Chad - the journey begins...

September 8, 2007 - N'Djaména
Hello from Chad! I have arrived safely and am trying to get used to the paralyzing heat that is sucking the energy out of my limbs... I was told yesterday that this was cool compared to the wet season which begins in March and hear this: temperatures rise up to 50 degrees Celsius!!! CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT? I repeat: 50 degrees! I can't even imagine. Apparently Chad is one of the hottest places on this planet. Welcome to Africa...

So where do I begin? This place is definitely something else. Nothing I have seen so far during my travels compares to this. The streets are packed with people and motorbikes, cars honking, men pushing carts… its so busy that you can’t drive more than 20 kms per hour, and there is not a single traffic light in the capital city so people are crossing wherever and if you don’t know how to drive slalom, you shouldn’t drive cause you’ll inevitably hit someone. When you drive a little off the main road, you see garbage dumps the size of swimming pools, where children and skinny goats dig for food... The air smells like burning garbage and diesel, and there is military. But among all this exists such vibrancy that you could think this place was as safe as any town. Despite the poverty, women are draped in the most beautiful colours - so brilliant, so beautiful. And their white smiles are like sunshine. Yesterday I saw a family of 5 riding on one motorcycle, that’s normal.

I am still in N'Djaména (the capital city) because all the UN charter flights to Abéché (where I will be stationed for the next 6 months) are full, so I have to wait until Wednesday. I felt a little anxious at first because I'm staying in a hotel where they serve neither lunch nor supper; and I can't go out on my own because it’s not exactly safe for a young blond chick, so I depend on people to accompany me. Luckily, I've met most of the CARE staff in the city, who are all so lovely, and I've been able to tag along with them every day. I've become friends with a girl named Jennifer who is originally from Peterborough and absolutely delightful. Tomorrow we’re going on a little road trip to a park north west of the city.

Yesterday afternoon I visited a camp that CARE has set up for child soldiers. In case you don’t know what exactly that means, they are children that were taken from their homes – sometimes forcibly – by rebel groups who train them to use weapons, and in Chad’s case, fight the government. The history behind all this fighting is so complicated that I won’t even attempt to explain because I know very little myself. There are between 7,000 and 10,000 child soldiers in Chad fighting for various groups. The camp I visited yesterday has 100 former child soldiers that CARE brought up to the capital city to reintegrate them into society. Some were only three years old when the rebel groups recruited them… it’s so sad. These kids have yet to experience what true childhood is. Not all of them were engaged in combat, some were used as cooks, cleaners, etc. It’s the older boys who had to fight. I looked at a few drawings a child had made of his previous life down south. They were sketches of army trucks and guns. Some of these children don’t sleep well at night because of nightmares. They get psychosocial support here from CARE thank goodness, so that helps. But despite their past, they have beautiful faces and smiles, and I hope they will be able to resolve their internal conflict and become innocent again – and happy.

We have interesting creatures here – big lizards with yellow bodies and blue heads and tails – and iguanas, and they all run around like the squirrels do in Ottawa. I have to be careful not to step on them! And frogs who are so tiny, that you actually do step on them because they blend in so nicely with the earth. Some are as small as the nail on your pinky!

The food in N’Djamena is good. We have lots of fish here because of the river that separates Chad from Cameroun. The best fish so far is le capitaine – it has the texture of bocconcini. They serve it with rice and green beens. During the dry season you can walk over the riverbed to Cameroun, but the river is very high at this time of the year because we’re nearing the end of the wet season. Malaria is rampant, so I’m very happy to be on Malarone. My feet are burning from bites!

I cut my finger terribly yesterday while looking for my hair brush in my toiletries bag. Instead of my hair brush, I came out empty handedly with blood gushing out of my finger after slicing half my Fingerkuppe off with my razor. I had to put five bandades on my finger, which got drenched after five minutes and then change the bandades every hour. So typing is going very slowly right now because I can’t use my index finger.

I think I will be very happy here, although times ahead in Abeche won’t be easy. There is really nothing at all, and on top of that the curfew is 8 p.m.! Not a single restaurant either… I’m glad I brought so many books. And I brought knitting needles, too, so I could teach my house keepers to knit, but I forgot to bring wool… maybe they sell some here in N’Djamena. Although, with this heat, I’m not sure if anyone even knows what wool is! We’ll see.

I like the CARE staff and feel very lucky to have this opportunity to work with these people. I look forward to learning more about the country and its history even though it has never known a period of peace. But I know that even among such grief are beautiful stories of survival and courage, and it is those people who will bring their country back onto its feet.

Lots of love to you. I hope you are all well. I feel lucky to have such wonderful friends all over the world. Will write more soon…
Xoxo, Anne