You Know You're in Djibouti When...

After six weeks in the city, I've made the following observations:

You Know You're in Djibouti When...

1. The weather is so hot, while taking a shower, you sweat on one side of your body while washing the other.
2. People pour water on the ground hoping to get cool air.
3. People pour water on themselves, fully clothed, in public.
4. As Djibouti is one of the hottest countries in the world, people that are financially able migrate to other countries in east Africa for the summer.
5. It’s not uncommon to see women wearing a full jilbab with capris, a tight t-shirt, and no hijab.
6. The ‘filtered’ water is salty. It's called 'biyo danaan' (salty water) whereas bottled water is referred to as 'biyo macaan' (sweet or tasty water).
7. The electricity turns off and comes back on whenever it wants.  During my first week here, while eating out with my cousins, the restaurant suddenly turned pitch black. To my astonishment, people continued on with their conversation like nothing happened. I had to use my phone to see the food on my plate.
8. Arab and Ethiopian people speak better Somali than a lot of Somali people I know from Canada.
9. The police roam the streets with a huge van, picking up and displacing homeless people.
10. I saw a little girl getting physically beaten by who I presume to be her older brother in public, only to see her family cheering and yelling on the other side: eedbi eedbi (loosely translated, teach her to be obedient).
11. There are photos of Ismail Omar Guelleh, the President of Djibouti, everywhere. He even has a logo: IOG.
12. Poor people knock on your door on a daily basis at breakfast and lunch and ask for food. They often carry their own silverware, consisting of plastic bags for the food and empty plastic bottles for tea or water.
13. People discuss private affairs on buses. It's also common for people to eavesdrop on other people's conversations. One time, after my cousin and I finished eating dinner, a man sitting at the table next to ours stood up and yelled: "I know you! You're from Ottawa!" Completely astonished, my cousin and I walked away speechless.
14. I walked into a store with a painted sign that said: Jus de fruits (fruit drinks). Once I walked inside, fully drenched in sweat from a short walk in the neighborhood, the owner of the store informed me that the store only sells ice cubes.
15. Somali people really are natural linguists. While walking down the street, you can hear people speaking a multitude of languages. In fact, you can hear someone speaking a mix of French, Somali, Anfar, and Arabic in a single conversation.