Cultural notes

Everyday we head out is another day of wonders. I wonder how long you have to be here before that wears off. The bikes and motorbikes with absolutely ridiculous loads. Yesterday, on our way back from a school visit, I saw a guy and a women, baby tied to her back as they are here, balancing a mattress on their heads whilst screaming down a bumpy, dusty road! Women and children balancing huge platters and baskets as they go about their business. Its like ballet; there's grace, rhythm, colour, style. Amazing. So today, I'm going to talk briefly about some of the things I've noticed and learned about.

The men: I have not once experienced any sort of awkwardness or ill feeling from the men. They have been open and friendly in a very respectful way. No evidence of macho in this culture. One very curious thing, I have noticed men sort of linking fingers as they walk together. I asked one of my female students about it; she explained that it is very normal to see that.

Tailors: This is a big business here. Fabric is available at the market and many other shops. There is very little cotton fabric produced in Mali, now. Cotton is grown here but now finished in, you guessed it, China. You can get cool stuff here though, with bright patterns and symbols and slogans commemorating important events. For example, I bought some fabric which commemorated International Womens' Day. Anyway, the tailors work flat out. I have ordered an outfit---a Mali original. It was fun to discuss the styling and detailing. The tailor, as well as our driver, had definite opinions about the style. You often see tailors at the local markets which are found once a week in the outlying villages. They are really adept with their manually powered sewing machines. They do not charge much ...I paid about $4 to have a shirt made. I have seen only men doing this work.

Education: I haven't figured it all out but there is no one funding model for schools. When Mali became a democracy in the mid-90s, the country was decentralized. As is often the case, the responsibilities are downloaded but not the funding. Communities decide collectively how they will fund schools....this can include the building of the school, teacher salaries and operating costs. There are also private schools and schools that are community run but that have been built by organizations such as Save the Children. So, two examples: One of the schools I visited yesterday had only 57 students. The teacher I observed had only 29 students in his English class. This is not the norm. The norm has been 100 students per class. In order to send their children to this school, the commune (a collection of villages and its government) has decided on a fee of 6000CFA/month/child. This is very roughly $12 per month. Very expensive for most Malians. Contrast that with a school I visited today, where the parents pay 1500CFA or about $3 per year per child. The teacher I observed had 120 students. This fee amount was also decided upon by the commune.

Religion: Relaxed, is the word I would use. This country is 90%+ Muslim but the government is secular. The call to prayer can be heard at specific times throughout the day. There are quite a few Christians is this area, indeed a number of our students are Christian. I have been told that the two groups get along well and that perhaps this is due to a generally tolerant attitude in Malian society towards different cultures and religions. In the village I went to today, I was told that there were few Muslims nor Christians. Most people were animists...believing in spirits and fetishes, as my host put it.

La grotte: I visited this local landmark; an impressive rock formation on the outskirts of Sikasso. It is a sacred place for the locals where they will come and sacrifice animals in order to have a wish granted. There is a huge cave which is a mosque for some local marabouts. These are men of the cloth but I don't know more than that. Some of them live in the cave for extended periods, praying and trying to become stronger in spirit.

Until the next time....