Laalaay! Deggnaa wolof tuuti!

...Holy smokes! I speak a little bit of wolof!

And that is a very rewarding development!

I start with this because I just came from my second wolof class of the day, and because after being greeted by a bunch of young men in the street- ay, tubaab!- I was actually able to hold half a conversation and explain that I dont really understand anything theyre saying to me, but have a nice day. Normally we would switch to French after that, but I wanted to get to this internet cafe in time to write my blog and get home to help with dinner, if theyll let me (which usually they dont, out of hospitality).

Now, before I really begin, I'd like to preface this with a disclaimer- the keyboard here is different from ours in the states, so forgive any typos. Add that to the fact that since I'm beginning to think in French from time to time, and yet am supposed to try to throw in wolof wherever I can, a lot of what I write may come out as if it's been translated twice already... this may be no great word of literature. But hopefully I'll be able to get the point across.

Alors... Senegal is fabulous. The first few days were difficult, adjusting to the heat and the culture and generally being in a totally foreign place without any real familiar faces. It's still not the easiest thing in the world, but I'm becoming more and more comfortable evrey day, and everything that's hard is just another incredible learning experience. I'm trying to adapt as creatively as possible. For example... I am terrified of roaches to an irrational extent (any past roommates can probably confirm). But, last week we had a seminar on superstition and faith in Senegal, and learned about what's called a "rab"- a totem animal that protects a family/village/etc, and in turn must be respected. Thus, I've decided my rab will be... the cockroach. During my morning shower, I say a quick "asalaa maalekum" to Herbie (shower rab) and go on my way. Secretly praying he'll leave. Voila, adapting.

I guess I'll go through my journal and pull out a few interesting stories, and put them down as bullet points... I've done so much already, and don't want to bore you all to tears or make your eyes hurt, so if you have any questions, please please email me! I miss you all. Donc:


-For a brief summary, I got here last MOnday and slept most of the day, stayed in nice apartments with the Penn girls and about 10 people from Beloit and Georgetown, then started our seminars and moved into the homestay. I'm living with 2 other Americans, which is a little disappointing because it means I have people to show me around and such... a little like cheating... and because the family is already used to Americans; so they let me get away with a lot of mistakes without explaining things. But, the girls are really nice, and it's been great to have basically constant conversations going on between Americans and the family, so I can plug in even when I have nothing to say. The mother is divorced (very rare here), and we live with her, her 21 yr old daughter, her 8 yr old nephew (who is hilarious, and plays soccer and cards with me), and the grandmother. There are also a lot of boarders upstairs; many are uncles and their families. One of the uncles is going to take me to see a soccer game next Sunday, which is amazing. Side note: as a general rule of thumb, the Senegalese are incredibly friendly and kind, and very tolerant. Of course, not everyone loves the tubaabs; but it hasn't been a problem.

-What I noticed first about Senegal, from the moment I stepped off the plane, was the smell in the air. It's a lot sweeter somehow. And softer. It's beautiful. And reminds me quite a bit of Sri Lanka... although Senegal smells better.

-The showers here are really different from American ones. There's not actually a separate shower- just a shower head in the bathroom with a drain underneath. The whole room is ceramic, so you just lock the bathroom door and start showering. No curtain even. Also... there is no hot water. Zero. Zilch. After a few minutes it's quite tolerable though, especially during the day when it's hot.

-Many of you may know me as anti-eating-fish. Well, no longer! We eat fish about twice a day here, often with bones and eyeballs and big ol smiles. It's delicious. Shrimp will have to wait tho- baby steps. Speaking of food by the way, it's all delicious here. Lots of mutton and spicy-ish sauces, and rice. The national dish is cen-bu-jen: rice and fish. I wont go much into food preparation, alhtough that also is a big change from what I'm used to- let it suffice to say that OSHA and the FDA would disapprove.

-One of the biggest challenges here is tyring to fit in, and understand the culture from the inside, and genuinely get to know people, when we stand out so much. It's totally imossible. It's especially hard to befriend the women- partly because their men pay so much attention to us (marriage proposals are not uncommon, and are joking- but also serious. A green card, or even a travel visa, is near impossible to get, even if they've saved enough money). It's also hard to befriend women because, quite frankly, we often can relate better to the men- we share a sense of self-empowerment that the women here often don't have. However, I have begun making friends (I think) with my host sister, NdeMarie, who is really fierce and also really funny. I have a lot of thoughts on gender here, but I think I'll save my reactions until later, when they're more fully formed. I have a lot left to learn before I'm going to be comfortable saying that I have stong opinions about a lot of things.

-The streets are filled with vendors and talibe- young children who were sent from villages to Dakar to study with marabouts (Islamic religious leaders). They are beggar children, who will hold onto your arm and follow you around asking for money or food. So far, I'm under the impression that the original system was really a beautiful manifestation of the importance of giving and sharing: in villages, children would go to study with local marabouts, and at lunch time, they would be sent out to ask local families (who they all were close to) for food. Then they'd come back and share it all together for lunch. This also allows people to fulfill their duty as Muslims to give charity. However, as my host mother Ouli has told me, the city corrupts and the system has become one of child exploitation. The children now ask for money instead of food, and they rarely reap the benefits- the marabouts often keep it for themselves. However, it is extremely controversial, and the talibe remain valued by some because they "harden" children for life in the real world, and much more because they allow people to fill their duty to give charity. In fact, I heard that the beggars are so important in this way that they have even gone on strike before.

-They don't eat many nuts here, Alxamdulilay (Dieu merci/thank God)- except kola nuts, which are given as a sign of friendship. Luckily, I haven't made any friends yet. Just kidding... I haven't made any kola'nut bearing friends though. I think it's more prevalent in villages.

-There are 2 sheep in the backyard, which wake mpe up every night with their yakking and eating. They're there for religious sacrifice. I'll try not to get too attached.

-Blackouts are very prevalent here. So far, I've experienced 3... but there may have been more at times when I happened to be not using any electricity (which is often).

-As in most developing countries, they don't use toilet paper here. I bought some.

-I've been spending a good deal of time with my host family, talking about Senegal or the states or our days or whatever. It's really fascinating, and they are the nicest people. I hang out with the little boy, Papi, a lot. Also, they gave me a wolof name- Awa!

-We often eat around the communal bowl here, which is nice. Once, at the Baobab Ctr, we ate with our hands, which was awesome.

-Yesterday was an absolutley fabulous day. I went with a friend from Georgetown, Molly, to an island called Ile de la Madeleine, which is a 15 minute pirogue (small fishing boat with a motor) ride from mainland Dakar. We had a great conversation with an old man on the beach while we were waiting for the boat. The island is increible- very small, but like nothign I-ve ever seen. The rocks are the weirdest pattern, from volcanic activity, and the tidepools are fantastic for swimming. There are rare species of birds, and a gorgeous view of the sunset. I'll post pics when I get to the university and have more computer access.

OK Now I'm out of internet time... I hope this wasnt too long, I have a ton more to say. Next time!!

Babeneen,
Awa