I have now moved in with my host family, the Djimalbayes (Jim-all-bye). I have two host-sisters and five host-brothers and they are great! See my haphazard family tree My host-parents are so kind and patient with me and they are already trying to teach me Gumbai, the language that most people in Tchad speak! I’ll be honest though, it’s sometimes hard for me to keep track of who is who, especially because there are always people coming and going from the house! There are also about 3 chickens and a rooster running around the yard avoiding the dog (which could believably be a stray given its condition), and it’s a new combination for me to hear the honking of city traffic while the rooster screams all day. My room is quite spacious, with a full size bed, a desk, an armoire, a nightstand/shelf, and even a comfy chair! My curtains and bedsheet (yes, just one, and sometimes even that is too much!) match and are a fun pink/orange/yellow elephant print. I even have a working fan, and I know this will be a precious amenity come hot season. We didn’t have much electricity yesterday, but the family says this is rare for where we live because the police station is just down the road.
The home is very “Tchadian” I am told, as there is the main house in the center, and three large rooms along the side. See my terribly not-to-scale drawing to get an idea of the layout.
So far, I’m enjoying the lifestyle, but I am constantly tired from trying to understand the language and express my thoughts in French. I understand only a fraction of what people say to me, and I’ve embarrassed myself more than once having to ask “quoi?” – “what?” – over and over. Thank goodness these people are so patient with me! They’ve also given me a Tchadian/Gumbai name, Ménodji, which means “love from God.” They say this is because they believe God brought me to them and they are so thankful to have another daughter/sister in the family. Guests and friends get a good laugh when I tell them my new name, since clearly the white girl was not born with that name.
Oh, and did I mention how much we eat?? I am quickly running out of ways to say I’m not hungry because it seems they are always feeding me! Yesterday I had breakfast (a hearty soup, bread, and tea), a salad-type meal (that I helped prepare!), lunch (a meat and vegetable stew over pasta, salad, and bread), dinner (chicken, a kind of potato salad, and bread), and another dinner before bed (stew over couscous)! They tell me this is normal, and I feel rude for not eating every bite, but I can only fit so much in my stomach! My host-father has made very clear his plans to make me nice and fat this year. Stay tuned to see how that goes J
The home is very “Tchadian” I am told, as there is the main house in the center, and three large rooms along the side. See my terribly not-to-scale drawing to get an idea of the layout.
So far, I’m enjoying the lifestyle, but I am constantly tired from trying to understand the language and express my thoughts in French. I understand only a fraction of what people say to me, and I’ve embarrassed myself more than once having to ask “quoi?” – “what?” – over and over. Thank goodness these people are so patient with me! They’ve also given me a Tchadian/Gumbai name, Ménodji, which means “love from God.” They say this is because they believe God brought me to them and they are so thankful to have another daughter/sister in the family. Guests and friends get a good laugh when I tell them my new name, since clearly the white girl was not born with that name.
Oh, and did I mention how much we eat?? I am quickly running out of ways to say I’m not hungry because it seems they are always feeding me! Yesterday I had breakfast (a hearty soup, bread, and tea), a salad-type meal (that I helped prepare!), lunch (a meat and vegetable stew over pasta, salad, and bread), dinner (chicken, a kind of potato salad, and bread), and another dinner before bed (stew over couscous)! They tell me this is normal, and I feel rude for not eating every bite, but I can only fit so much in my stomach! My host-father has made very clear his plans to make me nice and fat this year. Stay tuned to see how that goes J