Scenes de la Vie

A hodgepodge of pictures from our first few weeks in Dakar.

*I stole these from Grace's photobucket page so there are a few random shots of her fam/house.

Here are a few more pictures from our first month in Dakar

Le Weekend

Yes I realize it's Thursday and a lil late to be writing about last weekend, but what with power outages and hours of class 3 days a week that's just how it is.

Friday night we were supposed to go to the club with Tolisto, Lauren's host brother, and some of his friends however, as it got to be about midnight, still TWO hours from going out time we decided it just wasn't going to happen. Instead we hung out on our street for the night, a very common thing for the Senegalese.

Ngor

Saturday afternoon we headed to Ngor, a beach in northern Dakar. We made it there only after being delayed by a sudden rainstorm. When it rains here, it pours. While waiting out the storm at Lauren's house we watched as buckets were lined up to catch excess rain falling in the courtyard. The buckets, each holding at least 5 gallons, were full in about 20-30 minutes. When we finally left the house the streets were so flooded, one step out the door and it seemed like we were already at the beach.

Preparing for the boat ride to Ngor

"Manageable Chaos"

         Then here was the boat ride out to the island, where the beaches are less crowded. 'Less' being the operative word here. You pay 250 CFA for the ride, about $0.50. After paying for your ride you are handed a lifejacket-the first security measure I've seen in Senegal. I wasn't sure if I should take that as a sign of assurance or worry they thought it necessary. The boat itself looked like a giant rowboat with a motor attached to the back. When it pulled up people began swarming toward it like bees on honey. I've started describing most situations here as 'managed chaos, and this was no exception. Everyone crammed  in, squashed side by side, knees to backs, feet in about 6 in. of water, the boat about 6 in above the water-at most! The ride back to the main land was no different-with the exception of a man pronouncing his love for Grace-apparently not that uncommon an occurrence here.

  Saturday night I am proud to say we made it out to the club but beforehand we met up with another ACI student named Mat who discovered this swanky lil restaurant/bar called Balajo.  There was an AMAZING reggae band playing. Sadly none of us can remember the name of the band. After the concert we met up with Grace's brother, two of Lauren's brothers, and one of their friends. Having five Senegalese men to three American women seems to be the way to go. Only one time did Tolisto have to step in and tell a man that I couldn't dance with him because I was married. And then that Lauren was married. And Grace. I don't think he really believed it, but it worked.

Sunday was a lazy day. I finally dragged myself our for a run with Grace after lunch. We've been running through Corniche, an area along the beach in Mermoz. It seems to be the safest place, even for two toubab women. There's a Radison, Sea Plaza-a fancy European style mall, and a number of embassies. The climate here is not ideal for running, but the view along Corniche more than makes up for it!

L'ecole de la Rue

One of the requirements for my program is that I must complete and Integrative Cultural Research Project (aka an ICRP). An ICRP includes finding something particular to Dakar that I am interested and a way to 'integrate' myself in that aspect of life. We spend about 3 months volunteering wherever we choose and at the end of our stay write a 10-15 page research paper discussing the aspect of Senegalese life in which we choose to volunteer. Oh and that 10-15 pages is in French!

Anyway, I mention this now because on Tuesday we visited an informal school called 'L'ecole de la Rue' or 'The School of the Street.'  Informal schools are schools that do not follow a government mandated syllabus, they serve students who have failed out of school or for some other reason cannot attend public schools. This particular school also operates during traditional summer vacation (August-September) and offers English/French classes at night. L'ecole de la Rue is located in a impoverished areas just outside Centre Ville.

These are the types of homes the students were living in

Laundry hanging in the 'street'

Impoverished areas here are not like those in the U.S. Often times in the U.S poor neighborhoods are seen as unsafe and you need to be more vigilant when traveling through them. Our experience was quite the opposite. After learning about the school, we took a tour of the neighborhood and were accompanied by all the students-ages 3-13. First of all, there was no taking attendance, counting students, holding hands when crossing roads etc. I doubt the professor would have noticed had some of the students left the tour. Second of all, I was shocked by how open and inviting families were. One women welcomed us into her home while she explained how she controlled one of the two water taps. Other people allowed us into their work space where some were beading flip flops by hand and others using scrap metal to make small coal burning stoves.

Founder and professor of the school

The kids loved being with us, holding our hands, and most of all seeing the digital pics we took. They were all in high spirits but it was difficult to see the conditions in which they lived and were attempted to learn. The Senegalese education system is very different from that of the U.S. and I'm thinking my ICRP will somehow be education related, focussing on street schools.

The nicest/largest classroom of L'ecole de la Rue

Grace with a few students

Oh and sorry mom, I know I said this would be up yesterday, but the power went out about 20 mins after I talked to you and I'm just now getting a chance to post it. As my prof often says, 'That's Senegal for you.'

Adjusting to 'La vie Senegalese'

After being in Dakar for just over a week, I have decided to start a blog so I can more easily keep everyone updated. This way I can also start to share some photos. Lauren, the student from the College of Wooster who is studying through Kalamazoo's program, takes amazing pictures!

Here's a short recap of my first week:
Upon arrival we were picked up by two ACI (African Consultants International) staff members and dropped of at an apartment to relax and clean up before attending our first orientation session. We spent the first night at the apartment and moved in with our host families Tuesday afternoon. My host family consists of a retired couple and their two daughter, a son and his children who will return from vacation in another week, and another American student, Ann, who is here until November. We live in the Mermoz district right next door to Lauren.

We have had 2 Wolof lessons during which we have learned the traditional greetings and a few phrases to help us get by on the streets and at the markets. Actual classes don't start until this Thursday so most of our time at school had been seminars on things such as safety, health, Senegalese culture, and gender issues. Thaiba-our guide-showed us around the neighborhoods near our school and took us to downtown Dakar a few time. She is teaching us how to bargain in the markets-we were able to get our first purchase, 6 meters of fabric which made each of us a skirt, for only 12,000 CFA=$24 by telling the vendor it was Lauren's birthday. That was the first time, and definitely not the last, that someone asked if we were all twins! Apparently we look alike the Senegalese and nobody seems to knows the english word for triplets so we are just three toubab twins.

Saturday we went to Goree, an island off the coast of downtown Dakar, which was the first French settlement and used as a trading post for slaves. We visited a museum known as the Maison des Esclaves (House of Slaves). The rooms around the main courtyard on the first floor were about 8x10 and held anywhere from 10-25 slaves at a time. At the rear of the house is a door that opens to the coast know as the 'door of no return' through which slaves boarded ships heading to Europe and the Americas. The island is a popular tourist attraction and the vendors have adapted. When Coco, one of the Goree vendors, approached us while waiting for the ferry we thought she was just a friendly vendor who happened to spot a toubab that might want to come by her shop. Then we met Veronique, Yasmine, and a number of other women. When we entered the market that afternoon they all called out, "Oh my American friends, remember me from the boat?" "You say you come to my shop first, be my first customer of the day!" "Help me feed my family." After an hour or so we were completely wiped out and took a quick swim in the beautifully clear cool water to relax be making the trip home.

Saturday night was a different type of experience altogether. Lauren and I went out to a club with Grace and her host brother. First thing you should know is that clubs don't really get going till about 2 am! So, a little tired from our long day and still getting used to the language we ventured into Dakar's nightlife. Needless to say we already stand out in a crowd just being toubabs, but our dancing did nothing to help. All Senegalese people can dance, seriously ALL of them. Then there come the songs with synchronized dance moves, a few of which Cisco (Grace's brother) taught us. We left the club around 3:30, way too early according to all the people we met on streets. Even having left early, I spent most of Sunday just hanging with my fam. Although in the afternoon Lauren's host brothers took us to the Mermoz beach, a 15 minute walk from home, and we tried our first Senegalese ice cream!

Three tubaabs heading to the beach with Lauren's brother Talisto

That's all for now. Hopefully I can keep on top of my entries so they are a little less lengthy and more detailed.

Love to you all,
Ellen