Pictures of the Ouahigouya host family's home

As aforementioned, during the training period I am living with a host family in Ouahigouya, one of the larger cities in Burkina Faso and smack up against the Sahel (i.e., desert). Here is the place that I've been calling home for the past months. I will post pictures of the family members after Tabasky, when they will be dressed in finery and consequently well-suited for Hello World pictures.

In the northeast corner of the photo lies the latrine, where the magic happens, and outdoor shower area. The first concrete wall is the latrine and the second one houses the shower area. Our host brothers and sisters use the outdoor shower area. The tiny house in the left-ish area of the photo is where the rabbits and pigeons live. The sheep and oxen had some appointments when I took this photo, but normally they hang out in the clearing right in front of the latrine area. A baby sheep was born before our eyes in the corner of the wall and latrine.

This area is directly to the right of the latrine / shower area. You might be able to guess from context clues that this is the cooking area (firewood, cauldrons, soot). In case you were wondering, yes, the sheep do wander over to the cooking area and eat directly from the cauldrons while we are eating dinner on the veranda about 2 meters away until they get yelled at by our host mother to scatter. Unfortunately, she doesn't always yell at them to get away.

Another shot of the latrine and rabbit cove; but a bonus view of the pigeon coop to the left of the rabbit cove.

Straight-on shot of the pigeon cove and rabbit hovel. The pigeons land on the roof of my carriage house in the mornings in a manner not dissimilar to a 747 landing, but a little noisier. Also, I don't know how but the pigeons always come back home every night. This morning I saw a frog swimming in the bird bath and almost vomited.

My humble abode (carriage house) to the right; just adjacent on the left is the "grand entrance" to the family courtyard. Perpendicular to the carriage house on the right is where the pigeon cove / rabbit hovel would be. Lying on the ground to the southwest corner of the photograph is a mortar from which goats impermissably yet regularly eat and wherein my dinner is sometimes prepared.

The main house where the living room (in which no one ever hangs out), my host parents' bedroom and indoor shower room is located. The indoor shower room is just a tiled room with a floor drain where one can take a bucket bath (with water of course being drawn from a spout in the courtyard). Every night we eat dinner on the veranda in the foreground. Men and women sit in separate circles tangent to each other. Our host parents, Dave, myself and the two oldest host brothers are allowed to sit on mini benches (tabouret) during dinner. The other family members are relegated to the ground.

Behind that magical blue door is the kitchen that has no sink, refrigerator, stove nor oven. It is only a kitchen by virtue of having some food stored there in addition to serving as the resting place for our dirty dishes after dinner. Those colorful objects in a T shape to the right of the kitchen door comprise the place where dishes are washed. For context, the veranda and main house are to the immediate right of the area captured in this photograph.

Feel free to stop by to check it out in person!!