My Bihar Haircut; My hair was getting a long.
It was definitly the longest hair in Biharamulo man or woman. Many women wear
wigs but underneath its shaved. I was going to have it cut before I left for
Africa but never got to it. Then I sort of rationalized it all by thinking it
would be better and cheaper to get my
hair cut in Mwnza. Then we ran out of time in Mwanza and here I am.
So I asked my friend Ahmed, whom I have known
since 2008 for the best place to get my hair cut and he showed me a place
across the market square from his shop. Its behind the American flag, he said.
Sure enough there was an American flag hanging as a curtain covering the
entance to this shop. Writen above it was “Standard Hair Cutting”.
You have to
understand there are no real stores in Bihar. Just wooden stalls that have been
improvised over and over. I guess it like some old new england farm houses with
multiple additions over the years but on a different scale. That is no doors no
windows and there is nothing that qualifies as quaint here.
I ducked down
and slid the flag to the side. Inside it
was dark but there an was electric light behind a second flag, this one of
Tanzania. So I step forward and ducked again and slid the Tanzanian flag to the
side and entered the barber shop. The room was dark , lit by a single low wattage florescent bulb hanging by a wire
from the ceiling. There was one “barber chair”, 2 benches, 3 customers and one
barber; the only one standing. I think they were as shocked as I was. Beside my friend Jerry Morton I am the only
white man around. And I am quessing I am the first white man to ever to stand
inside “Standard Hair Cutting” We hit it
off OK considering between the 2 of us the barber and I shared a vocabulary of
about 50 words. Luckily there was a little kid in the chair who was just
finishing up and he spoke pretty good english.
I explained I
wanted 2 ½ cm off all around. There was a lot of discussion by everyone in
rapid swahili about what that meant and how, exactly to do it.
Finally the barber who was left handed, and
acted it, made a few passes with his scissors and comb. A few cuts later and it
was obvious he was over his head and out of control. My new friend the 12 yr
old student translator let him know right away, before me, that that was not
right. But the damage was already done. Everyone was talking and gesticulating
now and the barber is losing face and getting frustrated. While the Swahili
hair cutting referees are cutting up the barber and my mzungu hair I am looking
in the old stained mirror realizing a few mortor holes have been chopped out of
my hair.
Finally I gained
control of the conversation and show him what I want. Coomb up, grab a clump of
hair 3 or 4 fingers off the scalp and with the the scissors in the other hand cut all the hair sticking out that is longer then those 4 fingers. Then all the hair
is the same length. And that is how they do it at home. After lots of examples
( I have cut my own hair before). He gets the idea, but that’s all. He needs
lots of practice….maybe on grass or hay. But not on me. I look like a hyena on bad chemotherapy.
I give up and realizing I cant leave in this
condition I point to the electric razor. The barber smiles, now this is a tool
he knows how to use! We agree to an
attachement that cuts longer then a shave. In no time at all I am shorn!. My
hair is ½ inch long all around. It has never been this short since I was 5.
Everyone is happy. The hair cut referees all nod in approval. I now have an
african hair cut ( very short) with mzungu hair. Not exactly what I had in mind
but better then looking like my hair was falling out in clumps and great for
this climate. I pay the barber 2000 Tz Shillings ( about $1.30) and walk out into the African sunlight
wondering what a sunburn on the top of my head is going feel like.
