So Im back in Thies for training and its really good to see everyone. Today has actually kind of sucked in that I gave a presentation and as most of the people I work with have just started studying french, no one understood me, so I got no class participation and was really dissapointed in it. Josh made faces at me and made me laugh during the presentation, so I felt stupid. Also, walking home from work today a middle school aged boy threw a rock at me and I flipped out. I ran after him and yelled at him for a good five minutes in wolof about how dare he, I live here, I work here, Im white but I have feelings and whatnot, then I got in a taxi and cried. I was really upset. How mean is that? I dont expect that in Thies where there are loads of white people. He apologized but I was mad as hell. I suppose my language teacher would be impressed at my wolof language yelling skills?
I have a new host family here and they seem really nice. I dont see them that often as I go out after work everyday with the other volunteers and only see them for dinner before going to bed early as I have to be up at 6:30 to go back to training. We have class from 8:00am to 5:30pm and this week its all business, literally. More news as it happens.
1.30.2008
1.25.2008
Ten Weeks
I cant believe that I have been at site ten weeks!! They say that in the Peace Corps, the days are slow but the months are fast. Its true. This past week has been somewhat eventful in that I have been visiting and meeting people in the community. Of course I have to explain to them all that I will be leaving soon for a month to finish up my training in Thies. But I will come back, Im sure of it. I really like my site. Sure its ugly, but the people are soo kind and wonderful and there is good work to be done. I hope.
Tonight is American night at my house and I am cooking spaghetti for my host family. I hope they like it. If not, thats just plain un American. Everyone loves spaghetti. It is doubling as a going away party for me. I am having some volunteers over for girls night on Saturday and then Sunday we all move back to Thies for three weeks of training. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone again. There will be some good stories, I am sure of it.
Other than that life here is blissfully uneventful.
Tonight is American night at my house and I am cooking spaghetti for my host family. I hope they like it. If not, thats just plain un American. Everyone loves spaghetti. It is doubling as a going away party for me. I am having some volunteers over for girls night on Saturday and then Sunday we all move back to Thies for three weeks of training. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone again. There will be some good stories, I am sure of it.
Other than that life here is blissfully uneventful.
1.19.2008
Tamxarit
...is the name of the muslim new year, which was yesterday. Last night my family and I ate Senegalese couscous (sand in disguise) with a meat and bean sauce, which is the only option for dinner on tamxarit. People had been telling me all week about it. On Friday Aby, you will see, you will have Senegalese couscous. for dinner with your family. Senegalese couscous is hard work and preparations for the meal began on Monday with women pounding whatever it is they pound to make this stuff in big pestles and mortars.
After dinner, the festivities begin. PCVs call it cross dressing night, similar to halloween. Little boys dress in pagnes and little girls wear the traditional boys boubous and they run around banging drums in courtyards for sugar, rice, candles or anything else white that happens to be lying around. Money is also kindly accepted, of course. The toubabs house (mine) is a very popular destination and I walked out of my shower wrapped in my towel to eight little faces peering in my screens. They had stopped banging the drums and I thought they left. Almost dropped my towel in fear and screamed. Little things scared the hell out of me!!!
In other news, came into Thies today to grab more oatmeal (my lastest food obsession. How did I not appreciate and eat more of this stuff in the states? Ill never know) from the foreign import store and on the way walked past a parade of horse drawn carts all carrying small children dressed up. The little boys had shaving cream on their faces as beards and eyebrows and little girls were wearing pretty traditional clothes and jewelry. I suppose today they return to their own gender again.
African Cup of Nations starts tomorrow in Ghana. Allez les lions de la teranga!!
After dinner, the festivities begin. PCVs call it cross dressing night, similar to halloween. Little boys dress in pagnes and little girls wear the traditional boys boubous and they run around banging drums in courtyards for sugar, rice, candles or anything else white that happens to be lying around. Money is also kindly accepted, of course. The toubabs house (mine) is a very popular destination and I walked out of my shower wrapped in my towel to eight little faces peering in my screens. They had stopped banging the drums and I thought they left. Almost dropped my towel in fear and screamed. Little things scared the hell out of me!!!
In other news, came into Thies today to grab more oatmeal (my lastest food obsession. How did I not appreciate and eat more of this stuff in the states? Ill never know) from the foreign import store and on the way walked past a parade of horse drawn carts all carrying small children dressed up. The little boys had shaving cream on their faces as beards and eyebrows and little girls were wearing pretty traditional clothes and jewelry. I suppose today they return to their own gender again.
African Cup of Nations starts tomorrow in Ghana. Allez les lions de la teranga!!
1.16.2008
Life Is Good
Life here in Peace Corps Senegal is full of ups and downs. I spend every day torn between romantic Peace Corps moments, like pounding millet in the biggest pestal and mortar that I have ever seen with my host mom and two other women (and being laughed at the whole time for doing so like a sissy), and wanting to just pack up and go home. Recently, things have been going really well.
As far as my new years resolutions are coming, I have been keeping myself busy teaching computer literacy classes, attending trainings on costing and accounting practices and visiting meetings of local womens groups, where they always want to stop talking business and share their secrets on how to seduce men. This is done, as I am told, by wearing "petite pagnes" (Senegalese undergarments); using incense and wearing bin-bins (beaded jewelry worn around the waist). They love nothing more than letting me in on these secrets and listing every eligible bachelor they know of. One of these days we will talk about work, I hope.
In other news, after the womens group meeting last night went to a party for a local man who just returned from Mecca. This is a huge deal. HUGE. Every muslim that can afford it (which arent many here in Senegal) is to make the pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lifetime. This was this guys year. As we walked up to the house they were slaughtering the biggest bull Ive seen, which must have cost a fortune, but I guess if you can afford a trip to Mecca... the entire courtyard was filled with food and I sat in his living room watching him receive guests, all of whom were hugging and congratulating him and asking him to pray over them. Like I said, huge honor and big deal. Now that he has been to Mecca the man gets to change his name to El Hadj, which literally means the pilgrimage and distinguishes him as having gone. The festivities are going on all day today as well. I went this morning but am having some other volunteers over for dinner so wont be able to go back. This morning I was offered a shotglass size golden cup of something to drink and told it came from Mecca so I drank it, and it was just water. I think I drank Muslim holy water. I took it like a shot but other people were rubbing it on their hands and face in addition to drinking it. Hmmmm, Ill have to ask about that.
As far as my new years resolutions are coming, I have been keeping myself busy teaching computer literacy classes, attending trainings on costing and accounting practices and visiting meetings of local womens groups, where they always want to stop talking business and share their secrets on how to seduce men. This is done, as I am told, by wearing "petite pagnes" (Senegalese undergarments); using incense and wearing bin-bins (beaded jewelry worn around the waist). They love nothing more than letting me in on these secrets and listing every eligible bachelor they know of. One of these days we will talk about work, I hope.
In other news, after the womens group meeting last night went to a party for a local man who just returned from Mecca. This is a huge deal. HUGE. Every muslim that can afford it (which arent many here in Senegal) is to make the pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lifetime. This was this guys year. As we walked up to the house they were slaughtering the biggest bull Ive seen, which must have cost a fortune, but I guess if you can afford a trip to Mecca... the entire courtyard was filled with food and I sat in his living room watching him receive guests, all of whom were hugging and congratulating him and asking him to pray over them. Like I said, huge honor and big deal. Now that he has been to Mecca the man gets to change his name to El Hadj, which literally means the pilgrimage and distinguishes him as having gone. The festivities are going on all day today as well. I went this morning but am having some other volunteers over for dinner so wont be able to go back. This morning I was offered a shotglass size golden cup of something to drink and told it came from Mecca so I drank it, and it was just water. I think I drank Muslim holy water. I took it like a shot but other people were rubbing it on their hands and face in addition to drinking it. Hmmmm, Ill have to ask about that.
1.07.2008
Greetings and Salutations
It has recently occurred to me that I post an awful lot of what I do and not so much about the Senegalese culture that I am struggling to learn. As things become more normal for me here I tend not to notice them anymore, which I suppose is a good sign, but then they never come up.
So instead of talking about the amazing chinese restaurant Chris found in Dakar last night (its hard to get anything other than Senegalese food of hamburgers here, so this is a big deal), I will talk a little about greetings. Greetings in Senegal are a big deal. Everyone greets everyone, all the time. Every time you see someone, you start of on this long list of greetings, regardless of whether you just saw them at the market a few hours ago. The other day I walked out of my house and told the maid I was going to the market and she yelled at me for not properly greeting her. She was totally right, it was rude of me not to. Greetings depend somewhat on who you are greeting, but there is a basic fomat that you run through.
Person A: Asalaa malekum (Arabic for I greet you all in peace)
Person B: Malekum Salaam (ditto)
A: How are you?
B: I am here.
A: How is the family?
B: They are there.
A: How is the cold? (recently as it has been getting down to 60 here)
B: It is cold.
A: How is everything?
B: Its going.
A: Praise be to God.
Then you reverse the greetings. There are hundreds of variations of course and everyday I run into a new greeting that I dont know how to answer. When I get home today from Dakar everyone will ask how Dakar is and how my weekend was. Then they will ask what presents I brought them and I will pretend not to understand.
So instead of talking about the amazing chinese restaurant Chris found in Dakar last night (its hard to get anything other than Senegalese food of hamburgers here, so this is a big deal), I will talk a little about greetings. Greetings in Senegal are a big deal. Everyone greets everyone, all the time. Every time you see someone, you start of on this long list of greetings, regardless of whether you just saw them at the market a few hours ago. The other day I walked out of my house and told the maid I was going to the market and she yelled at me for not properly greeting her. She was totally right, it was rude of me not to. Greetings depend somewhat on who you are greeting, but there is a basic fomat that you run through.
Person A: Asalaa malekum (Arabic for I greet you all in peace)
Person B: Malekum Salaam (ditto)
A: How are you?
B: I am here.
A: How is the family?
B: They are there.
A: How is the cold? (recently as it has been getting down to 60 here)
B: It is cold.
A: How is everything?
B: Its going.
A: Praise be to God.
Then you reverse the greetings. There are hundreds of variations of course and everyday I run into a new greeting that I dont know how to answer. When I get home today from Dakar everyone will ask how Dakar is and how my weekend was. Then they will ask what presents I brought them and I will pretend not to understand.
1.02.2008
Happy 2008
The rest of my vacation was really great. Spent a few days visiting the volunteer in Dagana and then went over to St. Louis to celebrate New Years with other volunteers. It was really good to see everyone and St. Louis is the most beautiful city in Senegal. Our hotel was right on the beach and we played around all day and then went out dancing at nights. Super fun, but exhausting and its good to be back at site. I got home yesterday and my host family made a really big deal about me coming home, which made me feel loved. I suppose I had been gone awhile.
New years resolutions:
1. Become more opinionated (Ive become horribly passive here)
2. Work
3. Dont get fat (Im hesitant to say lose weight, as Im not sure I have the motivation to do that here)
So we will see if any of these work out. Happy 2008 to all and heres to a good year!
New years resolutions:
1. Become more opinionated (Ive become horribly passive here)
2. Work
3. Dont get fat (Im hesitant to say lose weight, as Im not sure I have the motivation to do that here)
So we will see if any of these work out. Happy 2008 to all and heres to a good year!
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