KRIO-rally SPEAKING

Here are some of the phrases that will always remind me of Sierra Leone…………

CHING KUANG KONG

This is a kind of an installed term for those who haven’t seen a Filipino in their whole life. Funny thing about some of them is they will tell you these words right into your face with a karate or kung fu movement. They think I am Chinese even with my big round eyes!

I’M COMING

Even so, these are words which means they will be right back. Kind of confusing but it was the first term I learned in Moyamba.

SNAP ME!

According to oxford dictionary “snap” means break with a sharp, cracking sound. Imagine doing that to a stranger? Yuck. I can’t even imagine doing that to a cat, a rat or even a lizard. Well, “snap me” only means he wants you to take a snapshot, photograph, a picture of him. Whatever the situation is, a camera will make a Sierra Leonean smile.

And finally………………..

Driver, Ah WAN WET

Well, having a hole in my bladder, the bush is the only witness to this phenomenon.

Having to hear and utter these words everyday is a guarantee that I can afford to smile and I can still find hilarity despite the odds and ends of a volunteer’s life.

                                                                                                       - July 2008