Adventures in Language Learning

I’m thankful that I have a good French teacher who has a pleasant sense of humor. He speaks French, Zarma, Hausa and English, and he’s been teaching for many years. But there are some sociolinguistic things that I have to teach him about American English. Like today, I taught him about the art of the “mic drop.”

Each day Ibro will ask me to tell him 2 Bible stories, with as much detail as I can remember, and then he’ll ask me questions about them. Today I told him the creation story and the tale of original sin. After peppering me with questions for a few minutes, he then asked me how I would sum up everything I had told him. I said, “Le peché est grand, mais Dieu est plus grand” (Sin is great but God is bigger) and dropped my pen. Then he laughed and I had to explain how Americans will make a joke (or a profound statement) and then drop the microphone. He loved it.

One of the first English idioms I had to explain was “it will cost your firstborn child,” in the context of American students attending university. Ibro asked, in surprise, if it was normal for a student to pay their own tuition (versus their parents paying for them) and I told him that in my experience, it was very rare for parents to have enough money to pay for the university tuition, so there’s a big problem of student debt in America.

 Anyway, he knew the expression “it will cost an arm and a leg” (il coute la bra et le pie) and I explained that this expression meant it was even more expensive. Then I recounted the story of Rumpelstiltskin to give him further context.

Other discussions about translation have arisen around Biblical terms. For example, I said I would pray, “I will bless the name of the Lord” and he thought I had mixed up the sentence, meaning to say God would do the blessing. We do get into our theology! Last week I tried transliterating a passage of Scripture from English to French, and Ibro was confused by the context. I said that God instructed us to make a joyful noise (in worship, celebration, etc—see Psalms 95, 98, 100) and he said noise couldn’t be joyful. Apparently “le bruit” has a negative connotation in French. So the French Bible I have reads, “Venez, crions notre joie en l’honneur de l’Eternel!” (Come, we are shouting our joy in honor of God, the Eternal!)- Psalm 95:1a.

I make plenty of mistakes when we’re in lessons, but I think the funniest was when I meant to say “she fed the baby” but I said “she ate the baby” (in the context of the story of Moses…oops!!). It just makes me think of the famous line… “You keep using that word. I don’t think it means what you think it means.” I'll push through the blunders, though. I won't give up on French--that would be

Tastes of Niger

Cooking with gas is an adventurous undertaking, but I’ve taken up the challenge of cooking from scratch with what I can find in the stores in Niamey. Each store has slightly different items in stock, and they may rotate their stock (like Aldi back home), so if you find something you like, you buy all of it. And produce is bought at local stands (along with eggs—better prices from the fruit stand guy). I am also dairy-, gluten-, and soy-free (6 days out of 7), corn-free, plus I don’t eat onions due to migraines, so there’s a lot of careful planning behind all of my cooking. Since I spend a good deal of time on it, I thought I'd write about it!

During my first week in Niamey, I adapted one of my favorite recipes, a one-pot recipe for keema aloo (Indian beef and potatoes) to make it with chicken. Here is a link to the recipe on AllRecipes, a fun app/website I use to find new things (I like their ingredient search feature- just type in what you find in your cabinet/fridge, and it will generate recipes for you).

This week I used the “More with Less Cookbook” to try a new recipe: coconut rice. It is my new favorite! With my first serving, I added fresh mango and cashews, and for the second, I added canned beets (yes, I love beets) and cashews. YUM!

COCONUT RICE

Heat 2 Tbsp oil or butter in heavy saucepan over low heat. Add ½ cup chopped onion or 2 Tbsp minced garlic, 3 whole cloves, 3 cinnamon sticks, and 3 bay leaves. Sauté until onions/garlic are browned but not burnt; add and fry for a few seconds- ¼ tsp ground turmeric and ¼ tsp salt. Quickly add 1 cup uncooked rice and 2 cups coconut milk. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover, and cook for 30 minutes. Remove whole spices before serving.

I also love eating mangoes. Mangoes over rice, mangoes with yogurt, mango lassi, mangoes with chicken…I have fresh mango pineapple popsicles setting up in the freezer right now. Nowhere else on earth has better mangoes than Niger. I also eat peanuts in Niger, which my family will tell you is completely out of character; but the peanuts in Niger are also top-notch. I don’t know why.

Eating out has been a great experience so far. I love brochettes (beef kebabs, hold the onions) and fries, which are easy on the budget; and one of the local restaurants, Le Cabane, specializes in Lebanese food, and their hummus, falafel and baba ganoush are not to be missed. But the dangerous one is Namaste Indian Restaurant, because that’s within walking distance from my apartment. I had their butter chicken and I had to bring leftovers home! And don't forget dessert at LA Fondakayan: Nutella crepes! This was stuffed with "the works": honey, pistachios, bananas, and Nutella!

Finally, I have a new favorite drink: peach-raspberry syrup in water over ice (it’s 105 degrees; I have 4 or 5 ice cube trays filled at all times).

Stormy wanted to add that he’s not complaining about the new diet. He gets chicken or beef with rice, broth and carrots (my homemade version of dog food…there’s only 2 types of dog food I’ve seen in stores, and they’re not grain free). But sometimes mom lets him visit his friend at the convenience store, and then he gets a muffin as a special treat!

Bienvenue en Niamey

Stormy and I arrived in Niger as planned on May 30^th, with all of our luggage. Stormy protested being in his carrier for the 8.5-hour flight to Paris…apparently 5 hours is his limit. We are settling into our new home-away-from-home, our 1-bedroom apartment in Niamey. 

We live on the 2^nd story of a 4-unit complex. I have been busy unpacking, and Stormy has been getting over jet lag and adjusting to the heat. (You’d think he would offer to help with all these bags!) I’ll admit it has been challenging, with major power outages during our first 48 hours. After 2 nights of sleeping with wet towels on us, we’ve made it through the last few nights with power. And power = air conditioning! WOOHOO!

I’ve already accomplished some major things, like cooking eggs and rice and chicken on the stovetop (gas range)! And washing laundry (seriously, mom!). And hooking up the wifi! And I take Stormy for walks outside our compound to get to know the neighborhood, so we’ve befriended some of the kids on our block. At first they were afraid of him, but now they like to greet him and pet him.

the friendly kids

the unfriendly kids

There is a mosque within a stone’s throw from our front gate, so I hear the call to prayer when I’m at home and it reminds me to pray, too. I went to the tailor last week with some fabric and expect to pick up my first outfit today! I also walked to the market at the Stadium (le Stade) and found a shirt that will go with my black skirt in cooler weather. On Friday night I attended my first French film (okay, it was dubbed): SOLO, A Star Wars Story, which of course I saw with some awesome friends at home just before leaving. It was worth seeing it again! The cinema here is brand new, and has both an outdoor area like a drive-in, and an indoor stadium complete with air-conditioning.

Me, Gina and Crystal (fellow SIM workers) at the cinema

On Saturday I wasn’t feeling well, so I took it easy. On Sunday I attended a French/Hausa worship service in the morning, and an English service at Sahel Academy at night. Everyone welcomed me warmly. The morning church was an open-air event. Then I accompanied the church members to visit a sister whose young husband (maybe 40) passed away unexpectedly on Friday. All of us women sat quietly with her as the pastor talked to her—it reminded me of sitting shiva, like Job’s friends did (before they opened their big mouths!). The church will look into providing for her needs and supporting her 3 small children, since her family is unwilling to support her. Please keep her in your prayers.

I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the range of things available at grocery stores in Niamey (last year I was in Galmi, a rural area where “stores” don’t exist). There is cheese, and Nutella, and ground beef, and potato chips, and I found a strawberry sorbet I can eat (I’m gluten-, corn-, and dairy-free)! Unfortunately, after suffering another long power outage, I had to throw away the spoiled beef and I was left with sorbet soup… but we are surviving! I even ate falafel at a local restaurant that specializes in Lebanese food, and I learned that the Indian restaurant is within walking distance… dangerous! This week I will start to replace the borrowed furniture in my apartment with my very own, and finish unpacking, and get a second air conditioner installed. I will start language classes this Thursday!

walking through the market at le Stade

Prayer Requests:

•           For a good balance of introvert time, time with God, and time with people
•           To quickly learn basic French phrases so I can develop friendships with neighbors
•           For no more power cuts
•           For physical stamina