I have been reading many books that are based all over
Africa and am always enthralled by what they are experiencing. Their everyday
life seems so exotic and adventurous, which is funny because I too am living in
Africa and doing things that others would deem exotic and adventurous. But,
while I am here, it all seems so every day and just life, so it is my goal to
now give you a better picture of what my life is like here without my daily
discoloration of what I feel is now the mundane. This gives me a new outlook on
life and you a better look at what my life is like.
I wake up early each morning, less because of the sun
streaming through the window above my head and more to the fact that my bladder
is bursting from drinking so much the night before (a habit I am trying to
quit, but nothing quiches your thirst quite like water right before bed). As I
negotiate my way out of my bed through the many layers of blankets and my
almost white mosquito net, I stretch and listen to the gregarious conversations
of the Mynah birds that happen to find my roof a great place for a morning
chat. I wrap my emerald green Lamba (piece of cloth) around my body and try to
open my door that has swelled over night because of the dampness in the air. I
stop and look over the reeds that are in front of my house and just breathe for
a second….till my bladder pushes and the need to go is almost too much to
stand. I carefully walk down my rickety, uneven stairs, hoping this morning
will not be the morning that I finally fall down them. Slowly, I make my way
through the scrub brush that surrounds my house, one must always look down and
to the side to make sure the “trip” grass does not get you and the thorns on
the bushes don’t snag your Lamba on the way to the toilet.
As I walk past the center, rustling sounds come at me from
all directions as the 6 dogs we now have come at me from their make shift grass
dens they slept in the night before. Each are over joyed to see you and want to
be pat and paid attention to. All the while, your body is screaming for you to
stop this long, unnecessary trip to the toilet when really all I needed to do
was squat anywhere and relive my body from its almost popped balloon feeling.
Still, I continue my journey, more out of habit, then necessity, till I arrive
at the toilets, which happen to be on top of a sand dune, made up of a hole
that is lightly lined in cement, wood planks across said hole and a wooden
throne perched on top of the planks. A hole is of course cut in the middle of
the throne and planks so….well you know why there might be a hole…Covering the
throne are walls made of dried reeds called Boboki and a ceiling made of
another dried reed called Vondro. I open a door that is slowly failing apart,
being as it is made of the same material as the ceiling and being held together
with what used to be ropes. I sit on the throne and pray that the door does not
crumble as I sit there and that the wind doesn’t sweep it open for the world to
see. As there are no magazines here for me to peruse through, I instead watch
the menagerie of insects that come and go in the sand that is in front of the
throne; how they struggle up the small sand piles (large dunes of for them)
only to be thwarted time and time again. Each leaves a unique trail behind
them, letting others know they were there and unsuccessful.
Once finished, I open the tumble ready door and leave. Side
note, if you have never used a bush latrine, it is best never to look down once
finished, because that is a picture that won’t ever go away. Located near the
toilet is a place to wash your hands, aka a bucket filled with water, a large
metal mug and a piece of wood that is stuck into the ground with rope tied to
it that holds the soap…..soap on a rope. I then make my way back to my house,
still looking down for the infamous trip grass to get me or to the side for the
thorns to snag my clothes, and the dogs trailing behind still wanting love and
attention still. I make it up my stairs, stop for another second, breathe and
make a plan for the day. I usually will bring out my Crazy Creek chair and sit
on my balcony. I will set up my music system, an ipod and speakers and sit for
some time. I might be joined by a few dogs, our male cat Sally, a Crested
Drongo (who is quieter then the Mynah birds, and likes to eat an insect with me
as company) or any assortment of insects, my favorite being the large and
slightly intimidating Madagascar hissing cockroach. A large butterfly which at
first I was not sure if it was actually a butterfly or just a slow moving bird,
meanders in front of me, looking for its next meal. At some point during this
time, I will get up again and check to see if the coffee has arrived, which is
what really starts my day off.
I love
that each day is a little different, and I have no idea what surprises might be
waiting around the next scrub brush. Morning are the only way to start the day! Till next time, Merci!
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