Easter

Palm Sunday procession in Daloa, last week

It's funny to me that here in the country that exports more cacao than any other, there are no chocolate Easter eggs to be seen.  They have them in Abidjan, but in Daloa there was no sign of them anywhere.  I thought I would try to celebrate Easter with the locals, by going to the Easter vigil mass on Saturday night.  Little did I know it's the longest mass of the year.  Here they don't believe in skimping out on that stuff - it lasted four hours.  I probably wouldn't have gone had I known, and I definitely would not have expected to stay awake for the whole thing.  But I was expecting the kind of solemn, soporific grandeur I grew up seeing at church.

This was a whole different experience.  They had a synthesizer, and maracas, and they weren't afraid to use them.  There was singing and low-key hand-clapping throughout, but it didn't really take off until after communion, when they struck up a song that ignited the crowd and suddenly everyone was on their feet, hands in the air, clapping and waving handkerchiefs.  One of the priests led the altar boys down from the front and they danced their way down the main aisle then up one of the side ones and made a couple of laps around the pews, with more and more parishioners joining the dance as they passed, like a giant conga line.  It was sensational.

Private infirmary in Daloa, with
the Grand Mosque in the background

I don't have much of a wardrobe here, and I had tried to look appropriate in my one nice office outfit by wearing earrings and leaving my large, shapeless bag at home.  In my mind that was dressed up.  Unfortunately, it meant I didn't have my camera, so I don't have any evidence.  I wouldn't even have been the only one - I saw at least three locals filming on their cell phones.

Augustine, who went with me, says that this is fairly normal for the big feast days.  All I can say is, if you get the chance, go!  Take a nap and make sure you go to the bathroom beforehand, but go - it's totally worth it.  And don't forget your camera!