mbembe kiri

Mbembe kiri is how one says hello in Ewondo, and also the only thing that I remember from an impromptu language lesson with mama. That was another thing that illicited a lot of laughter, when I excitedly asked my host mother to teach me some Ewondo.
It appears that my designated chores will be to do dished, which I am apparently really good at! Hah. That and frying plaintains. Helping out around the house makes me feel instantly like more of the family, but my role is still kind of awkward. The family hierarchy is very different from American families, I don't know where I fit in. I'm sometimes like one of the children, sometimes like one of the adults, but always an outsider. I honestly forget how much I stand out here. I forget until I see another white person and then it's like, "Shit! I stand out THAT much?" Like yesterday I went to two market with my host mother, and only saw one other white person.

Everyone told me that I would be harrassed a lot, but so far the most I've been hit on is by my two little host brothers (yah, the boy that I thought wasnt in my family is, and hes like 7, and jorban is about 5), and only in the way that they giggle and run to tell eachother that I've gotten home. The worst I really get on the street is, "La Blanche! La Blanche!" and the occasional random hand hold.

The weirdest thing about Yaounde so far, is the obsession with American pop culture. Michelle's favorite movie is Hannah Montana, and her favorite musical artist is Lady Gaga. They watch a lot of Disney Channel shows in french, and play a lot of American music videos. Most restaurents and internet cafes have TVs blasting American music too. It's a sign of the times to hear "Party in the US" play on repeat when you live in Sub-Saharan Africa, or to realize that your host siblings know more about contemporary American pop culture than you do.

I spend so much time studying globalization in terms of economy and politics, but I suppose I just didn't really believe how far global culture has spread. Or maybe I should just say American culture.

There's a few random things that I want to explain about Yaounde:
Its called the city of seven hills because it, well, spreads across seven hills. I think it's beautiful, if you can look past the trash and smog.
Crossing your legs is considered an attempt to be superior, and should not be done!
It's totally okay to pick your nose in public, even when you're talking to someone (sweet!)
Randomly smiling at people is bad, because people will think you're fake. It's called the American smile, and it's much better to just say hello.
Yaounde is split into different neighborhoods. I live in Tsinga, which is next to Bastos, which is where our office base is.

NEXT WEEKEND WE GO TO A GORRILA SANCTUARY!

I've gotta go. My time is nearly up, and I should go back home so my family doesn't worry.

Bye!

Oh, and send me some snail mail! My address is on my profile.