It’s a Stare Down!

For Americans, it is culturally impolite to stare. I still remember one of my uncles telling me to “stop gazing” when we were at a McDonalds – what must to have been some 20 years ago. Well, in Côte d’Ivoire, the American faux pas of staring does not exist. People will stare you straight in the face until you’re out of eyes’ reach. Whereas Americans look away to prevent looking at strangers too long, Ivoirians seem to go more by the rule of, “God gave me eyes to use and I can’t let this sense go to waste.” It’s amusing to ride by in a car and watch passersby stare you down. I often think that one could easily get caught cheating in this city the way that these folks stare into cars – they miss nothing with their eyes! An Ivoirian person’s “business” begins and ends with what he or she can see. One might say that Ivoirians are nosey. I think that we (Americans) were more like them – that is before we became so industrialized and “developed”.

I think there are benefits to people’s perceptivity here. For example, one day, a gentleman on a motorcycle, noticed me walking from the market with tons of heavy bags. He stopped and gave me a lift home. On another occasion, I was chastising a young girl for making a rude remark at me and random woman at the market who saw the situation unfold came to add her two cents – chastising the child with me! There is a sense of community here that reminds you of what it must have been like to grow up in the “good old days” in the US.