Beauty Out of Africa

Things to do in Bamako, Mali - The BlaBla

Rahama Wright of Shea Yeleen International took Zainab and I to one of her favorite spots in Mali. Cafe BlaBla is owned by Seba Blabla and is a local hot spot for great food. The grilled chicken with couscous is just incredible. Well seasoned and delicious. BlaBla is located on BlaBla Street at the Hippodrome in Bamako. All the Cab drivers know this spot, so you won't have any trouble getting there

Rahama and some of the great staff

Funlayo and SeBa BlaBla, Owner of BlaBla

Second Night out at BlaBlah with Petra (GTZ), Sonja(Technoserv), John (Terra Global Capital)

West Africa Trade Hub - Conference connects the industry - and business does the rest

Activity in the shea business has increased rapidly in the last year thanks at least partly to last year's industry conference and the concentrated efforts of shea stakeholders in Nigeria. With “Global Shea 2010: Maximizing Quality, Expanding Markets” set for March 16-19 in Bamako, Mali, many are expecting it to increase even more.

via www.watradehub.com

Why I Love Ghana

On our way back from Nigeria, we had a 12 hour layover in Accra Ghana. We spent a night in a hotel a few miles from the airport (Airport View Hotel). The staff were very nice and helpful. The front desk clerk saw to it that we made it on time for our flight the next morning. Breakfast was complimentary and there was free shuttle service to the airport. Oh, did I mention the internet access was free too?

 

The Airport in Ghana had wonderful mosaic of Cocoa - Ghana's cash crop

We didn't get to do much exploring in Accra, but between the airport and hotel,  I noticed that the street lights worked and people actually obey them. Note to my fellow Nigerians, especially those in the hospitality business, we could stand to learn a few things from Ghana about courtesy, service and going the extra mile. While in Abuja, we paid twice the amount for a fraction of the service during our stay at the Rockview hotel.

 

Kente Cloth Weaver at the airport in Ghana

Thoughts about upcoming trip to Africa

As I prepare for my trip to Nigeria, I am excited about all the possibilities that lay ahead. It will be a great time for the kids to reconnect with my parents and to meet their other grand parents for the first time. They will also be meeting cousins and other relatives, I know they will have a blast.

Our other mission in going to Nigeria is to meet the Women's cooperative that we will be working with. Salome, the coordinator of the cooperative has a full itinerary planned for us. Salome is a certified trainer and coordinator by WATH (West African Trade Hub) on the best practices for producing quality shea butter for the international market.

 

We will be visiting the Shea producing areas in Western Nigeria (Shaki, Oyo State) and Northern Nigeria (Nassarawa, Nassarawa State). We will be observing the various stages of shea butter production  from the nut gathering, sorting and processing.

During our trips we will have opportunities to spend time with the women and get a feel for what their lives are like. Our close relationship with this cooperatrive is intended to be mutually beneficial. Our goal is to obtain the best quality shea nuts to be crushed using a mechanical expeller. We want the nuts to be sorted and graded and free from mold. To this end, we will support the cooperative by ensuring that Fair Trade standards are strictly adhered to.

Fair Trade is a system of trade that, unlike conventional trade, puts disadvantaged producers first. It is a trading partnership based on dialogue, transparency and respect, and seeks greater equity in international trade. It contributes to sustainable development by offering better trading conditions to, and securing the rights of, marginalized producers and workers. (COFTA - Cooperation for Fair Trade in Africa)

More to come, as we prepare for the trip

More About African Fashion

I love African Abada print. It is rich, vibrant and beautiful. In West Africa, being beautifully attired is relatively easy on almost any budget. Once you have the right fabric, you can get a dressmaker to customize and fit you with whatever style your heart desires. The dressmakers skills and your imagination are the only limits. These gorgeous prints are produced in Africa, Asia and Europe. They vary in quality and price depending on where and how they are produced. The prints displayed below are by a Dutch Company, Vlisco, that has been producing this fabric for decades.  It is kinda sad that the raw material for our native attire is sometimes imported from other countries. West African designers are pretty fierce when it comes to African fashion as you can see from the images below.

Can't wait for my next trip to Nigeria. I will be armed with fabric and looking for a dress maker to get me outfitted.

Face Painting for Beauty

I have always marveled at the diversity of beauty in Africa especially among our women. There are many beautifying techniques employed by African women to make them stand out. Face painting is practiced in many parts of Africa. According to Maobong Oku, among the Nigerian Efiks for example, face and body painting symbolizes purity and love. In modern day Nigeria, face painting is relegated to special occasions such as when the women prepare to do the traditional dances. The Efik traditional dancers are known as the Abang dancers. The Abang dancers wear face paint as an expression of beauty, femininity and love.

Face Painting as woman prepares for traditional Abang dance

Sugar Cane - One of Life's Simple pleasures

Has anyone had the joy of chewing on a sweet juicy sugar cane? Instead of candy, my mother would tell us to go chew on some sugar cane. She claimed it was better for our teeth than candy.

I love sugar cane, but eating it is no small feat. First you have to peel off the hard outer bark to get to the fibrous center of the cane. Then you split the cane lenghtwise into four sections. Now you are ready to chew on the fibrous pulp quadrants and enjoy the nice cool sweet sugarcane juices. Don't forget to spit out the pulp after you're done chewing. It's no wonder we stayed pretty slim as kids, everything we ate involved work