Life in mamfe

to continue a previous post...
-i have met lots of "big men" here in mamfe: the mayor, deputy mayor, numerous chiefs, and princes (eldest sons of chiefs). everywhere i go people greet me, which is nice. it makes me feel like im living in a community. i was recently invited to a palace. a friend of the deputy mayor, named prince charles invited me to his palace at besongabong. he is a character. he is a nigerian film star and producer that returned here after the death of his father. he always wears a straw hat. he is currently working on a film for american release, "voodoo assassins". if you see it, make sure to watch. anyway, he lives in a beautiful place. the inside reminds me of england, with cream walls and gold borders on everything, including the furniture. it definitely felt like a palace.
-we had the launching of the school year at my school. its a big event, hosted by a different school each year. all of the principals and vp, and government officials come. its like a big conference, with classes to go to and snack breaks and things. the students sang and had tradtional dances to entertain everyone. after, there was a big meal that i helped cook. all of the women know that i cant good traditional food, so invited me to watch them cook. all i really did was peel plantains and watch them prepare coki. after though, i got some to take home with me. that was a special treat.
-i have started teaching. i teach all of the form 2 biology classes (there are 5 different streams). each class has between 80 and 100 students. so far, its going ok. i try to speak slowly so they understand, and im trying to be strict. its difficult though, when classes are randomly cancelled, people come into classes to make announcements, or tell students to leave bc they havent paid school fees. there is always something to distract the students. i have my first test next week, so we will see if they are learning anything.
-this weekend we had teachers day. we all bought teachers day pagne (mine was blue and said teachers day all over it.. there are books and teachers on it too), so i could have an outfit made. my outfit had a matching top and bottom, and my hair was braided. everyone complimented me, that i looked like a true african! we all got together at the grandstand (a set of bleachers) and heard speeches from the big men. in between speeches, each school in the area sang or danced. when they were finished, we "marched". we all walked in a line past the grandstand. i thought it was going to be a parade through town, but no, it was about 20 seconds long. after, we met for food and drink.
-i had a true mamfe experience. as i was trying to post a while back, the power went out and i lost it. its not unusual for the power to go out, so i just left, thinking i would come back later. the power didnt come back that day, but we didnt think anything of it. we all thought it would be back the next day. nope. nor the next or the next. the water is actually connected to the power, so there was no water. i learned the hard way, to have a water storage container. over 1 week later, the power and water came back. that doesnt sound like very long, but when you dont have water stored, you depend on the rain to do dishes and flush the toilet. when there is no water, those things dont get done. also, showering with a cup of water (we call them bucket baths) do not make you feel clean. needless to say, the first thing i did when water returned was take a shower.


i spend most of my time here visiting. i have a lot of free time outside of school, so i visit friends in town, or in my neighborhood, and spend hours just sitting. the location changes, but its nice to relax and visit with friends. here, you dont even have to talk. sometimes you just sit in the company of someone else.
i also try to fix up the house. i have to clean almost everyday, but my neighbors say that i dont do it properly, so they always come to help me. the little kids can cook and clean better than i can!
my goal for myself is to learn how to cook. every week, one of the women teaches me a new food. maybe by the time i get home, ill be able to cook something nice. we'll see...