A very long entry while i wait for photos to upload

July 21, 2006

Below are some random notes I have taken over the past few days. Finding electricity and internet is quite a challenge and I am once again at the CRS compound where they have a generator for a few hours a day. Just a few notes on the blog: I do not have time to proofread since I am usually fighting against the clock where the electricity is suddenly turned off. Also I have not re-read the blog and may repeat myself. One last note: many of you are responding through email – the beauty of a blog is that you can post comments on the blog for others to respond to.

Random thoughts about toilets: When I was taking my shower this morning – cold water from the river in a bucket spilled over my head, I was thinking about when I moved to Paris in 1978 and I had no shower, but only a sink where I used to sponge myself. There was also a Turkish toilet down the hall. I thought about how quant and old fashioned this all was. Compared to the conditions here – there is no running water in people’s huts and no flushing toilets – just holes in the ground. Only the very few people who have money for generators (mostly foreign organizations) which they can use for a few hours a day. The good thing is that I am seeing use of solar panels on a small scale. I hope that solar is the way that they will go.

I am getting used to the smells of rotting garbage, feces, urine, mixed with roasted goat. I will miss it someday.

Getting Paid

The men were sitting around this morning talking about how incredible it is that soldiers are getting paid for the first time ever. They are receiving paychecks for May and June and some of them do not know what to do. There has been an “outbreak” of drunken soldiers who have already wasted all of their paychecks on booze. I’m still not sure where anyone gets money from around here or how they buy food. No one has been paid for years and the market has only been around for about a year. Until then, Yei was filled with soldiers and military vehicles. It is quite exciting to see the vibrancy of the city. Though it looks like a muddy shanty town, it is building up slowly and there is so much hope. Soon, the garbage can may come into existence here. One throws everything on the ground until the piles are really big and then they burn them eventually. Sidenote: in Kampala, Uganda there are no garbage cans for reasons of security – bombs could be placed in them. Sidenote is now over…………..In Cuba, there was no litter, but that was because there was nothing to throw on the ground. Here, they are starting to get products packaged in plastic and the streets are beginning to get filled with all sorts of garbage. Though I hear that Yei is clean compared to area that I am going to. I will be leaving my computer here in Yei,so will probably not be posting for about two weeks. As I head up the Nile to Bor and Malek, there will be no electricity or internet and they say that the moisture there can kill any machine – unless the crocodiles eat it.



I am Chaalee Odla – the White Dinka

The sound of “Kawaja” greets me – especially from children. For some I am the first white person that they have ever seen. The older ones approach me and shake me hand. The younger ones are scared until I smile and they come over too. They love to touch the hair on my arms. I showed them my hairy chest and they couldn’t believe that there are people who are just like animals with so much hair. I guess, I’ll never get a job here as a body model. The wonderful thing is that in the area near the compound, the sound of Kawaja has begun to change to the sound of “Chaaaaly” “Halo Chaaaly”…………Some call me Cha-less as well. They are precious and welcoming.

No Smoking

It’s interesting that with all the chaos and lack of rules, there is no smoking indoors anywhere. There are no street signs, or any driving related signs, but here are “No Smoking” signs in all indoor facilities. It could be that everything is covered in bone dry straw…..hmmmm….just a thought.


All we are saying, is give peace a chance.

It has been very eye-opening to see the work of the UN in action. I have seen the peace keepers, and the trucks bringing supplies. Yesterday I met with a Sudanese man who showed me the CPA –the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. It is incredibly detailed and based very closely on the US Constitution. I was thrilled and amazed to read it. If only the north with follow it. There are rumblings that the North is already breaking some of the agreed terms. If you notice, I changed the name of the blog to South Sudan. It really is a separate country. English is the chosen language here, whereas Arabic is the official language in the North. Islam and sharia law rule the north, whereas Christianity (with a very broad interpretation – i.e. polygamy is allowed) and paganism are the norm. I always carry a copy of the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution with me. I have let some of the peacekeepers read it. They are proud that their Constitution has so much in common with ours. They are in awe of democracy in America. Remember, there has never been an election in South Sudan.

The White Doll

There have been many comments about the white doll that the girls were playing with. I have not seen another doll anywhere. Toys are a rare commodity and kids seem to just amuse themselves with whatever is laying (lying?) around. This doll was somehow brought to them and I don’t think that they see it as an ideal. I will ask about it…….

People have been fascinated by my tan. They see the tan lines made by my sandals and by my shirt. They’re threatening to begin calling me the Red Dinka.


Notes from yesterday:

I know you want pictures but it is very hard them. In order for them to be uploaded to the blog, there must be about fifteen minutes of uninterrupted internet service. This happens every so often. Yesterday I tried for hours. I will now try loading one photo at a time.

Animals, food, and stress

I am sitting here at the compound and goats are coming by and eating the grass, a mother chicken with her hens are meandering by, ducks are looking for puddles to wade in…..the line between animal and person is quite fluid…..for a city boy this is a real treat….lizards, snails the size of rats, huge swine, a monkey or two………..today I was offered dry white ants as a dessert. The man I was with declined, so I felt that I could do. Ah, lost experiences……………..If they were fried, I would tried…….I swear…….really……….By the way, food has been great – not very spicy – er, actually quite bland. No vinegar or garlic. I think I have found my gastronomical heaven. I have begun to venture into buying food cooked in the street and it’s been amazing. There’s a Kenyan specialty called Tzarfati – it’s like a crepe with egg……….i could live on it……..My stomach has been great. I have even begun to drink local water through the filter that I bought. I think that Africa has been the cure for all the stomach problems I have had over the past ten years. Actually what is amazing is that I am sleeping on a “mattress” that is lumpy and crooked - while at home I sleep on a Tempur-Pedic super duper great-for-your-back mattress. My back has never felt better. No tendonitis, no allergies, not a single headache. Even my tooth with the nerve damage has not bothered me. Stress……it’s all about stress. Take it away and the body is so

In Sight

I also notice that very few people have glasses and at first I thought that it was some sort of natural selection good eye survival concept. But it turns out that many cannot see well and that glasses are prohibitively expensive. Fortunately there are very cars and few people with licenses. Let’s hope that eye care improves before everyone begins driving on these roads.

Women are Equal - NOT

As we sit around all day, there are all these men who have nothing to do. Some drink tea and others play domino. Others just sit around in silence. Until last year, all these men were soldiers in the civil war and now there is nothing of them to .do. The government has yet to get their affairs in order and begin to divide up the tasks of nation building. There are men ready to work. But for now, they do absolutely nothing, especially since they are not allowed to do any of the shopping, cleaning, or taking care of their kids. The women are busy with all of this – carrying heavy jugs of water on their heads and it is forbidden for a man to help. This will change, though many of the Dinka believe that it can never change – it is the way that is has always been. The men are kings. They sit around and wait to be served. The food magically appears and the dirty plates magicially disappear into a hut that they never visit – the kitchen hut. There is also a helplessness on my part and a dependence on others, especially the women. I cannot make myself something to eat or wash my clothes, or make a cup of coffee. But, as Chen, my bodyguard said today: Women are equal. And my response was, yes, they are totally equal except that they have absolutely no rights.: “Ah, a minor point.” He responded.

I am learning some Dinka words and I feel like a little kid. There is no word for “please”………They are thrilled when I ask for food in Dinka “Bay – Schween” and greet them with “Goodvall arrette.”……………

I walked around town today and I feel at home. People recognize me and come up and greet me. They are so gentle and friendly. Only an occasional drunk will come by and hassle me. Otherwise everyone is honest and kind.

Every night there is noise coming from the outdoor movie theater. They have a generator and huge speakers and the sound of a kung fu movie is heard from everywhere. In my mind, I pictured something like a drive-in theater. In reality, it is a crowd gathered around a 24’ TV with speakers attached to it.

Moving up in the Dinka world:

I have gone through various stages of greeting. First the simple hand shake. Then the handshake, soul handshake, handshake routine. Now, the elders are putting their right hand on my left shoulder – and I do the same. This is a sign of respect and honor. I am honored. I truly am.

At the compound, people throw things on the ground and the women come and them up at the end of the day and sweep the clay floors with straw brooms with no handle. I would like to introduce the concept of the trash can to make it easier for them. I will see how this is greeted.

Sex and AIDS

There is no education about AIDS here because sex is simply not discussed. There is really not much sexuality here. Women walk barebreasted feeding their children and no one pays any mind. Men never check out women. It is forbidden for women to know anything about sex until their marriage night when they are told never to refuse anything their husbands want. Men have girlfriends, I am told,but it is not discussed. They can be fined cows and women can be jailed for this offense. Also brothers may beat the man. Also, it is okay for a man to hit a disobient wife. I have not seen a comdom being sold, though they may be available behind the counter. I will check.

Wise words from a veteran of the Foreign Service

So, I must give thanks to Lawrence Taylor, Lori’s father, who talked to me about what makes a country successful. He compared two countries – one with natural resources and one without out. Actually, he compared two islands. One would assume that the one with all the resources would be the more successful. But then he used Japan and Indonesia as examples. The moral of the story is that what makes a country successful is education, leadership, and the will of the people. I have been talking about this to the Dinka and they say that Mr. Lawrence (not sure it’s spelled with a “w: or a “u”) is a very wise man. His incredible daughter should be here to represent him and be with me.





Another short post: Photos here are of the Dinka with their cows, a view of a typical road in Yei. Being a driver here is considered a great talent - to able to navigate the floods, holes, hills, valleys and everchanging roadscape. The lone bull in the picture is the one. He doesn't realize that he will feed many people tomorrow. I looked out of my hut after hearing some strange sounds and i said to myself (excuse the language that goes on in my head): "There's a fucken' bull outside my hut." I repeated that a few times until i realized that this was the bull we were waiting for - the one who will be slaughtered in our honor tomorrow. I'm trying not to get too close to the bull and develop an emotional attachment. I really want to tell him to run for his life. Growing up in Brooklyn, meat came from the supermarket or the butcher - neatly packaged and bearing no resesmblence to the actual animal. The fact that the meat came from a live animal was an abstract concept to me. If I needed anything to take me from the abstract to the concrete, this bull, along with the chickens they have been killing and cooking - oh yeah and the goat the other night..........will do it for me. Yes, i finally understand where meat comes from. Other photos are from the kitchen of an Ethiopian "restaurant" we went to yesterday. And finally a photo of a sign warning of mines.

I met a relative “brother” of Aduei in Kampala who is trying to become a doctor. In a later e mail, he tells me that he has passed his exams and dedicates that to me. Here is an excerpt from his first letter to me. I is to give you an idea of the Dinka culture – the assumption of family, the calling of every close relative “brother or sister” and their respect:

It takes a great deal of humility and courage for a person from a far to come to a relatively insecure place, besides sacrificing your time with your family and your resources. Your abilty to cope up with new way of doing things is amazing.
It is my sincere hope that you will enjoy staying here atleast for the few days you will be with the DINKA people.Sudan is such adiverse country.
Your smile offers a lot to those who have little to give .You surely have given us an opportunity to let AMERICANS know what the DINKA are like, their way of life et cetra.
THANKS TO MY SISTER FOR COMING WITH YOU. ENJOY HERE COMPANY AND THAT OF OUR PEOPLE!
JUST HAVE FUN!
Your friend
Chuor de Garang Alier.