Just a sneakpeak, in no particular order:
"living far from school and everyone is going to end up being a slight financial burden, but has been a door to great opportunities. I usually take the bus to and from classes which costs 150 fCFA ( something less than a quarter) each way. When I travel elsewhere, I usually take the taxi, klondo, or car rapide. Taxi fares here are bargained-- you have to agree on a price with the driver before you get in. You'll get a better price if you speak to the driver in Wolof. Klondos are unmarked and shared taxis, basically, hitchhiking. Because they techniqually arent legal, you pay less to ride them. Car rapides are colorful buses which drive directly down one road. You jump onto an insanely crowded vehicle and often have people sitting (literally) on your lap."
"being a toubab in Senegal has been interesting, coming from an asian background, for many reasons. Foremost, there is a surprising number of similarities between African and Chinese culture. [ill go into this more in another post] Second, I get a lot of "jackie chan" and "ching chong..." remarks when i walk down the street. To my surprise, sort of, I feel like I get it easier as a foreigner because I am not white. One of our professors, for instance, seems to like myself, Eva, and Josh-- the two asians and the canadian."
"Licia and I went to the beach and the kids were throwing rocks at us. After that, it was SO hard to keep a level mind and remember that they are just kids and by no means a reflection of everyone else. Its so hard not to respond to hate with hate. Although slightly off topic, I think they were only aiming at Licia. I wonder if this has to do with the race thing as well..."
“the secret to a successful bucket shower : with the smaller bucket- ladle, wet your hair and body. Only use one, no more than two, ladles full to do so or you will not have enough water to finish the bucket-shower experience. Next, shampoo your hair. It is best to use a two-and one shampoo-conditioner for this. If you only have the two separately, it is best to save conditioning for another day when you have more water at your disposal. When you are done lathering, do not rinse. Now, dip your loofa (or whatever cleaning device you have) into the water and apply soap. Cleanse your body. By this point, you should have used no more than 3 ladles full of water. If you need to shave, do so now. If you brush your teeth in the shower, also do so now. Once you are done with just about everything you need to accomplish in this cleansing experience, use all but the last ladle of water in the bucket to rinse yourself clean. It is best to start rinsing your hair first and let the water that drizzles down rinse off your body… or you may end up in the awkward situation of having shampoo left in your hair. Once you have finished and have towelled dry, it is best to mop up the area around where you have bucket-showered and rinse of any remaining soap-suds with the last ladle of water left in your bucket.”
“the internet at school has been down for just about all of last week, and again today. When I finally decided it was worth it to pay to use an internet café, the power went out. I am now also 6 for 7 for bucket showers because the water is always turned off. “
“ I would give almost anything to read Le Petit Prince right now”
“Spring break 2007 I went to Minnesota to visit Katie and we ate super healthy and worked out like it was our job. The rest of the semester I was
vegan and worked out for an hour (minimum) every single day—I had never felt better (physically, mentally, and emotionally) in my entire life. I think my experience here in Senegal—having to walk in the extreme heat every single day and eating a diet of rice and baguette at every single meal—has propelled me in the exact opposite direction of where I was spring 2007; I feel nauseous every other day for the entire day, dizzy just as frequently, and snappy at a moments notice. Every opportunity I have to eat vegetables and fruit, I do… only to feel even more like shit because my body doesn’t know what to do with all these foreign nutrients. Also, it is not advisable for me to take my multivitamin on an empty stomach as that will only perpetuate my feeling of nausea.”
“I feel unchallenged academically and like my tuition money is going to waste. In the spirit of trying to stay positive, maybe this is an opportunity for me to take my first break in long time… just to learn, instead, what it means to not work on a militant schedule, what it means to not capitalize on every opportunity given to me.”
“learning what fun can be enjoyed with just the simple things in life is what I think has been most pertinent this week. Yves likes to stand in the middle of the living room, spin in circles, and fall face flat on the ground—the whole time laughing like he’s having the time of his life. When he’s not doing this, he gathers all of his ten or so stuffed animals and places them next to me, jumps up and lies on the coach, and tells me to cover him with all the stuffed animals. When I’m done, all I can see are the teletubbies, rabbit, and panda bouncing up and down as he giggles beneath his creation.”
"living far from school and everyone is going to end up being a slight financial burden, but has been a door to great opportunities. I usually take the bus to and from classes which costs 150 fCFA ( something less than a quarter) each way. When I travel elsewhere, I usually take the taxi, klondo, or car rapide. Taxi fares here are bargained-- you have to agree on a price with the driver before you get in. You'll get a better price if you speak to the driver in Wolof. Klondos are unmarked and shared taxis, basically, hitchhiking. Because they techniqually arent legal, you pay less to ride them. Car rapides are colorful buses which drive directly down one road. You jump onto an insanely crowded vehicle and often have people sitting (literally) on your lap."
"being a toubab in Senegal has been interesting, coming from an asian background, for many reasons. Foremost, there is a surprising number of similarities between African and Chinese culture. [ill go into this more in another post] Second, I get a lot of "jackie chan" and "ching chong..." remarks when i walk down the street. To my surprise, sort of, I feel like I get it easier as a foreigner because I am not white. One of our professors, for instance, seems to like myself, Eva, and Josh-- the two asians and the canadian."
"Licia and I went to the beach and the kids were throwing rocks at us. After that, it was SO hard to keep a level mind and remember that they are just kids and by no means a reflection of everyone else. Its so hard not to respond to hate with hate. Although slightly off topic, I think they were only aiming at Licia. I wonder if this has to do with the race thing as well..."“the secret to a successful bucket shower : with the smaller bucket- ladle, wet your hair and body. Only use one, no more than two, ladles full to do so or you will not have enough water to finish the bucket-shower experience. Next, shampoo your hair. It is best to use a two-and one shampoo-conditioner for this. If you only have the two separately, it is best to save conditioning for another day when you have more water at your disposal. When you are done lathering, do not rinse. Now, dip your loofa (or whatever cleaning device you have) into the water and apply soap. Cleanse your body. By this point, you should have used no more than 3 ladles full of water. If you need to shave, do so now. If you brush your teeth in the shower, also do so now. Once you are done with just about everything you need to accomplish in this cleansing experience, use all but the last ladle of water in the bucket to rinse yourself clean. It is best to start rinsing your hair first and let the water that drizzles down rinse off your body… or you may end up in the awkward situation of having shampoo left in your hair. Once you have finished and have towelled dry, it is best to mop up the area around where you have bucket-showered and rinse of any remaining soap-suds with the last ladle of water left in your bucket.”
“the internet at school has been down for just about all of last week, and again today. When I finally decided it was worth it to pay to use an internet café, the power went out. I am now also 6 for 7 for bucket showers because the water is always turned off. “
“ I would give almost anything to read Le Petit Prince right now”
“Spring break 2007 I went to Minnesota to visit Katie and we ate super healthy and worked out like it was our job. The rest of the semester I was
vegan and worked out for an hour (minimum) every single day—I had never felt better (physically, mentally, and emotionally) in my entire life. I think my experience here in Senegal—having to walk in the extreme heat every single day and eating a diet of rice and baguette at every single meal—has propelled me in the exact opposite direction of where I was spring 2007; I feel nauseous every other day for the entire day, dizzy just as frequently, and snappy at a moments notice. Every opportunity I have to eat vegetables and fruit, I do… only to feel even more like shit because my body doesn’t know what to do with all these foreign nutrients. Also, it is not advisable for me to take my multivitamin on an empty stomach as that will only perpetuate my feeling of nausea.”“I feel unchallenged academically and like my tuition money is going to waste. In the spirit of trying to stay positive, maybe this is an opportunity for me to take my first break in long time… just to learn, instead, what it means to not work on a militant schedule, what it means to not capitalize on every opportunity given to me.”
“learning what fun can be enjoyed with just the simple things in life is what I think has been most pertinent this week. Yves likes to stand in the middle of the living room, spin in circles, and fall face flat on the ground—the whole time laughing like he’s having the time of his life. When he’s not doing this, he gathers all of his ten or so stuffed animals and places them next to me, jumps up and lies on the coach, and tells me to cover him with all the stuffed animals. When I’m done, all I can see are the teletubbies, rabbit, and panda bouncing up and down as he giggles beneath his creation.”
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