Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Around the Village

Some neighbor kids. This looks out into the courtyard in front of my house. Chicken coop and small lumber pile on left, clothes line for laundry on the right. and a typical mud brick home straight ahead in the background. A typical picture of a compound in Togo.
A spider I found in my shower. The biggest I have ever seen, notice it compared to the other spiders to the left of the pencil. Enormous (leg span about the size of my hand)! This sits directly above my head while I bathe myself, which is a comforting thought.
My village market on a non-market day. Every Tuesday, this is filled with hundreds of people selling goods out of the little grass huts.
A child wanders through the empty market.
The village mosque. While predominantly Christian, there is a good size Muslim population in my village, mostly people who come from Northern Togo, where most of the Muslim people of Togo live.
Village dispensary/medical clinic. Where villagers go for minor medical problems. For serious medical problems, one must go to a city hospital which is a few hours drive from my village. Unfortunately, some people can't afford the city hospitals or the travel away from home.
My next door neighbors, Mathias and Marie-Claire. A school teacher and a seamstress. The coolest Togolese people I know and I eat most of my meals with them.
The dog, Suru. My neighbors bought her a few months ago. (This one isn't for eating, this is for petting)
Felix, the man in the middle, and his family. A man I work with in village and helps me out a lot. His daughter Marina, the one holding the radio, is one of my favorite kids in village. Very adorable.
The Catholic church. Probably the nicest building in village, it was built by Italian missionaries a number of years ago.
The inside of the church.
My neighbor Grace. She is terrified of me.
I'm getting a little closer, she's getting a little nervous.
I get to close and she freaks out and cries.
Some kids at a village funeral. Funerals here are not somber affairs, but rather weekend long celebrations with music and dancing.
An old man banging the drums at the funeral.
Some old women at the funeral who were ecstatic to have their pictures taken, despite their solemn expressions. The fact that they can see the little picture in the camera just moments after I take it blows their minds.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Beautiful pictures! I can't wait to experience Africa. I just bought my airline tickets for June! Mom

Anonymous said...

Granty,
I am so proud of you! Thank you for doing what you do for others.
-Jeffry