It took my plane an hour to land in driving rain...for a second as we got tossed around I thought maybe my number is up but since I trust in this vague, all knowing universe that has some plan for me I decided to trust it.
The delay in landing was matched by an immigration and customs process that took about five times as long as it needed to. But patience is a virtue...
The only other West African capital city I have to compare to Niamey is Ouagadougou--Niamey is on the banks of the Niger river, so it's more green. We went down to the banks on Saturday, people were fishing in it (last night I ate some river fish which was the best-tasting thing I've eaten so far in West Africa) and there are villages along the edge, houses made of brick, gardens where plants and flowers are cultivated, and riverside restaurants and bars. The river is huge, muddy right now because it's the rainy season, but beautiful.
Niamey is also more spread out and calm...I'm still pretty disoriented, trying to recognize the street I'm staying on amongst all of the others...I'm driven around more than self-directed, but I'm starting to find my way.
One thing I have noticed is the mix of people...Taureg men in turbans and veils, some women in veils, many in beautiful fabrics, people with lines on their faces from the purposeful scarring...
Saturday night I went to an open air concert...it was a beautiful night, which was especially noticeable when the power went out, the group had to continue acapella, and I could see the stars...which I will never stop remarking, look the same everywhere in the world, we are connected by the sky.
Today I started the workshop for Réseau Arts Vivants. We are going to start each day with a presentation by a different participant on a specific aspect of Theatre of the Oppressed and Forum Theater, this morning it was Alfred Dogbé, who presented a beautifully succinct (not surprising, he is an important writer here) assessment of what the group should consider...this group is different than the one I worked with in Ouaga: quite a few of them know each other, most of them have a lot of experience with forum theater, and there is a desire to examine, critique, and innovate...I am looking forward to this process, the exchange...it's so interesting doing the workshop again, remembering the first time I did it in French, in Africa, how scared I was...now I'm not as afraid but I have different challenges: to manage the fact that I really feel like an outsider, to be respectful of their needs as a network of professionals who want to continue this work after I'm gone...
This afternoon we all went to lunch together--of course, even though I am eating much better than I did in Ouaga, I still can't keep up...this is remarkable in a culture where women are supposed to be a bit rounder. But I'm trying, and Djibrine is making sure that I eat...but in the end, I'm a skinny white girl, right? Mais merci à dieu for drinkable yogurt, beer, and ice cream...
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