First Impressions of Earth

After weeks of anticipation we’ve finally arrived in Orodara, our home for the next 2 years. Orodara is in the southwestern region of Burkina and is noticeably cooler (~5-10° F) than the northern and central regions of the country. It is known as the fruitier of Burkina given the abundance of fruits and vegetables available all year round. My clothes and lungs have managed to stay much cleaner here thanks to the absence of the red clay dust so omnipresent in Ouahigouya and Ouagadougou. Instead, the dirt here is fine and gritty, similar to the sand at a beach in the Northeastern US.

Orodara, population 25,000, is a small city with a fruit and vegetable market every day, two options for cyber cafes, various shops and boutiques, several orchards, a few banks, a post office, a bakery and two bus depots. There is a very large paved road (called a guduron; it is that which differentiates urban life from rural in Burkina) but very little traffic. The city thrives around the guduron, which makes finding people and places very simple. Orodara is located about one hour away from Bobo-Dioulasso, the second capital of Burkina, another extremely convenient aspect. I feel extremely lucky to have been placed here.

Dave and I are living in the courtyard of the Coordinatrice (President), Pélagie, of our official host organization, the mango group (the association to which I am primarily assigned is ancillary to Dave’s). Her husband, Pierre, is the mayor of Colin’s village, located ~60km away. They are Catholic and a bit more modern than our host family in Ouahigouya. They are also very warm, generous and welcoming. They live with the following family members: Pierre’s niece (27 years old), their daughter-in-law (25) and her son and daughter (5 and 2 respectively), Pélagie’s cousin (11), their son (17) and their two other grandsons (12 and 5). On the second day, we asked the 12 year old grandson to write down the names of everyone in the family so we could familiarize ourselves. The 2 year old granddaughter’s name is Grâce but he spelled it as Grasse, which means ‘fat’ in French, so naturally we’ve taken to calling her ‘Fatty.’ Pélagie graciously fed us three meals a day for the first week and a half, and pictured above.


We live in a duplex-type dwelling in the courtyard; our neighbors are a young couple with two daughters. One of the daughters, the one year old, is terrified of our pale skin and cries whenever we are in her vicinity. She also wags her finger at us menacingly, which is how she communicates that she wants us to stay away. Her reaction is actually quite normal for very young children here. (Slightly older children usually are fascinated by us and affectionately chant Tubabu (“whitey”) when they see us.) There is a coconut tree just outside the courtyard gates, a mango tree outside of our house and a papaya tree behind our house. Last week we ate some very fresh papaya right off the tree and it was amazing!

Our house consists of three rooms; a front room where we sit and cook, a bedroom and a study/wardrobe room with indoor shower. By indoor shower, of course, I am referring to a walled off area with tile floor and drain wherein one can take a bucket bath. Each room has a window approximately 1 x 1.5m with metal shutters. The walls are painted the same azure blue that is ubiquitous here in Burkina Faso. The floor is cemented with only a few cracks. We have a private latrine outside and the family put a padlock on the latrine to ensure our exclusive access to it. The house was sparsely furnished when we arrived so we have had to purchase quite a few things to get settled. I’ll post some new pictures once I have completed all the bricolage I am deviously planning. Since we have both electricity and running water (from a spigot outside the house, but still vastly preferable than retrieving from a far-off well) it may not be the idyllic Peace Corps experience that we imagined but it certainly more comfortable.

Our courtyard is a 3 minute bike ride from the guduron which gives us great access to the city. Within our residential neighborhood there are a surprising number of amenities, such as several boutiques (convenience stores) and a telecenter (store at which one can make landline phone calls and buy cell phone minutes). Every morning I walk to the closest boutique (2 min) and buy a baguette of French bread for breakfast. I’m holding my breath for the Starbucks to move in.

PS – As usual, I am behind on emails. Sorry. I will get caught up soon!