Putting down (some) roots

 In January Abdoulaye went to visit Esther (Annie's sister) and her husband, Paul, (pictured above) to visit and talk about purchasing a piece of land.  Then, as Abdoulaye says, 'le temps n'était plus au discours mais aux actes !' the time was no longer for speech but for action!  and he bought a piece of land.  The property measures 20x20m (a little over 1,300 square feet) and is situated to the left of the chief's house and to the right of the plot of land the Christians in the community purchased to eventually build a church.  Half of the land is on a slight incline (as you can maybe see) and down below is the Niger river (the harmattan winds are still blowing and everything is covered in a dusty haze these days).  We're excited to plan for a little house and the two trees we have on the property (a shea and a palm tree).  

The village is just outside of Koulikoro and about an hour from Bamako, Mali's capital.  We're not quite sure what the land will be to us - maybe a weekend getaway place or summer camp for when we have kids? - but it's nice to have an even more permanent connection to Mali.  We're also looking forward to having visitors!  :)  Any takers???

Abdoulaye writing his name on the little metal land-markers

:)  our first piece of land!

With Paul, Esther's husband (Esther is my host-mom from village, where I spent my first two years,'s younger sister)

Where's Abdoulaye?  Here are the limits of the property with Paul on the right and Abdoulaye in the back left (me in the front)

Chief of the village, Madou Samaké

2012 Malian Presidential Election

With the Malian presidential election slated to take place on April 29th, there are a lot of stories swirling about the contenders.  But will the elections even take place (article in French) in April with all the unrest in the north?  Unlikely.  Nonetheless, here are a few links I have found useful to learning more about the candidates (and an election guide with how the election process works/Mali's government structure):

Dioncounda Traoré (source)

Soumaila Cissé (source)

IBK (source)

Modibo Sidibé (source)

Dioncounda Traoré (his blog, his CV - he's a fencer!) , 
Soumaïla Cissé, (his blog, he studied in Grenoble, too!, his crew),
Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, (his bio.  According to this poll - he's the favored candidate among the Bamakois),
Modibo Sidibé, (an independent candidate)
Yeah Samaké.  (He's Mormon! and an unlikely candidate...)

This article outlines the four major candidates.  However, the author notes that this election will not produce a decidedly different leader than the president currently in power, ATT:

"While this presents an invaluable opportunity for the country to consolidate its democracy, however, the actual impact of the election on ordinary Malians may be rather minimal. To begin with, the four clear frontrunners are all male, all of a similar age, all educated in France, all friends with the president, all establishment figures, and all of a similar political orientation." 

 An informal polling of my colleagues shows the following leanings:

IBK %61
Modibo Sidibé %23
Dioncounda Traoré %8
Soumaila Cissé %8

(granted, my polling sample was incredibly tiny at only 13 people...)

What do you think about Mali's candidates?  Who do you think will win and when do you think the elections take place?

Happy International Women's Day!

March 8th is International Women's Day - how are you going to celebrate??

I'll listen to Chidinma's song, Kedike, a few times (Abdoulaye made it my ring tone :)...

...and maybe even boogey to Oumou Sangaré!

You could...
listen to Amadou and Mariam,
donate to Oxfam,
read an article,
celebrate the achievements of women,
learn about an eco-friendly women's dyeing factory in Bamako,
strike a pose à la Kettly Noel,
learn more about the problems facing rural women and education,
or check out this site for more ideas on how to celebrate!

Abdoulaye and I were going to go to the CCF to see La Marche des Lionnes but now we have dinner plans with friends instead.  Hopefully we can catch the film another time!

How will you celebrate?  Had you heard of International Women's Day before?  I hadn't heard of it before coming to Mali!

26 birthday candles!

All gussied up and with somewhere to go!

From the looks of my blog one might think all I have been doing my first few weeks back in Mali is eating heart-shaped pita chips and pizza!  Luckily there has been a nice mix of settling into the new place (pictures to come), keeping up with school assignments, and melding back into the USAID/PHARE groove. 

For my 26th birthday Abdoulaye treated me to dinner at DaGuido's, one of Bamako's tastiest Italian restaurants (at least, this article says so) - my fourth birthday in Mali!  Here are posts from when I turned 23, 24, and 25.  It is fun looking back at my blog posts and seeing the changes I have undergone.  At this time last year I thought I was bound for the trans-siberian railway - now I am working on a Master of Arts in International Education and I am engaged!  Life changes so quickly!

26 was a little harder to swallow than 25 - I am technically in my late-twenties, right?  Oh well, pizza tastes good at any age and I am hoping my laugh lines are endearing :)

Goat cheese salad, pizza, mango juice, and some chocolate ice cream - I'm a happy girl!

Ousmane and Abdoulaye

Ousmane dropped Abdoulaye off after work and we got snazzied up before hitting the town.

Love this one

Do you have a favorite way to celebrate your birthday?  I didn't put butter on my nose this year like my mom always had us do - there's always 27!

Spotlight on Music: Chidinma

Abdoulaye loves watching documentaries and I love dance music.  Upgrading our t.v. package was a compromise  - he got the National Geographic channel and I got Trace. 

I heard the song "Kedike" by Nigerian artist Chidinma last night and I am in love.  I love her voice, the lyrics, and the dancing.  Check it out!  She won Season 3 of MTN Project Fame West Africa - I wonder if we get that channel....

Africa from A-Z: Cameroon

Image source

Time to jump back on the saddle with my Africa from A-Z series!  With school, coming back to Mali, and celebrating the day-to-day - I have been a little preoccupied.  But I am feeling back in the groove of things and excited to keep learning about the countries around me.

My experience with Cameroon is limited to a few friends that have lived there and/or visited.  The Peace Corps girls from Cameroon (including Claire) and my friend Fleurette who will be returning home to Cameroon this week (she hopes!).  She was a veterinary student with Abdoulaye, Massa, and Ousmane in Guinea and did her last year of research in Mali with Abdoulaye and Chantal.  I hope this post honors her country well!

I recently found the blog Africa is a Country and it is just what I was looking for.  Africa news (in English!) about the 'real' Africa.  Politics - yes - but real life, too.  Here are some music links including Cameroonian artist Yanigga.  

I want to learn more about the Chad/Cameroon oil pipeline financed by the World Bank.  The documentary Quel Souvenir is not yet finished by see the clip above to learn more.  Here is an interview with the makers of the film. 

More Cameroonian music .
Festivals in Cameroon.
Just in case you are looking to go to the movies in Cameroon - here is a map of the theaters!

Have you ever been to Cameroon?  Have any Cameroon news or tips to share?

A little bit of this and that

park musings with Cassie, Aissetou, and Aminata

fill.my.heart.

Heart-shaped pita chips??  Heart-shaped love.

Add caption

School, work, friends- coming back to Bamako has been a delicious blend of them all.  We ventured out to the National Park last weekend to soak up some of the dust the harmattan winds have been blowing around and to eat up the last of the pita chips from our engagement party.  I am looking forward to reflecting some more on my first couple weeks back and sharing some of it here and getting back into the swing of English class at the computer center where Abdoulaye works.  I hope your week gets off to a great start and you've got lots of treasures to look forward to!