Harlem City!

Some introductions are in order. This is Harlem City, the group of guys I spend lots of time hanging out with. And they are awesome. From left to right we’ve got Mustapha (Musto), Lawali, Laminou, Ahamed, me, Lawali (Rabo), Dauda, Rabe, and Haboubacar. They’re all great. Tragically, my closest neighbor and perhaps best friend of all of them, the Lawali in green that I’m sitting next to, told me a few days ago that he was leaving for Niamey the next day. For a week? Two weeks? A month? He doesn’t know. It could very well be permanently. Its common for people, especially young men, to leave and look for work. If he finds something he might not ever come back. It sucks for us back here. He’s sort of the glue of our crew of friends, and its at his house where we always spend time each night. But I wish him the best. He’s been an awesome friend. I’ll at least see him from time to time when I’m in Niamey.

PS. This isn’t a fantastic picture. I realize that. But here is a cultural tidbit that annoys me to no end. In this culture everyone is constantly laughing, chatting, and teasing one another (That’s not the part that annoys me. Keep reading.) Then you announce your gonna take a picture and everyone gets really excited. Then, the camera goes up and everyone strikes a pose. Which (here’s the part that annoys me) is inevitably a scowl. I don’t get it. I spend hours laughing uncontrollably with these guys and the camera comes out: glare time. It’s the same with everyone over the age of 6. I don’t get it.

Note on my outfit: Yup that’s my boubou. It’s a traditional Muslim outfit, basically a really long shirt that falls over pants of the same color. Yes, it’s awesome. Yes its baby blue. And yes I look like the man when I wear it. But no, I do not wear one every day. This picture was taken on Tabaski, a big Muslim holiday. I only bust it out for special occasions.