Back in early November we hosted the best sallah party in our house. And I am happy to report that many of the 12 guests said it was their number one and best time they have had in Nigeria.
That made me so happy.
The Muslim festival lasted for 3 days with a huge colourful parade of horses, music and dancing on each day. We had a full tour of the beautiful Emir’s palace, climbed up the rocks and walked along the sandy desert paths. It was easy for us to host as everyone chipped in with the food and drinks, cooking and cleaning.
We even sacrificed our goat that we had bought several months ago in preparation. It was a fun and interesting experience, although I never want to slaughter, wash or cook another goat again!!! A good, one time experience!
Lea, the first guest to be invited (alongside his wife) wrote a wonderful poem called Lucy’s International Garden. Please click on the link to read it. http://leainnigeria.blogspot.com/2011/11/lucys-international-garden.html
If you want to hear further adventures of the sallah holiday, you can click on the links below to read Paul's story and Kasia's story.
http://www.savagemountain.nl/pivotx/?e=58
http://kasiaincalabar.blogspot.com/2011/11/lucys-international-garden.html
Monday, 19 December 2011
Tuesday, 18 October 2011
World Food Day
To celebrate World Food Day, VSO have encouraged us to blog about our experiences with food in our placements. Food is a favourite topic of Nigerians and they always like to hear which local foods I have tried. Often people are surprised to hear that I am eating local foods, but to be honest is there access to English foods in Jigawa State? What choice do I have?
When I am lucky enough to be in female company outside of the workplace the conversation is usually centred around food and how to cook certain dishes. But these dishes take hours to prepare and cook. Here is one example of when I once tried to cook cosai (a local bean cake which is actually very delicious: Mum’s favourite Nigerian food). First you are supposed to check every bean for a black spot which means there is a weevil inside the bean. Then they need to be soaked for about an hour. Next you somehow have to get the skin of EVERY bean (the beans are about the same size as green peas). Then hop on a motorbike to the nearest grinding machine. Wait in line for your turn. Return home, and begin cooking. I got too bored preparing the beans that I only had enough to make me about 8 cosai and the first 4 I actually burnt! Often my Ugandan housemate is surprised when I cook a pasta dish or something similar in about 30 minutes!
The custom is to eat the food from the floor with only your right hand. So far, I have never seen a dining table and if a table is available, such as when we eat at workshops, the participants still take their food to eat on the floor. All chop houses (local cafes/restaurants) have an area where customers can choose to eat from the floor if they wish.
Whenever you pay a visit to someone’s home, you are automatically given something to eat and drink. To eat and drink the food they give you is an honour to them. If you don’t eat enough then they truly feel very upset.
It is funny when you go to the local chop houses because you tell them what you want to eat and then they tell you if it is on the menu or not! The ‘food’ generally available in chop houses is ‘white rice, jollof rice, fried rice, pounded yam, semovita, gari.’ After you have chosen the starch first (the bit that will fill you up) you then get to choose the tasty bit of soup that goes with it.
Pepe is hot! Really hot. It burns your fingers when you chop it and it accompanies every Nigerian dish.
Tea drinking is a big thing before a meal, especially with/before eating breakfast. The interesting thing is, I have never drunk tea in my life. Until now. I love Nigerian tea. Tea without at least 4 sugars is not an option here. And more often than not, coffee is also added to the tea!
Nigerians love their meat. Meat with lots of pepe. But meat can include any part of the animal, and usually isn’t the ‘meat’ that we know in our country. Most of the time I have no idea which part of the animal I am eating (or not eating)! An Igbo (one of the 3 major Nigerian Tribes) speciality is goats head pepper soup. I managed to nibble an ear!
Buying food in the market is really interesting. I am beginning to learn what is in season and when the season for a particular fruit or veg is coming. The market was really bare for the couple of months leading up to the rainy season, so bare that it was even difficult to buy tomatoes and the price of onions quadrupled.. Then suddenly it bloomed again. You buy things by the bowl, e.g. a bowl of rice, half a bowl of flour, a large bowl of pepe! Then you are supposed to bargain for a good price.
Another interesting thing is that is it very common to share a plate of food with others. Often all the children in the family will sit around one large plate and share the food together. When arriving at an LGEA at lunchtime the men were sharing a large plate of potatoes, they did offer me to join them but then ended up giving me a separate plate (I have mentioned before that men and women don’t eat together).
Friar da nono is the local milk drink mixed with millet and spices. Often when I visit the villages they give me a bowl of the milk to drink (from the bowl, no spoon or mug). Now I am used to the taste I really enjoy it. It is more like yoghurt than milk. They are always surprised to hear that we don’t drink friar da nono in England. Don’t we drink the milk from the cows? I guess so much has been done to ‘our’ milk that it is nothing like the natural source. And usually it is cold from the fridge.
"Would you like to see our kitchen?" Not exactly what I was expecting!
3 large pots of bean porridge ready to serve for breakfast to the hungry pupils of Kudai Boarding Primary School.
The cooks preparing spagetti ready for lunch.
When I am lucky enough to be in female company outside of the workplace the conversation is usually centred around food and how to cook certain dishes. But these dishes take hours to prepare and cook. Here is one example of when I once tried to cook cosai (a local bean cake which is actually very delicious: Mum’s favourite Nigerian food). First you are supposed to check every bean for a black spot which means there is a weevil inside the bean. Then they need to be soaked for about an hour. Next you somehow have to get the skin of EVERY bean (the beans are about the same size as green peas). Then hop on a motorbike to the nearest grinding machine. Wait in line for your turn. Return home, and begin cooking. I got too bored preparing the beans that I only had enough to make me about 8 cosai and the first 4 I actually burnt! Often my Ugandan housemate is surprised when I cook a pasta dish or something similar in about 30 minutes!
The custom is to eat the food from the floor with only your right hand. So far, I have never seen a dining table and if a table is available, such as when we eat at workshops, the participants still take their food to eat on the floor. All chop houses (local cafes/restaurants) have an area where customers can choose to eat from the floor if they wish.
Whenever you pay a visit to someone’s home, you are automatically given something to eat and drink. To eat and drink the food they give you is an honour to them. If you don’t eat enough then they truly feel very upset.
It is funny when you go to the local chop houses because you tell them what you want to eat and then they tell you if it is on the menu or not! The ‘food’ generally available in chop houses is ‘white rice, jollof rice, fried rice, pounded yam, semovita, gari.’ After you have chosen the starch first (the bit that will fill you up) you then get to choose the tasty bit of soup that goes with it.
Pepe is hot! Really hot. It burns your fingers when you chop it and it accompanies every Nigerian dish.
Tea drinking is a big thing before a meal, especially with/before eating breakfast. The interesting thing is, I have never drunk tea in my life. Until now. I love Nigerian tea. Tea without at least 4 sugars is not an option here. And more often than not, coffee is also added to the tea!
Nigerians love their meat. Meat with lots of pepe. But meat can include any part of the animal, and usually isn’t the ‘meat’ that we know in our country. Most of the time I have no idea which part of the animal I am eating (or not eating)! An Igbo (one of the 3 major Nigerian Tribes) speciality is goats head pepper soup. I managed to nibble an ear!
Buying food in the market is really interesting. I am beginning to learn what is in season and when the season for a particular fruit or veg is coming. The market was really bare for the couple of months leading up to the rainy season, so bare that it was even difficult to buy tomatoes and the price of onions quadrupled.. Then suddenly it bloomed again. You buy things by the bowl, e.g. a bowl of rice, half a bowl of flour, a large bowl of pepe! Then you are supposed to bargain for a good price.
Another interesting thing is that is it very common to share a plate of food with others. Often all the children in the family will sit around one large plate and share the food together. When arriving at an LGEA at lunchtime the men were sharing a large plate of potatoes, they did offer me to join them but then ended up giving me a separate plate (I have mentioned before that men and women don’t eat together).
Friar da nono is the local milk drink mixed with millet and spices. Often when I visit the villages they give me a bowl of the milk to drink (from the bowl, no spoon or mug). Now I am used to the taste I really enjoy it. It is more like yoghurt than milk. They are always surprised to hear that we don’t drink friar da nono in England. Don’t we drink the milk from the cows? I guess so much has been done to ‘our’ milk that it is nothing like the natural source. And usually it is cold from the fridge.
"Would you like to see our kitchen?" Not exactly what I was expecting!
3 large pots of bean porridge ready to serve for breakfast to the hungry pupils of Kudai Boarding Primary School.The cooks preparing spagetti ready for lunch.
Tuesday, 4 October 2011
Security in Nigeria
Emily, the VSO who is also from Bournemouth, has summarised the political situation in Nigeria for the past year. You can read her blog post here http://emily-in-nigeria.blogspot.com/2011/10/happy-birthday-nigeria-51-today.html
This encourages me too to also write about this situation. And the truth is that VSOs (and possibly everyone in the whole country) lives with this constant reminder and threats of Boko Haram.
VSO regularly sends us information on which states and towns we can or cannot visit due to safety reasons. But many VSOs are living and working in these towns where bombs have been set off. Some VSOs even live in places where there is a curfew in place for safety reasons.
An education conference was held in our town last week in which people travelled from the whole country to attend. There was heavy police presence around and as I walked to the office I asked some policemen who were guarding a dusty road that leads to farms, why they were here. “To protect the people and the houses of the town,” was the reply.
Of course, the thought crossed my mind that we could be bombed that week.
We are often advised by VSO or the British High Commission Travel Advice, not to visit drinking places, or stay out late, or attend any celebrations or public gatherings. What kind of a life for a western VSO is that!?
The day after the police headquarters were bombed in Abuja we had guests so went to visit our police headquarters in Dutse (the place to get beer and fish), not because we are looking to get bombed but because there is no point in living in fear.
Although, of course, we need to be cautious of the situation, in my opinion I am far more likely to die on the roads than by a bomb or any other attack.
VSO said they are struggling to recruit volunteers in Nigeria at the moment and it is not surprising due to the above issues.
But to conclude: Despite the above, I feel safe in Nigeria. I really enjoy my work and the town I live in. My parents came to visit and they too enjoyed Nigeria. I have met many wonderful people, had so many amazing experiences and learnt so much from Nigeria. Thus, I am happy to be in Nigeria and continue my work as a VSO volunteer, promoting and improving the quality of Primary Education.
This encourages me too to also write about this situation. And the truth is that VSOs (and possibly everyone in the whole country) lives with this constant reminder and threats of Boko Haram.
VSO regularly sends us information on which states and towns we can or cannot visit due to safety reasons. But many VSOs are living and working in these towns where bombs have been set off. Some VSOs even live in places where there is a curfew in place for safety reasons.
An education conference was held in our town last week in which people travelled from the whole country to attend. There was heavy police presence around and as I walked to the office I asked some policemen who were guarding a dusty road that leads to farms, why they were here. “To protect the people and the houses of the town,” was the reply.
Of course, the thought crossed my mind that we could be bombed that week.
We are often advised by VSO or the British High Commission Travel Advice, not to visit drinking places, or stay out late, or attend any celebrations or public gatherings. What kind of a life for a western VSO is that!?
The day after the police headquarters were bombed in Abuja we had guests so went to visit our police headquarters in Dutse (the place to get beer and fish), not because we are looking to get bombed but because there is no point in living in fear.
Although, of course, we need to be cautious of the situation, in my opinion I am far more likely to die on the roads than by a bomb or any other attack.
VSO said they are struggling to recruit volunteers in Nigeria at the moment and it is not surprising due to the above issues.
But to conclude: Despite the above, I feel safe in Nigeria. I really enjoy my work and the town I live in. My parents came to visit and they too enjoyed Nigeria. I have met many wonderful people, had so many amazing experiences and learnt so much from Nigeria. Thus, I am happy to be in Nigeria and continue my work as a VSO volunteer, promoting and improving the quality of Primary Education.
Sunday, 11 September 2011
1 Year Old in Nigeria
I am happy to announce that I have reached my 1 year mark for my VSO experience here in Dutse, Jigawa State. And although I have been here for over a year now, I am still having many new experiences.
Here is one ‘wonderful’ example that I would like to share with you:
At the end of August we celebrated the Muslim festival Eid ul-Fitr which marks the end of the fasting period of Ramadan and once again we enjoyed the 3 day long parading of horses, music and dancing throughout the town, known as the Durbar.
Then, happily trekking back from a different adventure a few days later (greeting our guards wives) we witnessed many children playing ‘Durbar!’ They had made horses out of sticks, with cardboard for the nose, feathers for ears and scraps of material for the decoration to resemble the horse’s costumes from the Durbar. You can see turbans and huge gowns made from cardboard. They are shaking their fist as that is how you greet the Emir. It is a sign of respect and meaning ‘may you live long.’
Here is one ‘wonderful’ example that I would like to share with you:
At the end of August we celebrated the Muslim festival Eid ul-Fitr which marks the end of the fasting period of Ramadan and once again we enjoyed the 3 day long parading of horses, music and dancing throughout the town, known as the Durbar.
Then, happily trekking back from a different adventure a few days later (greeting our guards wives) we witnessed many children playing ‘Durbar!’ They had made horses out of sticks, with cardboard for the nose, feathers for ears and scraps of material for the decoration to resemble the horse’s costumes from the Durbar. You can see turbans and huge gowns made from cardboard. They are shaking their fist as that is how you greet the Emir. It is a sign of respect and meaning ‘may you live long.’
I am happy to share this with you as I don’t often see children playing. It seems to me that they have little time to play as they are either attending one of their many schools or completing the necessary chores of daily life.
Ranka ya dade! (May they live long!)
Ranka ya dade! (May they live long!)
Monday, 11 July 2011
Muslim women in Jigawa State
The females in the SSIT had the idea to make a uniform for themselves. This is usually only done for special occassions such as weddings. The men were very upset not to be included! Girl Power!Jigawa State is predominantly Muslim and the vast majority of women in Jigawa State practice Purdah.
My basic understanding of Purdah here is that the women are to stay in the house to be secluded from the men and the community. The women are not even allowed to go to the market to buy food or to the well to collect water. These tasks are carried out by the men and children. Muslim women can only leave the house in an emergency, for example, if they need to visit the hospital. In these cases the women must wear a burka which covers their whole face and body, leaving only a small slit for the eyes.
Because of this practice, men are not allowed to visit other men in their houses, as they are not allowed to see the wives. If a man enters another man’s house, the wife must move to another room. So mostly the men meet outside the houses and gather together on benches or mats under trees.
As you can then guess, my contact with women in Nigeria has been minimal.
Statistics of Muslim women I have met:
When I first arrived in Nigeria the SSIT (State School Improvement Team) consisted of 30 men. Upon orders from the Head Quarters thankfully 4 women were enrolled. These women (in the photo above) have of course, become my friends. They say that they do not need to wear the burka to our meetings, or to the schools they support, as these people in the workplace know them well now. When it comes to the lunch break during workshops, these female SSIT take themselves to another room to eat their food, relax and take of their hijabs or veils, to cool off a bit! They leave their shoes clearly visable by the door so the men know not to enter.
Amongst the other group of 36 teachers that I work with for the Tsangaya project there are no female teachers. This is not surprising as these Tsangaya teachers are highly religious
We have just begun to train some Fulani (nomadic) teachers and out of the 49 teachers there are 3 females! Horay!
There are no Muslim women in our office, but thankfully there are 2 Christian women.
When I go to support the work in Kano I am privileged to work alongside a very influential Muslim woman.
Whenever I am fortunate to meet a Muslim woman in the workplace they are very friendly and greet me warmly with a handshake or sometimes a hug if I have seen them more than once.
Muslim women that I see on the streets or in the villages have given me a mixed response with some being very friendly and others so cautious that they walk as far away from me as possible when our paths cross!
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