Wish you were here...

...When I see the kid who wears the infant-sized snowsuit walking around the village. With the light yellow hood up like an eskimo, and the puffy legs and sleeves reaching mid-calf and to the elbow, with the child's bony brown hands and feet sticking out...it's so lonely laughing out loud alone.

...When we have the same lunch for the 100th day in a row. Yellow rice, deep fried fish, with the rare vegetable warrants an eye-rolling, but no one understand the gesture or the meaning behind it.

...When I took a bite of pizza for the first time in six months- last night- and it felt so much like home it took my breath away. And then I looked at the women in veils at the next table over, and the man in the turban asking for money, and I wish someone had been there to help ease the transition.

...When it's 3:00am and the roosters are crowing, the dogs are barking, the donkeys are making whatever hideous noise it is that they make- and I can't sleep and I'm reading by candlelight and I would love to hear how it's going, being asleep in America.

Pulaar is Funny

I get a kick out of this language every day.

The greetings are extensive- here's an example:
How are you?
Fine, how's your fatigue?
Fine, how's your work?
How are you with the heat/cold?
How is your family doing? Does your house still exist?
Did you wake up this morning? Did your legs wake up? Your kids?
Just fine, thank Allah
Peace only, thank Allah

The use of the word "death" is quite comical. If a child does something wrong, a parent will threaten them that they are going to die a "bad death." If a child falls down, everyone around him/her will state "you died" as calmly and blandly as one would say "I brushed my teeth."

There is only one word for "if" and "when" so anything concerning the future feels like it's hanging by a thread. When making plans, one says "If tomorrow comes..." or "If I wake up..." and this always sends me into a panic until I say in my head "When! Not if, Laura. When!"

Warning: Pics Are Boring

Yes, I'm sorry. I have added to my website but the pictures are mainly just portraits of people I love in Garly. I will work on spicing up my digi cam in the next few months. Here are some examples:





Check out the rest: http://laurajeannesmith.shutterfly.com

What I Got For Christmas

Nouakchott is a glamorous, electrified city and offers a wide assortment of spas, restaurants, bakeries, western style clothing stores and grocery stores. I have pinched myself a few times to see if I'm dreaming. I can't believe I wrote back in June that this was a "tiny" place.

So far I have celebrated the season in the capital city with:
A cold can of beer
The movie "A Christmas Story" (indisputably the best holiday movie ever)
A hot shower
A bed that is off the ground, running water, rugs, tables- hotel room in general
Food that I haven't had in 6 months: pears, oranges, sushi, cake...all of my food daydreams have come true
Oh yes, and a Clemson t-shirt. Thanks collsie ballsie.
A classroom for pretending I can teach French. Pictured below