Wanderlust Library: Burkina Faso
For the third edition of Wanderlust Library, I decided to turn my focus to Burkina Faso. A landlocked nation in West Africa, I was first introduced to this country via its enigmatic late 20th-century revolutionary Thomas Sankara. Sankara is a much-lauded leader who was credited with making great strides in the country towards sovereignty in the post-colonial era. This legacy is what drew me to learn more about him (my friend even made me a board with some of his most famous quotes). But I never learned much about the country he ruled, so today I intend to rectify that.
Read: Un Voyage Interieur au Burkina Faso
A Journey into the Interior of Burkina Faso is a photography collection by Antoine Perigot. In it, he travels across the country capturing images of the lives of the Burkinabe – urban and rural, young and old, men and women, modern and traditional. As the collection was in French, I was unable to fully take in the work. Fortunately, I got some of the more interesting pages translated (images from this section are not from this book, as I had the print version).
One interesting tidbit I pulled is called the ‘Rain of Mangos.” Local superstition in some parts of the country dictates that before picking mangos from the tree, they must be washed by the rain beforehand, even if they are fully ripe. I couldn’t find much documentation in the English language literature (though I admit I am a bit out of my depths), but it seems that rains cleansing fruits on the tree, or villages as a whole, is a noted trope in some cultures in the country.
A cool fashion worn in Burkina Faso, and across West Africa, is clothes and jewelry that incorporate Cowrie shells. Historically, these shells were used as currency and continue to retain their symbolism of wealth. The Ghanaian currency, the Cedi, is even named after them. The clothing of the Samo people wove these shells into whole tunics, which was very cool.
I greatly enjoyed the portrayals of city life in the book. Too often travelogues in Africa focus on natural beauty and rural isolation, which is deserved but somewhat misguided. Africa is home to rich urban centers, and Perigot made note to capture that. I especially enjoyed the images of political life, including a stall selling Thomas Sankara stickers and anti-poaching soldiers heading off to protect the nation’s national parks
Listen: Farafina
This band, formed in the late 70s, is a revival of traditional African music in the post-colonial era. Blending traditional instruments with modern sounds, this band is a wonderful listen for those who gravitate towards Afropop or international music in general. They quickly found success on the national and international stage, including being chosen to headline Nelson Mandela’s 1988 birthday, a concert held to honor the then-still imprisoned freedom fighter. The two albums Lonely Planet recommended are Nemako and Kanou.
Since I don’t speak Bambara, I was curious as to the lyrical focus of their songs. World Music Central magazine the group sings about the struggles of contemporary African life but with a nod to a hopeful future.
Despite not speaking the language these songs are sung in, I had a bit of a nostalgic moment. I’m not sure if they’re musically related, but the sound of this band is very similar to the intro music for those Eyewitness educational DVDs that we’d check out from the library as kids. So I was delighted to have my own, if superficial, connection to this music.
Below are some of my favorite songs from this group.
Watch: Tilaï by Idrissa Ouédraogo
This tragedy is a classic of Burkinabe cinema. It tells the story of a young couple caught between cultural traditions and their own love. Saga, the male lead, returns to his village after an extended absence to find his father has married his beloved, Nogma. Instead of following tradition and consigning themselves to their new situation, they break the cultural norms to pursue their romance. This causes a host of conflicts with their respective families, as they’ve violated cultural norms of adultery and incest (admittedly, a technicality).
The story showcases the destructive power of regressive cultural norms and how traditionalistic societies brutally police those who wish to break them. Not only does this harm and outcast those who question cultural norms, but it also brings pain to those enforcing the cultural norms as they bring upon themselves undue emotional weight. Saga’s brother and Nogma’s father each take extreme acts to enforce their ideals of honor in ways that irreparably farm themselves. These themes, to my understanding, resonated strongly with the Burkinabe audience when it was released.
This movie included a host of beautiful shots of the Sahel interspersed with traditional village architecture. Apparently, all of the actors were amateurs hired from the region, which adds a nice touch to the film.
If this movie interests you, it’s available on Kanopy and is accessible with most library cards.
What I’m Reading, Watching, and Listening too
Anti-Environmentalism: A funny little sketch mocking the slow pace of climate action. We have to laugh through the pain sometimes 🥲
How to Downsize a Transport Network: The surprisingly extensive history of the wheelbarrow. So many interesting twists and turns, including wheelbarrow trains!!
How do we Savor Change?: A great conversation about women in food and writing with enigmatic travel writer Geraldine DeRuiter