's best not to try and do any research this summer, but dance, learn languages, use my french, work with children at a couple different NGOs, and of course, explore, live and continue building the friendships that have begun to blossom already. i also bumped in two brown students at the restaurant who are working with the mali health organizing project in sikoroni, which is a quartier near where i am in doumanzana. anyways, we are planning on getting dinner and perhaps going out to a club sometime...yippee.
i'm starting to see how it's good in mali to be friends with the musicians. being "with" the drummers at a ceremony, we were feed and well taken care of. i'm certain my white(ish) skin also gave us better treatment - like how i was offered tea in the middle of the ceremony but no one else was - but it is true that good musicians have perks at the places they work. like our friend papice. he plays the djembe and the guitar at an outdoor concert venue ibrahim has taken me to 3 times now, and papice gets drinks free of charge, seats up front, the works. the first night we were there he pointed out ibrahim to the singer and on the next song the guy began to sing praises of members of ibrahim's family who have being doing good for other malians. we're going to see papice again tonight. for the wonderful live music. and the free drinks. non-alc.
the american who i met for lunch has been frequenting the country since 2004 and thus has learned a lot about malian society and the language. she tells me that between different families in mali there is this practice of teasing cousins in which, due to histories of one family/ethnic group enslaving another and other histories of not-so-happy exchanges between them, two families who have had bad relations in the past will often tease each other. depending on the relationship, or the history of a certain family, this may include saying, "you are my slave" or "go call the horses" or "you eat beans". from what she tells me, this practice is a way of forging bonds between groups whose histories may try to dictate otherwise. she said that the family i'm staying with, coulibaly, is the little cousin of everyone, meaning the coulibalys have joking relationships all malians. i'll have to ask at the house to confirm.
over and out,
djene
Sunday, July 13, 2008
plus à dire
yesterday i wasn't able to get in all i wanted so here goes...
i'm learning bambara with a man named sekou, who speaks bambara (duh), french and english - if he speaks any others, i do not know. he is currently writing a book about festivals in mali and has done a lot of work researching, translating, educating, etc. he was telling me today about how he freaked out a former jewish-american student by proposing that they pray together, muslim and jew. he says that if the jews and arabs come together then the u.s. would be screwed. we talked about obama as well. we are both fans.
i was in the supermarché the other day and saw tons of fabrics (tissus). at my homestay, the women often wear fabrics that publicize/feature an NGO (ONG). mah, who just returned from a conference in burkina faso, was wearing today a dress supporting a campaign for drinkable water for everyone. fabrics with politicians and flags are common too.
i had my first dance classe last friday, tout seule. it was at the house my professor and her husband built for the students they bring to mali every summer. for the class, it was just me, my dance instructor, three drummers, my language instructor and the drum teacher (who seemed to be just hanging out). anyways, we worked on three steps, which weren't too difficult to pick up by watching and copying my instructor. but the break between the first and second steps was difficult for me to do on my own because i wasn't at first listening well to the bqss drum.
ahhhh no time. to finish, i've been christened "djeneba" by my homestay family. it's the same name as one of the women in la grande famille.
over and out,
djene
i'm learning bambara with a man named sekou, who speaks bambara (duh), french and english - if he speaks any others, i do not know. he is currently writing a book about festivals in mali and has done a lot of work researching, translating, educating, etc. he was telling me today about how he freaked out a former jewish-american student by proposing that they pray together, muslim and jew. he says that if the jews and arabs come together then the u.s. would be screwed. we talked about obama as well. we are both fans.
i was in the supermarché the other day and saw tons of fabrics (tissus). at my homestay, the women often wear fabrics that publicize/feature an NGO (ONG). mah, who just returned from a conference in burkina faso, was wearing today a dress supporting a campaign for drinkable water for everyone. fabrics with politicians and flags are common too.
i had my first dance classe last friday, tout seule. it was at the house my professor and her husband built for the students they bring to mali every summer. for the class, it was just me, my dance instructor, three drummers, my language instructor and the drum teacher (who seemed to be just hanging out). anyways, we worked on three steps, which weren't too difficult to pick up by watching and copying my instructor. but the break between the first and second steps was difficult for me to do on my own because i wasn't at first listening well to the bqss drum.
ahhhh no time. to finish, i've been christened "djeneba" by my homestay family. it's the same name as one of the women in la grande famille.
over and out,
djene
Saturday, July 12, 2008
une semaine au mali
it has been one week already. every day has been a lesson. from dealing with using the toilet to arranging dance and language (bambara) classes, i am constantly learning how to live and take care of myself in this country.
yesterday, i was a hot mess. my forehead was on fire returning from the supermarché, nothing like any headaches or migraines ive had before. i felt nearly incapacitated and certainly feared the worst. i am used to not getting sick, so reading the malaria description in my travel med guide caused my mind to spin more. ah, but the culprit was me. i needed to be drinking more bottled water and not l'eau malienne.
so far, my main mode of transport has been la moto. i sit on the back while ibrahim, one of the people taking care of me, drives. with my language instructor and a friend i also took the sotrama, which is a green bus-like vehicle that serves for public transport.
i'm doing a home stay arranged by my dance professor, and have started dance and language classes. i hope to also do volunteer work with a woman here who is well-tied to women's organizations in mali and west africa.
my first night here i was hit with this extreme sense of loneliness. but that soon passed - ibrahim took me to see a family friend play at an outdoor concert venue and i enjoyed myself immensely. it seems that whenever i find myself becoming lonely or feeling sad or sick, it passes quickly because of the people who surround me. whether it's one of the little kids at the house who finds me "juste pour causer" or someone i meet who doesn't immediately ask for un cadeau, malian hospitality continues to surprise.
chè guavara is quite popular here, esp among the youth. it's interesting to note that chè/cè also means man/boss i'm told. popular too is 50 cent. personally, i'm not much of a fan but his videos are continuously featured on africable, a popular tv channel. on the tv/radio i've also recognized artists such as janet jackson, mj, the pussycat dolls, bob marley and others. there was a song the other day that was to the beat of "no woman no cry" but the words were "no jesus no life."
so far, it has been much easier getting to know malian men rather than women; this is perhaps because my guide is a man, or because - as a guest - i'm not often working at home with the women. even when we go visit other homes, i have been asked to eat and drink tea amongst the men or the couple owning the house. one night, i was surrounded by a bunch of men playing cards and smoking i tried desperately to figure out the rules on my own but their hands were moving so fast i couldn't keep up. i am quite excited to be better at bambara and continue dancing with mba, my teacher. she is a lovely dancer and has a very cool style about her - a rasta husband, dreadlocks, and the wish to not have to shave because she is a woman.
oh, and those of you who know me well know how much of a tea fanatic i am. i love love love drinking tea here. love. i don't have much time on the internet left so i will have to elaborate on the tea love later.
yesterday, i was a hot mess. my forehead was on fire returning from the supermarché, nothing like any headaches or migraines ive had before. i felt nearly incapacitated and certainly feared the worst. i am used to not getting sick, so reading the malaria description in my travel med guide caused my mind to spin more. ah, but the culprit was me. i needed to be drinking more bottled water and not l'eau malienne.
so far, my main mode of transport has been la moto. i sit on the back while ibrahim, one of the people taking care of me, drives. with my language instructor and a friend i also took the sotrama, which is a green bus-like vehicle that serves for public transport.
i'm doing a home stay arranged by my dance professor, and have started dance and language classes. i hope to also do volunteer work with a woman here who is well-tied to women's organizations in mali and west africa.
my first night here i was hit with this extreme sense of loneliness. but that soon passed - ibrahim took me to see a family friend play at an outdoor concert venue and i enjoyed myself immensely. it seems that whenever i find myself becoming lonely or feeling sad or sick, it passes quickly because of the people who surround me. whether it's one of the little kids at the house who finds me "juste pour causer" or someone i meet who doesn't immediately ask for un cadeau, malian hospitality continues to surprise.
chè guavara is quite popular here, esp among the youth. it's interesting to note that chè/cè also means man/boss i'm told. popular too is 50 cent. personally, i'm not much of a fan but his videos are continuously featured on africable, a popular tv channel. on the tv/radio i've also recognized artists such as janet jackson, mj, the pussycat dolls, bob marley and others. there was a song the other day that was to the beat of "no woman no cry" but the words were "no jesus no life."
so far, it has been much easier getting to know malian men rather than women; this is perhaps because my guide is a man, or because - as a guest - i'm not often working at home with the women. even when we go visit other homes, i have been asked to eat and drink tea amongst the men or the couple owning the house. one night, i was surrounded by a bunch of men playing cards and smoking i tried desperately to figure out the rules on my own but their hands were moving so fast i couldn't keep up. i am quite excited to be better at bambara and continue dancing with mba, my teacher. she is a lovely dancer and has a very cool style about her - a rasta husband, dreadlocks, and the wish to not have to shave because she is a woman.
oh, and those of you who know me well know how much of a tea fanatic i am. i love love love drinking tea here. love. i don't have much time on the internet left so i will have to elaborate on the tea love later.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
le maroc et les impressions différentes de RAM
so i'm here in bamako (the capital of mali), finally. after the plane ride to casa, then a long layover in morocco and a shorter flight from casa to bamako, i'm sitting in an internet café in bamako. i wouldn't be here if it weren't for ibrahim, my professor's nephew who has been kind enough to take care of me these past couple of days. in him i have found a grand-frère, whom i can look to and ask questions of. it was strange at first, to be taken around a foreign city by a man i had just met, but all it took was time. if there's anything i already truly appreciate about the people i've met here, and ibrahim especially, it's the sincere kindess that they show through their actions big and small.
so, to recount what has happened these past 48 hrs:
- royal air maroc (RAM) at jfk was mess. messy messy. after waiting in line to check in, i'm told that my reservation was cancelled. wtf? i call michelle (my prof) and she gets me in touch with the travel agents, who had reprinted my flight confirmation at 9:30 pm (it's about 10 or so). canceled? not so it would seem. but such was the story from RAM. and no one would tell me who or how...only that i would be put on stand-by. it certainly didn't help much having badia (travel agent) making allegations of corruption in my ear as i try to get the agents at the counter to give me the time of day. so how did it work out in the end? i asked one of the ladies who had spoken with me, one who seemed more sympathetic to my situation, if the supervisor was just going to call names off the list or not. she left talked to him and came back with a ticket. no explanation. no "here's your gate number blahblahblah...". if they were trying to sell my seat to someone who could pay 5000 dollars? i guess they didn't succeed. to top it off, there was an empty seat behind me on the plane.
- in casa, RAM was much much more pleasant. not only did the men at the counter print out my boarding pass hours before my flight, but the stewards and stewardesses were much more helpful and whatnot. my frustrations at jfk seemed like a figment of the imagination or a memory from a distant past.
- i took advantage of my 12-hour layover in casa and took the train to rabat. i got some help from two handsome police officers at the ain sebaa station, where i was changing trains. but they were under the impression that i was going to the airport from rabat and not the other way around. the airport train was leaving and from across the station they were waving their arms and doing the best hand motions to tell me to get on that train dammit. the more handsome of the two crossed the tracks (oh-so-safely, mind you, because he's a police officer) and i explained to him - je vais à rabat; je viens de l'aéroport.
- in rabat, i walked around some shops in the medina and spoke with a guy in the one shop i stopped it (i wanted to go back to mohammed v - the airport - early, just in case, so i didn't want to take much time). he asked a lot of questions - d'ou viens tu? tu est d'origine chinoise? ... we talked about me a little. finding out that i dance, he said that he likes to dance like the people on tv. il aime aussi le hiphop. he offered to escort me around rabat - i declined. he asked for my phone number - declined again. mon email? oui. et il m'a donné le sien.
- there were more moments in morocco. many more. i wish i had had more time. i hope to return in the future.
**okay, so i'm not used to this keyboard AT ALL. because of that and the time limit, my writing may suffer. i apologize.**
so, to recount what has happened these past 48 hrs:
- royal air maroc (RAM) at jfk was mess. messy messy. after waiting in line to check in, i'm told that my reservation was cancelled. wtf? i call michelle (my prof) and she gets me in touch with the travel agents, who had reprinted my flight confirmation at 9:30 pm (it's about 10 or so). canceled? not so it would seem. but such was the story from RAM. and no one would tell me who or how...only that i would be put on stand-by. it certainly didn't help much having badia (travel agent) making allegations of corruption in my ear as i try to get the agents at the counter to give me the time of day. so how did it work out in the end? i asked one of the ladies who had spoken with me, one who seemed more sympathetic to my situation, if the supervisor was just going to call names off the list or not. she left talked to him and came back with a ticket. no explanation. no "here's your gate number blahblahblah...". if they were trying to sell my seat to someone who could pay 5000 dollars? i guess they didn't succeed. to top it off, there was an empty seat behind me on the plane.
- in casa, RAM was much much more pleasant. not only did the men at the counter print out my boarding pass hours before my flight, but the stewards and stewardesses were much more helpful and whatnot. my frustrations at jfk seemed like a figment of the imagination or a memory from a distant past.
- i took advantage of my 12-hour layover in casa and took the train to rabat. i got some help from two handsome police officers at the ain sebaa station, where i was changing trains. but they were under the impression that i was going to the airport from rabat and not the other way around. the airport train was leaving and from across the station they were waving their arms and doing the best hand motions to tell me to get on that train dammit. the more handsome of the two crossed the tracks (oh-so-safely, mind you, because he's a police officer) and i explained to him - je vais à rabat; je viens de l'aéroport.
- in rabat, i walked around some shops in the medina and spoke with a guy in the one shop i stopped it (i wanted to go back to mohammed v - the airport - early, just in case, so i didn't want to take much time). he asked a lot of questions - d'ou viens tu? tu est d'origine chinoise? ... we talked about me a little. finding out that i dance, he said that he likes to dance like the people on tv. il aime aussi le hiphop. he offered to escort me around rabat - i declined. he asked for my phone number - declined again. mon email? oui. et il m'a donné le sien.
- there were more moments in morocco. many more. i wish i had had more time. i hope to return in the future.
**okay, so i'm not used to this keyboard AT ALL. because of that and the time limit, my writing may suffer. i apologize.**
Thursday, July 3, 2008
leaving the big apple
my stay in new york (exploring manhattan by day, sleeping in long island at night) was short, but playing in the city was definitely enjoyable. rarely does a dull moment pass in the city that never sleeps.
some highlights:
- the people - need i say more? the "so many walks of life" line is trite, but it's the first thing that comes to mind when i think of all the people i've encountered over the last 3 days.
- the variety of cat calls - specifically, having chinese spoken to me by non-chinese dudes on the street. i still regret not firing back some japanese. for some reason, i'm a lot more bold, firey and confrontational after the fact. or maybe it's all just in my head.
- parks - central, union square, wash square. my favorite color is officially green. and purple - walking around nyu was fun.
- the availability of caffeine - should make sense to those of you that know me well
- getting my "city walk" down, as jovan said
- having my lucky's environmental savings bag be fashionable one minute and then a necessary reusable shopping bag the next
- cafetasia - went there with friends! the online menu was the first i saw of the place and it's quite impressive. asian fusion cuisine. (http://www.cafetasia.com)
- broadway - where boursi was working! i enjoyed seeing all the advertisements for various shows. didn't get a chance to see one, although we did listen to the entire "in the heights" cd on a morning commute from long island.
- photography at the met
- seeing friends who are living/working in manhattan
- watching basketball on the street
- bookstores and reading
my flight for bamako, mali leaves later today. i'm a bundle of excited/nervous/anxious/happy right now sitting in boursi's house typing this. i have my mali and morocco guidebooks (b/c there's a long layover in casablanca) next to me with folded page corners and pen marks in them.
8 weeks in mali. and it all begins in 2 days.
i will do my best to upload photos to my blog, but i'm not sure what the computers at the internet cafes will be like. for sure, i will put them up after my trip if i cannot post them during. friends and fam - i will be emailing you every time i post so that you have reminders to check out the blog.
peace and love,
michele
some highlights:
- the people - need i say more? the "so many walks of life" line is trite, but it's the first thing that comes to mind when i think of all the people i've encountered over the last 3 days.
- the variety of cat calls - specifically, having chinese spoken to me by non-chinese dudes on the street. i still regret not firing back some japanese. for some reason, i'm a lot more bold, firey and confrontational after the fact. or maybe it's all just in my head.
- parks - central, union square, wash square. my favorite color is officially green. and purple - walking around nyu was fun.
- the availability of caffeine - should make sense to those of you that know me well
- getting my "city walk" down, as jovan said
- having my lucky's environmental savings bag be fashionable one minute and then a necessary reusable shopping bag the next
- cafetasia - went there with friends! the online menu was the first i saw of the place and it's quite impressive. asian fusion cuisine. (http://www.cafetasia.com)
- broadway - where boursi was working! i enjoyed seeing all the advertisements for various shows. didn't get a chance to see one, although we did listen to the entire "in the heights" cd on a morning commute from long island.
- photography at the met
- seeing friends who are living/working in manhattan
- watching basketball on the street
- bookstores and reading
my flight for bamako, mali leaves later today. i'm a bundle of excited/nervous/anxious/happy right now sitting in boursi's house typing this. i have my mali and morocco guidebooks (b/c there's a long layover in casablanca) next to me with folded page corners and pen marks in them.
8 weeks in mali. and it all begins in 2 days.
i will do my best to upload photos to my blog, but i'm not sure what the computers at the internet cafes will be like. for sure, i will put them up after my trip if i cannot post them during. friends and fam - i will be emailing you every time i post so that you have reminders to check out the blog.
peace and love,
michele
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