A nature walk to the lake

I finally have a picture-worthy post after weeks of routine house work and occasional trips to Douala. I've had a major break in monotony as my friend Soshina, has come to visit Cameroon for the first time, from Birmingham UK. I have a person to speak with... and not just any person, she happens to be one of the most informed, open-minded, non-judgmental, supportive, friends a girl can have anywhere. Obviously, her visit means I have to get out more and see Cameroon, starting with my very own town, Kumba.

I don't think there is much to see in Kumba. Those of us who love it here only do so because it is where we feel the most at home. The only attractions that I can think of are the Kumba main Market, and the Barombi Mbo Lake. On Friday, because the weather was sunny and bright, I headed out to see the lake with Soshina and my young cousin Dare, who was home on Easter break from boarding school. We chose a sunny day because I imagined there are probably only a few scenarios more cumbersome than trekking through a tropical forest during a rain storm.

We were dry alright, but boy were we hot! To get there, we drove to Up Station, the old colonial administrative post of Kumba. I drove my sister's old, very beaten up, 2 door, manual shift Toyota RAV4. Now, I don't drive manual cars, but I've been teaching myself how to. Let me just say it is a pain because I still have not totally resigned myself to why I need to be thinking and listening and moving limbs so much while driving! When we got to Up Station, I neatly parked on the sweet decline of a hill, knowing that this meant zero hassle reversing and starting back into town... except that someone park right behind me and I had to do a U-turn.

Before we started our 15min trek, we were informed by a very impolite person, that the council was imposing an entry fee of 200FCFA per person. There were no signs anywhere and he had no leaflets or brochures to show us. It is not much money at all, but I totally freaked out about having to pay for a non-guided trek on a road through the forest which looks like it has not seen any kind of maintenance in forever...to see a crater lake... the same one I used to sneak out of primary school to go and see for free! When my questioning of this began to slowly turn into name calling... on this fellows part, I offered to check with the council first. So I battled with the manual gears to the council, only to get confirmation that we had to pay the fee.

Drama aside, it was ultra fun to get out of the town for a while and just do a nature walk to the lake. We ran into an old school acquaintance of mine who was visiting from Germany with his family. We got lots of sun and fresh air, lots of pictures, a good workout, and Dare got a lot of giggles from seeing Soshina jump each time a lizard ran through the grass! Enjoy!

                 

                 
                 

                  

                    

                        

Spotted: Cattle Egrets

Been keeping an eye out for some "boyds" that stalk cattle for a living! My first attempt shooting at a great distance with maximum zoom on my COOLPIX L810. These animals congregate, in large numbers, almost every morning in the yard to feast on worms and insects. I haven't caught the flock on camera yet because I'm usually in the process of getting the kids ready for school when I've spotted them through the window. Theirs is a really early treat and only lasts about a minute. Hoping to catch them soon. The cattle were grazing in the field where the kids from MBAI do physical ed on Wednesday mornings. Initially I was worried about the ticks that may be left on the grass, then I noticed the Cattle Egrets... Enjoy!

Picture post: At home with the girls

Side-swept braids

I got jumbo braids put in yesterday. They are rather heavy and a little uncomfortable. I usually struggle to keep extensions in for even just a short period of time and I have a feeling these braids won't be in for very long. I'm enjoying the way they look though. Today is a Friday off school in support of Francophonie (I got a note from their school saying something about "bilinguation"! I don't know, I'm assuming it's got to do with the Francophonie culture in Cameroon). We stayed up late last night and woke up later this morning. A whole 3 days to get around to homework. No one got pulled out of bed at 6am to get ready for school, and I know which one of us was especially grateful!

Just got braids put in and wanted to take a few pics by myself, but that's not easy to do with these two around.

Grandpa makes every activity a little more fun...

Starting to warm up to Alex the puppy                 

I am still afraid of his teeth!

Natural hair in Kumba, CMR

It's hot and very dry with a cool Hamatan breeze in CMR, which I think is lovely. Kumba is somewhat transformed by the new tarred road that now runs completely through it in all directions. There is an awful water crisis at the moment as there is no clean pipe-borne water supply. I intend to write a post about the water situation in Kumba, and how everyone is coping but firstly, I'd like to share the feed back that I've gotten so far from my friends and family on my hair.

Conversation about it has always begone with a variation of the question "why did you cut your hair"? Most of my siblings have either already gone completely natural or want to as well. The friends that I have run into say it is "different". I don't know what I was expecting, but most people seem to want to go natural but are mainly held back by the amount of effort involved in maintaining a head of natural hair. The other concern is the limited availability of hair products.

Some people have expressed reservation about the way I wear my hair i.e  my dad. I'm not exactly a neat freak when it comes to how I wear my hair, so I probably look a bit wild in a country where a somewhat conservative appearance is still the norm. I don't particularly think I have to tackle my hair into a deliberate style most of the time. It's so hot here that I have to muster up energy to not go back to bed once I've dropped my kids off at school. I wear my hair in two-strand twists pulled back with a band and when I do take out the twists, I just let it slowly unravel into an uncombed fro-halo as the days go by. To this my mom said, "I hope you haven't been wearing your hair like that to job interviews"!

 I've been getting nasty looks from my younger daughter's teacher and she has even pointed out that my daughter's hair needs to be done (because what I've "done" to it is not "done" enough)! I've objected to my girls' hair being tightly corn-rowed. It looks uncomfortable, it is uncomfortable and I won't allow them to suffer because that's what "done" hair looks like. I will admit that I'm struggling with figuring out the best styles for their hair. They both have very different textures and lengths. The little one has very soft, fine hair which breaks easily. Her hair has never been cut but it is still 5ins long. The older one has very coarse, dry texture with a lot of shrinkage. Since I big-chopped all the straightened hair AGAIN, it's just under 4ins!! I presently have three natural heads to manage with a very limited availability of ready-made hair-care products.

Keeping moisture in hair for any length of time is not happening here very well. It is the heart of the dry season at the moment. I've been on the hunt for leave-in conditioners but so far, I haven't had much luck in the local market and supermarkets. My sister found Optimum Oil Therapy 3-n-1 Creme Oil Moisturizer in Tiko (3813) and this is what I have been using as a leave-in moisturizer for my girls. I also try to hydrate every morning before school with some water and coconut oil.

It's the weekend and I have just spent Saturday morning washing and braiding hair. My mom is grateful to have the girls out of her "Kaba" and my dad has a bit of breathing space while I contend with all the question nuances, tantrums and self-assertiveness coming from the girls. I also have to tackle the laundry (by hand) later on. Washing anything is a process since tap water is actually really dirty right now. It's mostly residue/pigment free today so I might just go ahead and wash my hair in the shower. For the girls, I only use ground water from a nearby aquifer borehole for washing, and bottled water for drinking.

I'm planning to start a natural hair country tag on youtube this weekend (assuming I will be able to upload the video since internet service is shytsville here except between 12 am and 5am)! I'm hoping to get a wealth of information from other Cameroonians, or people living in tropical counties like mine. Because of the limited availability of ready-made products, it will be important to learn how to make our own hair products from natural ingredients that seem to be abundant here.

I think I've got the handle on this cornrow technique!

At the train station in Fiango, Kumba. I got reprimanded for taking pictures on the premises without seeking permission. Now I know better. I was really impressed with the renovation on this building.

With Sido at Canton restaurant.

In Kumba Town with Aunty Eli. Day 2 of unraveled 2 strand twists.

With the girls, sporting a fro-halo!

My products are Timotei's pure shampoo, TRESemme's Luxurious Moisture conditioner, Naked Style's Little Miracle leave-in conditioner, John Frieda's Frizz-Ease conditioning spray and coconut oil. 

Hair products for the girls include, Boots baby shampoo, L'Oreal's Kids extra gentle de-tangling conditioner, Optimum Oil Therapy 3-n-1 Creme Oil Moisturizer, Extra virgin olive oil and coconut oil.