I have received several schedule requests, i.e. what do you do during the day and when can I call you? Ask, and ye shall (eventually) receive. Below, you will find a (more or less stable) weekly schedule and a peek into ma vie quotidienne.
Please note, I am 4 hours LATER than U.S. EST. Which means if you are drinking your morning coffee, I am well into a Mauritanian afternoon. Likewise, if you call me after work, it’s nearly midnight here. This is of course ok, since I’m an attention whore and will always accept a long distance hug from the States.
Typical week in Atar:
Note the percentages of available. As in, if you call me at 1pm EST M-F (0%), I am not going to pick up. However, if you call at the same time Sat or Sun (80%), I’m there.
Typical weekday in Atar:
| 07:30am | curse alarm, hit snooze |
| 07:39 | curse and inadvertently disable alarm |
| 09:40 | curse myself, frantically dress, run to school |
| 10:00 | spend recess begging teachers to environmentally integrate lessons |
| drink tea | |
| explain for the nth time: I am neither shebiba (beautiful) nor married | |
| drink tea, drink zrig (milk drink) | |
| drink tea | |
| discuss upcoming projects (i.e. why they need cash) | |
| 11:00 | run across town dodging requests* |
| drop by the City School Administration office, schmooze | |
| 12 noon | fight 56k modem, attempt to check email |
| check in with sitemates, giggle a bit | |
| 01:30pm | eat chebugen (fish and rice) at Hawa’s restaurant |
| 02:15 | forget that classes at the college just let out |
| try to dodge hordes of twittering girls, fail, agree to dine with their families | |
| 03:00 | visit second school, discuss upcoming projects (i.e. why they need cash) |
| 04:00 | visit third school, discuss … (you get the point) |
| 04:40 | give thanks that I only work at three schools |
| run across town dodging requests* | |
| 05:00 | teach English class |
| 06:00 | try to end English class |
| continue answering eager students’ questions | |
| 06:10 | try to end English class |
| 06:13 | lock door, walk across town, while answering English students questions |
| 06:35 | arrive at French Alliance for class, breathless and covered in chalk |
| giggle with sitemate, look up scandalous phrases, learn some français | |
| 07:40 | begin counting down minutes till dinner, fight hunger pangs |
| 08:00 | catch up with French Alliance profs after class, fight hunger pangs |
| 08:10 | stop by Senegalese boutique to chat (mix of French, English, Arabic, Wolof) |
| 08:15 | eat beans or cous cous at Hawa’s restaurant |
| 01:30am | wonder why I’m still watching Family Guy with the PCVs |
| 02:00 | get a male PCV to walk me 4+ (dark and slightly ominous) blocks home |
| 02:15 | late night shower |
| climb into sand covered bed | |
| fall asleep trying to listen to books on tape |
Typical Saturday in Atar:
| 07:30 | curse alarm, hit snooze |
| 07:39 | curse alarm, hit snooze |
| 07:48 | curse alarm, hit snooze |
| 07:57 | curse alarm, hit snooze |
| 08:06 | curse myself, frantically dress, run to school |
| 08:30 | Ecoclub with kids from Ecole 6 |
| 10:00 | run across town dodging requests* |
| 10:30 | Ecoclub with kids from Ecole 8 |
| 12 noon | run across town, fight hunger pangs |
| 01:00pm | eat chebugen (fish and rice) at Hawa’s restaurant |
| 01:30 | prepare English lesson for tomorrow |
| 02:15 | visit Nouha |
| consume gossip, giggles, tea and zrig | |
| 04:00 | activities at the Girls’ Mentoring Center |
| 06:00 | work (maybe) and laugh (definitely) at bureau with sitemates |
| 06:40 | visit a Mauritanian family for a bland dinner, undeserved gifts, and tea x3 |
| fight aural ADHD; listen to TV, radio, and conversation simultaneously | |
| tactfully avoid discussions of politics | |
| reluctantly engage in discussions of marital status, children, biological clocks | |
| postpone wife covering my hands and feet with henna (“maybe next time”) | |
| midnight | wonder where the time went |
| stumble home feeling gorged, exhausted but strangely integrated | |
| late night shower, pass out listening to shiny new iPod |
* Running across town occurs more frequently than noted above, usually due the fact that I am perpetually overbooked and thus late. Common impediments to my (un)timely arrival include the following gems:
- “Nouakchott?!?!!” [i.e. I drive a taxi, would you like a ride to the capital?]
- “I have this pain in my [eye, lung, head, testicle]...”
- “Are you married?”
- “Are you looking for a man?”
- “What do you do at night? Aren’t you lonely?”
- “Why don’t you shake men’s hands?”
- “Why don’t you wear a veil?”
- “Madame-HA!?!?!!” [i.e. White people are so interesting, would you wave at me?]
- “Monsieur, monsieur!!!” [i.e. I don’t know gender agreement, wave at me anyway?]
- “Pretty [skirt, earrings, glasses, pen, bag]. Can I have it?”
- “You are beautiful. I just want to be your friend. You are so beautiful.”
- “Give me [money, medicine, your phone number, that bag of garbage].”
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