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Under the Saharan Sun

Retired Columns

From “Life in the Sandwich” to “Special Needs Mama” to “Zen and the Art of Child Maintenance”—they’re all here for you to explore.

So How Was Africa?

“So how was Africa?” is the first question every relative and friend asks my children. It’s a sincere question but it makes me grind my teeth. First of all, Africa…

Under the Saharan Sun | October 2007 | By Jennifer Margulis


Back to America

“When you said you were going away for a year–” my aunt Judy began as we were driving in the car to her favorite shoe store in the East Bay.…

Under the Saharan Sun | July 2007 | By Jennifer Margulis


On African Fathers and an American Dad

In Niger men and women pray separately, eat separately, and play very different roles in the family. It’s unheard of to have a joint bank account. (Why share your money…

Under the Saharan Sun | June 2007 | By Jennifer Margulis


Faire La Fête

Until my friend invited me I hadn’t realized how much I missed dancing. But then I started to worry: did I still remember how? Would I be the oldest lady…

Under the Saharan Sun | May 2007 | By Jennifer Margulis


Sneaking Sex

Even though Nigeriens tend to be reserved and Niger is a conservative, predominantly Muslim country, evidence that men and women enjoy each other’s bodies is everywhere. The average woman in…

Under the Saharan Sun | April 2007 | By Jennifer Margulis


I Want a Fat Canadian Lady

“I’ve been losing weight,” I mentioned to a friend. He tilted his head to one side and looked concerned. “That’s terrible,” Ayou said. “What is it about our country that’s…

Under the Saharan Sun | March 2007 | By Jennifer Margulis


Keep an Eye on Your Husband

The first time I lived in Niger I was only 23, insecure, energetic, and libido-driven. I was lonely, craving intimacy and deeply attracted to Nigerien men with their smooth dark…

Under the Saharan Sun | February 2007 | By Jennifer Margulis


Kids and Culture Shock

Everyone says that kids are more adaptable than adults. So before we moved overseas I figured my kids would have it easy. A new culture would be nothing more than…

Under the Saharan Sun | January 2007 | By Jennifer Margulis


At Playgroup in Africa the Topic is Kidnap

When we were leaving the States I worried about things like schistosomiasis and accidents. Car hijackings and kidnap had never crossed my mind.

Under the Saharan Sun | December 2006 | By Jennifer Margulis


School Worries

Walking to my daughter’s kindergarten, we pass a makeshift boutique that sells everything from soap to spicy peppers. Down an unmarked sandy road, we pass a herd of goats nibbling…

Under the Saharan Sun | December 2006 | By Jennifer Margulis


No Place to Lay Our Heads

“We can’t stay here,” my husband says after we’ve been in the house we rented sight-unseen only two days. “We need to leave. Today. Now. I can’t take much more…

Under the Saharan Sun | October 2006 | By Jennifer Margulis


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