I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I am back in the med hut in Dakar yet again. I've been here since Wednesday night. The PC doctor seems confident that I will be alright in the near future, so I'm hoping to catch a ride back to Tamba with another volunteer on Thursday.
It was nice to get back to site, I think my family did miss me while I was gone. Especially the little kids, I got a really nice big greeting from all of them upon my return. Unfortunately, I got sick the second day that I was back in village and I think I must have looked really sick too. My family kept telling me to lie down, and they kept moving my location in the compound based on where the most shade was. On Tuesday night they even made me a special dinner of macaroni (which was delicious, although made with a ton of oil. Even so, I ate every bite). I hope that when I get back, they'll teach me how to make the macaroni their way. It was pretty intense watching the cooking, which was done over a fire in a big steel pot. I hope that cooking is a skill I'll be able to bring back to America with me, I'll have to make sure that wherever I end up living has enough room for a fire pit out back.
In case you were wondering, I did indeed have a bed waiting for me when I got back to my village and it does make all the difference. I'm hopeful that soon I'll even have 2 beds. When I left for Dakar there were the beginnings of a cement bed in my backyard. Once that is completed I'll be able to sleep outside at night, it should be much cooler and more comfortable. There has also been discussion of a fence around my shower/bathroom, as well as a shade structure over it. Once done, it will be a pretty sweet setup. I'll make sure to post pictures soon.
I've really been enjoying the children in my family. One of my favorites, Mehta, is about 3 years old and she is just adorable. She does this thing where she holds out her right hand to me so that I can shake it. Sometimes she'll just sit next to me and do this 4 or 5 times in a row. Very cute. Fatou, who is about 5 is also quite delightful. She likes to sweep my hut for me, she doesn't think that I do it correctly. How hard can it be to sweep? But apparently I really am worse then a small child in my village right now. They tell me that I need help with everything and right now the only thing I can do is smile, accept and say "thank you." I really am grateful for all the help, this would be way harder if they thought I was all set to go right from the beginning. I am hoping that I'll be coming back to America much more self-sufficient, even if there is no where in the states that I'll have to pull my own water and then carry it back on my head. How do you like that picture?
Asalaa maalekum,
Rachel
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Friday, June 3, 2011
Top 5
I have been released from med and am finally back in my regional capital. I have stayed the last two nights at my regional house and this afternoon I will return (equipped with a stick bed AND a bag of cement for a outdoor cement bed. Celebration? I think so.) to my site. In the meantime, I've had a lot of time to think and I give to you all now, my top five favorite things about Senegal.
1. Fabric
Who said that I wouldn't be able to get my shop on in Senegal? The fabric choices here range from the ridiculous to the sublime and I could literally spend hours at a fabric stall in my local market pillaging the stacks upon stacks of fabric. Just this morning I picked up a fantastic purple, pink and yellow tie-dyed dress, complete with a beaded hem. I for sure will be turning heads when I get back to my village.
2. Egg Sandwiches
Never before in my life have I craved eggs as much as I do in Senegal. Hard-boiled, fried, scrambled, etc. Luckily for me, getting an egg sandwich here is a simple feat. You can buy them on the street or make them in the comfort of your own home (or hut...I guess). Just last night I had a delicious sandwich of two hard-boiled eggs, mayo, hot sauce, salt and fresh ground pepper. And at night in Tamba, they make amazing breakfast sandwiches, with egg, onion and potato. Just add some ketchup or hot sauce and you're golden. I have a feeling that eggs are about to become a main staple of my diet, seeing as how the only thing I really trust myself to do on my little gas stove (please see previous post for further explanation) is boiling water. I hope I don't start to resemble a hard-boiled egg, well, at least not any more then I already do now.
3. Illegal Downloads
Did you know that there are no downloading laws in Senegal? Say hello to all the crappy television shows and movies that I have been dying to see for the past several years. Of course, the internet is on the slow side, yesterday it took me seven hours to download one episode of "Make it or Break it." No big deal, PCVs have plenty of free time.
4. Communal Napping
In Senegal, as long as you are visible to other people, that is considered being social. I often fall asleep on one of my family's cement beds in the late morning, as well as in the evening twilight before dinner. Often, I will wake up to little children sleeping next to me (or possibly just sitting and staring at me). Pretty sweet deal if I do say so myself.
5. Ataya!
Ataya is the word for tea in Senegal. You drink it out of really small cups and it is made with foam on top. The more foam, the better (at least according to the Senegalese). I love it when people in my compound just hand me cup after cup of tea. You would think that drinking hot tea on a hot day would be unbearable, but surprisingly, I find it rather refreshing.
Hopefully my list of "tops" in Senegal will only continue to grow. But for right now, five seemed like a good round number to me. Like I said before, back to site this afternoon. I'll check back in at the regional house in a few days, but until then, I'm signing off.
Asalaa maalekum,
Rachel
1. Fabric
Who said that I wouldn't be able to get my shop on in Senegal? The fabric choices here range from the ridiculous to the sublime and I could literally spend hours at a fabric stall in my local market pillaging the stacks upon stacks of fabric. Just this morning I picked up a fantastic purple, pink and yellow tie-dyed dress, complete with a beaded hem. I for sure will be turning heads when I get back to my village.
2. Egg Sandwiches
Never before in my life have I craved eggs as much as I do in Senegal. Hard-boiled, fried, scrambled, etc. Luckily for me, getting an egg sandwich here is a simple feat. You can buy them on the street or make them in the comfort of your own home (or hut...I guess). Just last night I had a delicious sandwich of two hard-boiled eggs, mayo, hot sauce, salt and fresh ground pepper. And at night in Tamba, they make amazing breakfast sandwiches, with egg, onion and potato. Just add some ketchup or hot sauce and you're golden. I have a feeling that eggs are about to become a main staple of my diet, seeing as how the only thing I really trust myself to do on my little gas stove (please see previous post for further explanation) is boiling water. I hope I don't start to resemble a hard-boiled egg, well, at least not any more then I already do now.
3. Illegal Downloads
Did you know that there are no downloading laws in Senegal? Say hello to all the crappy television shows and movies that I have been dying to see for the past several years. Of course, the internet is on the slow side, yesterday it took me seven hours to download one episode of "Make it or Break it." No big deal, PCVs have plenty of free time.
4. Communal Napping
In Senegal, as long as you are visible to other people, that is considered being social. I often fall asleep on one of my family's cement beds in the late morning, as well as in the evening twilight before dinner. Often, I will wake up to little children sleeping next to me (or possibly just sitting and staring at me). Pretty sweet deal if I do say so myself.
5. Ataya!
Ataya is the word for tea in Senegal. You drink it out of really small cups and it is made with foam on top. The more foam, the better (at least according to the Senegalese). I love it when people in my compound just hand me cup after cup of tea. You would think that drinking hot tea on a hot day would be unbearable, but surprisingly, I find it rather refreshing.
Hopefully my list of "tops" in Senegal will only continue to grow. But for right now, five seemed like a good round number to me. Like I said before, back to site this afternoon. I'll check back in at the regional house in a few days, but until then, I'm signing off.
Asalaa maalekum,
Rachel
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Fire in the hole!
Have I told you the story where I almost set my hut on fire? I don't think so, here we go. I do have a sort of stove in my hut. It is a gas tank with a little burner on top. I think I will mainly be using it to boil water in the morning for my tea and oatmeal, possibly to make hard-boiled eggs for dinner. I'd like to think that eventually I will get more ambitious; however, my first stove experience was slightly on the terrifying side. It may take several weeks (or months) for me to get over.
The first day I got to site, one of my sisters helped me put my little stove together. All looked well and good and I was happy to think that when I needed my stove, it would be ready to suit all of my culinary needs. I believe it was day four when I gave cooking (I use the term loosely, I really was just trying to boil water) a try. So, I lit my match, set it on the burner (I am really not a fan of hot things, especially fire), and turned the knob on the tank to light the burner. The next thing I know, there are flames three feet high shooting up out of my stove. Did I mention that I live in a hut with a roof made out of dry grass? I had visions of my entire hut going up in flames, along with all of the belongings I lugged over from America, leaving me homeless and penniless.
Needless to say, I screamed. Shrieked, really. I'm sure that my entire compound heard me and thank god, because about 10 seconds later there were five people on my doorstep ready to save me. I think we figured out the problem (gas leak, I didn't screw something into the tank enough), and the next morning I made the best tasting cup of tea I've had in a while. I hope Africa will help me get over my fear of fire.
Asalaa maalekum,
Rachel
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