The FOMS

I had the FOMS a couple of weeks ago. (FOMS is code for Fear of Missing Something.) I felt like my days were restricted to doing paperwork by myself in the office and the hotel, and felt frustrated by not being able to see more of Bamako, convinced that there was indeed much more to see and do. In truth, there’s not a ton ‘to do’ here. I’d still like to see that museum and the botanical gardens, and another market, but the crowds of people and the heat are difficult adjustments. There’s not really a central space where people just wander. I’ve been looking for a map of Bamako but have yet to find one. A map of Bamako on Google yields two yellow lines denoting the main roads in and out, one blue line that signals the Niger River, and “Bamako” written next to a dot. It was explained to me that there’s no structure here in which to map – the street on which the office is located is a numbered route, but the street isn’t marked, and I actually thought that it was just a long dirt driveway on which the office was located, until I was told that it’s a street.

Casually running errands downtown and stopping for a coffee and taking in the sights is just not something that people do here. There were a couple of errands I had wanted to take care of – like buying an adapter for my mobile phone. I’m used to doing these seemingly mundane things independently at home, but here I am quickly learning to ask for help and to accept help. I asked one of the drivers at work “Where can I pick up an adapter?” and the response was “Let me see your phone. Do you have some money?” I handed him my phone and the equivalent of 5 bucks in cash. Two hours later, he marched into my office and proudly handed me my phone, a working charger, and the change. “Voila!” he smiled.

People here rely on each other and I’m learning that it’s in one’s best interest to get on board with the cooperative mindset prevalent here. I would have gotten lost in search of “downtown” (let alone the shop that sells chargers), and suspect that I would have ended up paying much more than 5 dollars and would have spent the better part of an entire afternoon in the process. Much easier to let people who are willing to help do so, since they know the right people and apparently really don’t mind.

It's hard to adjust to the way of life here without making comparisons. Everywhere you look something is broken: cracked windows, paint peeling from walls, or bicycles with bent wheels. Trash is carelessly discarded and littered along the roads or it collects in heaps in front of houses or shops or pushed aside into fields. Sometimes the smell of burning trash burns the back of my throat, especially on hot, still evenings when there's no breeze.

Despite missing people and parts of my routine at home, I’m adjusting. Instead of running (because the roads are too narrow to dodge traffic and the air pollution), I take advantage of the swimming pool at the hotel and swim every day after work, or in the mornings on weekends. I read a lot in the evenings, or end up lingering over dinner with my co-worker, since she has some classic stories and a great sense of humor. We've gone out to a few places to eat, too. It’s a different pace, but I’m learning that it can be a nice pace.

We’ve finally begun training our interviewers for the survey this week, and they are such a fun group. My views of Bamako are changing quickly after getting to know some people here – they are so friendly and you just can’t take yourself too seriously around them. I know I’m missing things at home, and probably things in Bamako, but I can’t do it all so might as well enjoy what I can!