Saturday, November 15, 2008

Toubabs Everywhere You Look

Gosh, a bunch has hapened the past three weeks, maybe I can skim the highlights:

School finally began at my village primary school around the end of October with several spurts and stutters. Now they are actually, kinda, holding classes. However, there were so many strikes and lost days last year, they have to do 2 months of review and finish up last years classes. So three of the classes are being held back this way, the oldest class left to middle school, and now my principle has a class of equivelent 1st graders.

I went up to St. Louis for halloween. It is a costal city up north, past Dakar. A small gathering of other volunteers was also there and in general I had a good time. The beach was beautiful and windy, the city was nice and had good restaurants, and best of all, it was COLD!

Back at site, the first full week of November I was fortunate to host two american exchange students who were studying in Dakar for the semester, and had week long rural visits. The two girls I hosted were cool and I felt actually sorta competent in Serere translating for them and showing them around the various exciting areas of the village.

On that tuesday we went and helped out in the local health hut with the nun that comes weekly to give out medicine. I hadent really been in the hut before to help out cause i figured the little french woman would want privacy, but it was pretty interesting. Most of the cases were apparently malaria.

Also on tuesday, that evening the neiboring families all through togther a dance circle with druming, some singing and lots of confusion, very fun. After, we crashed in my hut and tuned in for hourly election results on my shortwave on the bbc. They were pretty tired but I caught some early state predictions through 200+ electoral votes, to the consession speech and then most of the acceptance speech. Needless to say, I didnt actually sleep much that night. The mice also decided to have parties everynight, keeping us all up, but with the help of my dad, their fun may be over soon. The rest of the week we were all very excited about the Obama win and many of the villagers congradulated us too.

Also, through this week and all of this past one, there have been french people in my village every morning. I think it is some kind of french aid-service thingy, but about a dozen, mostly young, very pale, french men were in the village helping to build a wall around the kindergarden's yard, also encompasing the church and the health hut and the big gnarly shade tree. I tried to stay out of their hair for thier african-experience, and really i guess they did a pretty good job of it.

On Saturday, the students wanted to go and see joal before going back to dakar and i went too as I hadnt really had the oportunity to spend time down there yet. Joal is about 40km south of me on the coast and we toured the island of Fadiouth, which is made out of shells and is home to many serere speakers. That day we also saw the french group again also on tour of the island.

This week I have spent more time observing and helping classes in the school. I took a 2 day trip to Mbour though to help work in the garden of the urban-ag volunteer who is based here. Another PCV came down from dakar and the three of us got Jen's garden looking not too bad for two days of work.

Now, this weekend is mbour time again, a couple of birthdays is a good ocasion to get volunteers together and perhaps there will be pizza and cake somwhere in these two days.

My next big trip is to go up north for thanksgiving, they say the desert is cooling dow up there so maybe it will not feel like a summer feast.

Boo o pam!

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Befores and Afters

Ok, not really a legitimate post but that can come at a later date. in the meantime some village before and after images:

May 13, 2008 : day after install


August 1, 2008 : before leaving for IST

August 28, 2008 : upon returning from IST

September 24, 2008 : regained some control over my yard

May 30, 2008 : Big ole tree up north of the village

September 5, 2008 : Fields of millet, beans and peanut

May 30, 2008 : unplanted church fields next to the kindergarden

September 22, 2008 : church group planted beans

May 30, 2008 : Looking west next to primary school

September 22, 2008 : watermelons and weeds