The Town

Before I go much further, I should say a little something about my new home. Yaounde is located in the southeastern part of Cameroon, surrounded by rainforrest covered rolling hills, connected to the outside world via a small airport sporting a couple of flights a week to Europe. There are pretty decent roads leading to other destinations in the country, about which I will write later. Yaounde is a big city, with around 1 million people (?), but feels very much like a small town. If there is a bustle in the streets, it is that of ordinary undertakings, rather than grand plans. The biggest event seems to be the occasional and unexpected closure of the main road due to the passing of the presidential convoy.

When I arrived in August, the big rainy season was just beginning, and it was rain that defined Yaounde for me during my first couple of months. If you've ever lived in the tropics, you know what I'm talking about. If, like me at the time, you haven't, think of the intensity of the biggest downpour your ever experienced, the kind of rain that blots out vision, and then think of it lasting for hours. Think of roads turning into rivers and intersections into small lakes, and this daily. I would shout my way through my afternoon classes trying to compete with the hollow pounding of rain on our corrugated tin roof. Right before dusk, the rain would fade away and clouds would gently settle around the hills. Wow!

There is much more to say about Yaounde, other than that it rains a lot in the Fall. Instead of rambling on, let me show some pictures of street life in Yaounde, taken by a friend of mine. Enjoy!