Khartoum: the Language

Sudan is only the second country I've been to where English isn't the official or dominant language.  The first would be Mozambique, which speaks Portuguese.  Not only is Portuguese a lot closer to English than Arabic is, it is also very similar to Spanish, which I've studied.  So living in an Arabic-speaking country is definitely a completely new experience!

Even before I arrived, I tried to learn the alphabet a little.  After 6 days in Sudan, I can only read 8 different letters, and I don't even know all their forms (Arabic letters have slight changes for beginning a word, middle of a word, and ending a word).  I've had more success learning Arabic numerals, which are easy to practice reading because they are on all license plates with the English equivalent beneath.  So I can read all 10 numbers now.

My vocabulary is probably about 20 words; I can do simple greetings, a few question words, and several numbers.  However, quite a few people here do know some English, so at this point, I can get by with little Arabic.  But it's the best feeling to manage to communicate my needs to someone who speaks no English, by pointing and using random Arabic words I think might be related.  I've had to do this a few times when my amjad driver doesn't know my exact destination, and neither do I.

There is a surprising amount of English here, though.  Many products have an English translation on the back, like my three water bottles here (though I'm displaying the Arabic sides).

At some point, I'd like to start taking formal Arabic lessons, but I'll wait until I know my schedule better and hear different perspectives about different colleges.

Khartoum: Expectations

Khartoum is definitely not what I expected.  Sure, it's still Africa, but I find few similarities between here and Malawi, or even the rest of Southern Africa that I've been to.  As I mentioned before, I was surprised that people here drive on the right side.  Here are some other things that surprised me:

Sudanese Arabs are very dark-skinned.  For many, I can't tell the difference between Arabs and Blacks except for their hair texture.  I'm still confused about this; I've read that most Sudanese are Arab, but I guess they don't fit my silly stereotype of Arabs.  South Sudanese are very distinctive, though, because they are really tall and really dark-skinned, and I've seen quite a few.

Continuing the ethnic theme, there are very few Whites here.  Beyond meeting 6 Whites through friends, I've probably only seen about 5 out in the street--and I've been in the street a lot.  In Malawi, we called these "whitey-sightings."  Whitey-sightings are definitely fewer in the 2-million-plus Khartoum than in my humble 30 thousand home-town of Mangochi!

I have only seen 2 fuel stations.  I only started looking out for them on Friday, but it's a distinct contrast to Malawi, where they feature prominently in cities.  I've also not seen any supermarkets or malls, though I'm told there are at least 2 supermarkets.  Shops here seem to be either small kiosks, specialized shops (like electronics), or restaurants.

In the bustling metropolis of Blantyre (Malawi), the sidewalks roll up around 8:00, and in Mangochi, the streets are empty at 6:30.  Here, the sun doesn't go down until 7:30, and people are up and about for hours later.  I suppose it never completely quiets down, but I'd guess it's mostly quiet by 1 am.  Not only are people out late, shops are still open and you can still catch public transport after midnight!

The toilets here are somewhat dirtier than Malawi, and all are squatties, even in nice places!  But the worst part is that they don't have toilet paper, because Muslims wash with water.  Toilet paper has become a precious commodity to me, and I have to take it with me everywhere.

There are many things I love about Khartoum, some of which I've mentioned in previous posts: the public transport, friendliness of Sudanese, AC in my bedroom, later sunset, and the big city feel.  I also like the prices--some things, for sure, are expensive, like transport (much more than in Malawi), but other things are really cheap (in my estimation), like cellphone credit, Internet, and electricity.  Food is comparable to prices in Malawi, I think, which is expensive compared to the US.

I also love the generosity.  I've already learned so much about what real generosity is: it doesn't say "Do I have enough for myself? Then I can give whatever I have extra."  It's absolutely refreshing to stop being selfish and thinking of myself first.  I've always wondered, how much do I take away from saving to give?  And this experience has added valuable thoughts on the subject.

Of course, there are also things I need to adjust to (that's polite for "I don't really like it"), but as you'll see, they're all minor.

Feeling stuffed.  I'm used to cleaning my plate.  But when someone else fills your plate, it's impossible to eat everything.  So I'm trying to learn the right balance of polite acceptance and knowing my stomach's limits.

Water Intake.  Khartoum is very dry and hot, so I'm constantly reminded to drink lots of water, which I've tried to do.  For my first few days, I collected about 3 or 4 water bottles each day, because I refused to throw them out in the street.  It's an adjustment to drink so much.  Cold water doesn't stay cold for long, so I'm getting used to drinking lukewarm and water so hot it could be coming from the hot water tap!

Heat.  Need I even mention this?  Most of the time, the temperature is in the 90s or 100s Fahrenheit.  I don't actually mind the heat too much, which is mostly because I psyched myself up for it so much; I was actually prepared for it to be worse and for me to be miserable.

"Dress code."  Of course, the need to cover up exacerbates the heat.  Women are covered from ankle to wrist to face.  I can't recall seeing any female forearms, and most cover their necks.  At the same time, men wear long trousers and many also wear long-sleeved shirts.  So this is something that's a little bit annoying because it makes me hotter and I'm stuck wearing the same skirt most days (this is because trousers must be warn with very long shirts, and most of my shirts are normal-length).

in my Sudanese garb

On the other hand, women generally look really beautiful in attractively-matched scarves, long-sleeved shirts (often with a "Western" shirt on top), and floor-length skirts.

Sudanese flat.  The flat I'm sharing with Tanya is large, and has AC, a clothes-washer so I really can't complain.

Our flat is on the third floor of this building

my room

But even in Malawi, I lived in a Western house, so it's a bit of an adjustment living in an un-western house.  The kitchen is rather un-equipped, but that's always something I can work on!  On Friday I put my pictures up on my bedroom wall, and it's really becoming home.  I also love that our flat has a huge patio and that we live higher up.

view from our patio

Last but not least, I need to adjust to the discrimination against my dear toilet paper and learn to take it everywhere with me :)

Khartoum: the People

Sudan is the place to come if you want to experience generosity.  You will be blown away.  In my first three days, I was told I would shame people if I paid for my food or my transport.  So if I was ever with someone, I was not allowed to pay.  I'll have to see if I'll be allowed to pay after today!

I can't really say the same thing about amjad (minibus taxi) drivers.  If they know you are American and don't speak Arabic, they'll probably try to give you a higher price.  But my amjad driver today thought I was Sudanese!  Others have said I could pass for an Egyptian or Syrian--what do you know!

I've met so many lovely people.  I've been told many times "tell me if you ever need anything."  I am so blessed to have an incredible boss, Dr. Hala.  I haven't spent much time with her; but everyone has lots of good things to say about her.  She seems very responsible, very passionate about her job (promoting English learning), and very caring for her employees.  She doesn't want us to have to work too much or take on tasks we can't manage.  She started the English Language Institute (ELI) just last year.  Though it's under the University of Khartoum (UofK), it is self-sufficient and receives no money from the government, earning enough through "commercial teaching" to sponsor students and staff to take English courses for just 20 pounds ($4), as I understand.

When we visited a cellphone shop, the owner asked me what I wanted to drink and then went out to buy water for me.  Then he offered to trade cellphones with me; I could have one of his brand-new phones for my old simple Nokia scratched-up cellphone.  This was partly because of his relationship with Rami (who owns part of the cellphone shop, and who was with me that day).  A new cellphone?! Wow.  All I can say is, try to find somewhere that can beat Sudanese hospitality and generosity!

Later in the same day, Rami took me to his grandfather and uncle's house.  Most of the family (several adults and at least five young children) did not speak much English, but they kindly served me a huge meal.  I thought it was for Rami and I to share (a big plate with rice and Chinese greens; a salad with greens, red beet, tomatoes, etc; and two large buns), but it was just for me.  When I'd finished the rice and greens (lovely to eat something so delicious and so Malawian-like!), they brought out lots of beautiful juicy oranges and bananas.  I had to say I couldn't remember the last time I'd had such nice ripe oranges (2006?).  Of course, I couldn't eat everything, but they were very hospitable.  The little boys also practiced their English, asking "how old are you?" and "where are you from?"  I've chosen to say I'm from Malawi when I'm asked; after all, I've lived there for the majority of my life.  Rami's cousin was confused by my scarf over my hair: "Do you know about God?"

Khartoum: Transport

By the time I had been in Khartoum for 24 hours, I'd already experienced 4 out of the 5 most common forms of public transport, and most of them I'd taken two or three times.  The best form of transport, I've been told, is amjad. Amjad is a mini- minibus (about the length of a large sedan) with two rows in the back.  However, it is used like a taxi, with only one set of passengers, and the drivers take you straight to your destination.

I've also taken a minibus like the ones in Malawi with 3 or 4 rows.  These are called havla or hise, and they follow routes and pick up multiple passengers.  The bigger buses (like inter-city buses) are just called bas, and they are nice because they are often air-conditioned.  Lastly, I've taken a raksha, which is like a rickshaw.

The only other transport that I know of is a taxi.  Taxis are little yellow sedans, but I've been told they are more expensive and less comfortable than amjad (which doesn't make sense to me because they are smaller).

I was shocked on my first night to discover that Sudanese drive on the right side of the road.  Where does this come from?  French influence???  It took me awhile to notice, too.  You'd think it might have seemed strange to me that the amjad we took from the airport had it's passenger door on the right, and the driver sat on the left;  or that we then drove for 20 minutes on the right side of the road.  But I didn't notice until my second ride (this time on havla), when I saw another havla with a woman in the "driver's seat," and thought it was strange to have a woman driver.  Then I looked around and realized we were driving on the right side.

There are also lots and lots of cars here.

Most of the main streets have quite a few lanes, and they are filled with cars, but not so much that the traffic is bad.  It gives me the feeling that this is a prosperous city where most people have jobs and can afford transport, even if the distance is walkable.

Khartoum: the City and Weather

Instead of writing a chronological account of my first few days, I thought I'd write more topically.  As I said, Khartoum felt pretty hot those first moments, but it's the kind of heat that is just extra warm, not piercing hot.  That's the only way I can think to describe it.  I find that the heat is a lot more manageable than I'd expected.  I'm blessed to have a powerful ceiling fan and air conditioning in my bedroom, which helps my heat-sensitive laptop to function.  Thursday night, my housemate Tanya and I ran out of electricity units, so we didn't have electricity until she went to buy some in the morning.  But, Elhamdu li-Allah (praise to God), I was able to sleep fine that whole night, and only woke up once.  Friday I experienced my first sandstorm.  Everything went hazy and dust filled the air, and I was grateful for my scarf to keep most of the dirt off my face, but my clothes were pretty dusty by the time I got home.

The best way I can describe the city is to say that it's like Limbe (Malawi) with a mixture of Blantyre City Centre and Blantyre market (also Malawi) times 10, because it's so much bigger.  Most of the city that I've seen is just streets and streets of little shops.  To me, the city centre doesn't seem to end; it's like Limbe 10 times bigger.  For the most part, buildings look old (I think it's because of the dust), so it was neat to pass "Gaddafi's Egg," the beautiful hotel built by the Libyans and several other large pretty buildings.  The roads are really nice, and many of them are 3 or 4 lane, one way (as in 6 or 8 lanes across).  Most of them are paved, and I've noticed very few potholes.

The first time I saw the Nile from the ground was yesterday, Friday, when I went to Omdurman, across the White Nile from Khartoum, and Bahri, across the Blue Nile from Khartoum.

It was also the first time I saw vegetation.  I'm not sure, but there appears to be a lot more vegetation in Bahri and even Omdurman than in Khartoum.  And we drove to Tutti Island, which is basically a farming area between the three cities.  From there we got a ferry, but the sandstorm had started and dusk had fallen so it was pretty hard to see.  In the background of this picture, you can faintly see Gaddafi's Egg (it's egg-shaped).

Blog

I'm finally jumping on the bandwagon and creating a blog.  I'm not really sure how I feel about it yet.