Dany Laferrière: N’Djamena. Dancing on the Volcano

I immediately took note of the financial atmosphere that prevailed with the oil that had just gushed from beneath Chadian soil. When I arrived at the hotel, I discovered a swarm of young women sitting at the bar, sipping colorful drinks from tall glasses. Behind the large bay window, I watched impassively as the sun gradually slipped into the Chari, the river that serves as the border between Chad and Cameroon.

These young women greet with a slight smile the return to the fold of the businessmen, mostly European and North American, who