Several hundred kilometers northwest of Buea sits the dusty francophone city of Foumban. The city is the center of the Bamoun people, who have preserved centuries-old animist traditions and who produce some of the finest traditional masks, bronze work, cloth, and handicrafts in all of Africa. Foumban is also famous as the site of Nguon, one of the best-known cultural festivals in all of Cameroon. “Nguon” means “locust” in the Bamoun language, and the festival...

In our work for YAN, there are busy weeks, and there are slow weeks. This past week was decidedly one of the latter. The reason, as we explained in last week’s post, has to do with the high-stakes standardized exams that students must take here. Cameroon is divided into Anglophone and Francophone regions based upon how the country was divided by the British and French governments during the colonial era. In Anglophone Cameroon (our region), the education system roughly mirr...

This afternoon, an avocado fell on Josh’s head.  The avocado wasn’t immediately visible as it had rolled off into the dust, but the thud and subsequent shriek of surprise were hard to miss.   Josh’s lenses popped right out of his glasses, but he was otherwise unharmed. It was an unripe avocado, so it may be a few days before we can slice it up for lunch.

Avocado encounters aside, our week went according to plan (as much is this is possible in Cameroon).  Our stud...