Bassari Festival!

About a week and a half ago I went down to Kedougou with some other volunteers to witness a Bassari initiation festival. The event was located in a village about 80 Kilometers from Kedougou, so we had to take a 2 hour car ride, followed by a 2 hour hike to get to the village. My first impression of the area was how different the landscape is. Instead of dry, desert like plains with nothing but sand in sight for miles, we were greeted by beautiful rolling hills with pretty little villages sprinkled across the area. Arriving at night, there was a pre-initiation party that was a blast to attend, since there probably enough palm wine going around to supply the U.S Army.
The next morning, the true festivities began. Young boys, averaging 12-14 years old, watched as the seasoned warriors paraded around the village, dressed head to toe in their war tunics. It was quite an impressive sight. After a few hours of slow but entertaining parades, a small level of chaos broke out. With no warning whatsoever, everyone started running down the hill. Trying hard not to fall, I sped down the hill in my Chacos, not really understanding what was going on. Once at the bottom, we found that there was a large plain, and immediately we knew why everyone had hurried down. The ritualistic fights were set to begin. Each young boy would be given wooden weapons to test his mettle against one of the warriors. During the combat stage, no women were allowed within 200 yards or so (the girls in our group were promptly forced to leave and back up the hill). Also, photography was strictly prohibited (this rule was fanatically upheld, with perpetrators having their cameras snatched away from them). Thus, one by one, the young men took their turns fighting the older, much stronger men. Usually, after about one or two swings, the combatants dropped their weapons and wrestled until one was taken to the ground. Of about 40 or so fights we saw, only once did the youth come out victorious. It was incredibly fun to watch, since shouting and jeering seemed to be encouraged.

On the road to Kedougou, waiting so that our driver could bribe the police...

Some Bassari warriors

After the fighting was over, we packed up our gear and headed back to Kedougou. Coming into Kedougou had taken us 13 hours, since we had rented out a 7place to leave from Thies at 5am. However, my trip home was not destined to be so quick. Combined, it took me approximately 22 hours to get back to Ngaye. Either way, it was a great trip and I'm happy to have seen some of my friends down there. As for work, our basket order is in full swing, and I will be going to different villages this week to hand out the first round of salaries and do some quality control. Aside from that, I may start working with some women's groups in town that try to sell and advocate solar ovens. Finally, I'm finishing up a fancy little brochure for my leather workers so that they can have something to hand out when they go to the artisanal expo in Dakar early next month. Anyways, I hope everyone is doing well back home. Ba ci kanaam!

P.S I got my supervisor to sign my vacation form today. Serbia here I come!