First Impressions
Posted by Antje | Posted in Mauritania | Posted on 24-05-2010
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Welcome to Mauritania! One of the first things I noticed after arriving in the capital city Nouakchott was the Arabic taxi signs. “Funny,” I thought. “I know what that says. Some things here are familiar!”
Throughout my trip I look for these similarities, for things I could relate to, and I noticed that things weren’t as different as I had expected. Sure, plenty of cultural elements were different, and these things made Mauritania unique. But at some basic level, perhaps, people go about their day to day in similar ways.
Need to get from here to there? Your options are taxi, donkey cart, mini bus...
Thirsty? Get water in yellow plastic containers...
...or in find it stored in an old gas barrel.
Drying your laundry? Careful, the goats might eat it.
Need new tires? You know where to go.
Getting your car fixed? Find the guys working on the side of the road...great advertising.
Taking care of a little one? Well, if you can afford them, buy these diapers! (Never mind that your kid probably doesn't look like this.)
Need to talk to somebody? Find your nearest telephone center! (Or buy credit for your prepaid cellphone...)