House and Home

The houses here are quite different than what we see in the US, but then again, our climates are also very different too. Here you’ll never find a house that has a heater because it’s simply not needed. There are a variety of homes available in the RIM, each suited to its population’s economic status and climate. The pictures I have are of places I live(d) and other volunteers’ homes. Although these are for the most part “Americanized”, you can still get the basic picture.

Rosso Home: I lived here with a host family for 2 months during stage. We had a compound with a main house area (single entry door) with 2 rooms, a salon, and a “kitchen”. They did not really use the kitchen for anything put storage of dishes and the refrigerator, but it still existed. All of these rooms will typically be shared by everyone in the family. With Peace Corps policy, we need one room completely to ourselves, so I had one of the rooms, and the family had the other. Outside the main house area there was a lumbar, bathroom, magasin (another room which many people will use as a boutique, but my family used as storage), and goat/cow pen. It’s very common to have colorful plastic woven mats for sitting on the sand outside, and carpets inside. The house has water and electricity… however the definition of running water in this case is having a robinet (a water spicket) inside the compound. In Rosso the water was on almost all day, except for around noon until 3 or 4. To get through that time the family would fill up buckets and other containers for water. There were some families in Rosso who did not have robinets, and had to have water delivered via donkey cart, or use their neighbor’s robinet.



A view from inside the compound. The lumbar is on the left, main house on the right and goat/cow pen is the red door. The bathroom is just behind me.






The family’s goat/cow pen







The family lumbar in Rosso… notice the mosquito netting to cut down the probability of contracting Malaria.




The main entrance to the main home within the compound. Notice the satellite TV dish… very common throughout Mauritania.




Akjoujt Home: I have a compound now that has 2 rooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, and a lumbar. The kitchen was designed to be next to the bathroom, but I like to have it away from there. It’s a fairly typical Mauritanian home for the area with the exception of the fact that I do not have running water. I go to my landlord’s home a few times a week to ask them to pass a hose through the wall so that I can fill a 200 liter barrel. I then will siphon the water out into buckets as needed. Another aspect of my home is that I have a garden. Although it is not unheard of for Mauritanians to have gardens in the home, it is not the norm. Other things that differentiate my house from a typical Mauritanian home would be that I have a “dresser” made of tomatoe crates, I don’t have matalas (colored foam mattresses) laying around the outside of the room, and I don’t have a separate salon.



This is a typical toilet in the RIM… some may be porcelain and/or flushable, but the pit style is what I’ve seen most of.







This is my lumbar… also use it to hang laundry on laundry day. The kitchen is in the upper right hand corner, and the main room is just off the right hand side of the photo.



Cooking in Akjoujt. I have my range set up on wooden planks, but most Mauritanians will cook on the ground.






Getting water out of the barrel.





Another volunteer’s home in Akjoujt: This compound is slightly larger than mine, with a robinet, separate toilet from shower area, but no lumbar. I would say about half of the homes have some sort of a lumbar/outside shelter inside the compound.



A view of the kitchen, magasin, toilet and shower areas






The two main rooms



Other homes in Akjoujt: Here are some pictures of other homes in Akjoujt, seen from just the outside. It is important to note that traditionally the Moors were a nomadic people traveling around setting up tents anywhere they would go. The lumbar is sort of similar to that, and many people simply live in a lumbar or other such tents.





It might be hard to see, but if you look close and zoom in you might be able to see the permanent tent-like structures that are people’s homes.


Chinguetti: One of my friends lives up in Chinguetti and has an interesting house that is much more suited to the climate there. As you know from previous blog entries, Chinguetti is right on the boarder of the Sahara, and gets both very cold and very hot. His house is quite similar to mine in that it is compound-style with separate entries into rooms: kitchen, room, bathroom, but he has a “khyma” aka tent instead of a lumbar.




This tent can be put up and taken down in a matter of minutes. The wooden “floor” stays out all the time though. I just wanted a closer view of the wooden plank. It’s set up on bricks because the sand is so cold in the winter and so hot in the summer.

Nouahdibou: Some other friends live up in Nouahdibou that may have a more similar home to what you might expect. The standard of living for inhabitants of Nouahdibou is generally higher than other regions due to the strong economic activities and development there (namely fishing). These homes are comparable to homes in the capital, and that’s why volunteers in those two places are afforded more in a monthly stipend as their homes also cost more to rent. That is not to say that everyone in Nouahdibou and Nouakchott live in homes like this. There are also shanty towns with homes made of scrap metal for people who come looking unsuccessfully for jobs.




A little closer to a mainstream US kitchen. Fridge, oven, stove, sink with running water at all times that there is electricity. In the first picture is the oven along side the refillable gas container.




A room complete with wardrobe, light fixtures, screened and glassed windows, and rug in the middle.




Now here’s some green technology for you! Every so often you’ll see this hole in the ceiling with thick glass to prevent air, rain and other elements getting in. During the day it lights up the rooms better than lights can… even when it’s cloudy! The roofs here are often flat as there’s not much worry of rain drainage, and it’s used as an extra level of the home sometimes too.





And the bathroom… once again, running water, shower, sink, and toilet (western-style). There’s another bathroom in this house that also that has a bathtub/shower.






A more or less typical Mauritanian salon… minus the computers. The matalas on the ground, pillows as back supports, and a run in the middle. Going back to the green lighting technology developed in the 1960s here… there are no lights on in this room, and no flash on the camera.

Transportation

I guess we’ll start with airports. There is the one main international airport in Nouakchott (I haven’t been there because we flew into Dakar, so I really have no knowledge of the Airport in Nouakchott). The one in Dakar however, was quite small by US standards with only a few luggage corrals, and everything was open air. When we landed, the plane didn’t pull up to a gate and you got off on a jet-way, rather we walked down the stairs and loaded a bus that took us to the terminal. There is also an international airport in Atar that accepts planes as large as 747s (one or two a week). These are pretty much the only flights in and out of that airport and are always direct from Paris. There is also an airport in Nouahdibou that flies to Atar, Nouackchott and the Canary Islands.

So how do people move around in country here? Well, they don’t hop on the interstate or anything like that. Most roads are unpaved with the exception of a few main roads coming out of Nouakchott. There are about four spokes of paved roads coming out of the capital: to Nouahdibou, Atar, Aleg, and Rosso. There is also currently a project underway to construct a road between Rosso and the Kaedi/Bogue area. The paved roads are just that: paved. No lines, shoulders, just paved. When you’re going up into the mountains however there are barriers as safety precautions.

Many people do not own cars, but almost everyone at least knows someone who does. The cars are usually used/fixed up Mercedes, Peugeots, etc, and are not the most reliable vehicles I’ve ridden in. There may or may not be seat belts, not that it matters much as you don’t get a seat to yourself usually anyway in the common taxi bruisse. There are of course new cars around, not a lot in my town, but you do see them from time to time. A land cruiser-type vehicle is also quite popular with the sandy terrain.

Now to the famous taxi-bruisse. This is what we use for travel around the country for the most part. There are some coach-style busses that run from Nouahdibou to Nouakchott, but they are not very common. I did take this from Nouakchott to Nouahdibou a few days ago, and it’s sort of like a coach bus, but with seats that fold down into the aisle to maximize the number of passangers. The most common form of transportation is the taxi bruisse where you will get 7 people into a small car (like a Mercedes) or 10 into a station-wagon style car. How do you do that you might ask? Well… the driver usually gets his own seat (yes… usually… I’ve also seen them share driving around town with the driver hanging out the open door). Then in the passenger seat you’ll have 2 people sitting. Then in the back seat of a small car you’ll have the remaining four passengers. If you’re in a station – wagon Peugeot style car you’ll get four in the middle seat and an additional 3 in the back. I have not yet had problems with a car breaking down mid-trip, but I hear that it will happen eventually as it is pretty common – more so in the Peugeots, but also in the Mercedes. P.S. You may also have animals traveling with you, either tied down to the roof or in the truck.

There is also a train available if you’re looking to travel from Atar to Nouadibou. It’s not exactly like a passenger train like you might think of – but it’s a coal/iron ore train. You pretty much get to ride on top of the coal/iron ore as it is transported to the coast. I’ve been told this is a “must do” before leaving country!

Now for traveling around town, the most common form of transportation is to walk – everywhere. Our bureau is nearly a mile away from my house, and my work is probably a half mile (along with the market and such) – you just get used to it. People with cars however… they drive everywhere usually. There are always plenty of people around to push the car when you need to start it.

But what if you buy a large item in the market, or need to transport something across town, but you don’t have a car? Well… that’s what the donkey carts are for! The driver is usually a young man, and they’ll load up your stuff, tie it down and take it wherever you need to go in town for about $1.75ish depending on where you want to go and how much stuff you have.

And brand new to Akjoujt is the Taxi! We do have taxis that will take you where you need to go, but I have yet to use one. It’s usually just easier to walk – no need to haggle on prices and all. In the larger towns taxis are very common and used much more than the donkey carts such as in Nouahdibou and Nouakchott.

Sorry, I thought I had some good pictures, but I don’t have too many… just some video, which I don’t know how to post. I’ll see what I can do though.

Geography and Climate

When you think of Africa you’ll probably think of either rolling sand dunes or vast jungles teaming with exotic wildlife. Both those are absolutely true, however there’s a lot of space to cover in Africa. Mauritania is closer to the “rolling sand dunes” image, but it is so much more than that.

Geography:
On the northweastern side of the continent, Mauritania rests on the edge of the Sahara Desert. To the north lies Moracco and Western Sahara, with Mali to the east, and Senegal as the southern boarder. Even within country there is quite a bit of variation in the land. In the south, along the Senegal River there is quite a bit of green vegetation, and the elevation is quite low. As you make your way north and eastward, there is a transition into rolling sand dunes, and then into mountainous terrain before hitting the Sahara Desert. Here in Akjoujt, we are on the very edge of the mountains. You can see them in the distance, and the terrain is anything but flat. The soil is extremely rocky, and you can tell that if we’re not in the mountains, at the very least in the equivalent of the foothills. As you make your way north towards Atar, you get into real mountainous terrain. Then as you continue towards Chinguetti and Ouadane you will climb up the mountains to a plateau. Then you will have Chinguetti, the gateway to the Sahara Desert. The dunes roll right into the city, and apparently the oldest part of the city is buried by sand.

Climate:
Obviously if there is so much variety in the geography, there ought to also be in the climate. Although it is pretty much hot all year round (that’s the African desert for you!), there is a lot more variation in the seasons than you might think. There is definitely a hot season and a cold season that can be seen throughout the country. Some places obviously are hotter, colder or dryer than others, but they all follow a similar schedule. Generally speaking May-August are the hottest months of the year and November-March are the coldest. From July into September, and even October there is a short rainy season (this also varies depending on location). Along the Senegal river, and in the south in general there is a lot more moisture in the air, while as you go north this moisture disappears. In the south (Rosso – where our Stage is held) during the rainy season the streets flood completely and rubber boots are the footgear of choice for everyone. Here in the North, there is still a “rainy season” but it’s “rainy” for the desert. This year it rained 4 or 5 times – but when it rained, it RAINED! Thunder, lighting, you name it! You can add in a nice sandstorm just for good measure too. This year after a few of the rains the streets were flooded just like you would see in the south, but not to the same extent. When we first arrived in country we were headed into the hottest part of the year. I did not have a thermometer at the time, but I believe temperatures would regularly reach about 120. On really hot days the temperature can soar into the 130s. At the end of July up in Atar we had a thermometer and played the “guess the temperature” game. It was a very pleasant evening, having cooled down substantially from the mid-day heat. We all guessed it might be somewhere in the 80s… surprise surprise… it was 105!!! Right now we’re heading into the cold season – you may not think it’s cold, but just remember that everything is relative! So right now we’re seeing temperatures around 95 during the day, but then they’ll dip usually down below 70 at night. The coldest it’s been yet is just about 60 – and I’m telling you after acclimatizing to the summer heat… that is down right COLD! Further north in Atar and Chinguetti it gets even colder. I just spent a night on the dunes in the Sahara (outside Chinguetti) and the temperature was 45. At the peak of the cold season, there may even be frost on the water pipes up in Chinguetti from what I hear! Here though in Akjoujt, it won’t get quite that cold – but I don’t think 40s and 50s will be a stretch. As far as day temperatures are concerned for the cold season, I believe that on the cold days we’ll probably see high 70s to low 80s (but that’s just a guess right now). In Chinguetti now the daytime highs are usually around 80.

One of my neighbors was over one day and inquired what my thermometer was. I didn’t know the word for ‘thermometer’, so I told her that it was something that told me if it was hot or cold. She looked at it, and said… does it say that today is “not bad”? (as she’s sitting in long-sleeves and jeans). It was 98. I laughed and told her, well yeah, it’s not that hot, but people in the USA would think it’s crazy hot, and she wouldn’t believe me! Now when the sun goes down and the temperature starts to go below 85 I usually go inside and get a fleece and maybe some sweats to not get cold. So moral of the story – everything is relative. You may think you’d never be able to stand the heat, but you would acclimatize… everyone else here has!

Pictures:

In the first three pictures you can see the rolling sand dunes of the Sahara Desert, the mountain pass coming down from Chinguetti to Atar, and the Akjoujt watertower sitting on top of a hill.





Next we have another picture of Akjoujt - you can see how rocky the soil is!, Then there is the Senegal River (Mauritania is on the left, Senegal on the right) - it is much greener here, and finally some rolling dunes on the way from Rosso (south) to the capital Nouakchott - much more greenery on the dunes here!

The Job Market

So if you were a kid here growing up, what would you grow up to be someday? Just like anywhere else, Mauritania needs business people, trades people, sales people, farmers, teachers and doctors, but not always the same job description as you might think of in the USA. No matter what sector you are in, there will probably be a “guardian” who watches over the workplace, lets in people who are supposed to be there, and make tea.

Mining~
Here in Akjoujt we have a slightly different job market than elsewhere in country. The biggest difference is that here we have a mine. A large percentage of the community works there doing a variety of jobs. People from all over Mauritania come to work in the mines. There’s even a long waiting list just to get in! (Not only are Mauritanians drawn to work the mines, but workers from all over the world – from as close as Senegal to as far away as the Philippines!

Formal Business~
There are banks, companies and post offices, so there’s still a market for business people here. Most of these opportunities are in Nouakchott, but you can still find some in the regional capitals. Most businesses in the formal sector are owned by a few strong families in Mauritania. Many of the workers in this sector will have been educated at the University in Nouakchott. In the informal sector you’ll have cooperatives, boutiques, and other trades which will be discussed in a little bit.

Administrative Government positions~
All of education and healthcare is nationalized, and so there are many positions in any given city or town for administrative positions. This could be from the head of public schools or health care in the region to assistants, secretaries, and affectated personnel to certain hospitals or schools. In these positions it is rare (although it does occur) to find someone who does not speak Arabic and French. As we are in a predominately moor region, most will also speak Hassaniya, however that is not needed.

Cooperatives~
This is probably the staple of the informal business economy in Mauritania. It is a group of people who get together (usually single-sex due to cultural norms, but not always). Many times the cooperatives will focus on a particular trade such as agriculture, finance, or other trades. They are usually structured with a President, Vice President, and Treasurer; and may or may not be registered with the Government. If they are registered, that means that they are a formal cooperative (versus the informal) and eligible for government assistance.

Agriculture~
Obviously most of the agriculture activity will take place in the South along the Senegal River, but there is still quite a bit of activity here in the north as well. There are set seasons for certain items (such as Mango season, Manderine season, carrot season, etc.). Generally speaking, Mauritanians are not real big on the variety of vegetables and fruits in the diet, so a lot of what they grow they might not even eat. Probably the most popular item to grow is mint because they take that with their tea (and they take the tea at least 3 times a day!) Here in the north, even though the soil is quite rocky we are able to grow quite a few things, and carrots actually come from a town near Atar. Many primary schools have gardens complete with bell peppers, carrots, corn, and of course mint. I am in the process of planting a garden in my courtyard… I’ll have to let you know how it turns out (I am not very good with plants in general – so it’s definitely an uphill battle!).

Teachers~
Families here are usually quite large, and so there are many children to educate. Teachers have a 4 year degree from a university (usually Nouakchott) and will be affectated to teach in a city, town or village by the Government. They do have the option of requesting a change if they so desire, however that may or may not be granted. There are a variety of subjects taught at various levels including: math, science, French, Arabic, English, and geography.

Doctors~
People still get sick, so obviously there is a need for doctors, nurses, and other support staff. Many times as with other jobs that require higher education, these personnel are affectated by the central Government to a particular post. I’m not sure what kind of education is required to be a regular nurse, however to be a head nurse I believe (if I understood correctly) you need to have a 4 year degree from university in nursing related studies. A doctor obviously will have further training. In many bruisse sites there may not be a hospital, and even in regional capitals the amount of care that can be provided is limited. For all serious cases you will be transported to Nouakchott (fortunate for us that it’s so close – only 2.5 hours away).

Government

Right now the government is in a bit of a transition shall we say. If you haven’t heard, the first democratically elected President of Mauritania (Sidi wel Abdulahi) was ousted in the beginning of August in a bloodless military coup. Before the elections for the President, there were a series of coups that culminated in a military junta taking power to organize elections. Although there is a history of coups as the primary means of transition in the government here since independence (1960s); fortunately, the coups are almost always non-violent. President Sidi wel Abdulahi served just over a year before he was ousted (elected in March 2007). Basically, the President tried to fire some high ranking military officers, who in turn overthrew the President within days. The Prime Minister was also taken out of office, and these positions have been replaced with a military council at the moment. They have promised to hold elections “soon”, however have not set a date as of yet. I would also like to mention a comment one of our facilitators said to us regarding the nature of the coup. He said that it’s nothing more than a family spat that will pass. You see the military helped get the President elected, and he couldn’t have been elected without their support. Now they don’t want him, so they took care of it.

So I guess that right there begs the question of what is the definition of a “democratically elected” President?

Reactions to the coup:
Generally speaking, Mauritanians did not like the President – they said he did not accomplish much. However there was a camp of people who did not support the coup. They either supported the President (very small number from what I can ascertain), or they were pro-democracy. The people in the latter camp generally did not support the President, but did not like the idea of reverting back to the series of coups as a means of change in government.

Now moving on to the reactions from the international community. Both the EU and US were very quick to condemn the coup as unconstitutional, and pushed for a swift re-installation of the ousted government. The US quickly withdrew all non-humanitarian aid to Mauritanian pending the return to the democratically elected government, and the EU currently has an ultimatum on the table to follow suit. Here in my town, there was a unit of US Marines that was pulled out as soon as this all happened. The AU (African Union) has also joined in the chorus with the international community, and issued an ultimatum that expired on the 6th of October. There was not really any consequence tied to the ultimatum, it was just to help re-instate the democratically elected President. Needless to say, President Sidi wel Abdulahi has not yet returned to the head of government… not only that, but there is still no date for elections.

Demonstrations:
Immediately following the coup the government staged various support marches throughout the country in many cities that were subsequently aired on national TV. It’s hard to say if people who participated actually supported the coup, or just wanted to be on the “winning side”. One man I knew initially was in the pro-democracy camp, where he didn’t approve of the coup, but also didn’t like the President. Later, when the marches came to Rosso, he participated. He was also someone who was quite high up in the local government, and so I’m not sure if he was expected to participate.

There have also been demonstrations against the coup as well, but much smaller in number. There are a few that have actually made the headlines. The first main one was in Nouadibou where the ex-Prime Minister (who had been released from house arrest) lead a protest. He was captured again and put under house arrest a second time. Right before the October 6th deadline set by the AU to return to democracy, the military council got wind of a rather large demonstration being planned on the eve of the expiration date. They subsequently placed a ban on all anti-coup demonstrations. The police actually used tear gas and batons to break up the demonstration.

The most recent news regarding the coup is that the leader of the military junta has said that he does not intend to stay in power indefinitely, but that is all that I’ve heard.

So all in all, the National government right now is in the process of a major change, and I’m not sure what the outcome will be here. I try to follow it as best as I can, but I only get to check the internet a few times a week, and then there’s not always much new in developments. If you would like more information on the coup and events, Reuters or Google News both have excellent coverage of pretty much any event happening here in Mauritania.

Now to local Government:
Mauritania is divided into 13 regions, each with a regional capital. I am serving in the region of Inchiri, in the capital of Akjoujt. Each region has a Wali (Governor – appointed by the central government) who oversees all regional administrative tasks. This would include, but not be limited to, the Gendearmies, (police/military type units that have checkpoints along the roads – main use is to control traffic into and out of major cities), and the DREN (National organization for Education – although it is Nation-wide, the Wali will oversee the organization in each specific region). It is interesting to note that there were 2 Walias (women) of the 13 total, however that makeup has changed slightly in the last week. We had a walia here in Inchiri, however a man replaced her.

Under the Wali(a) is the Hakem. This is another appointed official who is in charge of affairs of the prefecture (a sub-region). Basically the Hakem does the same thing the Wali does, but on the prefecture level, and reports to the Wali.

Next we have the office of the Mayor. In any given city there may be a number of Mayors. There is the main one, and then a number of Adjuons (vice mayors – 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.) As in the US, the Mayor is directly responsible for the affairs of the city (water, sanitation, etc.) and is elected. As the mayor is an elected official, many times they will be in the capital Nouakchott because they have more political ties than the appointed Wali or Hakem. That is why there are so many vice mayors. When one is out of town for work or whatever the case may be, you work your way down the ladder to talk to who is there.

With the coup these positions and functions have remained unchanged.

I’m not very familiar yet with the government after that point here in this town, however in Rosso, after the Mayor there were a variety of neighborhoods that were organized with leaders as well. From what I could gather, each neighborhood had a sort of “chiefton” who represented them to the mayor’s office and also helped organize cooperatives and distributing supplies for those cooperatives.

For us, we have to go and talk to one, maybe all of these people in order to get projects approved (depending on the project). It will also matter the order in which you go and see the people. Generally speaking if you need to see all three VIPs (Wali, Hakem, and Mayor), you need to first see the Wali, then Hakem, then mayor (and so on down the totem pole if applicable). Fortunately I only have 2 projects that require the visits (my English classes for the community and math class at an elementary school).

I’m sorry I can’t be more specific at this time, but please email me (Katie.jajtner@gmail.com) with any questions you might have. I’ve been having some troubles with viewing/responding to comments on the blog right now, so just shoot me an email instead. Thanks!

A day in the life...

So what is life really like here? Life as a Peace Corps volunteer here is significantly different than that of a Mauritanian, but there are still some similarities.

Peace Corps Volunteer – My experience:
It’s important to note that not everyone has the same experience or work schedules, so that will cause some variation. The technical “work-week” is Sunday-Thursday as the Holy Day here is Friday. Outside of banks, post-offices, government agencies, and major companies in Nouakchott, there is not much change from a weekday to a weekend. This means that many times volunteers will be doing work on a “weekend” and sometimes not during the “workweek”. I have been affectated to a government run micro finance institution, and so I have a more concrete work-week schedule.

Most days I like to get up early in the morning to get in some exercise before the sun gets the temperatures too high – this means I usually leave right before dawn. After my exercise I have to clean up the house and get it ready for the day. So, many times that involves sweeping out the sand that has migrated into my rooms, putting the mattresses inside (because I sleep outside), and making sure I have enough water for the day. Most people here have what is called a robinet (faucet or spicket) in their compounds, however, I do not. For those with a robinet it may take between 30min to an hour or more to fill up all their buckets, badones, and/or barrels with water for the day. My water comes from my landlord’s robinet, and so I have a 200 liter barrel in my compound that I fill every few days. I have a small hole in my wall so that the landlord can pass the hose though to me. After the house is picked up I can go to work, get food for the day, and/or visit with neighbors. Currently I am going to CAPEC (the micro finance institution) from about 9-12 each day (time is extremely flexible here). Around noon is when things start to die down for the afternoon heat and lunch hour. I generally go to my house to cook, eat, shower (again – you shower multiple times a day to help keep cool in the hot season), and sleep. Here lunch break is usually 3-4 hours because it is the main meal of the day and pretty much everyone will take a long nap (about an hour or more). After lunch break the market opens up again for a few hours, and I’ll do some more work, go to the market for dinner food, and/or visit. I will have a few pending evening projects with two English classes and a Math Club at a local primary school (each one day a week). After that, I’ll make dinner, relax, read, or visit people to close out the day.

Adults
Here in Akjoujt we have a Mining Society (Mauritanian Mining Company) that is open 24/7. It is actually mostly owned I believe by a Canadian Company, so the schedule is not very reflective of a traditional Mauritanian day. The vast majority of the workers are on a shift schedule that rotates every so often. So they will work either 7am-3pm, 3pm-11pm, or 11pm to 7am. Other mining workers will work your traditional 9-5 workday. These mine workers will take what meals they can with their families. Lunch is usually around 1pm-3pm, and dinner is often late: between 9 and 10pm.

For those adults who do not work at the mines, there are a variety of other options (the job market will be discussed in greater detail in another post). There is a Post office, bank and CAPEC which will all operate on a Sunday-Thursday schedule with at least 6 hours of business a day. Usually this is 8-12 and 4-6, but with the post office and CAPEC here the hours are just 8am-2pm, rather than re-opening after lunch. Other options include owning a boutique, carpentering, metal work, and electricians (all in the market place). Each of these tend to run around 9-12 and 4-6 each day in the market. As far as boutiques are concerned, many times these are run out of the home and will be “open” from 8am to midnight. The owners sit in the boutique and usually take their meals and tea there all day long.

Children:
Right now we are into the school year with compulsory education for all children after the age of 7 (technically – although it is not strictly enforced always). The traditional school schedule is from 8-12 and 3-5. Some private schools will take all 6 hours at once and end at 2pm before the children go home for the afternoon meal. I’ll discuss the subjects and schedules in more detail in an education post. When they are not in school kids will play outside for pretty much the entire day only breaking for the afternoon meal and a possible nap.

A special note on girls: it is very common for a young girl (around the age of 15) to begin doing all of the cooking and cleaning of the house. She is at that time of marrying age, and so she does all of the housework instead of the mother until marriage.