Been such a long, lonely time
Wow, I never thought I'd go so long without a post. Especially while in Africa.
How can I describe Africa to you? It's impossible. Eventually I hope to get around to typing up the entries in my personal journal and posting them here, but that will all take time. So, I guess I'll try here to get straight to the main points.
AFRICA:
The location: I was in Senegal for 6 weeks, in the capital city (Dakar). What did it look like? Well, it was sandy, there was trash everywhere, there were no driving laws (as far as any Westerner could tell), most of the buildings are what we would describe as housing projects, there were people of all ages out in the streets at pretty much every hour, there were stray animals on every corner, and the sidewalks were falling apart. But, there were also some very beautiful places in Dakar. The beach, for instance, was quite gorgeous.
The people: Everyone I met was extremely friendly and welcoming. I lived with a host family, and they were always very nice to me. People in general were excited to talk to the "toubabs" (white people). The men were practically infatuated with all of the girls on our trip. I received at least 3 marriage proposals per day, and most of them were very serious. I made some very close relationships with the Senegalese. I felt like I was part of their family.
The food: Okay, here's where it really gets sketchy. I ate fish and rice for almost every meal... and if you know me, you know how I feel about fish (yuck!). But, it really wasn't that bad. The rice was usually seasoned and pretty spicy, so I could mask the taste of the fish. For breakfast, I usually had a baguette and sometimes coffee. Chicken and beef were rarities in the Senegalese diet, and I never had pork (because this was a 95% muslim country). I will say this though... I was hardly hungry. They made sure I ate well, and I promise I didn't lose a single pound. When I ate with my host family, about 8-12 of us ate around this one big bowl. The rice was on the outside, and the meat and vegetables were in the middle. We each ate from our own little area. We typically ate with spoons, but sometimes the women would use their hands to break up the meat and throw it to the different areas of the bowl. They would usually just continue eating with their hands, balling up the rice and meat with their fist. It's harder than it looks. Senegalese people also loved to drink tea. Every day, there would be at least one tea session with 3 cups. The tea was really good... and I don't like tea. It was really interesting to see how they made it.
The living arrangements: As I said before, I was with a host family. My family was pretty rich. Our house was massive, but very different than an American house. Everything was centered around a courtyard. The central part of the house had 3 stories, with lots of rooms. Then there were little separate cottage-type things around the courtyard where different family members lived. The rooms were pretty nice, though it was hot and there were a lot of flies around. I didn't encounter very many mosquitos, but I did sleep in a mosquito net. There was a regular shower, but only cold water (it's not as bad as it sounds- I got used to it pretty quickly). There was a regular toilet, as well as a Turkish toilet (basically a hole in the ground). I can't even begin to count how many people were in my family. It seemed infinite. To the best of my knowledge, there was a father, 3 wives (one of whom was really an aunt, but her husband had passed so she became the wife of his brother), 3 or 4 teenage boys, a couple of younger boys, a 3 or 4 year old boy, a baby girl, two nieces, a grandfather and his 4th wife (the other 3 had passed away), and other random people who came in and out. I never knew what to expect when I left my room.
The clothes: The clothes were beautiful. They were very colorful and modest. I had a few made for myself in fact. Every Friday, most people would wear the traditional African dress. But, it was surprising to see so many young people dressed in Western-style clothes. 50 Cent shirts were extremely common. Bob Marley was another big one. All the time I would see girls in tight jeans, high heels, and tank tops. But a lot of the clothing they wore seemed like hand-me-downs from America. The more stylish clothing was probably from France.
The village: I spent 4 days in a rural village as well. I loved it there, even more than the city. Everybody knew each other and it was very peaceful. I actually found the village folk to be more open-minded than the city dwellers. Their French was a little worse, but I was still surprised at how educated they were. The village itself was very pretty. The villagers seemed very honored to have us there, and my host family treated me like a princess. I was extremely sad to leave them.
The culture: It's hard to even know where to begin. But basically, the Senegalese value family, generosity, and hospitality. Major crime is rare in Senegal. Only petty crimes like pick pocketing are really rampant. Society is very social. They don't like being alone or having private time, like most of us in the US do. They find happiness in numbers, which is probably why they have such large families. They enjoy just sitting around talking. They watch a lot of TV. The younger generations enjoy listening to music, especially foreign music. Soccer is a big deal. Most people don't drink or smoke, and if they do smoke it's pretty much only the men. It is highly looked down upon if a woman smokes. Most of the women seem to accept and even like polygamy. We had many discussions about this. It's funny, but even the educated women in Senegal support polygamy... they say it gives them even more freedom (because they don't have to take on all the responsibilities of a household by themselves, instead they can have free time to pursue whatever interests them).
Well, I can't really think of anything else to brief you on. There's just too much to say. If anybody has questions, let me know and I'll do my best to answer them.
I'm putting pictures up on facebook as we speak. Make sure to check them out.
How can I describe Africa to you? It's impossible. Eventually I hope to get around to typing up the entries in my personal journal and posting them here, but that will all take time. So, I guess I'll try here to get straight to the main points.
AFRICA:
The location: I was in Senegal for 6 weeks, in the capital city (Dakar). What did it look like? Well, it was sandy, there was trash everywhere, there were no driving laws (as far as any Westerner could tell), most of the buildings are what we would describe as housing projects, there were people of all ages out in the streets at pretty much every hour, there were stray animals on every corner, and the sidewalks were falling apart. But, there were also some very beautiful places in Dakar. The beach, for instance, was quite gorgeous.
The people: Everyone I met was extremely friendly and welcoming. I lived with a host family, and they were always very nice to me. People in general were excited to talk to the "toubabs" (white people). The men were practically infatuated with all of the girls on our trip. I received at least 3 marriage proposals per day, and most of them were very serious. I made some very close relationships with the Senegalese. I felt like I was part of their family.
The food: Okay, here's where it really gets sketchy. I ate fish and rice for almost every meal... and if you know me, you know how I feel about fish (yuck!). But, it really wasn't that bad. The rice was usually seasoned and pretty spicy, so I could mask the taste of the fish. For breakfast, I usually had a baguette and sometimes coffee. Chicken and beef were rarities in the Senegalese diet, and I never had pork (because this was a 95% muslim country). I will say this though... I was hardly hungry. They made sure I ate well, and I promise I didn't lose a single pound. When I ate with my host family, about 8-12 of us ate around this one big bowl. The rice was on the outside, and the meat and vegetables were in the middle. We each ate from our own little area. We typically ate with spoons, but sometimes the women would use their hands to break up the meat and throw it to the different areas of the bowl. They would usually just continue eating with their hands, balling up the rice and meat with their fist. It's harder than it looks. Senegalese people also loved to drink tea. Every day, there would be at least one tea session with 3 cups. The tea was really good... and I don't like tea. It was really interesting to see how they made it.
The living arrangements: As I said before, I was with a host family. My family was pretty rich. Our house was massive, but very different than an American house. Everything was centered around a courtyard. The central part of the house had 3 stories, with lots of rooms. Then there were little separate cottage-type things around the courtyard where different family members lived. The rooms were pretty nice, though it was hot and there were a lot of flies around. I didn't encounter very many mosquitos, but I did sleep in a mosquito net. There was a regular shower, but only cold water (it's not as bad as it sounds- I got used to it pretty quickly). There was a regular toilet, as well as a Turkish toilet (basically a hole in the ground). I can't even begin to count how many people were in my family. It seemed infinite. To the best of my knowledge, there was a father, 3 wives (one of whom was really an aunt, but her husband had passed so she became the wife of his brother), 3 or 4 teenage boys, a couple of younger boys, a 3 or 4 year old boy, a baby girl, two nieces, a grandfather and his 4th wife (the other 3 had passed away), and other random people who came in and out. I never knew what to expect when I left my room.
The clothes: The clothes were beautiful. They were very colorful and modest. I had a few made for myself in fact. Every Friday, most people would wear the traditional African dress. But, it was surprising to see so many young people dressed in Western-style clothes. 50 Cent shirts were extremely common. Bob Marley was another big one. All the time I would see girls in tight jeans, high heels, and tank tops. But a lot of the clothing they wore seemed like hand-me-downs from America. The more stylish clothing was probably from France.
The village: I spent 4 days in a rural village as well. I loved it there, even more than the city. Everybody knew each other and it was very peaceful. I actually found the village folk to be more open-minded than the city dwellers. Their French was a little worse, but I was still surprised at how educated they were. The village itself was very pretty. The villagers seemed very honored to have us there, and my host family treated me like a princess. I was extremely sad to leave them.
The culture: It's hard to even know where to begin. But basically, the Senegalese value family, generosity, and hospitality. Major crime is rare in Senegal. Only petty crimes like pick pocketing are really rampant. Society is very social. They don't like being alone or having private time, like most of us in the US do. They find happiness in numbers, which is probably why they have such large families. They enjoy just sitting around talking. They watch a lot of TV. The younger generations enjoy listening to music, especially foreign music. Soccer is a big deal. Most people don't drink or smoke, and if they do smoke it's pretty much only the men. It is highly looked down upon if a woman smokes. Most of the women seem to accept and even like polygamy. We had many discussions about this. It's funny, but even the educated women in Senegal support polygamy... they say it gives them even more freedom (because they don't have to take on all the responsibilities of a household by themselves, instead they can have free time to pursue whatever interests them).
Well, I can't really think of anything else to brief you on. There's just too much to say. If anybody has questions, let me know and I'll do my best to answer them.
I'm putting pictures up on facebook as we speak. Make sure to check them out.