Washington International School's Mali blog

The Center for International Education at Washington International School in May conducted Mali '09, a trip focusing on the study of music, drama and movies through an African lens.Most activities were conducted in French, creating an opportunity for serious students of French to use and improve their communication skills. Service activities were conducted that engaged teachers and students directly in local issues. Below are blog entries by the students participating in the trip.
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Day 14: July 4, 2009

On Sunday we visited the famous Siby arch that, legend has it, was carved by the sword of Soundiata Keita, a famous Malian hero. We hiked up from ground level until, about 30 minutes later; we were right underneath the arch. After thoroughly enjoying the amazing views which our position offered, we hiked back down to the van and went back to the hotel. Next, we visited the Siby soap manufacturer, although we were only able to see the finished products, which smelled really good. After a long wait for lunch, and a much shorter amount of time spent eating it, we piled back into the van and drove back to Bamako. Since most of us were very tired, the teachers let us sit around the hotel, swim, play games and relax until about 9, when we went out for our last dinner and a trip to the Diplomat, where we listened to music for a while, before returning to the hotel at about 12.

Stephen Weiner
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Day 13: July 3, 2009

Friday night we went to a restaurant called Le Diplomat. We decided to walk there, which, in retrospect, was probably not the best idea. It took us about half an hour to get there so once we had arrived we had built up quite an appetite. We all ordered pizzas which ended up being delicious. The service was quite slow but the manager was very nice. After dinner, the well-known Toumani Diabaté played the kora and people started to dance. Mr. Delair and Mme. Gubser also joined in and were encouraged by Hakuna Matata, one of the locals. A few of the students also started dancing and others started falling asleep on the tables. We left at midnight and took taxis because we were all about to collapse and still had to pack for the next day’s trip to Siby.

Emmanuelle Allongue-Petermann

This morning we woke to something other then the friendly sound of the insistent alarm clock; we let the sounds of Bamako do the talking. After last night at the club Djembe, which was full of rhythm and melody, the looming fatigue took it's toll. Therefore, at about 10 am, we rolled out of bed to the usual breakfast and the welcoming faces of the waiters. The group spent the next few hours catching up on sleep, washing clothes, going for a swim, bargaining with the local jewel merchants, or playing various card games to pass time. At two o’clock, we called on the faithful Taxi drivers to take us over to Mr. Sow’s house where we ate a traditional Malian meal and learnt about the craft of cloth dying. Mr. Sow introduced us to his wife and their numerous children who still live at home (two are in France working) and his peacock, goat, turkeys and dog. Over lunch, we talked about the phenomenon of urbanization in Africa, the victims and the victors, while he told mythological stories and kept our plates full. After lunch, we met a lady who showed us the process of dying cloth to sell in markets for traditional outfits, table cloths etc. Basically, they heat water until it is unbearably hot (even with rubber gloves our hands turned red), then they add colour dyes and use potassium to maintain the colour. The cloth is bathed in this mixture and then rinsed in cold water repetitively until it is ready to go up to dry. Some locals came over with instruments and music and a sort of ice tea from a sour guava-like fruit (intensely sweetened) was served. At about six, we walked to the main road and returned to Hotel Tamana, in the quartier Hippodrome which now feels like home. As I finish this blog entry, the rest of the group is playing Scrabble and jumping in and out of the pool. Dinner will follow. From Hotel Tamana, Hippodrome, Bamako July 3 rd comes to a close, and if you haven’t already heard, Mr. Snee’s resignation is quite the talking point here.

-- Benedict
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Day 12: July 2, 2009

This morning, after a leisurely breakfast, we split up into groups to go to the markets. One group, eager to purchase soccer jerseys at low prices, went to the main market. Another, interested in the wide variety of artistic items available in Mali, went to the Maison des Artisans.

I joined the group headed for l’Artisanale. Once there, we had the option of looking at leather sandals, Bogolon cloth, carved wooden animals, golden earrings, beaded jewelry, and a large assortment of other goods. We were able to spend both our time and money on what we wanted to. It seemed much more leisurely than the first time we had been there, probably because we were in a smaller group and therefore not as good a target for insistent vendors. There was a 15-year-old boy dressed in a black and white shirt who had been at the hotel and who followed us through the market, showing us to the taxis at the end.

Once back at the hotel, we were able to spend some time relaxing before heading to lunch at the same Senegalese restaurant where we had dined on Friday. The plate of the day was rice covered in either a peanut or fish sauce. Slightly spicy, but quite delicious.

Upon our return from lunch it began to rain, and so we sought shelter under the porch of our hotel. We were joined by the black-and-white shirted boy from earlier, whose name was Ahmed, and his two older brothers, Amassah and Mohammed Dicko. They are Touareg and live in the village of Sévaré, near Mopti, which we drove through this weekend without realizing it. The three of them are in Bamako for the summer to sell goods made by their family. These include tooled leather boxes and traditional silver Touareg jewelry. We had quite a good time together, listening to music ranging from traditional Malian singer Tinariwen to Diams to Beyoncé to Ali Farka Touré.

We learned so much in the short time we spent with the boys. Their father is a griot, or storyteller. Although they do not intend to become griots themselves (Amassah expressed a desire to become a successful businessman and Ahmed wishes to become a primary school teacher), they do intend to pass his stories on to their own children and thus continue the rich tradition. One uncle living in Gao runs a caravan and attends the January Touareg festival each year with his dancing camels (no joke!). Hearing their story was almost like stepping through the pages of a history book. What we learn in class, they actually live.

However, they are all very open-minded people. Ahmed seemed certain that he wanted to marry someone who wasn’t Malian – specifically a toubabou, or white person. We gave them some of the books we had brought, and they paged intently through them with happy expressions. We were very sorry to see them go, but business called, and so we bid them fond farewell.

Dinner was eaten at a rice bar a short walk from the hotel. Two items were being served: a whole fish served with attieke (grated and dried manioc) or chunks of meat piled atop the manioc. To eat, we were crammed onto narrow benches. It was an interesting experience, especially since this is where the Dicko brothers often eat.

We were quite tired upon our return, so most of us went straight to bed.

Abigail Cahen
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Day 11: July 1, 2009

We started out the day with a trip to the Museum of Bamako, which displayed Malian artifacts, and recounted the history of Bamako, from its pre-colonial origins to the bustling city that it is today. Once we were done at the museum, we took a group taxi-bus, which fits around 15 people, in order to get to another museum. However, when we got there, the museum was nowhere to be found. We were told that the museum had moved to a new, but temporary, location, and so we set off to try to find it. We had to stop several times on the way but when we got there, we found out that, although the museum’s administrative facilities had moved, the actual museum was closed. Now thoroughly frustrated, we returned to the hotel for lunch and relaxing, before heading out again at 2:30 to go to the orphanage, which some people in our group had previously visited. This was one of the most moving and heartfelt moments of the entire trip. The kids, who ranged from babies to age 13, were all delighted to see us, and were even happier when we presented them with a brand new soccer ball and pump, as well as a bag full of books. After listening to Josh and Benedict perform Green Eggs and Ham in Bambara (Mali’s other national language), we went to play soccer, splitting up the teams so that each team had both Americans and Malians. We playing for about 45 minutes, we said goodbye and went back to the hotel. We spent about 2 hours relaxing and are now about to head out for dinner and another trip to the Djembe, the live music club we had been to last week.

Stephen Weiner
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Day 10: June 30, 2009

Today was a calm day in comparison. The aftermath of a day of virtually non-stop traveling was a wake-up time of 9:30, something that was much appreciated by all of the students. After a relaxed breakfast, the students spent the morning recharging batteries, enjoying the luxuries of swimming and scrabble (the game in question was won rather convincingly by this particular blogger).
Today was also the day of the cheapest lunch of the trip to date. Down the road from the hotel is a rice bar, where a wholly satisfying meal can be purchased for 250 fCFA, roughly the equivalent of 60 cents.
After the meal, the group took three taxis and left for the US Embassy of Bamako. After a brief security examination, the group entered the very large US embassy compound. The tour of the compound was organized by Mr. Loewen’s long time friend and Peace Corps buddy, Jason Smith. The first part of the tour was a tour of the actual embassy, with specific emphasis made on the art that was being exhibited in the building. The collection was mainly work by American artists inspired by Mali, but also included Malian art and photography. The group was taken around the building by the embassy’s Director of Public Affairs, as well as her assistant. The students also received some insight into the administrative sector of the embassy, and its role in the country.
The tour then continued with the USAID building. The US Agency of International Development building is in the same compound as the Embassy. The tour began with an informal discussion/presentation by the Deputy Head of the USAID branch of Mali. The highly informative introduction to USAID included the organization’s highly successful Malaria prevention program, thanks to which 81% of all women and children now own and use sleeping nets. The tour also included a brief meeting with the Head of the USAID in Mali, and short meetings with individuals from the different USAID projects.
The afternoon continued with a visit to Jason Smith’s house. Outside of the house, the students joined a football game with the local players. Though the game was enjoyable, the weaknesses in the WIS football players were exposed, and they were, to put it gently, absolutely hammered.
With nothing but their egos injured, the students returned to Jason’s house, swam in the pool and enjoyed an excellent meal, and fun with his two children.
The evening ended as it so often does in Mali with cards and making jokes about evening’s blogger.

Simon Ware
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Day 8-9: June 28-29, 2009
“This is way earlier than I’d ever thought I’d get up during summer vacation,” I thought as I rolled out of bed and left our relatively luxe hotel in Segou. After a four hour drive the day before, we returned to the car and continued down the black, narrow road towards Mopti. Looking out the land is endless. It is dry mud with a scattering of trees and bush and only a light, patchy covering of grass. Every once in a while, you will see a group of mud houses or some African horned cows or donkeys, or rarer, a small town with a close group of mud houses, thatched-roof cylindered shacks for storing grain, and a few store fronts offering Coca-Cola.
Before arriving in Mopti we stopped at one of these road-side villages. This particular one was inhabited by the Bobo people, who as I could see, still lived pretty traditionally. There weren’t any stores in this village, just women and their children and very few men. As seems to be a pattern in Mali, the children rushed to hold our hands, the older one mumbling a “bonjour” or “ca va?” One woman held out her 2 month-old for me to hold.
To get a chance to stretch, we parked next to two baobab trees which in West Africa are said to be sacred because they hold the souls of ancestors. They’re gargantuan towers, paralleled only by the giant red sequoias of California. One was hollow at the bottom so that we could literally step inside the tree, and the other held baskets in its branches where locals would collect honey. All of us were stunned than anyone could climb so high into a tree, so a few of us gave it a shot. Let’s just say none of us got very far.
The landscape began to change as we drove further, as bush transformed into palm trees and the small scattering of grass into large rock hills like not unlike the Outback We were in Dogon Country. The Dogons live in houses not unlike the villages and we were meant with the same enthusiasm from the children as in the other villages. The children even ran after the back of the car, until a man yelled at them to get off and run away. What was extraordinary about the village however was the cliff bordering it. There were drawings thousands of years old on the rock, all representing the circumcision rights that have happened there for centuries. A chicken is sacrificed to a snake and boys are meant to choose between receiving food, a young girl and an ox. Though most of our boys chose the girl, the Dogons are meant to choose food, representing that the other possessions come second to nourishment.
We quickly drove through Mopti, which looks much like a mixture between one of those sleepy, mud villages and bustling Bamako. We only stopped to look at the expansive rice field bordering the town, which was just waiting for the rain season. (The rain season started the day we arrived.)
Driving back south into Djenne, we found a quieter village that seemed like something from the Arabian Nights. The renowned mosque was colossal and absolutely stunning as we drove in at dark. The hotel even looked like a fortress, but we got over than pretty quick and rushed to watch the US vs. Brazil soccer game. The other men watching cheered with us for the US, who was winning 2-0 after the first half, but Brazil made a comeback and lost 3-2. We weren’t too sad however. As one man put it, “The US had nothing to lose though, Brazil had everything. Getting this far is unprecedented.”

The next morning we got up and toured the ancient city. It was amazing in that everything seemed from the past. Though the people wore the same clothes as people in Bamako, and many spoke French, laughing girls surrounded the well and donkeys were at every corner of the narrow, winding streets. It is forbidden for non-Muslims to enter the mosque, but we were allowed to go on the roof of a house across the street and were rewarded for our long car rides with an unforgettable view.

A certain presence was always with our group through the journey: money. Everywhere we were surrounded by persistent vendors trying to sell “homemade” necklaces identical to those in every other town we’d seen. In the villages, the children asked for “cadeaux” (gifts) or “bob-bons” (candy). To them, white skin means money and bounty, or to the children, “the entertainment of the day,” as Mr. Loewen called us. I found myself, and I’m sure the others shared at least a part of this experience, wondering whether our relationships with these people are genuine or affected, or feeling a sense of guilt, or worrying whether the Western world has ruined the Dogon’s way of life. The answer tends to be neither black nor white, insurmountable nor simple. Yes these problems may seem to spoil some of our fun as they serve as constant reminders of our stance in the world or of Africa’s complicated history and relationship with the West, but they also expand the experience we came to find by probing us to think about solutions or the future. So though the drive is long and tedious, I know we’ll continue to enjoy the view, or hope for some good pit-stops.

Margaret Shaw
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Day 7: June 27, 2009

We went to have dinner at M. Sow’s hotel, and on the way one of the taxies was stopped by the police and the driver’s credentials were being checked, so we switched taxies. At dinner, we had brochettes, French frie,s and the second salad we were able to eat on this trip. Mr. Delair then presented Sow with the money raised by the 7th graders to help the older people of Mali who have no one to take care of them. We then walked to the Djembe from his hotel. We got to the Djembe at about 11:00. The band played a lot of good music, with some of the singers and musicians switching off every few songs. We left at about 12:30, and on the way home one of the taxies got stopped again. This time we were asked for identification, which we did not have, and we later learned is required in Bamako after 12:00. The police wanted to bring us into the station, but Mr. Loewen ‘convinced’ them otherwise.
-- Rosemary
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Day 6: June 26, 2009

Today we started off the day by separating into two groups, one to go to the school we had visited before, and the other to go to the orphanage. The group that went to the school sorted and categorized all the books we had given them the previous day, organizing them, recording them and putting them away in the school library. When they finished sorting the books they discussed the differences between that school and ours with the Malian administrators and teachers. Other people in that group also helped to set up the laptop we had also given them and to explain all the programs that were already on it. The second group arrived at the clinic and was guided on the short walk over to the orphanage. When we arrived, we were immediately greeted by three three to four year old girls who latched on to us. The woman who runs the orphanage, Mme. Bibi, greeted us and showed us the room where the smaller babies (between a month to a year old) were kept. She told us the story of some of the babies. One of them, who is now a few months old, was born in the cemetery near the orphanage, and in the few hours before they were alerted to the babies presence by the barking of the dogs, rats had already started to eat at the baby’s face. The marks were mostly faded, but we could still see some discolouration on the baby’s face. Another one of the babies they found in a trash can and were again alerted to his presence by the dogs. After we were shown the nursery, where there were about eleven or twelve babies, Mme. Bibi took us outside to where the slightly older children (from about two to four or five) were. When we arrived they were drawing on colouring paper, and we sat down and helped them, and the children came and sit on our laps and want to be held. Fairly quickly this evolved to doing other things as well. We used the paper they had been drawing on to make paper airplanes, which the children really enjoyed throwing around. Also, Josh brought his juggling balls and demonstrated juggling. We then used the balls to play catch with some of the children. Some of them were content to just sit in our laps, while others wanted us to swing them around. One of the older girls (nine or ten years old, she herself wasn’t sure) came from a village and had taken a car and then walked a long way to reach Bamako looking for work. Mme. Bibi saw her and another young girl along the road just as they were coming into town and she took them in. After we had played with the children for a few hours, Mme. Bibi took us inside to talk about the state of the orphanage. They get all of their resources through donations and volunteers, but they are very sort on funds, and have very few contributors of money to go towards maintaining the everyday necessities of the orphanage. The building they are using now is one that was given to the orphanage, but it is not suited to their needs. However, Mme. Bibi is already building a new orphanage, along with an attached school, to more properly accommodate their needs, and she showed us the site. They hope to have it finished by the start of the next school year.

After that we went and had lunch and then returned to the hotel. For the next few hours we either played cards, swan, played scrabble or slept. There was a storm and we lost power for a short while, so we delayed going out to diner for a little bit. Once it cleared, we walked around the neighborhood and found a place to have diner. After diner we went to a club called Jimbe where they played modern Malian music. On the taxi ride home we heard that Michael Jackson had died.

Rosemary Nicholas
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Day 5: June 25, 2009
This morning, we all woke up around 8 o’clock, sleepy-eyed and obviously tired. After a rushed breakfast, we boarded the baggage-loaded bus and set off. We were leaving Bamako to go to Segou, the second largest city in Mali. None of us did much during the 2-3 hour bus ride, other than listening to their iPod, and throwing out the occasional joke. We stopped after about two hours for a lunch break, a baguette with a creamy cheese. On arrival in Segou, we were all very pleasantly surprised by our hotel, “Independance”. We swam in the surprisingly warm pool and had a relaxed game of scrabble before the teachers came to fetch us as we were going for a walk in the town. As soon as we stepped out of the bus close to the shore of the Niger River, a crowd of people surrounded us to try to sell necklaces and other (overpriced) items. As we struggled against the vendors, M. Delair, Stephen Weiner and I took a seat next to a young looking boy who wanted to wash our shoes. Reluctantly, as we expected him to do a bad job and rip us off, we agreed to let him clean them. His friend soon joined us, and the pair told us that they were, unbelievably, 13 years old and entering 7th grade. The boys scrubbed against our shoes for at least five minutes. After the work was done, our shoes were clean as a whistle. The boys also only charged 500 Fcfa, about one dollar, for each pair. We had no extra change, so we had to pay exact money without the well-deserved tip. The young boys followed us, joined by another friend, and asked us questions about our life in America. We were very happy to talk to the friendly boys, but unfortunately the large crowd of vendors followed us as well, sticking to us like glue. We kept walking until we found a bunch of men playing soccer on a field. Without invitation, we joined them and played for about 45 minutes. The young boys insisted I join them on their team, so the teams ended up being me and a bunch of Malians against the Americans. It was, at least for me, one of the most amazing experiences of my life. We won (of course). As we returned to the bus, we shared a slightly emotional farewell with the three boys. We headed to a restaurant, and after a delicious dinner, we returned to the hotel.

Jacob Ware
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Day 3: June 24, 2009
We spent most of our time today learning about Mali’s history, as well as visiting many interesting places in Bamako. We got started around 9:30 today, which seems very early when you realize that we didn’t leave the hotel yesterday until 1 PM. The hills of Bamako were our first stop, providing us with a beautiful panoramic view of the city, as well as the Niger River, which runs right through the city. Next, we went to the National Museum of Mali, which had exhibits related to Malian statues, textiles, and clothing. Some of these articles were over 3000 years old. We stopped by the gift shop to pick up a few souvenirs and, as soon as we left the museum, were greeted by a man selling CDs of Malian music who must have been very happy afterwards as he managed to sell over a dozen CDs to our group. Next, we went to a market near the center of Mali. The items there ranged from drums and paintings to objects believed to possess magical powers. This experience revealed to us all the persistence and energy of the vendors, several of whom followed us around for a couple minutes trying to persuade us to buy something from them. However, for most of the vendors, a simple “No, thank you” was enough to make them back off, In fact, many of them engaged us in conversation even after we had declined to buy from them. After eating lunch at a very nice restaurant, we drove out to the Niger, hoping to walk along it. However, once we got there, we were told that there were explosives planted by the Malian army under many rocks in that area, so we were forced to find another place to walk. Then, when we walked upstream to try to find another path to the Niger, a sign with “No entry” written on it forced us to turn around and find another path. One thing that astonished us was that the sign’s message was written in both English and Chinese, a true sign of the growing Chinese presence in the African world. We ended up driving over the river before finally finding a nice place to observe the river from. After that, we headed back to the hotel for a well-deserved swim, dinner and finally, to watch the US soccer team play Spain….and win!

Stephen Weiner

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Day 2: June 23, 2009
The day started off very relaxed; we had breakfast at the Tamana Hotel and lazed around until noon. While some of us were sleeping and others swimming, Mme Gubser and Mr Delair went to the supermarket to get bread, tuna, and cheese to make sandwiches for lunch. We ate at the hotel, then took taxis to the clinic. Once at the clinic, we met four doctors and a “sage femme” or midwife and were able to ask them questions and answer any questions they had. It was very interesting for both parties. We asked them about various diseases in Mali and Africa such as malaria, the infant mortality rate, and AIDS, which we then compared to the equally large epidemic in DC. They asked us how we felt about Obama as president and shared that they felt he symbolized the end of racism and an America very different from the common stereotype. Their offices, though simple, looked pretty identical to those in DC. We were given a tour of the clinic and saw a patient’s room, a laboratory, and the sonogram machine. After our stop at the clinic, we went to a school nearby that was owned by a doctor’s wife. Once there we were given a tour of the “lycée”. The classrooms were poorly equipped; with only a chalkboard and a few wooden desks and chairs. The library was equally sparse. However, we were able to change that by donating many books and a laptop. We were able to ask questions about the studies that the students did and what type of kids attended the school. After, we went to a guest house and had a drink on the roof. Once our thirst had been quenched, we walked to the nearest cyber café to e-mail and facebook friends and family and see how these cafes worked. We then went back the guest house for a delicious dinner of fries and brochettes of beef and feasted on mangos for dessert. After digesting and active discussions, we took a taxi back to the hotel.

Emmanuelle Allongue-Petermann

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Day 1: June 22, 2009
Who was more pumped on the streets of Bamako last night, June 21st? Was it the charged crowds of peoples swamping the streets, going crazy over Mali’s 3-1 victory in the World Cup qualifier? Or was it the twelve of use, piled in a van, heading straight from the airport to Hotel Tamana? While the crowds may have had an edge of being jetlag--deprived and at least partially awake--the excitement we all felt after finally landing in West Africa and beginning a trip we had planned for months made our group pretty strong in the running for the title of “most pumped-up people in all of Mali.”

Now, the following evening, here we all are at our hotel terrace, readying ourselves for our first-ever Malian dinner. It’s been a solid day of getting around the capital city of Bamako. Desperate for more sleep, we were forced out of bed at about 9 a.m. and gathered outside the hotel to plan the day’s activities. As eager as most of us were to put our French into practice, our guide, Monsieur Sagara, insisted we first learn some of Mali’s main native language, Bambara. Ten hours later, all that I can personally remember is “Kê,” meaning “monsieur,” and “Aw-Ni-Sen,” which was chalked up next to “Bienvenue!” on the first sign we saw yesterday at the airport. No doubt, there’ll be more we acquire over the following 17 days, though.

Three taxis showed up around 12:30 to take us out to the local BDM— Banque du Mali— in order to exchange our money for “West African CFA Francs.” It felt wonderful to finally hear the talk of dealing with francs again, after not having been able to do so in the seven years since the Euro’s 2002 arrival. After a solid amount of it had been dished out amongst us, we made it back down to the ground-level streets, hoping for a taxi. What we instead landed was a giant green pickup, big enough to fit eight of us in the bed of the truck. The ensuing ride managed to expose us to the lively and hectic marketplaces of downtown Bamako.

Later, after a lunch break at a charming café, it was time to head into that market ourselves, in order to successfully complete a “scavenger hunt” that our teachers had designed. From local newspapers to mangoes and essential Malian knowledge— the name of the president, further words in Bambara— the hunt ensured that our appreciation of the country’s culture would steadily increase. Among the more notable products spotted on sale at the market were xylophones, gigantic bags of peanuts, and cool attire including t-shirts made of mashed-up boiled leaves. Shortly afterwards we piled into three different taxi cabs, with several carts of water bottles in the trunk, and made our way back home.

The afternoon proved perfectly relaxing, with a trip to the swimming pool, during which Simon and Benny swapped their bold World Cup predictions; an excellent dinner at the hotel; and an impressive conversation with an Africa-trotting student journalist from Belgium. It is now 9:43 and jetlag seems to have gotten the best of most of us— however, there can be no doubt that the Mali trip has gotten off to an absolutely fantastic and engrossing start, and we can sleep now feeling certain that the trip will retain such qualities in the days to come.

Josh Weiner