Mr. Teku took us to have a little orientation at the Catholic University yesterday, which was really nice. We got to meet all the important administrators who all welcomed us with classic cameroonian love. The campus was beautiful, and the classes all look really interesting. They also have a gorgeous church, which I am excited about going to, because they play music with all the good kind of african music. Very exciting. We got to meet the recteur-or president of the college-and were very stunned to find out he is an albino man! Not that an albino can't hold a prestigious position, but albino's here are marginalized a lot, so it was pretty shocking to meet him. He was extremely nice though of course, and was very excited to have us here. So for classes as of now, im taking the mandatory "Contemporary Cameroon", a class called Negritude and additionally Environmental Studies at the Dickinson Center. And at the Catholic University I am taking a class called "La geographie humaine et economique de l'afrique centrale" and "La culture africaine...something or other" The second one we are all taking, and the first one Eliza and I are taking. I am overloading by one class because I really want the environmental science class-which im 99% sure will count for my french major since it focuses more than 50% of its content on Cameroon, a francophone area. And it sounds like overloading is VERY doable here with the amount of academic rigor. If it is too much, I can always downsize.
Classes start soon, so then life will really seem more real here!
Interesting about the Rector. Do you suppose that the native/colonial cultural divide renders the same person safe/accepted at the University but not so much within the native community?
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Wow, that is so intriguing about the president of UCAC! So true about marginalization! And that church is fantastic! My host cousin was married there, and it was BEAUTIFUL!!! And how about that pool?! Have fun!
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