Reflections of a Fote 1: Guinean Equivalents

I've been doing my best to fit things about the Guinean culture and how everything works, looks, or smells around here but really I can't fit in great descriptions in my minute stories about my day so I'm gonna start a little something I'm going to call "Reflections of a Fote". Fote being the word that is used most common in Guinea as it gets yelled and /or chanted at me all the time because it means foreignor or white person. So I'll just throw in some of my random thoughts and observations of the Guinean culture or lifestyle and how it compares to what I know back in the good ol' US of A.

First installment of "Reflections of a Fote": Guinean Equivalents

When it comes to living in Guinea, I've had to make some concessions. Obviously running water, reliable electrcity, and a steady diet have seen the biggest changes, but there are other things where I can find equivalents instead of just not having them:

1. Going out to Eat
Just like in the States there are times when I just don't feel like cooking. Now in Guinea, I can't go to a pizza place or order delivery but I can always find a rice lady or walk to someone's house for a meal. The standard meal anywhere in Guinea is rice and sauce. There are a variety of sauces but really there is about 4 or 5 main choices. It's pretty standard in most markets for there to be few ladies who sell prepped rice and sauce plates. They set up a few benches and BAM, a Guinean restaurant. The village form of this is to just walk to someone's house. I wait til its around meal time, sit down and before you know it they bring a plate of rice and sauce. I frequent a house in my village with a bunch of little kids, who now know my name and its nice being a "usual" there. Since none of the kids speak French past "Ca va?" I ust make faces with them. They've learned how I raise my eyebrows a lot at them and have started mimicking that. So now I have a bunch of 4-6 year olds looking and me and raising their eyebrows giving the effect that they know something I don't or that they trying to make an innuendo.

2. Lunch Ladies
I was a little concerned about how I was going to eat during school days, being as the market is no where near the school and I've lost enough weight as it is. Come to find out, there's lunch ladies. By that I mean just some ladies who show to sell lunch. They show up right before the first class finishes and make a semi-circle at the edge of the school yard.

More to come under the topic of Guinean Equivalents as well as other stuff for Reflections of a Fote like Guinean Look-a-Likes, Guinean clothing style, and Guy Love!