News from Kano - by Adrienne

Sanuku!! (Hausa for 'hello everyone')
I have finally found a fast enough internet connection to blog!! The internet here tends to be slow, or nonexistant!
I am the spoiled member of the Purdue team...I am spending a majority of my time in Kano. We have completed two workshops so far (about 1.5 days each). When we got here I wondered why we would need two days...well...the first day of the workshop is planned to start at 9am. The earliest we've started so far is 11:30 am. Dr. Musa (my team member) then has to give a long speech about the value of time and how we all need to be responsible and arrive on time, which he then reinforces again in hausa...just to make sure it is clear. We have started on time the second day (I don't think they want to hear the timeliness speech again!). The response to the PICS project has been very positive. The extension agents have a lot of questions and are excited about the new technology. Everyone here has been very gracious and friendly to me as I adjust to the cultural differences. One thing that I struggle with is the portion sizes!! Yesterday for lunch they brought me SIX potatoes and some chicken in a red spicy sauce. Seriously...six potatoes is too many! When I told them it was too much, they asked me if I was on a diet.... but the food, for the most part, has been very good.
I've learned a few words in Hausa (the local language) and the workshop participants get a big kick out of it when I try to speak in Hausa.
We've had a total of about 63 participants (7 women total) over the two workshops. We have one left here in Kano, and then I will travel north to Katsina on Sunday.
My other teammate, Suno, welcomed his first daughter last Saturday. This Saturday will be her naming celebration, as is the Muslim tradition.
Hopefully, I'll be able to check in again before I travel north!!