It's a Little More Wild in Haute

And that’s why I came here. There’s more music, more smiles, more yelling, more laughing, more colors. The people are incredibly animated – my host family most of all. I live with the Berete family in “downtown” Siguiri, and each family member is crazier than the next. They will yell at each other for 10 minutes and then start laughing, signaling the end of the fight, I presume. The main man of the house, El Haj Sekou Berete, welcomed me warmly, and we chatted in English (he has been to the US 3 times – from New York to Seattle, he says.) As a young man, he sold African Arts, so his family’s home is full of piles of wooden stools and masks. I have said when my mother comes to visit, she will surely want to buy something (don’t worry, Mom, the stuff is gorgeous – I know you will agree). Our conversation abruptly ended that first day when we heard yelling from outside and he left to calm the quarrel. Seriously, everything is a bit more wild in Haute – especially the people. It seems like I am seeing Guinea in color for the first time.