Chapter 1: Adventures in Bamako

We've started a bit late with getting this blog rolling so we're going to rewind. Here are some pictures and text of what we found in Bamako, at our training center Tubaniso, and at our various adventures in the big city. Slowly (dooni dooni), we will catch you all up!



Many of you have probably never visited a very poor country before, but one of the first things you notice is the utter chaos on the roadways: welcome to Bamako! (Or any other African capital city.) Motos everywhere, no helmets or blinkers, few traffic lights or lanelines, and few rules of the road. Even if they exist, they are rarely followed, and a car has to dodge motos, pedestrians, bikers, animals, and more. Thankfully Peace Corps handles most of our transport except when we ride public buses to get from Bamako to our sites/regional capitals.

When we first arrived in Bamako around Halloween last year, we were whisked away to our training center, called Tubaniso ("house of doves," below). As you can see it's a gorgeous place. The huts shown there house us, and then we had trainings under the "gwa"s or big shaded pavillions. 

Our trainings included language, medical, safety and security, and sector-based trainings. So, for example, health volunteers were trained on how to recognize the symptoms of malnutrition in children and how to treat it with locally available foods. Overall, though, it kind of felt like summer camp--40 new faces in our "stage," or training group, getting to know everyone, eating all of our meals together in a dining hall, having each day meticulously planned. Much like camp, it's as fun as it is exhausting. (See our friend Shawn with Freddie under the big gwa--what a nice place to learn!)

We didn't stay at Tubaniso for our whole three months of training, of course--we went to our homestay villages (another blog post!). But while we were close to Bamako, we were able to do a few fun things like go to the National Museum (below, with our bushy friend Jordan and a view of the president's house on top of the hill), which had an incredible photo exhibit called "Pour un Monde Durable," which had photos of environmental degredation and change from all over Africa. We also went to the American Club, which is only for US Citizens and their guests, and where you can find burgers, pizza, alcohol, movies, and a swimming pool.

Bamako, as hectic as it is, is a beautiful city situated on the Niger River (below). There are several bridges that span the river and when driving around Bamako, you are bound to go across it.

When you do cross the river, you are bound to see the ornate Ministry buildings that house the Malian Government and all of the Ministries. We like to call them the "Ghadaffi Buildings" because apparently Mohamar Ghadaffi funded their construction, as well as many other things in Mali (schools, pumps, wells, etc.). People here really like him because of the aid he gave to Mali via Libya's oil wealth. That gives you at least some glimpse of the political landscape here: it takes relatively little investment to persuade people to join your side.

Swearing in as official Peace Corps Volunteers on January 6th was our last foray into Bamako. We all dressed in our best and headed to the US Ambassador to Mali's house for the ceremony. As you can tell, her house is less like a house and more like an oasis!

Here's us and the Ambassador. As you can tell, all of us were dressed in our best Malian garb. They filmed the ceremony and aired it on Malian TV (the one channel that Mali broadcasts). Many people in village saw it and have asked us about it, so we're kind of a big deal :)

After swear-in we ate Indian food, had a big party, and stayed at a little hotel in Bamako. Here's a picture of our rooftop view the morning after the fun.

After that we set out for Sikasso, our regional capital, to get installed at our new site!

Next post (hopefully by tomorrow): Homestay, language training, and our first few weeks at site. Hopefully Cass can also post a tech-inspired aside with more Freddie pictures and updates on his new life and continued adventures. Check back soon!