Mango Heat and a Surprise

(A year ago, I was trying to learn about Chad, and about what I would be doing during my SALT term, I read Kelsey’s blog (SALTer 2013-2014) entitled ‘Mango heat’ and I wanted to honour that great title today.)

Since I arrived at the end of August, the question most asked by people is how is the heat? When I reply (sometimes with ‘it’s ok’, and sometimes with ‘it’s pretty hot’), their response is always wait for the hot season which different people told me was anywhere from February to May. I made it through February no problem, and I thought that if this was as hot as it would be I would be just fine. Then mid-way through March, temperatures began to climb, and climb until most days it reach in the low 40’s.

Now this is very hot, but in Canada we have something called air conditioning or at the very least fans. But when there is little electricity, you are cooking over a charcoal fire, and your room is like a sauna- as is the case here in Chad, life becomes difficult. We do manage by sleeping outside, trying to stay in the shade, and when possible having a nap mid-day.

The good news about the hot season is the mangoes! I love mangoes and it has been a real treat to be able to buy 3 mangoes for the equivalent of 20 cents! I am happy to be able to eat mangoes on a regular basis.

Surprise!

It has been a long time since I have had rain. I remember when there were massive puddles on the roads which made it almost impossible to get from place to place but that seems like a very long time ago. In the last couple days, there have been more clouds that have been dark. On March 25^th, there were multiple people who looked at these clouds and said that it was going to rain. I did not believe them because I had heard that it may rain a couple times in May but the rainy season does not really start until June. I replied that if it rained I would dance.

We set up our mats and mosquito nets outside and we fell asleep. At 2:30am, we all awoke to the surprise of RAIN!  In reality it was a sprinkle but nevertheless, we took down our mosquito nets, and put away our mats. At 2:30 in the morning everyone was pretty tired, but I got my 5-year brother Junior and we did a little tired dance.

Paradise in Chad

Last week, I travelled to Doba, a small city about one and a half hours away from Moundou, with the MCC partner organization BAOBAB. BAOBAB works with MCC on many agriculture projects in a number of villages close to Moundou. We went to Doba to learn more about fish farming. There were two fish farms in Doba and we were hoping to observe them and get some practical information about how they work in hopes of starting a fish farm in one of the partner villages.

The first fish farm we went to began with 50 carp and it is estimated that there are now 100 000 fish. The man had to expand his farming area twice due to the rapid increase of fish. At the end of May, it will have been 24 months and he will begin selling the fish. I learned that he feeds the carp - papaya leaves, balls made of red millet flour and spinach, and occasionally pigeon poop. The water is drained once a week and new water is put in to help keep the container clean.

It was when we began discussing the importance of clean water that BAOBAB realised that this may be a problem in our villages. None of the villages have running water, and using a generator to get water from a well is very expensive. We are continuing to brainstorm other solutions for fish farms in villages without access to regular clean water.

We made our way to a second farm owned by Ngardingal André a retired banker. André has taken multiple trainings on how to fish farm and has become an expert on the subject. It was very interesting to hear his perspective on the matter and to see his current project. He is currently working on creating a “Paradis de Doba”. His dream is to have solar panels, mango, banana, and papaya trees, fish farms, rabbits, pigeons, chicken, geese and ducks (whose poop can feed the fish and fertilize trees). Even with very limited finances he continues to work hard slowly create his dream farm. He is hoping to one day build a training centre where he (with his friends) can train young people on fish farming, veterinary practices and finances. He believes in the importance of teaching young people the skills that he has acquired.

When we were leaving he cut a papaya from a tree to give to me. It was a small piece of paradise. André’s dreams give me hope for the future of agriculture in Chad.

Woman’s Day

Chad continues to foster a traditional view of male and female roles. However for Woman’s Day, woman are celebrated for all their hard work. Woman’s Day is celebrated in Chad for a full week leading up to March 8^th. Starting March 1^st, there was a festival with food vendors and places to have a drink as well as booths selling clothes, soap and meat. There was also at tent in the middle of the festival where different speeches were spoken on woman’s rights. I had the privilege of going a couple times with my co-workers from work. We sat at one of the booths which was also a restaurant and ordered drinks. I had Fruit cocktail Fanta, and Pineapple Top, which are soft drinks popular in Chad. We casually chatted and as vendors passed we purchased hard-boiled eggs, grilled meat and even grasshoppers!

On March 8^th I woke up early because it was supposed to be the day of the Woman’s Day march that I was planning on participating in. As soon as I exited my room, my cousin told me that on the radio she had heard that the march was postponed until Monday. I dutifully called the head of our group and asked her. She believed that we were marching but later called back to say that it was indeed Monday that the march would take place.

So I decided that I would go to church and sing in the choir, which I had not planned to do. The choir sang a Woman’s Day tribute and the pastor spoke about woman’s roles. Then there was a question and answer period where people posed questions and the pastor answered. Questions included: Why are woman not preachers? If you don’t get married will you go to heaven? What do you think of an elder who does not love his wife?

After the service the ‘Femmes de Charité’ as well as woman from my choir had prepared a massive amount of food that they were selling. There was boule, a variety of sauces, peanut butter, cakes, fish fried dough, chicken, and fish. It felt a little like a potluck after church!

On March 9^th, I went to CENTRAM to meet with the woman of the agriculture school ISETAER. ISETAER runs in the mornings in the same building as CENTRAM which happens in the evening. The female students invited me to march with them, and so we bought and tailored the same dress.

When we arrived at the starting place for the march there were many different groups all sporting matching uniforms. There were schools, universities, hospitals, phone companies, organizations and even a soccer team! There were over 100 groups present ready to march.

When I think of march I think of a parade and walking for a couple kilometers past people. This was not the case, as when it was our turn we walked a total of 500 m. The main event was stopping in front of the governor to give our present of fruits and vegetables as well as a chicken and a rooster. There were many people watching the march and after dropping off our gifts, we continued on our way, stopping at a restaurant to eat chicken, bread, French fries and salad. Happy Belated Woman’s Day to all you hard working woman!

Dowry Dresses, Dishes and Dancing

Dowry ceremonies are a lot of work. I saw this first hand as my mother began planning for the dowry ceremony of my cousin Aaron. As is the tradition, the man’s family brings many gifts and money to the woman’s family. The preparation takes many meetings, long evenings and many trips to buy different items to present to the wife’s family.

Traditionally, fabric is chosen for young woman and boys of each side of the family, and clothing is made in this fabric. Then on the day of the ceremony you wear your outfit with all the others! Adeline, Salomé, Ornella, Junior and I (among others) all had clothing made.

On the day of the dowry, the family and friends of the groom gather at one house (my uncle’s) with all the gifts. Gifts are laid on trays and include: traditional food, soap, fabric, scarves, candy, shoes, and bottles of pop. Around 8 am, after a short prayer, women picked up a tray and placed it on their head to transport it to the bride’s family (where her friends and family were waiting). I wanted to participate and ended up picking up a tray with 3 large pieces of fabric on it.

Then the gifts were paraded through the streets with woman holding them at the front and men following all the presents. People ululated, and sang as we made our way to the woman’s family.

Upon arrival, the gifts were taken from our heads, by woman from the bride’s family and brought inside the compound. There were a couple hundred people present and so some people were seated on chairs, others on mats and still others stood, crowding around the gifts.

The ceremony began with a song and a prayer. Then three members from each family sat in the middle and discussed the price of the dowry. Slowly bits of money are given and counted by the bride’s family. Eventually a final price is agreed upon and the members get up, to lots of cheering.

At the end of the ceremony, we all returned to my uncle’s house and had a lovely meal with 3 sauces, boule, injera, and fried cakes. Then there was a large dance party where I continued to practice my Chadian dance skills (to a great deal of laughter). It was a wonderful day, where I felt like I was a part of a special family tradition!

Meet my students

I would like to introduce you to 5 of my 8 students this term. They are an eager group of learners and I enjoy teaching them English!

Meet my students

Bonadji Bardo Marcu was born in 1979 in the village of Benoye. He has 8 siblings and speaks Nagambai very well, French correctly and English slowly. In 1994, he attended an Agricultural professional school and since then he has enjoyed working as a farmer, agricultural advisor and more recently he manages 1000 hectares of land. He also works with peasants to help them write agricultural based projects and believes improving his English is necessary as he often has to translate his work. Today he is married with 6 children- 3 boys and 3 girls.

Kalro Khristos is the son of a teacher and doctor and the nephew of Marcus. Born in  1994 in the north of Chad, Khristos speaks Ngambai, French, Arabic and English. He is the eldest of 3 with two younger sisters.  He is currently in his first year at the University of Moundou in Law. He hopes to one day be a diplomat and believes learning English will help him achieve this goal. He enjoys reading, soccer, and listening to music.

Cyrille was born in Mongo in the north of Chad and can speak Sara, Ngambai, Chadian Arabic, French, Morrocan Arabic (a bit) and English. He is the youngest of four with 2 older sisters and one older brother. After completing one year of university in Chad, in 2008, he went to Morroco. He returned to Chad five years later with a Masters of Science Industrial Engineering and Production. He now works at the Manufacture of Cigarettes as the ‘Quality and Occupational Health and Safety Environment Manager’. His bosses are British so he must write reports and emails in English. He invites you all to come to Chad and when I asked if you could stay at his place he replied in true Chadian manner ‘Abosolutely!’

Ahamat Acheik was born and raised in Moundou. He speaks French, Arabic and English. As a child Ahamat went to primary school during the day, and Arabic school at night so he can therefore also write fluently in Arabic. In 2007 he spent a year in Sudan visiting family, before returning to study computers at the University of Moundou. He currently works as as I.T. at the university. He enjoys playing basketball and Scrabble. When asked why English was important for him, he replied that software and programming books are often written in English.

Ghislain Rodoumbaye has 8 brothers and 1 sister and comes from a village where the native language is Laka. He is married and has one young daugther. He attended university in N’Djamena where he studied Data and Tele Communication. He currently co-runs ENVODEV (which is an MCC supported project that creates eco-charcoal from plant wastes), he runs a small computer centre and teaches music and computers at a primary school. Outside of work he enjoys travelling, singing and listening to music. English is important for Ghislain because it is an international language and many companies use it to work. His message to my family and friends is one of thanks, as he is happy that you let me come to Chad to teach at CENTRAM!