Line, my supervisor, was only able to stay in Ouaga for a couple of days, so there was no time for us to land before we started going to meetings with collaborating researchers and translators. They were intense, those first days, and I was exhausted most of the time, from the heat and my brain having to work on overdrive constantly. But it was very good too, because what I realized at all these meetings was that there were a whole bunch of people here with an interest in our success and a great willingness to help with whatever we might need. It didn’t feel as scary anymore, knowing that Line would leave and me and Elli would have to make it on our own. Because, in the end, we are not alone. We’ll be an entire crew going out into the field, with ground support back in Ouaga should anything go wrong.
Before Line left, though, we managed to slip away to an artisan market, making sure that her stay in Ouaga wouldn’t consist of only meetings.
Burkinabe hand-woven cotton. It’s a thing. I’ll have to think of a use for it, because I would really like to buy some.
It was really an amazing place. Real quality stuff, with everything from traditional West African handicraft to really original art made out of recycled scrap metal. I didn’t buy anything, because I don’t want to carry it to our fieldwork site, but we’ll definitely come back. And if you’re a person who expects to get a belated Christmas present from me, expect to get something from this place.
Then Line left, and we were on our own. Not for long, though. In the evening, we were invited to dinner at Karin’s house. Karin is a former colleague of my mom’s who now works at the Swedish Embassy here. Her two small children were adorable, she and her husband really nice and she said that we’re welcome back anytime we feel like we need to visit a home in our quite rootless fieldwork life. Did I mention that people are so friendly and helpful here?
Katja Malmborg 