1,001 Reasons I Wont Marry You Or Your Brother/Son/Uncle/Grandpa etc

This probably sounds ridiculous in the American context, but lets face it- I get marriage proposals every day in Mauritania. If someone doesnt ask me if I'm married, they ask me why I'm not married or they ask me to marry them on the spot. Dont think that this is just some phenomenon that only sketchy people out in the street ask me this, friends, coworkers, delegates from the Women's Ministry (that last one really gets on my nerves). This could be in a professional setting, in someone's house or in the street. At first I would be offended and pissed, but I have to reiterate that the mindset here is that women marry by 17 or 18 but men get married by 30 or 40. (Thats right, men normally marry women who are less than half their age).
So when people find out I'm 23 and not married, they get really worried about me, like I'm damaged goods and occasionally offer me their brother or cousin etc to marry. I then crack a big smile and explain that I'll be married after I finished my schooling (grad school or Phd). Then I remind them that I'm really pretty, why would I have to worry about finding a husband? Women then tend to smile and usually agree. I use this excuse for coworkers and women I am friends with.

There are other times when I can have more fun with the marriage refusal. This is when people I dont know and have never met try to get me to marry them or the poor schmucks they work with (these are the women's delegation, I can't think of a more ironic title for these do nothing government drones.) Thats when I decided I've got nothing to lose anyway and I come up with a list of culturally appropriate reasons I shouldn't marry a random mauritanian stranger on the spot. They are as follows. Note that just one excuse doesnt deter them, you need to use most of them in succession to really disturb a person and get them off the marriage warpath. None of these reasons happen to be true, but they work! Really, I wish you could see the looks on people's faces!


REASONS I CANNOT MARRY YOUR ____________ (Son, uncle, brother, grandfather, random friend, cousin, absolute stranger)

I dont like couscous
I dont like goathead
I cant eat goathead
I only eat hamburgers and french fries, and my husband would have to cook them for me
I dont like bosse or aish
I dont like children
I hate children and cannot have them
I want a husband who has 50 camels in the countryside, speaks english and will cook for me
I dont know how to cook
I dont know how to clean
I dont know how to make tea
I dont wear moulafas
My husband has to drive a brand new mercedes and have a huge house in Nema
This man is too old
This man is too young
This man is too ugly
I dont have contacts at the embassy and I cant get you a visa
I want two or more husbands
I want a man who will do everything for me
I want a keg at my wedding

The last reason might be the most offensive to Mauritanians...

Tis The Season- Package Request

So yeah, just a small request for all of you who still read my blog even though I'm rather bad at updating it, but here's a list of things that -if shipped to me- would make life a little less boring in Nema. Here goes -

Food Items
Old Bay (Crab Spice)
Garlic Salt
Taco Seasoning
Craisins
Kool Aid
Cheese that can be shipped /Cheetos/Cheezits
Bacon that can be shipped
Sausage/Pepperoni ( I mean, it would be cool but probably not possible)

But really let me state the market is rocking right now and I'm able to cook alot of healthy, tasty meals!

DVDS- DVD disks with TV shows stolen from the internet is also a really good idea
Sitcoms - Simpsons, Family Guy, West Wing, Project Runway -Old School Twilight Zone
Movies- Anything with Zombies in it
Anything by Tarantino
Casablanca
Pink Floyd's The Wall
This is Spinal Tap
Amorres Perros
Beyond Borders
Clerks/ Anything By Kevin Smith
Grindhouse
The Exorcist
Any Lord of the Rings
Any Indiana Jones
Any Star Wars (Old Trilogy not the new one)
Any Monty Python



Thats pretty much it, I have to reiterate how lucky I feel the more time I spend here. I'd also like to mention that its really not hard to do without most of the things we take for granted in the US. Its really not that bad, the travel ban for the first 3 months just gets kind of irritating.
Soon enough it'll be Christmas and I'll be in Nouakchott, the land of salad, pizza and beer!

Miss you all!!!
-HEATHER

Bad At Blogging

Hi all I know its been a while since I've posted I figured I'd update you all on what has been happening with me in the last several weeks. I've started teaching classes at the CFPP, things are going pretty slowly. I spent the first week going over computer parts and Microsoft Word vocabulary in french. This week I'll start actually using the computer. I wore a mulaffa to class on Thursday and the girls (all my students are girls save one boy) totally loved it.

I also moved into my new house this week, just as the Director of the Girls Empowerment Programs came into town and dropped off 5 big boxes for me! Thanks everyone for the spice mixes, fruit and nuts!!! I'm so happy for them!! So I moved into my new house, I'll send pictures later I forgot my camera cord. Lets just start with saying my house is awesome and huge, but needs alot of work. All the money I spend towards fixing the roof, and bathrooms, etc will be taken as rent payments. Its not a bad system, it just requires alot of patience. I also have room for a garden, I hope to have one by this time next year. The house also has a staircase onto the roof so I can sleep under the stars whenever I want. I plan on getting a tea set so I can entertain Mauritanians- (their favorite pastime is hanging out with friends, drinking mint tea and looking at photos). This is the first time I've ever really lived on my own without a roommate. Needless to say the first night I hardly slept at all, it was incredibly windy and all the doors and windows were banging around. So all night I kept leaving my bedroom to close stuff and place rocks against doors that have no handles or locks. And then ants got into my sleeping bag and decided to take large chunks out of my torso. Soooo Painful!!! It was quite a night but I survived!

Things have been sort of strange around town for the last two weeks, there have been large protests in Nouakchott against the president and prices of consumer goods. Last week this meant that lots of middle school and high school boys got psyched up to a fever pitch and rioted in the market, throwing rocks and breaking car windows. They tried to storm the high school as well but failed. Its kind of hard to understand exactly whats going on and why students would care about the price of bread and soda (they dont have money, dont work or pay for anything). Both Edna, my sitemate and I had gotten back from the market about 10 minutes before it happened. No one was hurt, or targeted and we ended up fine. I'm still trying to figure out why they got children so psyched up about market prices. But anyway, dont worry, all of us are fine. The day of the big protests our neighbors the three sisters were very protective of us and stood out on their stoop yelling at anyone that came near. They then fed us lunch and dinner!
I promise to write more emails, topics to come include - how I avoid the countless marriage offers I recieve daily, why nema rocks, and many many others!!


LOVE AND MISS YOU ALL!!!

Nema Life

Hi everyone I've finally gotten enough time to write out a cohesive email, this will be the first one for a long time, I'm sorry for my absence, I've been a combination of both incredibly busy and ill, and in Nema, internet connection is a scarce commodity! I'm actually writing this from my friend and fellow sitemite Edna's computer so I can spend my time writing something of substance. Here is what I can report about Nema and my first few weeks here after being sworn in as a volunteer. Let me take you all back to swear-in for a minute. After 10 long weeks of blood, sweat, tears and language classes, 66 of us swore in front of the Deputy Chief of Mission of the US Embassy "to protect and defend the Constitution from attacks both foreign and domestic" while we serve as volunteers. This will sound very nerdy but I got a little choked up and felt honored and proud to be serving my country in this way. The ceremony was very nice everyone was all dressed up in their finest western or Mauritanian outfits, and many members of government attended, and the ceremony was broadcast on Mauritanian television that day. It was quite a spectacle. Afterwards most of us spent the afternoon trying to get everything together for the big swearing in party that we had been looking forward to for the last 10 weeks. The second year volunteers had smuggled in several cases of whiskey from Senegal for the party. I signed up for making punch which meant that I got to go to the "hotel" that was hosting the party early to help set up (and start drinking before the other volunteers). It had rained that afternoon intermittently and when we got to the hotel we found that it was mostly under water!!!! I did the best I could to try to get some sort of shelter going so people didn't have to drink in the rain but it was hopeless. Everyone had a great time anyway, a group of people cooked a huge feast of Mexican food (nachos made from frying white flour and cheese dip from processed cheese and dried red pepper and tomatoes). It was a lot of fun, I was most happy to be able to wear jeans and dance till 2 am to western music.
\u003c/span\>Being able to drink was just an extra bonus!! After the party died down we were driven back to the lycee to crash until the afternoon the next day.\u003cspan\> \n\u003c/span\>The following morning we loaded all of our belongings onto pickup trucks and four wheel drives to make the long trek to our respective sites. It was difficult to say goodbye to these friends I'd just made knowing that the next time I'd see them would be Christmas!!! Its such a long time from now!!! \n\u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>\n\u003cp style\u003d\"margin:0cm 0cm 10pt\"\>\u003cspan lang\u003d\"EN-US\"\>\u003cfont face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cstrong\>It took us two days by car to get to Nema, along the way we stopped at volunteer's homes in Kiffa and Aouin. Apparently they had been expecting us so we were treated to awesome western home cooked meals, in Kiffa we had curried lentils and in Aouin we had beef brisket and scalloped potatoes. By the afternoon we arrived in Nema, and stayed at my community contact's house for 3 days while we searched for housing.\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>One of our language facilitators had come with us to help us find housing and get settled\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>in, at the end of the 3 days he found 4 houses for the 4 of us, all except one being in a complete state of disrepair. He figured he had done his part so he left us after that. I signed a lease on a house that was twice the price of my budget for housing and 3 of us moved in together and will be splitting the rent till we all find reasonable places to live.\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>\u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>\n\u003cp style\u003d\"margin:0cm 0cm 10pt\"\>\u003cspan lang\u003d\"EN-US\"\>\u003cfont face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cstrong\>Let me tell you all a few things about Nema, this is as much as I can gather from the few weeks I've spent here so far and the literature I have on the town. Nema is the regional capital of the Hodh El Chargui district of Mauritania. It is the easternmost district and is bordered by \nMali on all sides. Nema is 1100 kilometers from Nouakchott and is 550 kilometers from Bamako, the capital of Mali, it is also close to Timbuktu but there is no paved road to get there, but I am planning to go there when I finally get the time to travel. The population of Nema is around 10,000 people, but the district itself is much larger. One hour from Nema is Oalata, a UNESCO world heritage site, during the colder months (November- February) many tourists come through Nema on the way to Oalata or \nTimbuktu.",1]
);
//-->
Being able to drink was just an extra bonus!! After the party died down we were driven back to the lycee to crash until the afternoon the next day. The following morning we loaded all of our belongings onto pickup trucks and four wheel drives to make the long trek to our respective sites. It was difficult to say goodbye to these friends I'd just made knowing that the next time I'd see them would be Christmas!!! Its such a long time from now!!!
It took us two days by car to get to Nema, along the way we stopped at volunteer's homes in Kiffa and Aouin. Apparently they had been expecting us so we were treated to awesome western home cooked meals, in Kiffa we had curried lentils and in Aouin we had beef brisket and scalloped potatoes. By the afternoon we arrived in Nema, and stayed at my community contact's house for 3 days while we searched for housing. One of our language facilitators had come with us to help us find housing and get settled in, at the end of the 3 days he found 4 houses for the 4 of us, all except one being in a complete state of disrepair. He figured he had done his part so he left us after that. I signed a lease on a house that was twice the price of my budget for housing and 3 of us moved in together and will be splitting the rent till we all find reasonable places to live.
Let me tell you all a few things about Nema, this is as much as I can gather from the few weeks I've spent here so far and the literature I have on the town. Nema is the regional capital of the Hodh El Chargui district of Mauritania. It is the easternmost district and is bordered by Mali on all sides. Nema is 1100 kilometers from Nouakchott and is 550 kilometers from Bamako, the capital of Mali, it is also close to Timbuktu but there is no paved road to get there, but I am planning to go there when I finally get the time to travel. The population of Nema is around 10,000 people, but the district itself is much larger. One hour from Nema is Oalata, a UNESCO world heritage site, during the colder months (November- February) many tourists come through Nema on the way to Oalata or Timbuktu.
\u003c/span\>Nema's main sources of income are livestock, boutiquiers and trade with Mali. There is a hospital, an airport (no flights though, there's been talk of having flights during the tourist season but I'm doubtful of that) an army base, one hotel and one restaurant. \n\u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>\n\u003cp style\u003d\"margin:0cm 0cm 10pt\"\>\u003cspan lang\u003d\"EN-US\"\>\u003cfont face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cstrong\>Nema reminds me of what Bethlehem probably looked like 2,000 years ago, if you were to add the presence of cars and cell phones. It is a small valley town surrounded by hills\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>and sparsely studded with date palm trees.\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>Nema is almost an entirely White Moor town with a scattering of Pulaars (who generally live along the \nSenegal River, in towns like Boghe and\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>Kaedi) and many Malians seeking work and trade.\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>This means that almost everyone speaks Hassaniya and hardly anyone speaks French. This has been my major source of frustration with the Peace Corps is that when\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>I got off the plane from the US my French was passable but I spent 10 weeks studying a language that I probably will not be using for my next 2 years here!!! This could all change though, I've only spent a few weeks here and maybe all the francophones are hiding. All I know is that I really need to bring my Hassaniya up to speed as quickly as I can. Even in my short time here so far I've been able to pick up a lot of words, and in order to try them out I just sort of weave them into my French sentences when I talk to people.\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>And somehow, through some act of god or fate people actually seem to understand me and I am starting to understand them. I say this a lot about Mauritania but it bears repeating, people will completely go out of their way to try to understand you if you just try to use their language. \n\u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>\n\u003cp style\u003d\"margin:0cm 0cm 10pt\"\>\u003cspan lang\u003d\"EN-US\"\>\u003cfont face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cstrong\>We got to Nema just as the month of Ramadan was starting, most of you are probably curious about what that means for me living in an Islamic Republic, so here's a short description: during the month of Ramadan people do not eat or drink water (this includes swallowing saliva) during the day and abstain from sex, smoking cigarettes and speaking negatively about others (among many other things).\n",1]
);
//-->
Nema's main sources of income are livestock, boutiquiers and trade with Mali. There is a hospital, an airport (no flights though, there's been talk of having flights during the tourist season but I'm doubtful of that) an army base, one hotel and one restaurant.
Nema reminds me of what Bethlehem probably looked like 2,000 years ago, if you were to add the presence of cars and cell phones. It is a small valley town surrounded by hills and sparsely studded with date palm trees. Nema is almost an entirely White Moor town with a scattering of Pulaars (who generally live along the Senegal River, in towns like Boghe and Kaedi) and many Malians seeking work and trade. This means that almost everyone speaks Hassaniya and hardly anyone speaks French. This has been my major source of frustration with the Peace Corps is that when I got off the plane from the US my French was passable but I spent 10 weeks studying a language that I probably will not be using for my next 2 years here!!! This could all change though, I've only spent a few weeks here and maybe all the francophones are hiding. All I know is that I really need to bring my Hassaniya up to speed as quickly as I can. Even in my short time here so far I've been able to pick up a lot of words, and in order to try them out I just sort of weave them into my French sentences when I talk to people. And somehow, through some act of god or fate people actually seem to understand me and I am starting to understand them. I say this a lot about Mauritania but it bears repeating, people will completely go out of their way to try to understand you if you just try to use their language.
We got to Nema just as the month of Ramadan was starting, most of you are probably curious about what that means for me living in an Islamic Republic, so here's a short description: during the month of Ramadan people do not eat or drink water (this includes swallowing saliva) during the day and abstain from sex, smoking cigarettes and speaking negatively about others (among many other things).
\u003c/span\>Children and women who are pregnant or breastfeeding are exempt from fasting during Ramadan. What does this mean for me? Well, the market stays open during Ramadan, so I really only make a point of abstaining from drinking water in public and in front of other Mauritanians. The three of us living together will eat lunch at our house, but usually go out most nights a week to neighbors and colleague's houses to break fast. "Breaking fast" starts at sundown and most people start with a handful of dates and cold water and some porridge, then they have bissap (a juice made from hibiscus leaves and sugar) or Zrig – a fermented milk drink made also with sugar. After the initial "starters" it is customary to have tajine – which is usually slow cooked meat/animal parts with an onion sauce and potatoes or French fries, as well as bread. After tajine comes a larger plate of either pasta or couscous. This really is a timely affair, I usually leave people's houses around 11:30 or midnight, before the couscous comes out to be eaten!!!\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>It is also important to note that Mauritanians wake at 4:00 am before the morning prayer call to eat breakfast and shower. I have not yet participated in that part of Ramadan, thank god!\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>So for me, Ramadan just means a lot of late night eating I guess, life really wasn't as disrupted as it could have been. \u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>\n\u003cp style\u003d\"margin:0cm 0cm 10pt\"\>\u003cspan lang\u003d\"EN-US\"\>\u003cfont face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cstrong\>So, how is my "work" going?\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>I have been assigned to work at the CFPP which is a trade school with probably 80 students offering classes in metalwork, electrical wiring for buildings, secretarial skills, accounting and computer classes; both girls and guys are encouraged to take these classes( but I really don't think women take the metalwork/shop classes). My counterpart is the director of the CFPP, I have not yet met him (he was supposed to return before September 19\n\u003csup\>th\u003c/sup\>",1]
);
//-->
Children and women who are pregnant or breastfeeding are exempt from fasting during Ramadan. What does this mean for me? Well, the market stays open during Ramadan, so I really only make a point of abstaining from drinking water in public and in front of other Mauritanians. The three of us living together will eat lunch at our house, but usually go out most nights a week to neighbors and colleague's houses to break fast. "Breaking fast" starts at sundown and most people start with a handful of dates and cold water and some porridge, then they have bissap (a juice made from hibiscus leaves and sugar) or Zrig – a fermented milk drink made also with sugar. After the initial "starters" it is customary to have tajine – which is usually slow cooked meat/animal parts with an onion sauce and potatoes or French fries, as well as bread. After tajine comes a larger plate of either pasta or couscous. This really is a timely affair, I usually leave people's houses around 11:30 or midnight, before the couscous comes out to be eaten!!! It is also important to note that Mauritanians wake at 4:00 am before the morning prayer call to eat breakfast and shower. I have not yet participated in that part of Ramadan, thank god! So for me, Ramadan just means a lot of late night eating I guess, life really wasn't as disrupted as it could have been.
So, how is my "work" going? I have been assigned to work at the CFPP which is a trade school with probably 80 students offering classes in metalwork, electrical wiring for buildings, secretarial skills, accounting and computer classes; both girls and guys are encouraged to take these classes( but I really don't think women take the metalwork/shop classes). My counterpart is the director of the CFPP, I have not yet met him (he was supposed to return before September 19 th
\u003c/span\>So basically I will be going to the CFPP sometime next week to talk to the director and try to get the details of all of this worked out, so people don't expect me to waltz in the first day with a lesson plan and roster or something… It's the middle of Ramadan anyway, people don't really do anything in 115 degree heat without drinking or eating…The first 3 months at site are really supposed to be spent learning the language and the culture of your site and getting to know its people before diving into really ambitious projects. I've been trying to do that by studying the market as best I can when I visit\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>it. I also plan to work with women's cooperatives, hopefully in time for the tourist season.\u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>\n\u003cp style\u003d\"margin:0cm 0cm 10pt\"\>\u003cspan lang\u003d\"EN-US\"\>\u003cfont face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cstrong\>So what is it like living in a "Conservative White Moor Town" that hasn't had Americans in 20 years?? It's not bad, you'd be amazed at who you can meet when you put yourself out there. My next door neighbor is the medecin chef (head of the hospital) who studied medicine in Moscow in the 80s.\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>One of our friendliest neighbors is a man who spent 20 years abroad living and studying in France and Portugal before returning to Nema. I met 3 women last night, one whose niece taught her English years ago, and she got to practice it on us! Sometimes I complain that Mauritania has a lack of cultural relativity but as soon as I do I meet someone who understands what life is like outside of here, and I'm humbled. As for attire, I do wear long skirts and cover my head and have not had any problems whatsoever with anyone. Men try to flirt with me but its usually just my novelty that they're playing off of and I usually have a few choice words in French and Hassaniya reserved for them, and they get the hint and leave me alone. White moor women are notorious for their sharp tongues, which is probably why I'm getting along so well over here, there is nothing wrong with completely speaking your mind!\n",1]
);
//-->
), his family lives in Nouakchott, so it's likely that he is a government worker that has been assigned to work in Nema (this is VERY common in Mauritania, especially with schooling jobs). I stopped by the CFPP earlier this week to check in and see if it was open or if my counterpart was there, there were several people there registering students (ie sitting on the ground outside). Everyone seemed happy to see me, two of the teachers were from Boghe, my training site, and they are all convinced that I am the new instructor that has been sent to teach a class on computers. I find this funny because I have no idea what I'm supposed to be doing with the CFPP, but I'd be happy to teach computers. They informed me that class starts next week. So basically I will be going to the CFPP sometime next week to talk to the director and try to get the details of all of this worked out, so people don't expect me to waltz in the first day with a lesson plan and roster or something… It's the middle of Ramadan anyway, people don't really do anything in 115 degree heat without drinking or eating…The first 3 months at site are really supposed to be spent learning the language and the culture of your site and getting to know its people before diving into really ambitious projects. I've been trying to do that by studying the market as best I can when I visit it. I also plan to work with women's cooperatives, hopefully in time for the tourist season.
So what is it like living in a "Conservative White Moor Town" that hasn't had Americans in 20 years?? It's not bad, you'd be amazed at who you can meet when you put yourself out there. My next door neighbor is the medecin chef (head of the hospital) who studied medicine in Moscow in the 80s. One of our friendliest neighbors is a man who spent 20 years abroad living and studying in France and Portugal before returning to Nema. I met 3 women last night, one whose niece taught her English years ago, and she got to practice it on us! Sometimes I complain that Mauritania has a lack of cultural relativity but as soon as I do I meet someone who understands what life is like outside of here, and I'm humbled. As for attire, I do wear long skirts and cover my head and have not had any problems whatsoever with anyone. Men try to flirt with me but its usually just my novelty that they're playing off of and I usually have a few choice words in French and Hassaniya reserved for them, and they get the hint and leave me alone. White moor women are notorious for their sharp tongues, which is probably why I'm getting along so well over here, there is nothing wrong with completely speaking your mind!
\u003c/span\>That being said, I'm happy to have a house with high walls so I can hang around the house in shorts, the heat right now is unbearable. I have not yet taken to wearing the Moulafa (head to toe veil) around town, but maybe as time goes by and I get more comfortable around here, and the temperature gets a little cooler I might give it a shot.\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>At this point I also kind of feel like an imposter wearing one when I really can't even speak very much Hassaniya, my site mate Sarah wears them almost every day and the reactions she gets in the streets are hilarious, women literally start cheering when they see her! I used to see the moulafa\n\u003cspan\> \u003c/span\>as a misogynistic symbol, but women are really proud to wear them and see the veil as a mark of their culture and a source of pride, much like a kilt would be to a Scottish person.\n\u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>\n\u003cp style\u003d\"margin:0cm 0cm 10pt\"\>\u003cspan lang\u003d\"EN-US\"\>\u003cfont face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cstrong\>I guess that's all I can fit into an email for now, something that started as an email and turned into a novel, and if any of you have actually read this far, if you'd like to mail me things for Christmas, it would be wise to start sending them out now, seeing as things take a long time to get through customs! I don't need anything in particular, but spice mixes (like old bay and taco seasoning) drink mixes, hair conditioner samples, dried fruit and old copies of almost any magazine would be appreciated!!!! \n\u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>\n\u003cp style\u003d\"margin:0cm 0cm 10pt\"\>\u003cspan lang\u003d\"EN-US\"\>\u003cfont face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cstrong\>I love and miss you all, and wish you could be here to see some of the things I witness every day!!!!\u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\n\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>\n\u003cp style\u003d\"margin:0cm 0cm 10pt\"\>\u003cspan lang\u003d\"EN-US\"\>\u003cfont face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cstrong\> \u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>\n\u003cp style\u003d\"margin:0cm 0cm 10pt\"\>\u003cspan lang\u003d\"EN-US\"\>\u003cfont face\u003d\"Times New Roman\"\>\u003cstrong\>I will post more pictures when I can!!\u003c/strong\>\u003c/font\>\u003c/span\>\u003c/p\>",1]
);
//-->
That being said, I'm happy to have a house with high walls so I can hang around the house in shorts, the heat right now is unbearable. I have not yet taken to wearing the Moulafa (head to toe veil) around town, but maybe as time goes by and I get more comfortable around here, and the temperature gets a little cooler I might give it a shot. At this point I also kind of feel like an imposter wearing one when I really can't even speak very much Hassaniya, my site mate Sarah wears them almost every day and the reactions she gets in the streets are hilarious, women literally start cheering when they see her! I used to see the moulafa as a misogynistic symbol, but women are really proud to wear them and see the veil as a mark of their culture and a source of pride, much like a kilt would be to a Scottish person.
I guess that's all I can fit into an email for now, something that started as an email and turned into a novel, and if any of you have actually read this far, if you'd like to mail me things for Christmas, it would be wise to start sending them out now, seeing as things take a long time to get through customs! I don't need anything in particular, but spice mixes (like old bay and taco seasoning) drink mixes, hair conditioner samples, dried fruit and old copies of almost any magazine would be appreciated!!!!
I love and miss you all, and wish you could be here to see some of the things I witness every day!!!!

I will post more pictures when I can!!

SITE ANNOUNCEMENT- NEMA

Well it finally happened after much nail biting and anticipation and threats of torturing our training coordinator (Aaron), the group called RIM 69 made it to site announcement. And what a blast it was!!! I've been placed in Nema, the newest Peace Corps Regional Capital. There has not been a Peace Corps Volunteer in that region in over 20 years (Since the conflict with Senegal). I am a mix of completely honored and a little perturbed at being given such a large responsibility. Never in a million years would I have expected to be placed in such a pioneer-ish position, in Mauritania! I consider it to be one of the best challenges for me, in the field of development, to cut my teeth on. It is about 3 days by car from Nouakchott, the capital, if those days are dry. If it's rainy, then I really can't tell you how long it could take me to get there. The drive out to Nema was absolutely beautiful. Once I was there things didnt go as smoothly as I would have liked, as I got really ill during the site visit but I have very high hopes for all that can be accomplished during my 2 years. There is electricity and running water and alot of camel meat, and it appears that there is a true desire for peace corps volunteers. My two concerns are that I found the site to be rather conservative compared to Boghe where I am living now, and almost all of the people speak Hassaniya, which I havent had the chance to learn yet thanks to the wonderful language department. That is incredibly frustrating to me but I think I'll pick it up quickly and I may have found a tutor while I was Nema, so this may be less of a problem than I thought. I was also pressured to wear a mulafa, a head to toe, hair and face covering veil, so I did wear one for one day, and really didnt like it. I'm struggling against wearing it because it really just grates against my principles, I feel like I'm giving into to something mysoginistic by wearing it. It doesnt help that I was reading the book "Reading Lolita in Tehran" while in Nema. The author was expelled from the Iranian University for refusing to veil herself. I just dont see the point if I already cover my head anyway as a sign of respect for all Mauritanians. I feel like I'll have to justify wearing it for myself before I just throw on a mulafa to please others. It's sort of a one way street with clothing over here, once people see you in native clothes they tend to expect you to wear them all of the time and make fun of you if you wear Western clothes, and ask you what happened to your african garb. I'm really not ready to be asked where my mulafa is every day when I get to Nema if I only wear it once. We'll see how it goes though, the fact that they have not had a peace corps volunteer to judge my behavior against means I get alot of freedom to set the standards for Americans, be that exercising or wearing pants, or not wearing a mulafa. Time will tell, as I want to be respected and credible in Nema as well. I guess that's all for now only 16 days left of Stage till Swear in and NEMA! YAY!

SITE

Nema and

Back to Kaedi

Well I've just finished up an interesting first three weeks in Boghe and am returning to Kaedi to meet up with the other 60 volunteers. Much has happened in 3 weeks, I think most of us are more changed than we could imagine. I have been through some difficulties, mostly in the last week, meeting face to face with the issue of slavery in my host family. It really jarred my perceptions of Mauritania and my family. I've come back around full circle since then, but I spent at least one day wondering why I gave up running water, toilet paper, pants and diet coke to exist in a cultural exchange that was so seemingly one-sided. I felt like I was giving up alot of myself and getting nothing in return. That was pretty misguided of me, I spend most of my time here getting to know people and talking and trying to learn the language and the customs and every time I make an effort, if I even try a little bit, people pull out all the stops to help me out and help me strengthen my language skills and comfort level and understanding. My french is improving with leaps and bounds and my Hassaniya is starting to come together. I have so many stories to share and never enough time or internet bandwidth to share them with all of you, its a shame!!!

After I felt so frustrated, I was sitting out with my family as several neighborhood boys played with an old cassette tape player listening to music. For children, as well as adults cassettes are huge here. This really inspired me to pull out my ipod and start sharing my music with them, to see if they had heard some of the things I listened to. In Mauritania, as in the States, hip hop is incredibly popular, but many artists in America dont seem to get any airtime. Sharing music with these boys was for me, an incredibly rewarding cultural exchange. I only had a few hiphop and R&B songs on my ipod but they really got a kick out of Lauryn Hill, and Chingy, of course, Akon. I felt really glad to expose these kids to new music!! I tried a Fall Out Boy song on them and let's just say that it didnt go over well at all! Poprock is falling on deaf ears over here. After that I showed my hostmom pictures of everyone that I had stored on my ipod. She says I am a photocopy of my mother! Most of you guys will probably agree. I will try to get a photo of my host family soon, I just have to find someone to take the picture, and I really dont trust mauritanians with my camera yet!

Boghe !!!!

Hi everyone long time no update, I'm still figuring out the internet connection issues here. During the middle of the day its very slow, but in the AM its pretty fast! I'm trying to get some pictures up for everyone to see my little slice of life here. I mention this alot, but I really love it here. I'm amazed at how quickly all 70 of us took to wiping with our left hands, eating with our right hands, a completely different set of cultural norms and languages. This is only the beginning of our third week in Boghe. This and none of us in Boghe got terribly ill, either!!! By the end of July we will find out what our permanent sites will be for the duration of our service in the Peace Corps! For class I get to interview the owner of the cybercafe! This means much more internet time! Yay!! I have a flicker account now, look me up under chargingsky. www.flickr.com/chargingsky I have added photos of Kaedi, Boghe as well as Nouakchott. I gotta run, keep me posted on world news! Also, skype me at 011 222 763 9611.


Kay Bye!

Nouakchott, Kaedi, Boghe

I know its been a while, but yes this is finally my first post about Mauritania while I am in Mauritania. I have been given all my shots, trained extensively and spend the last week at a lycee and Kaedi with 72 other trainees. We're a great bunch, really! I dont have much time left @ the internet cafe but I will say that I am in Boghe and I'm really enjoying myself. I'm learning french currently and will be learning Hassaniya soon!!! My host mom is awesome, and I have a 3 year oldhost brother who doesnt like to wear pants!!! That's all for now, call me at 0112227639611!!!


-HEATHER AKA Fatou/Fati

Aforementioned Links About Mauritania

3 Days to go until Stage in Philadelphia, and I can barely contain my excitement. At the same time, I have a 5+ page long packing list and an 80 pound limit on my luggage, somehow these two don't seem to meet in the middle.


I am posting these links so that all my readers can get a rough idea of what I'm getting myself into. They probably do not account for about 98% of what I'm about to experience in the coming 2 years. I find that to be the best part!!

http://www.salon.com/wire/ap/D8OAOT3G0.html

http://www.salon.com/mwt/broadsheet/2007/04/17/fat_in_mauritania/index.html

http://lexicorient.com/mauritania/

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5467.htm

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/worldguide/destinations/africa/mauritania/

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/country_profiles/791083.stm

http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Country_Specific/Mauritania.html

12 Days and Counting...

Here is my address in case anyone would like to write to me or send me emergency supplies during training:

Heather Wyllie, PCT
Corps de la Paix
B.P. 222
Nouakchott, Mauritania
West Africa

**Please note that padded envelopes work best, don't declare a value on the package, and try to wrap the package up in tape so I can tell whether its been tampered with. Also writing PAR AVION (airmail) has proven effective according to past volunteers**

I also cannot begin to mention how unprepared I feel as the days to my departure wind down. I guess the best thing I can do is enjoy home as best I can, and make the most of it as I'll be missing it terribly, soon enough.

5 Weeks 5 Days

Until I get to Philadelphia with 76 other volunteers to meet up, get shots, eat cheesesteak (I'm thinking Geno's -any opinions?). Two days after that we board a plane bound for Mauritania, with an estimate of 3 or so layovers. I will eventually get to Kaedi, Mauritania to start my training.

Until then, what will I be doing? I have to work and attend about 72 happy hours/going away things until my dad comes to Washington, DC and moves my stuff out of my apartment June 9th.

Then I have several weeks to chill out, start packing, hang with my dog and my family and everyone in Babylon before June 23rd, the BIG HUGE SUPER PHANTASM Going Away/Lyzzy's Graduation party we're currently planning. Did I mention it will be pirate themed? I think you should attend. I have couches for you all to crash on.

I will try to answer as many questions as you guys have about Mauritania through this blog.

I meant to post alot of informative websites about Mauritania and its culture, but there are few and alot of them are in French. I will save that for next time.

Instead I will post my amazon.com wishlist, so you may see what I need before I leave for Mauritana.

The Birth of my blog!!!

I had to set this sucker up sometime. This is it, you've reached the official "Heather Wyllie joins the Peace Corps, is sent to Mauritania" Blog. More to follow, such as my address and other neat facts.