Recently, my nieces (ages 7 & 8?) sent me a loving email full of questions about my life in Togo. I thought their questions were fantastic and asked permission to post them here. They agreed:
Have you made any friends? What are their names?
I have made lots of friends. PIC, Scully and Elizabeth are three that visit the project.
Do you guys have bath tubs?
I have 2 showers and a a bath tub. I prefer to shower. Many Togolese people have neither. They use a bucket and a pump.
Do you have any bad children in your class?
Children are never bad. Sometimes they do bad things. Mostly, I work with adults...
When are you coming back?
Currently, I am scheduled to arrive in Washington DC the second week of August 2008.
What kind of clothes do African kids wear?
Kids attending school have to wear uniforms like in the States. When they are not at school they often wear pagnes (pronounced pan-ya) which are brightly colored fabric that you wrap around your body. No buttons, zippers or pockets!
Do the girls have braids in their hair like over here?
They young girls typically keep their hair short. Some older girls get braids and fancy hairdo's.
Do they wear skirts.
The young girls typically don't. Although, pagnes kind of look like long skirts.
How many kids live in your building?
None... unless you count me!
Are you learning to talk their language?
Yes. The official language is French, and the most used local language in Lome is Ewe (also called Mineh). I'm learning both. Some people say there are up to 50 local languages in Togo. I'll stick with learning 2 languages for now.
What class are you teaching? Is it language? or is it Spanish? Is it an elementary school or university?
I teach a lot of different classes. I teach English at the National School for Administration and I do a film series and a conversation class at the University of Lome. Also, I do other projects like the Internet Training for teachers at the English Language Center and faculty workshops at the University.
How many dinners have you been invited to?
Oh... a lot. My friends at the Embassy are very nice people.
What do you do for fun?
Sit on my roof and watch the bats fly as the sun sets.
Go to the beach and swim/read
Blog, Play my guitar and watch movies.
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1 comment:
Aw... do you remember when Karina was playing with barbies and she told me that boys are supposed to get jobs and girls are supposed to wear lipstick and go shopping!?!? Ha.. my how they have evolved.
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