It is always fun to travel through the country of Niger – each area of the country is slightly different and the customs and cultures are different as well. Going out East last month was no different – here are random photos that I took throughout my time driving around the villages.
One of the main cash crops in Eastern Niger is the onion …. tons and tons of onions!! The granaries for the onions are more squat and lower to the ground than I am used to seeing – even before I was told what crop is stored inside, I knew it was something that the animals (goats and sheep) would not eat, because the granary was certainly accessible!
The onion fields looking so lush and green in contrast to the surrounding desert. There must be some good irrigation built in!
Onions for sale on the side of the road – so many little onion stands line the highway!
The granaries for the millet out here are different as well. In my village, the granaries are made of woven straw mats, are quite small …. and each farmer has his granary in his field. (I discovered recently, that knowing where and seeing the granaries of my villagers is a sign of their trust in me! Some are obviously visible as you drive around, but others are hidden further off the beaten tracks!)
Fulani granary:
The granaries out East were larger – massive in size, I was quite awed by them and somewhat sad to know that the difference meant the crops in these areas were more plentiful than for my villagers! These granaries were also made of mud (better bug repellant?) and the stock of granaries was surrounding and scattered throughout the villages. In one village alone, I counted 20 lined up in a row – and in other sections of the village we drove through, there were more as well. It was astounding to think of the wealth of these villages, in terms of their crop production, that they could have 30-40 massive granaries per village!
It was also neat to see villages … groups of huts or mud homes gathered in one area in large number. The Fulani, among whom I work, live more in family groupings on their family land. So, the most huts together that I see together is 7- 8, but normally 3-5.
The following are just some random pics of the countryside, animals and trees that I took as we drove around the desert!
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