Hitchhiking the 182. km from Wadi Halfa to Abbri is a long and uncomfortable ride, but Abdi and Mohamed Kareem are used to it, and enjoy the time they spend together.
Sudan. A country with history, stories, fairytales, nightmares and dreams. Known for its size (before the split, the largest country in Africa), oil, wars, famine, culture, pyramids (more than Egypt) and hospitable people.
Officially known as the Republic of the Sudan, its a country in North-East Africa. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, Libya to the northwest, Chad to the west, the Central African Republic to the southwest, South Sudan to the south, Ethiopia to the southeast, Eritrea to the east, and the Red Sea to the northeast.
Welcome to Abri a village in Northern Sudan, and a part of old Nubia*.
Abri is a small village composed of a couple of unpaved streets and shacks but, at the same time, it’s one of the main localities in the region, as it is the only village with shops and where the market occurs every week. It’s a village inhabited by Nubian people, established on the shore of the Nile River.
What is now northern Sudan was in ancient times the kingdom of Nubia, which came under Egyptian rule after 2600 B.C. An Egyptian and Nubian civilization called Kush flourished until A.D. 350.
Ahmed and his brother in law Ibrahim is checking the inventory list for their small shop.
The inhabitants of Abbri and the rest of the Nubian villages live a highly traditional and conservative life, where marriages between members of the same extended family are common and almost everybody is somehow related.
Time moves slow in Abbri. It is a place to get lost, through getting to know their culture and being embraced by their hospitality.
Mohammed Sadi, 65, is a former teacher from Asmara, Eritrea. He says it was impossible to survive on a teacher salary in Sudan. Mohammed now owns one of two cafés in the village.
He laugh when I ask why I should visit his place instead of his competition, “We are all family”.
Sudan was formerly a British Crown Colony and the British brought their tradition of tea to the country. Today the Sudanese have made their own version, the amazing Cinnamon Tea (Shai) with lots of sugar and mint. Ginger is also very popular.
Hussein is wearing what is called a Jalabiya. Wrapped around his head is a ‘Ema, or a turban. The Sudanese turban is exceptionally long, compard to other groups that wear it. That is because when killed in battle, the turban was used as a burial shroud, so it was often said that a man would either return home with it wrapped around his head or around his lifeless body.
Every tribe is Sudan has its special way wrapping a turban.
In the afternoon it’s very common to see men in all ages sitting in the shadows smoking Shisha, while they talk about todays latest news and happenings.
Ismak Elfata (45) is the village “tire expert”, that can fix anything, no matter how damaged, he claims.
The hospital waiting room is located outside, where they have a tv and even a fan to use during the hottest days.
Dr. Almofaz is conducting an ultrasound on Keisah 32, pregnant with her second child and in her third trimester. This time she is awaiting a little girl.
Pregnant women are offered a medical check once every month and twice the last month of their pregnancy.
This baby boy, Abdulkareem is 3 hours old and 3000 grams. He was born naturally after 4 hours leighbour. His mother Fatima is 24 years old, and Abdulkareem is her fourth child. His oldest sibling is 7 and his father had to work while his mother gave birth.
In Sudan fathers are allowed to be present during birth, and C-section is an alternative when necessary.
This is Aisha, single mother of 3 and one of many resourceful Sudanese women, often called “Sitashai” (tea seller) that are running their own tea business to support the family. Days and evenings you will see these women on the street corners and open spaces serving all sorts of tasteful tea.
Kids playing in the streets, strolling donkeys, locals gathering to eat foul (a typical Sudanese dish) and dozens of smiling faces waiting for your attention, is part of dailylife in Abbri.
The small local fruit and vegetable market offers a large variety. Fresh bananas, oranges, mangos, okra, eggplant and of course onion, which is grown all over the country.
Abbri is on the river bank of the Nile and is therfore blessed with fertile soil. Sudan is one of the world’s largest producers of millet, sorghum, sesame seeds and groundnuts.
The Nile is often used for afternoon swims and washing of clothes. Its considered clean and safe, when you remember to watch out for the famous Nile Crocodiles.
Nubians are known to be generous and hospitable. They often welcome you into their home and offer tea and dates. If you need a place to sleep don’t be surprised if they offer that too.
Free drinking water is available to the villagers, and kept cold in these raw ceramic vases.
When the only baker in the village has fresh bread ready the villagers line up.
In the evening you will find Sitashai’s in Abbris open spaces. Customers sit for hours on plain metal stools bound with colorful string, to drink their tea and socialize.
If you are lucky you get invited to a wedding. Sudanese weddings are often large, where relatives, friends, neighbors, co-workers, and sometimes even strangers gather to celebrate.
About 90% of the Sudanese are muslims, where the tradition is to have two simultaneous parties, one for the bride and one for the groom. The women dress up in their most beautiful scarf and dresses and enjoy dancing, food and conversations all night long.
Food is in the center of weddings in Sudan as it is in most parts of the world. The Syrian and Arab traders brought Mediterranean influence into the Sudanese kitchen during the rule of Turkish emperors. You will find Falafel, Ful Medames (the national dish with beans) ,stews, Baba ganoush, Olives, fresh flat bred, egg and meat, all eaten by hand.
In Sudan, brides traditionally wear red wedding gowns with gold (a thobe and a shawl). But at this wedding, as many others these days, brides choose western-style white dresses.
This 1950’s Beetle that is not really a Beetle, but a unrecognizable brand similar to a Beetle belongs to Megzub. He is the owner of a charming guesthouse where you can end your evening.