Wedding

The wedding

Yesterday we went to Mary’s daughter’s wedding. It was fantastic and we were made to feel so welcome. Sue picked us u . She was dressed in Nigerian clothes as were her two daughters. Hopefully I will be able to have some made for me soon. Not too sure about the head bit though. We went to the party which was after the church service which lasted three hours! The party was in a huge hall at a school and was absolutely packed with at least 500 people. As you can see from the photo everywhere was lavishly decorated with a blue theme. The cutlery was in gold coloured bags and the chairs were dressed in silky material and ribbons. Big bows were festooned across the balconies and there were fruits and sweets on the tables. One of the fruits was a garden egg which people seemed to enjoy but tasted a bit like a dried bitter cucumber to me! We sat at the ESSPIN table but I was also greeted by members of the SSIT  team. Lea was soon enjoying the chicken and beef plus skin accompanied by rice with chopped liver. Katherine-a really lovely kind ESSPIN  colleague- made sure I didn’t miss out and I had a dish of a kind of coleslaw with potatoes and chopped boiled eggs which was very nice. Katherine told me it was time for the dance for the bride’s mother so some of us got up. I was spotted by Jegede and Eunice who took me near to the front and we had a good dance together which involved a lot of hip swinging ! Next thing people were giving me naira notes! Apparently this is called “spraying” and is a way of complimenting guests!

Later on Mary came over and gave us all a hug and made us feel so welcome. She was beautifully dressed. Then came the procession of the bride who danced in with her husband followed by bridesmaids and family. Again I had special treatment as other guests ensured I got a good place near the front so I could take photos. The bride looked stunning-her dress was from London. After there was a long speech by the chairman and then a huge cake appeared. Gifts were brought to us all. I received a whisk and Sue got a hand juicer. In work the next day we all were given huge umbrella and a piece of cake which was delicious. It is hard to really describe the party. It was packed full with bright colours, noise, laughter, singing, dancing and just such good fun!

More experiences

Last Saturday we went to Kwara hotel where the owner lets all VSO have a free swim which was great. It was lovely to do something familiar and the water was lovely and warm.I had to get out quite quickly as there was suddenly a torrential downpour! The rainy season is lasting longer this year.

On Friday I went to the bank which was quite an expedition. It wasn’t where I thought it was so I stopped a man in the street to ask for directions. He completely ignored me but a lovely lady took me with her the whole way to the bank. The bank bore resemblances to British banks with counters and an enquiry desk but was absolutely full of people-all talking at the top of their voices. Benga’s wife works there and let me jump the queue which was great. I now need references and more photos.

I also went in a fabric “shop” and acquired material for our bed-I bargained and got 200N off but in the shop where I bought black-eye beans I think I was grossly overcharged. When I arrived back in the office I was extremely red in the face after my expedition and long walk. I can’t begin to describe the sights and sounds in the streets-all the activities-people cooking in on open fires, beggars, hawkers in the road selling newspapers to passing cars, goats.......

We have now got a brand new desk for our room! Also we have worked out how to use the electric part of the stove and we have bought a kettle and a mirror! We have also did some  cleaning up and washed the kitchen windows yesterday! I have even managed to put some photos up in our bedroom! We are getting there!

WE HAVE BEEN HERE 3 WEEKS

We have been here three weeks!

I still have to pinch myself at times to convince myself this is not a dream. Time has gone so fast this week and I have had some amazing experiences!

It is still an adventure just walking to the office in the morning. I am roused at 5am by church singing; get up at 6am; bang on the bathroom door to let Graham, the gecko know I am coming in and don’t want to see him; have a quick splash under the shower; search for clothes-usually by torchlight; eat porridge and cassava bread-tastes very sweet and has butter in it; put laptop in rucksack; lock front door; put on sandals which are in verandah and lock outside door (turning key three times); go into main yard; give door in the metal gate a mighty shove and step out into Cemetery  Road. There is indeed a cemetery here but it is completely overgrown and only the tops of the graves are visible. The “road” part is debatable as it is really a sandy, litter-strewn path with huge pot-holes which Ahmed, the ESSPIN driver navigates with great sklil when he has to give me a lift. The raod, like all roads in Nigeria, is home to chickens and countless goats-smaller and cuter than British goats.Yesterday there were some gorgeous baby chicks following their mum in the ditch. People are everywhere-walking, on motorbikes, in cars, opening their shops, cooking plantains, shouting, singing..... Children in immaculate brightly coloured uniforms-the green one is my favourite- are heading off to school. School starts at 8, breakfast at 10.30 and finishes at 1.30. I still cause a stir and am greeted every few metres. I get a very enthusiastic welcome from the owner of the first “pub” who wants me to go and sit there one evening. It si nothing like Wetherspoons in case you were wondering! At the end of Cemetery road I turn onto the main road and there the adventure really begins. Traffic is horrendous! A ditch runs alongside the road with planks placed here and there so you can cross over them. Crossing the road is not for the faint hearted! Dodging okadas, cars and taxis which often suddenly turn and go down the wrong side of the road, I eventually leap the ditch and make it to the other side! As I get nearer to the office it gets busier and noisier. I am constantly amazed at what people can carry on their heads-huge baskets of plantains, oranges, boxes of cooked food, wood........ Other people hurry past with chickens under their arms........ The sights, sounds and smells are amazing!

After the heat the ESSPIN office is a welcome retreat with air conditioning, cool water machine and coffee. Everyone is really friendly and I get a warm welcome. I really am trying to learn names but it is not easy especially when I discovered some of the men had three names and the name Alhaja means they have been to Mecca so quite a few are called this.

I also need to learn the names of the SSIT team-State School Improvement Team as I will be working closely with them. On Friday I got the chance to really get to know Tunji and Abiyao (know these must be wrong spellings but it is how the names sound to me). I went out with them to two schools to attend the headteacher cluster group meetings where they were discussing school self evaluation. As we drove through Ilorin I saw more sights and sounds-everywhere is so busy! We could learn a lot from cluster meetings Nigerian style-I love the way everyone repeated the conclusions or things that were important and there is often an inspiring prayer. I don’t know how teachers would feel about sitting on broken desks and phones going off with very loud ring tones!The meetings were very efficiently run and I was made very welcome and allowed to sit in during group work. The second meeting was in Sunga, Edu which was a very long drive over bumpy roads. They had actually finished the meeting and gone to pray but came back especially to talk to us which I thought was amazing. The school they met in was very rural and some children were looking after the goats-it was half term. I was quite shocked at the state of the school which had desks only in class 6. It was good to meet the heads and find out their thoughts on the lesson plans. There is a photo of me with them somewhere in this blog!

Another day I went to the SSIT office to meet everyone and got a wonderful welcome. There are about 20 members and they all stood up and introduced themselves and then I had to make an impromptu speech-years of impromptu assemblies finally paid off! At the end there was even a prayer for me and a roll. This is where they roll their hand and then do a loud clap. I did my bit of Yoruba and they were very kind about my attempts! Hopefully I can help with the editing of the literacy and numeracy plans and have an input into the Letters and Sounds. The day after this I went to visit schools with three SSIT members-Dari, Amosa and Ibrahim (again sure these are wrong spellings but will learn them soon I hope). This was great day. We drove past the Emir’s Palace and the mosque. Men lined the road waiting to be picked for building work and the market was packed-although I was told it was much busier later! We went to two schools in Ilorin West where some great work was taking place and it was just so good to be in a classroom again! Although it was a far cry from the classrooms we have in the UK. In the first school there were 20 children in class 1 with 3 teachers and the teacher was clearly following the lesson plan. The children were learning to sing “The Wheels on the Bus” and the teacher had made a model bus out of a box and tin cans. She had also got literacy and numeracy areas. In another school children were learning tens and units with straws and twigs and counting using bottle tops. There was a homemade hundred square stuck on the wall with tape. It sounds familiar but set in a room with concrete floor and bare walls with little wooden desks from the Victorian era. The children had no shoes, stubby pencils and sat so quietly even when the teacher was talking to us. The teacher also had to endure being watched by the three of us and the head! The second school had lost a classroom due to subsidence which is a common problem. The head showed us the bore hole they had recently got so they could have water. The school based management committee had provided a “toilet” which was two pieces of corrugated metal. The last school was a rural one and very different from the first. Getting teachers to rural areas is difficult and two classes were without teachers which is quite a common situation. I watched class 3 this time and the teacher stopped the lesson she was doing so she could show me a literacy lesson. She repeated the one she had done earlier and the children just got on with it without a word! The head was a lovely man and keen to use the lesson plans but said he had problems with lack of staff, workbooks and infra structure-he had more derelict classrooms, again due to subsidence.

The following day I went with Sue, Abolowu and Philip to visit an amazing school in Oyun. Although the desks were broken and dilapidated the children were in circles or groups and encouraged to participate. The children had little bags with the letters written on scraps of paper which they used in the phonics lesson and in class one the teacher had a little pile of sand for the children to draw the numbers in. Most of the children had little bags with their exercise books in (they have to buy these themselves) and a pencil. The “blackboard” is a painted section of the concrete wall and displays are usually hand drawn on odd scraps of paper or card and attached with masking tape. It was amazing to see 5 year olds all sitting and doing the same thing and being quiet! They are moving toward more participation and it was encouraging to see teachers, working with so little resources embracing and trying out new ideas. I really enjoyed sitting and talking with the children. Class 3 were working on pronouns and worked so hard!

Philip took us to meet his friend who lived nearby who is some sort of minister, I think, in his church. He had a nice house and gave us a cool drink and Jacobs cream crackers which people seem to be very fond of. I was also introduced to a malt drink that is popular in another school but have learned fast not to drink too much as there are no toilet facilities and as I am often out for hours........

Life here is certainly not going to be dull!!!

photos -I hope

Shopping in Ilorin

Jane kindly made us a meal on Wednesday and Sue brought us food on Thursday but now we have to become independent which means shopping for food. We were directed to the “fruit shop” at the end of our “road” (more of a dirt track than a road). Shop is basically a hut with a stall outside. Our first venture was quite successful and we returned with tomatoes, satsumas, bananas and a paket of biscuits. Our next trip was to the supermarket. This was not so good as we thought it was another hut shop which we entered and succeeded in scaring the children in there. The youngest was terrified and not helped by the mother threatening to let the igbo (white person)   carry him away! We bought some biscuits and were directed to a building next door which was the supermarket and as the child was by now in hysterics made a quick exit. There was more choice in this shop and we bought quite a few items but when I asked if he had any bread the owner said no. On my way out I saw a stack of sliced bread! So I marched back in and said “This is bread!” “No,”he said. “It is bread”. Anyhow I bought it-it was made from cassava flour and tastes quite sweet but is okay. Emboldened by our shopping prowess the next day we went to another hut shop-where there were no children-and I asked for cereals. The owner didn’t understand so I explained it was something you ate for breakfast. She went into the dim interior of the shop and emerged with what I first thought was  a tin of squirty cream but which on closer inspection proved to be a can of insecticide!

Today we found Martrite where we were more successful and able to buy cups, bowls and other items for our house. Laden with shopping we hailed a taxi who suggested 200 naira as the fair. Eventually he agreed on 100 but when we tried to leave the taxi said it was further than we had told him and wanted 150. We told him no way and he said “Igbo you pay” but  gave up and left quite amicably!

At the office there is coffee and biscuits and there is a lovely man who will go out and buy “moy moy” for you-this is sort of spicy chick pea paste and very delicious so I do have a back up!

Ilorin by candle light October 31st

So much has happened and no time to blog! Yes we are finally in our placement. The flat is nice and has a cooker, fridge and water but very little electricity so far! We are sharing with Jane and Rosalyne who are from Kenya and have been very helpful and are good fun too, We have our own bedroom and bathroom. The bed is huge and we have put 3 mosquito nets over it and there is still a little gap. The pillows were massive and rock hard so i have removed loads of the filling to give my neck a break!

After visiting Lucy there was more ICT  and my employer came to join me, He is the assistant director of SUBEB and called Abolowu. We talked a bit about what I would be doing and I also got a chance to try out some of my newly acquired Yoruba, So far I have learnt.:

 Ekaro-hello

Ekarson-goodbye

Ekarbo-welcome

Eshay-thank you

Bowoni-how are you

Da da ni-fine

Abolowu enjoyed the food at the hotel and assured me I would soon get used to Goats Head soup but I have my doubts! In fact we decided to give the hotel food a miss in the evenings and sampled some of the restaurants in Abuja. One called Dunes was very nice –I had a salad-and the owner gave us free banana pancakes. Nova, a volunteer from New York, was very good at getting us cheap taxi rides.

During one of the ICT sessions we had to go round the room and write our thoughts on the countries represented on our training. On the USA poster were comments like loud, confident, like interfering in other country’s affairs. On the UK we had poor food, colonized our country, fatty fish and chips, the queen, stiff upper lip, industrious, work too hard, gentle but cunning, the queen. Lea did well to defend us by saying, “On behalf of the British Government I should like to apologise......” On the last night we all went to Spice Foods for a really good Indian meal with loads of veggie options so I was very happy.

Next day we flew with Obalowu to Ilorin-not an easy task with all our bags, helmets and water filter! At the airport a porter helped with the luggage and I was told I would have to pay 5000 naira in excess baggage charge but he said let me see if I can beg with them  bit. True to his word he came back and we only had to pay 3000 naira, Pity he wasn’t with us at Heathrow. We flew in a small plane, minimal safety demo and no life jackets-but don’t suppose they would be much use on an internal flight. However we did get a drink and a biscuit.

When we landed we were met by a driver from ESSPIN (Education Support Section Programme in Nigeria) and driven very carefully-big contrast to Abuja to my office to meet everyone. It was good to meet Sue after emailing her for the last few months and a chance to try out my Yoruba on the team. I am trying very hard to remember their names. I met Mary and Gbenga that first day. Everyone is so friendly and helpful. I also had a desk with internet connection-wonder if I could take my straighteners in? Then off to our house where Jane was waiting. Sadly there was no NEPPA so unpacking in the dark was not easy and Lea got very hot putting up the mosquito net!

Am going to have to sign off now as my candle is wobbling dangerously! Can’t believe all this happened 4 days ago-have done so much since. More later and pictures..........

Travelling adventures

Travelling adventures

This has seemed the longest week of my life! Nothing could have prepared me for the experiences and sights ! I have had an overload of information and no time for blogs!

So Wednesday was gender training mostly and then we found out where we were going on our work experience. We also found out that although we would be collected and taken to our placement we would be expected to return alone. Fortunately Lea and I were placed together.- in Akwanga which is in Nasarawa state.  This is the next state to Abuja so I thought okay should be fine-then I was told to take my helmet........

The next morning I gave the liver stew a miss and tried a bag of something that had a vague resemblance to Readibrek which was actually okay with powdered milk and hot water. There was even some pineapple and melon which I ate in the hope of keeping me going on my journey. While we were waiting to be picked up I went to the shop opposite the hotel  which sells everything. You can buy shampoo and even Nivea-wish I had known-would have saved valuable suitcase space. Best of all they had Aero bars.

Lucy arrived to pick us up and we got in a taxi to Area 11 Filling Station where we needed to take a bus to the main motor park. We got out and followed Lucy across the main road-dodging speeding cars hooting furiously (suddenly realised I haven’t seen any traffic lights in Abuja). Suddenly Lucy was running and stopping a very dilapidated looking minibus. Next thing she was beckoning us to get in. First part of my steep learning curve-there are no bus stops-just areas where buses stop which might be going your way and you need to agree a price before you jump on. So we got on and I sat with 3 people on a seat made for 2-no mean feat when I was also carrying my helmet and flight travel bag which is on wheels. Lea sat somewhere behind me.  Next lesson when you want to get off you bang the roof and shout “Drop”. Fortunately Lucy knew where we needed to drop. Ah now, I thought the motor park and pictured buses lined up with destination signs. How naive was I? We stumbled out of the bus into a mele of people selling food and every item under the sun-these are  hawkers  and no, Lucy patiently explained this is not a market. When I looked more closely I could see some minibuses amidst the chaos. We needed to find one for Akwanga and it had to be green-the others aren’t regulated. This was quickly accomplished and Lucy said the price was fine so our bags were pushed under the seats and we got on. Everyone had a seat but we didn’t move until everyone was completely squashed and we were all enjoying the benefits of this free sauna. Next lesson-the conductor and driver don’t wear uniforms! While we were waiting to see if anyone else would like to squash in with us we were offered phone cards, eggs (yes real eggs and not in a box), silk scarves, plantains and all manner of food. Finally feeling peckish we bought some doughnuts. They looked just like jam doughnuts. They tasted just like jam doughnuts except they had no jam in the middle instead they had a hard boiled egg and were actually very nice. We were also subjected to beggars and then a rather large man stepped on the bus and tried to lead us in prayer. Over his shoulder a woman was selling children’s clothes to another passenger. So when another man asked us for 300 naira I was a bit dubious-but apparently it was okay as he was the conductor. Just before we left a man pointed at us and shouted “ Baturi” which means white person and apparently is not meant as an insult in any way.  At last we got going and I tried to be sociable with the woman in front who had a baby on her knee. She told me her name was Esther but Esther didn’t respond well to my smiling and silly face games-she just stared and stared.......Suddenly we stopped and a woman with a baby tied to her back got on and very cleverly managed to manoeuvre the baby onto her lap while having a heated debate with the conductor over the price of the fare. This continued for most of  her journey. She finally got off telling him he was a cheat and a thief. We stayed on the bus for about two hours and finally arrived in Akwara. Again I thought I was in a market but they were just hawkers. Lucy was then very kind and decided we had had enough adventures for one day and phoned her colleague to come and pick us up. Another lesson parking as such does not exist-you just stop anywhere regardless of traffic or inconvenience. We drove to quieter parts. Lucy works in a college and has her accommodation there. The teachers were on strike so there were pickets at the entrance but when they saw Lucy we were able to drive through. Strikes are very common as teachers are often not paid on time and are very badly paid also.

The college grounds are quite well laid out but I was shocked at the state of the buildings. Lucy lives on the second floor of her block and her neighbours were outside the building drying some crops. There were also some very noisy turkeys, chickens and two dogs. Grandma welcomed us and we learnt “Sadu” (hi) and “Enakwana” (how are you) and “Lafia” (fine). Our first lesson in Hausa over we entered Lucy’s flat and were introduced to the water butt-which is filled from a tap in the yard-but this only comes on intermittently we found out later when there was a mad rush by her neighbours up and down the stairs. We also learnt how to scoop water into a bowl to wash our hands with and use to flush the toilet. Although she has a bathroom nothing works in it and you can’t let water go down the sink. Bathtime involves putting an electric element in a bucket of water, placing that in the bath and then using the scoop to throw water over your body. Lucy had got a cooker and a fridge and we had a comfortable bed complete with mosquito net. After a lovely “normal” lunch of beans on toast we walked around the college. The lecturers and teachers live here with their families and grow their vegetables which they also sell at the market. The Lecture rooms are very different as you can  see and are full of rubble and very dusty. Students use the road as a toilet also. We also saw the primary and secondary schools, which again were full of rubble. Children aged 5 sit behind woode desks for hours every day. When we returned to Lucy’s the NEPPA (electricity) had gone off so our wind up torch came in handy!

Apart from the dogs howling we had a good night’s sleep and I decided it was time to feel the fear and go on an okada (motor bike). Another volunteer had warned me to choose a fatter driver so I would have something to hold onto in an emergency. However Lucy said it was not really the done thing to touch the driver so I just took the first driver. Putting my helmet on was not easy as it is such a snug fit and then trying to get my glasses on was almost impossible but somehow I ended up behind the driver! Off we sped and I hung on to the back of the bike for grim death until he shouted I was holding the indicator light! Lucy was in front with her okada but then she disappeared! Fortunately my driver knew where we were going and we arrived at the Provost’s house safely! We had an interesting time there and learnt about the nursery school they are setting up. After  that the Provost’s driver took us to a restaurant where we were introduced to egusi soup which you eat by making a little ball with the yam and using that to scoop up the stew. The yam is fine but I had problems with the stew as despite being vegetables there were pieces of dried fish in it which I was warned not to eat! Another okada ride took us to the market where we bargained and got a mobile phone for 5000 naira-about £20 and Lucy showed us the food we could buy.

The following day we went for a walk and came to a Fulani tribe village but couldn’t stay long as the children were frightened of us-bad enough we were white but worse I had a big hat on! Then it was time for some cooking! Lucy’s neighbour had given her lots of bananas so we made banana cake which was lovely.

The next day we had to return to Abuja unaccompanied!!! Lucy, however gave us some excellent instructions so we felt fairly confident-at least Lea did but with my sense of direction I wondered if I would ever see Abuja again. This time I did choose the larger okada driver but couldn’t work out where to put my feet and ende up with them stuck out at the side, desperately trying not to touch the ground. My glasses had also slipped and were on diagonally which meant I had limited vision. However, I thought I would imagine I was on a horse and if I could stay on a horse then why not a bike? As we bumped along I remembered how I had never liked riding without holding the reins........ The driver was excellent though and took us straight to the Abuja bus and put our bags in. We sat at the front and were soon chatting to the Nigerian students behind us who kindly offered to share their food with us. I even relaxed enough to eat plantain crisps! There was a slight problem when someone started demanding money until I realised he was the conductor. As before people were selling and begging so it was confusing.  As time wore on and our new friends got off the bus I started to worry about knowing where to get off but the driver was very good and let us know in plenty of time. I am very proud of the next part as when we got off we had to find a bus to Area 11. We were surrounded  by hawkers, buses and lots of mud but someone asked where we were going and lead us to a the buses. After asking at several buses we found the correct one and I negotiated a price cheaper than the one Lucy had suggested! When we got on and I sat by the driver I realised why-the bus was ina very bad state-wires everywhere and the speedo was broken but hey so what? The driver was friendly and told us where to get off and Lea remembered which side of the road we needed to be on so then all we had to do was get a taxi back to Crystal Palace Hotel. We then enjoyed a snack in the cafe-well Lea did as everything was meat except the doughnut which didn’t have an egg in this time. We also discovered the supermarket sold fridges, kettles, in fact everything you needed.