louiseinlimbo

Having experienced the water-drumming, and seen a hint of the other music (the saucepan lid in use as a drum), I made another visit to the village, this time having arranged with the same staff member to spend the night there.  So he organised the building of a hut for me – above, with him posing by the entrance! I said that I wanted as authentic an experience as possible, so did not bring my own food, bedding or anything else from outside – apart from my insect repellent. Initially I just sat with the colleague, asking him questions about the village and the Ba’aka way of life – an interesting conversation.  He told me a little of his early life, revealing, for example, that elephant tastes like beef … but he also noted how pleased he was that the area is now protected (meaning that hunting of elephants, gorillas and chimpanzees is now illegal), and how the work of the WWF is helping to preserve their traditional way of life.  I learnt that many of the Ba’aka wear amulet...

One evening guest at the Lodge mentioned in passing the ‘water-drumming’ of the Ba’aka women.  Following up, I discovered that this is traditionally what the women do to inform the men that they are bathing in that part of the river, and that the men should therefore stay away. I spoke to one of the Ba’aka staff at the Lodge, and he was more than happy to arrange for me to go and see a ‘performance’ of this that the women would put on for me in his village (Mossapoula). On the appointed day I got to the village and found him, but was a little surprised to find women waiting for me with rafia decorations around their waist – and a man near them banging a saucepan with a drumbeat.  I asked why they were there, as I’d asked to see women water-drumming, not dancing in a village clearing.  He pointed to a seated man and said he would be drumming on the water container in front of him.  No …  So I tried again, and when I said the word ‘river’ he finally understood. So...