September 14: The village chief and the photographers
During one of the coffee breaks, I asked Jean about a man who was wearing a knit skullcap and a beautiful suit. I wondered if he was a Muslim. Jean said he was a village chief who also teaches at a school in another town. Admiring his beautiful clothes, I asked if the villagers paid a tax to the chief (to support his lifestyle). Jean replied it was quite the opposite. Villagers can come to the chief for help with a problem, or to settle a dispute. If the villager has done something wrong, the chief charges a fine. If he helps a villager with something, he may ask for any kind of payment “to return to his house” since he was brought out of his house to solve the problem. But that money and those goods get used to help others in need. Being the village chief is not a job of luxury. To me, he is like the village social worker.
The photographers
It was also during this break that many teachers asked to have their picture taken with me. There were two photographers running around taking pictures of everyone, then charging them 300 francs for a copy of the prints. I bought several pictures of myself. By the end of the week, though, I found their aggressiveness irritating. For example, the photographers wanted me to buy all of the pictures that were taken of me; they couldn’t understand why I didn’t want a picture with my eyes closed or looking away from the camera. On Friday, one photographer tried to sell pictures to me even as he saw me getting in the car.
Tags: Africa, Togo, Travel, West Africa
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