My Day at the Salon

Today was Friday, but we had it off because it was midterm break! = )  So…I went with Mandy to the salon to get a new weave…and it was SO cool!  I always wondered how they do it…I finally get it.  So first they corn rowed her hair…but the braids went around her head…like in lines parallel to her shoulders.  It was amazing how quickly and neatly the girl was braiding.  It was interesting because there were four other girls there…and they were all just standing around watching…and helping here and there.  There are SO many salons here (you don’t even have to make appointments!) and you don’t need to go to hair/cosmetology school or anything…so I’m guessing they were like apprenticing.  Anyways…after there are all these perfect braids going across her head, she starts literally sewing on the strips of hair.  She threads it through the braids she’s just made…and just keeps working her way up the head.  At the top, she used Mandy’s own hair to cover up the sewing.  I don’t know if that makes any sense…it’s hard to explain…but it was really neat! = )

Three of the five girls were wearing these cute matching dresses (I’m guessing their uniform).  It’s so cool, too, how common tailors are (not to mention, it seems like everyone knows how to sew).  For one thing, people get their African-wear sewn just for them, so it always fits perfectly and looks so good!  But it’s also just totally common to alter clothes.  Like Mandy seems to alter almost everything she buys.  And at school, when people are buying uniforms…if we don’t have the correct size, it’s totally normal for people to say they’ll just alter it or get it altered (well…they say alterated).  I wish it was cheaper to get things altered at home!  It’s amazing what a difference it makes when you get clothes to fit you just right!  Even heavier women have such a beautiful shape when the clothes are designed for their body types, giving them beautiful hourglass silhouettes.

The rest of the day was just laundry, cleaning and cooking.  Again…so miss having a vacuum…but it’s like more rewarding once you’re done when you’ve had to sweep and mop and scrub with a hand brush = )  And now my space feels SO good! = )  Cooking was so fun!  We watched Ina Garten make jambalaya, so we made it…altering it a little…and it was SO delish!  We’ve decided jambalaya is a variation of jollof rice…it’s SO similar!  But yeah…I chopped the hot peppers…so even though it’s been hours…my hands are STILL burning = /  Anyways…still working on coming home being able to at least sort of cook = )

Beautiful Mandy and Chichi in front of the salon with her new hair

I loved the salon's sign!