Catch-up

A picture of my room in Dakar!

So a lot has gone on the past 2 (?) weeks. I went to l'Ile de Gorée, then Thiès, then to my homestay in a village outside of Thiès, called Kër Sedaro (kër in Wolof means 'family'), then back to Thiès, then a visit to the mosque in Touba, then to Saint-Louis and back to Dakar again. I realize that I have hardly spoken about my life here in Dakar, but I seem to be constantly trying to play catch up!

Last week I spent most of my time working on a paper that explored an aspect of our stay in the village. I chose to examine the different expressions of wealth/economic indicators that I observed. My computer definitely came in handy for that... I was overjoyed when Pepsi, Courtney, and I looked up 24h pâtisseries/cafés in the Lonely Planet guide and found one, Pâtisserie La Médine, and then went there to do some work. We gorged ourselves on quiche, croque-monsieurs, exquisite pastries, and café au lait. AND THEN! We found a wireless signal, and thanks to someone named Philip, we enjoyed some internet. What I'd give for a coffee shop with a hi-speed wireless connection! Then we had classes at Village des Arts/Theatre Daniel Serano. I chose to take djembe, which was awesomeee. I got to spend 3 afternoons drumming away, learning different drum sequences. Others chose to take kora or Senegalese dance lessons. We all took dance and djembe at Village des Arts a couple weeks ago, so we all kind of knew what's up.

This past weekend (on Saturday) I went downtown to Marché Sandaga, because Pharmacie Guigot located there, I found out, sells contact lens supplies. Yup, I conveniently forgot my contact case at the hotel in Saint-Louis. Probably because our bathroom smelled like rotting mangoes and every time I went in there I started to gag, so when it was time to pack, I just quick! grabbed what was in sight. Ehhh, oh well.

So it turns out you have to buy this intense box of contact solutions which costs 13,000 CFA (about $25) in order to get the contact case. I thought to myself, I am NOT spending 25 bucks on a contact case that would be free at the optometrist's in the US, so I decided to make due with my glasses until my care package arrives from Steve. (yay!)

I figured that while I'm there, I'd take a stroll in Marché Sandaga, and that since I'm alone, I won't be hassled/HARASSED as much. Boy was I wrong. I bought some sandals from un vendeur (which I probably was ripped off for, even though I still got the price down to half of what he was asking) and after that, tout les vendeurs start their tailgating.

This one man would not leave me alone, "Tu es belle, uh? Tu es sexy! Je t'aime! Americaine? Ou bien, française? Belge?" AGGGHH! LAISSE-MOI TRANQUILLE! [I will have to copy one of my papers in here, to explain my other horrible experience at Marché Sandaga.] So after that, I vowed NEVER to go downtown (or at least Place de l'Indépendence/Sandaga) EVER again. Then I took a taxi home and read for the rest of the day.

Then Sunday, I decided to check out Marché HLM, to get some fabric for a nouvelle robe pour Korité (la fête après Ramadan). Oh my gosh, I went crazy! Soooo many amazing fabrics to choose from. I think I must have stood at each vendor's 'shop' for about 45 minutes trying to decide. I'm so bad at deciding. Especially when I like everything offered! I didn't get hassled at all, or even ripped off, but it was packed. Everyone and their mother was at the market buying fabric for Korité. It's tradition that everyone wears a new outfit for Korité, so you can imagine how well fabric vendors and tailors are doing right about now. La couturière across the street opens up again after ndoggu (breaking of the fast) and dinner, and stays up until the wee hours of the night. From my bedroom window I can hear the whir of the sewing machine (they still use those old fashioned Singer sewing machines with the cast iron tables) and the clinking/shwishing of scissors cutting fabric as I'm falling asleep.

I finished reading my book for French class in two days! I read "Un chant écarlate" by Mariama Bâ, and I didn't think I would be able to finish it, but I ended up not being able to put it down. It is SO SAD. I think I spend the rest of the evening being depressed. Basically it's about a Senegalese teenager (Ousmane) coming from a poor poor family, who falls in love with the daughter of a French ambassador (Mirièlle) while they are classmates at school. Of course the parents of both parties do not approve of their relationship, and when the ambassador finds out about it, he sends Mirièlle back to France.

-flash forward-

They graduate from university and are both professors. They've kept in touch all these years through letters, and they decide to marry. Ousmane flies to France and they decide to marry at a mosque outside Paris. Mirèlle converts to Islam and they move to Sénégal. Then all their troubles start and then Ousmane cheats on her and takes a second wife and then Mirèlle finds out and is stricken with grief and then kills their baby and tries to kill Ousmane. It just made me so mad! And sad! Poor Mirièlle! And everything that Bâ brings up about Senegalese society. Humph.

Family life goes well here in Dakar. Saliew is working in Touba, so he hasn't been home for a couple weeks. Yvonne and Mouhammet started school today, and we got two new maids. Ndièye and Fatou left, and now we have Khady and another, also named Fanta Dabo. I really like the first Fanta. She speaks little French, mostly Wolof, but I like the way she talks--she talks slowly, and kind of walks the same way. Her voice is raspy and she always smiles saying, "Ah, Saaara. Ça va?"