Why do the guards ask me for food every day? Don't they get paid?
Why does everyone here assume white people can't walk anywhere or carry anything? Or that they really want to buy the men's shoes, fabric, Mentos, converter plugs or kids' shorts they are selling?
Why did they build open sewers alongside the roads?
Why is it so humid that I'm dripping with sweat at 9am after 3 minutes outside?
Why do you need to respond to strangers in the street who see your skin color and declare immediately they want to be your friend, at the risk of being called rude if you don't? As soon as I use the H-word they say they want to marry my friends from my country - all pretense of friendship gone.
Why is it okay for people to address you as "White!" As in, "Obroni! How are you?"
Why - this is absolutely baffling to me - do kids and even adults get such a kick out of one single word exchanged with a white person? Do they go home and tell their families about it? Is it like touching Johnny Depp?
What if I just want to walk somewhere and not get bothered, no matter how cheerful they are?
Why does everyone here assume white people can't walk anywhere or carry anything? Or that they really want to buy the men's shoes, fabric, Mentos, converter plugs or kids' shorts they are selling?
Why did they build open sewers alongside the roads?
Why is it so humid that I'm dripping with sweat at 9am after 3 minutes outside?
Why do you need to respond to strangers in the street who see your skin color and declare immediately they want to be your friend, at the risk of being called rude if you don't? As soon as I use the H-word they say they want to marry my friends from my country - all pretense of friendship gone.
Why is it okay for people to address you as "White!" As in, "Obroni! How are you?"
Why - this is absolutely baffling to me - do kids and even adults get such a kick out of one single word exchanged with a white person? Do they go home and tell their families about it? Is it like touching Johnny Depp?
What if I just want to walk somewhere and not get bothered, no matter how cheerful they are?
posted from Bloggeroid
When I lived in Tunisia I struggled to grab a few minutes alone by going on a walk every day. No such luck, the kids always found me. And if I tried to read a book in a cafe, that didn't work either. Privacy seems to be more of an American thing...
ReplyDeleteI totally understand! I was proposed to as soon as I was off the plane in Senegal and have been followed by my fair share of vendors, beggars, and those that believe Americans can certainly share their "wealth?!" with others. Unfortunately, after awhile you stop meeting people's gaze or choose new routes because it becomes difficult. I wish I had answers to your "why?" but the answers are likely very complicated and include issues like USAID, cultural history, and the media.
ReplyDelete