Barkadesella Himbe Pat! Happy Holidays Everyone! I hope the Holidays are going well. I definitely reminisced about being home in WI more than usual this past week. (Perhaps it was the 90 degree weather, how barely anyone celebrated Christmas or how I didn’t eat any sort of Christmas cookie…oh well)

It’s now week 3 at post and things are going well. Everyone has been incredibly nice. I cannot count the times that people have helped me with my house (getting rid of spiders, cleaning, fetching me water) helped me cook (usually squash…I think its squash?) or given me presents (eggs, melon, milk, etc). With the very little that people have here its remarkable how giving people are.

I feel already quite at home and am getting acclimated to the customs here, notably; when you greet someone have to do about a minute salutation back and forth, when someone comes to your house, immediately invite them to sit inside your house and have them admire your dishes (dishes are a sign of wealth), never decline food….(not too big of an issue for me), the very distinct gender roles, i.e. women rarely leave their houses during the daytime, men never cook, they have separate houses, eat separately, etc. etc. Even just after week 3 I feel incredibly privileged to have all the opportunities as a woman in the states.

Cows--Another reason why I probably feel at home here is the large amount of cows. My region is known for their cows who supply ample amounts of milk and beef. I have had to renounce my semi-vegetarianism that I upheld in the states, for beef is the only amount of protein that I can receive. People eat beef here twice a day. Cows are everywhere…walking in the streets, grazing in the fields, blocking the roads, etc. Due to the cows I get to drink milk nearly everyday. So far the fresh milk, which I boil, has not caused too many gastrointestinal issues, but I’m beginning to wonder when it’ll kick in.

Tabaski—Tabaski, or the fete de Moutons, is a big deal here, as it is in any Muslim Area. During the fete de Mouton, After all the men went into a sacred field to pray, every family slaughtered a sheep and then began sharing parts of the sheep and passing them around to neighbors, families, friends etc. During the first day of the fete I was served at least 10 plates of sheep. The second day of the fete was nearly the same. Now I fully realize why it’s called the fete of Mouton. It’s a bit like Thankgsiving, sans the variety of food.

Christmas- With less than 10% of the community Christian it was not too big of a holiday here. In fact, most people thought I was referring to Tabaski several days ago when I would mention Xmas. I went to a 2 hr church service on Xmas; highlights include, watching older women walk around with long sticks and tapping those in the crowd that were goofing off or falling asleep, and watching adorable children goofing off while the women were not looking. The majority of my Xmas was spent passing out food that I made the day before to those that gave me food for Tabaski....

Well, once again Happy Holidays Everyone! Sey Sidda, Bahowuje.