Under a blue sky dominated by hawks, rising to nottegiorno vigilant guardians of the cities and countryside, between echoes of bikutsi and makossa (the most popular music in the central region) which confused with the notes of the nearby radio tuned to 24 hours on some 24 local frequency exclusively female pop, with a blocked nose - cold-but forced to give in to that mix too strong odors in the air with an incessant background of verses , singing, movement of animals and animals that chatter incessantly, a po'stanco, sit on my bed by the window to tell us a bit of Cameroun to each of you.
Every day I try to write down in a notebook the things I'd like to let you know but the bombing (as opposed to what makes us passive after 3 hours of television) pictures, stories, feelings are so strong that I do a large selection in my head because the time to write, however, is always very low!
This weekend we made a trip to the West, one of which is divided into ten regions in Cameroon. The regional capital is the africanissima Bafoussan, Bamiléké stronghold, one of the dominant ethnic groups in the area, with a culture and traditions are still very much alive. We started at 5, Yaounde are more or less four-hour drive (I drove myself to the 4x4!) And it is wonderful to observe that as the tropical forest landscapes to leave more open space and thinning of the typical pre-savanna. Travelling by car is sensational: the roads, until you get to town, they are quite manageable, wide and completely paved. The eyes have the red earth that marks this country, the markets and stalls of pineapple and papaya at best, cooked and kept hanging mice by the vendors, when you're less lucky, never take a skewer of meat on the street because their rats eat more than normal so that Tina said that once two guardians of the CASS in the evening were presented at the door asking if he could lend them a po'd'olio soffittino and onion for a rat to get the flavor just captured - .
is through groups of houses, villages and larger towns, but all (or at least most) share a similar fate: the names of these places cominciano tutti con la B, perché in Bamiléké la B indica la pluralità, dunque tu non ti ricordi mai qual è l'ultimo paese che hai passato, di indicazioni ce n'è poche e quindi va a finire che sei costretto ogni 10 minuti ad interpellare degli autoctoni pronti a darti qualsiasi indicazione, se non a salire in macchina con te, ma spesso non molto preparati Nell'ultimo tratto di strada lo sguardo cade inevitabilmente sui tetti conici in lamiera tipici delle chefferie, luoghi dove i capi tradizionali ricevono in udienza i loro sudditi, diversi dalle regge, che sono le loro abitazioni vere e proprie. I capi tradizionali sono riconosciuti dal governo statale e sembra, dalla comunità internazionale, hanno pieni powers in the judiciary (whether a person is sentenced to death by a chef the government can not intercede for the offender) and the power handed down by heredity, while the hunter was once more able to gain the throne. We visited the Chefferie Bandjoun of one of the finest in the area, despite the deliberate fire (patterns of inheritance) that has devastated two years ago. Between Chefferie and the other a time there was hostility, now there is more cooperation (because their representatives to make lobbying the government absolutely must be a united front) while maintaining each one's center of power, their costumes and his rituals. Traditional ceremonies are an incredible sight- I only saw a video that would be really interesting to attend as spectators. In the museum I saw the splendid thrones, the scepters and other gift items in wood and pearls that pertain to each new king along with a sacred animal that distinguishes him.
The western area is also known for the rich waterways (especially in the rainy season), us between Saturday and Sunday we got to see the crater lake of Baleng, a valley in the mountains, of clear water with lots of canoes but also the indescribable waterfalls EKOM, eighty-meter jump in the middle of nowhere, if anything can be called a green valley, lush that suddenly opens after 10 km of unpaved (Other than Balistra, killer ... holes meters and branches that get into the windows in the car) through the dried coffee in front of small houses in the mud of the locals, who still live in the wild, but on mobile phones! Out of curiosity I I say that Chutes d'EKOM are the place where he set the Tarzan movies ... I try to send you a picture but I assure you that does not make the idea of \u200b\u200bdepth, a glance, but most of might with that this amount of liquid hitting the rocks, creating a magnificent and well visible rainbow. One of those places where even the goofy photographer, like me, that has to do is push the button on the machine and it is certain that his photos will be however, a masterpiece.
splendid place, to stay with his mouth open. Why then Cameroon is not even considered by our travel agents, some say that the phenomenon is growing in recent years-? It seems that the government does not care, it seems that the one-way trip costs in Cameroon as a round trip to Senegal with a one week stay at the hotel of good quality. So many taxes on flights, very few facilities (and that only in these few days there I can confirm) and therefore another source of income that goes away. But where does the money that the state then if the streets and restaurants and 15 who are in the hands of Chinese and Greek buildings for the most part are the property of Japanese, France and Belgium contend the food and products from supermarket (the first also has one of two mobile phone networks found in Cameroon, the Orange, the second, MTN is South Africa) Americans have water and electricity, and of course the oil and transport. And I speak of a country which is the second largest producer and exporter of timber in the world, the first in aluminum and copper, cocoa and coffee you count the top with other West African countries ... to make you understand that money will run a lot. Social policies wrong, little public spending, but also lots and lots but just so much corruption. I would still have plenty to tell you one thousand points to start but then I realize that then can get a better determination of the stories in a kind of reportage in installments, which I hope will interest you and please.
I communicate to all those who do not know that my luggage arrived a few days now, and I'll be in Yaounde until next weekend, then most likely (again, here there is never anything for sure) will start my adventure in the north.
again I thank all of you who write to me is great to see your name appear in the inbox, read your thoughts and your reportage from my world away. I feel that you are traveling with me. A hug jj
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