so the rainy season has arrived, however unlike the 500 year flood so many of you got to experience this year it has rained twice. and drizzled three other times. rain here is scarce and i've been told that even this year it is wetter than average. but it is amazing how green everything has become with the little rain we've gotten. there is a greenish fuzz everywhere that the animals have gone crazy for and the trees seem a little fuller. even the people, though they are working very hard in the field everyday- seem happier now that the rain has come. but with the rain comes sandstorms and they are not fun. the sand pelts you like little needles and gets everywhere...i can't stand it and spend more time that i want to sweeping out my hut. but if this is the only rain the fuuta gets and everything depends on a good rainfall...i'm happy for any precipitation. even if it brings bugs and humidity.
the fourth of july was such a great time. the south of senegal is completely different than the fuuta...green, mountainous, jungle-like even. it was so cool seeing the different landscapes on the way down, and even better seeing all the other volunteers again and meeting new ones. it sounds like everyone is doind good...having similar experiences adjusting which is reassuring that i'm not going crazy. the trip took us two days down there, three back...totalling about 20 hours of traveling in a crowed car/bus/van. not the most comfortable way to travel but it gets you from place to place. we stayed at a hotel...i got to sleep in AC!! it never felt so good. there was also a pool where i spent the better of two days near or in. an awesome vacation with a much deserved rest.
we got about a week left in the village before we go to thies for IST. since everyone is in the rice fields working, i've mostly been hanging out at a couple of people's homes talking with a few of the women who stay at home. this is good-i've been practicing my pulaar with them and learning a lot of new things about the village. i'm excited to go back to thies; see and talk with the other stagers, get more health training, take a coupld of weekends to the beach, live with my keur issa host-family again. i've been able to stay in touch with them and they are just as excited to see me as i am...i miss them a lot too.
a quick cultural exchange that happened the other day and i had no idea what was going on:
my family and i were sitting around waiting for dinner when a few kids came running up from the river shouting and pointing. my family and the rest of the village quickly found out what was wrong and and ran down to the river. i was told "nake" as the quizzical face i was making showed them that i didn't get what was happening. in response to "nake" i nodded my head and followed everyone to the river. i had no idea what "nake" meant. i thought i misheard and they meant "nage" which is cows. maybe the cows were crossing the river again. once we were at the river, i followed everyone's gaze to the island where a bunch of people, an older woman, two men, and some children, were chasing and beating each other with branches. the older woman chased a girl into the river. other children followed her and kept hitting her. the two men took off running towards the boat. once in the boat, one stood and continued hitting himself and the paddler. suddenly he jumped into the water, got back in the boat and continued the beating. they arrived at the other people, picked them up and then proceeded to paddle across the river to our bank. suddenly another man came running from the fields, into the river, and climbed int he boat. as initiation everyone beat him too. then as if nothing happened they stopped. as they got closer to the back i realized that the two men were my uncles, demba and moussa, the woman a great aunt. everyone crowded around them and all were talking noisily and with big gestures. finally, my second host-mother noticed that i still didn't know what was going on and took me aside. "nake" she repeated and then started pinching her arm. "like a mosquito?" i asked. "yes, like a mosquito but they --------" then she stuck out her tongue and said "it is delicious". ahhh, lightbulb. "you mean honey?" "yes!!!!" "nake makes honey." "yes, now you understand." "yes, now i understand." BEES. nake = bees. they opened a bee hive in the field and were fighting off bees. eureka!
just an example of how a typical day for me goes.
cheers!
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Saturday, June 28, 2008
a much deserved post
i greet you all and your last names. (a common way to say hello to a large group of people here.)
sorry for the time lapse in blog postings...it's been a busy month and i've been here, there and everywhere overhere. i'm happy to report that i am all moved into my hut; unpacked, arranged and have started the unending process of killing termites and ants. it's been so nice to finally have my hut and my own space; i was starting to feel like a guest on vacation in the village who was being pampered. now that i've established my "galle banel" i feel much more like a member of the community. there was a slight crisis with my hut; my counterpart told me it would take a week to get done but after four it still wasn't. i was getting frustrated mostly because the lack of work on my hut made me feel that i wasn't really wanted in the village and so after talking with peace corps it was decided that i would go to the regional house until my hut was done. it took two more weeks. finally i was able to go back home and was a little nervous to at first because i figured the village would be angry at the fact that i had left, but it wasn't the case at all. i was truely missed and the village felt awful that i had to be gone for so long. i was really glad to be back as well--as much as the regional house is awesome (movies galore, electricity, fans...american food and showers) i was really bored there couldn't talk with anyone and had nothing to really do for two weeks. so the hut crisis is finally resolved and over- allhamdililah!!
despite the village hiatus i've still been relatively busy. i greet the village every morning which can take anywhere from an hour to four depending on who is at home and how many cups of ataya i have to drink. then i go to the fields to greet everyone there. well not anymore because the growing season is done, but i used to do that. during the hot time of the day, 12-5 or so i usually sit and study pulaar or read or do some pc health stuff. after that i usually go to diambo soubalou (or diambo proper as emily and i call it) and chat at the health post and then go paint at the school. on sundays i bike into tareji which is a road town seven km from me. the weekly lumo or market is then. i meet up with emily and we get frozen banana flavored milk, hard boiled eggs and then buy food for our families. it's a fun morning and i enjoy the bike ride and i like picking out food my family normally doesn't get like coconuts or now since it's in season, watermelon. at the end of every month our health post has vaccination day where babies get vaccinated for polio, measles, yellow fever, tetanus, diptheria, hepatitis B and two others i forget. emily and i get to weigh the babies that come in. this past time we weighed 36. there has only been a few in the "yellow" category for malnutrition and the rest have been in the green which is a great sign. however, i've noticed that malnourishment really starts once the child has been weened and eats from the bowl with everyone else. so the babies are all healthy but the kids from 2 to 5 are malnourished. this past vaccination day we also did a mini causery of the different food groups and why it is important to eat from each group, especially for children and pregnant women. we then made a porridge concoction of millet flour, peanut butter and bananas for the women to take home and give to their kids when they are hungry inbetween meals. it went okay, but i think we will be more prepared the next time.
right now i've stopped swimmin in the river because the rains have started and the river is cloudy. no one swims now and all the bathing/washing is done as quickly as possible because you can't see what's in the river. i'm told right now snakes (like basilisk size) and crocs are in it right now too which i don't know it true or not but i take for absolute truth. so i'm too scared to even go near it. the other day when i was walking to the fields a huge lizard, like four feet long, ran across in front of me. i immediately thought croc and ran home. the village still makes fun of me for it. it's been hard not being able to swim--it was the best way to cool off after lunch and sooo much fun playing with the kids. hopefully in a month or two the river will clear up again and we can resume our games.
this past month has also been the emotional rollercoaster peace corps promises it will be. i've gone from absolute rage to pure happy joy in about five minutes as well as everything in between. it's so easy to get frustrated here--not being able to speak clearly or make sense half the time nor understand what most people are saying, dealing with apathy on the part of a lot of people, trying in vain to motivate people, been asked for money about twenty times a day, having people say "give me give me give me" about anything i may or not have, seeing the kids get hit over little trivial stuff... it's really easy to get more and more angry until you literally scream. however, there are also moments that are absolutley the greatest; telling a joke to my family, outgreeting someone, playing games with the kids, having someone tell you how much they missed you, actually having a decent conversation, walking along the river, talking to a mother about breastfeeding and having her understand. these things and so many others can completely change my pissy mood into a good one. it's weird dealing with the emotions...i've never been one to be overly emotional, but here they just seem to come out at any given time. don't think that i'm not happy though either...i knew that it would be challenging when i came over here and for every bad day or moment i have the good ones make up for it tenfold. i just want to be able to explain that it isn't just daisies and sunshine overhere. although there is plenty of the latter. it's life just like anywhere else; there's ups and downs and a big paret of the past month has been learning to deal with them.
on the more pleasent topics...i really really really want a goat here. i'm planning on buying one after we come back from thiès. we have to go back in august for more training...and as soon as i get back a goat will be purchased. i want to be able to show my family:village the many uses of goats. livestock here is much different from home; it's a form of capital where one just has cows or goats and will occasionally kill one for the meat. however there is no population control or use of them for milk or anything. my big plan is to get a girl goat and after she has a baby or two start milking her and give the milk to my family teach them about how milk is like nectar from the gods. i may even attempt goat cheese....mmmm.... so yea, a goat is in my future.
i am also planning on painting my hut doors and windows soon. i'm thinking blue and green to match my awesome curtains. maybe even a daisy on the door for old times sake. it would be legendary.
there's a big pc party down south in kedegou for the fourth of july (happy i-day everyone!) that a bunchof us are going to. it really couldn't be any farther from my site. i'm estimating it taking two days to get there. but from what i hear kedegou is absolutely beautiful--a totally different landscape from the futa which trees and folliage everywhere. volunteers down there get machetes to hack their way through the jungle. there are also monkeys down there. and snakes. and bugs, BIG bugs. like dinner plate size bugs. but there are also waterfalls and i am really looking forward to the trip. should be a good time.
okay, well i think this post is long enough. many many thanks to lyne for putting the rest of my pictures online. you can check them out with the link on the side labled my pictures. also there is a video on youtube of my village that my family was able to put up. it's under jaime bodden in senegal should youtube be your thing. enjoy!
love to you all, miss you oodles!
peace,
jaime
sorry for the time lapse in blog postings...it's been a busy month and i've been here, there and everywhere overhere. i'm happy to report that i am all moved into my hut; unpacked, arranged and have started the unending process of killing termites and ants. it's been so nice to finally have my hut and my own space; i was starting to feel like a guest on vacation in the village who was being pampered. now that i've established my "galle banel" i feel much more like a member of the community. there was a slight crisis with my hut; my counterpart told me it would take a week to get done but after four it still wasn't. i was getting frustrated mostly because the lack of work on my hut made me feel that i wasn't really wanted in the village and so after talking with peace corps it was decided that i would go to the regional house until my hut was done. it took two more weeks. finally i was able to go back home and was a little nervous to at first because i figured the village would be angry at the fact that i had left, but it wasn't the case at all. i was truely missed and the village felt awful that i had to be gone for so long. i was really glad to be back as well--as much as the regional house is awesome (movies galore, electricity, fans...american food and showers) i was really bored there couldn't talk with anyone and had nothing to really do for two weeks. so the hut crisis is finally resolved and over- allhamdililah!!
despite the village hiatus i've still been relatively busy. i greet the village every morning which can take anywhere from an hour to four depending on who is at home and how many cups of ataya i have to drink. then i go to the fields to greet everyone there. well not anymore because the growing season is done, but i used to do that. during the hot time of the day, 12-5 or so i usually sit and study pulaar or read or do some pc health stuff. after that i usually go to diambo soubalou (or diambo proper as emily and i call it) and chat at the health post and then go paint at the school. on sundays i bike into tareji which is a road town seven km from me. the weekly lumo or market is then. i meet up with emily and we get frozen banana flavored milk, hard boiled eggs and then buy food for our families. it's a fun morning and i enjoy the bike ride and i like picking out food my family normally doesn't get like coconuts or now since it's in season, watermelon. at the end of every month our health post has vaccination day where babies get vaccinated for polio, measles, yellow fever, tetanus, diptheria, hepatitis B and two others i forget. emily and i get to weigh the babies that come in. this past time we weighed 36. there has only been a few in the "yellow" category for malnutrition and the rest have been in the green which is a great sign. however, i've noticed that malnourishment really starts once the child has been weened and eats from the bowl with everyone else. so the babies are all healthy but the kids from 2 to 5 are malnourished. this past vaccination day we also did a mini causery of the different food groups and why it is important to eat from each group, especially for children and pregnant women. we then made a porridge concoction of millet flour, peanut butter and bananas for the women to take home and give to their kids when they are hungry inbetween meals. it went okay, but i think we will be more prepared the next time.
right now i've stopped swimmin in the river because the rains have started and the river is cloudy. no one swims now and all the bathing/washing is done as quickly as possible because you can't see what's in the river. i'm told right now snakes (like basilisk size) and crocs are in it right now too which i don't know it true or not but i take for absolute truth. so i'm too scared to even go near it. the other day when i was walking to the fields a huge lizard, like four feet long, ran across in front of me. i immediately thought croc and ran home. the village still makes fun of me for it. it's been hard not being able to swim--it was the best way to cool off after lunch and sooo much fun playing with the kids. hopefully in a month or two the river will clear up again and we can resume our games.
this past month has also been the emotional rollercoaster peace corps promises it will be. i've gone from absolute rage to pure happy joy in about five minutes as well as everything in between. it's so easy to get frustrated here--not being able to speak clearly or make sense half the time nor understand what most people are saying, dealing with apathy on the part of a lot of people, trying in vain to motivate people, been asked for money about twenty times a day, having people say "give me give me give me" about anything i may or not have, seeing the kids get hit over little trivial stuff... it's really easy to get more and more angry until you literally scream. however, there are also moments that are absolutley the greatest; telling a joke to my family, outgreeting someone, playing games with the kids, having someone tell you how much they missed you, actually having a decent conversation, walking along the river, talking to a mother about breastfeeding and having her understand. these things and so many others can completely change my pissy mood into a good one. it's weird dealing with the emotions...i've never been one to be overly emotional, but here they just seem to come out at any given time. don't think that i'm not happy though either...i knew that it would be challenging when i came over here and for every bad day or moment i have the good ones make up for it tenfold. i just want to be able to explain that it isn't just daisies and sunshine overhere. although there is plenty of the latter. it's life just like anywhere else; there's ups and downs and a big paret of the past month has been learning to deal with them.
on the more pleasent topics...i really really really want a goat here. i'm planning on buying one after we come back from thiès. we have to go back in august for more training...and as soon as i get back a goat will be purchased. i want to be able to show my family:village the many uses of goats. livestock here is much different from home; it's a form of capital where one just has cows or goats and will occasionally kill one for the meat. however there is no population control or use of them for milk or anything. my big plan is to get a girl goat and after she has a baby or two start milking her and give the milk to my family teach them about how milk is like nectar from the gods. i may even attempt goat cheese....mmmm.... so yea, a goat is in my future.
i am also planning on painting my hut doors and windows soon. i'm thinking blue and green to match my awesome curtains. maybe even a daisy on the door for old times sake. it would be legendary.
there's a big pc party down south in kedegou for the fourth of july (happy i-day everyone!) that a bunchof us are going to. it really couldn't be any farther from my site. i'm estimating it taking two days to get there. but from what i hear kedegou is absolutely beautiful--a totally different landscape from the futa which trees and folliage everywhere. volunteers down there get machetes to hack their way through the jungle. there are also monkeys down there. and snakes. and bugs, BIG bugs. like dinner plate size bugs. but there are also waterfalls and i am really looking forward to the trip. should be a good time.
okay, well i think this post is long enough. many many thanks to lyne for putting the rest of my pictures online. you can check them out with the link on the side labled my pictures. also there is a video on youtube of my village that my family was able to put up. it's under jaime bodden in senegal should youtube be your thing. enjoy!
love to you all, miss you oodles!
peace,
jaime
Monday, May 26, 2008
ahhh village life...
i feel like these past three weeks have been the busiest yet most fulfilling in senegal. when things happen they happen at all once. first off, we officially swore in as volunteers may 9th at the us ambassodor's house. it was a nice ceremony as far as ceremonies go and we got to meet other volunteers from korea and japan who are in similar programs as the peace corps. after the ceremony we were able to go to the american club and hang out by a pool for a few hours. next we rocketed back to thies for a party with our host-families. it was really really really great to see my family one last time before i moved out. they even gave me a going away present of mangoes and an african outfit. i can't wait to go back to thies to visit them.
the next day, dark and early we set off for our sites. we got to ndioum which is my area's regional house that afternoon and had a few days there to rest, get much needed supplies for our new homes and meet volunteers who are currently in the area. i think that the futa folks are such a great group of people. i'm very excited to work with them and spend the next few years with them. most are health volunteers like myself although there are also environmental education, urban agriculture, and small enterprise development. there are a few projects like a health oriented radio show that i'm excited to take over in the podor area...it's really really excited to be able to start on projects and get involved in the community.
the install at my village was great...they had a little party for me the night i arrived and there is was given my senegalese name, banel maal (bah-nelle). it's a little bit unfotunate that my hut wasn't/isn't done yet so i've been staying with a family. i have such a huge urge to nest and make a home that it's driving me mildly crazy i can't do that. but my village is great. they've never had a volunteer before and are really really really excited to have one. there are about 350 people in my village which is in the middle of two others. emily is in the largest village and is like than a kilometer from me. if we stand outside our huts we can see each other. there is about 1000 people total in the three villages. i personally think mine is the best (not biased at all). it's small, everyone is super friendly, it's shady which allows for a slightly coller breeze than the sun (all relative because it's still hoooootttt) and the door to my hut is only about 200 yards from the river! thankfully there are no crocodiles or hippos or anything bigger than a fish in the river so i've been swimming everyday with the village kids. it's quite a site; none of the adults swim and because it's culturally inappropriate to wear a swim suit i go swimming fully clothed but am surrounded by a bunch of little naked african children. they love the fact that i swim with them and have been able to form a lot of great bonds with the kids.
right now for the next three months or so we are just supposed to adjust to village life and focus on learning the language. however, emily and i are both antsy and we've started murals at the elementary school. we figured it was a good project to start out with because it will take a long time and it allows us to do something within our limited volcabulary. the village seems excited that we've started this and i think they will like the murals once they are done. other than that, for the most part everyday i just chill out with my family. i actually live with one great big extended family that is three different houses. there are about 30 people total in my family although i "live" with only about 10. however, we eat all our meals as one big unit and the children go from house to house. since family is more loosely translated here i just consider everyone in the area of my hut my family. it seems to work out fine. i've also been brainstorming other ideas for projects i want to do; nutrition is the biggest for me...there are a lot of malnourished children in the village and the food that is grown here is misused. i also think that i will be able to do a lot of work with the health post and women's groups in the village as well. the nurse in charge of the post is absolutely amazing and so excited that we're there i think we'll have a lot of freedom in the projects we choose to do.
it's been such an emotional three weeks. i'm so glad to finally be in my village and my reception has been so great. but the language barrier as well as cultural barriers have been tough. the lack of privacy and the american sense of "me time" has been hard getting used to. i think that is also in part to not having my own space to escape to. also, the language is much more difficult to understand locally than the formal classroom setting and i get easily frustrated. it's been an emotional rollercoaster from being really happy/enthusiastic/excited to frustrated/tired/overwhelmed. luckily emily and i are able to vent to each other and keep each other sane. she also comes over everyday to swim with me.
the other day we went to taredji which is a depot town 7 km from us to check out the lumo, a weekly market. it was a nice escape and we were also able to get cold beverages to drink as well as buy fruits/veggies/and EGGS! it was only our second time taking public transportation and we ended up hitching a ride with a truck that was meant to hold ten people and actually held about 20. we got two flat tires within two km of each other. such is the life of a volunteer. today we're in podor, enjoying the cyber cafe, electricity (phone charging), post office, and visiting lauren, the other volutneer who lives here. it's only 17 km from our village, about a twenty minute ride. i think that my site is in the perfect location; i've been able to get the village life (and an amazing village life) but i'm close enough to charge my phone and check mail every ten days or so. most volunteers don't have that luxury so i consider myself spoiled. plus podor is a fabulous city. there's sidewalks and streetlamps and has the feel of a wild west town. in fact the last time we were in podor we were walking down the middle of the street and we looked like we were headed for a shoot out. the good the bad and the ugly came to mind.
as of right now, i'm still struggling with posting photos. i've been online for about two hours right now and have been able to get a handful online....slow go but i think i will screen my pictues in my camera and post my favorites. i've created a collection of albums that i will hopefully be able to add more to. http://jaimeinsenegal.shutterfly.com is the link. i hope you all enjoy!
that's all for now...miss everyone and love to you all!
peace,
jaime
the next day, dark and early we set off for our sites. we got to ndioum which is my area's regional house that afternoon and had a few days there to rest, get much needed supplies for our new homes and meet volunteers who are currently in the area. i think that the futa folks are such a great group of people. i'm very excited to work with them and spend the next few years with them. most are health volunteers like myself although there are also environmental education, urban agriculture, and small enterprise development. there are a few projects like a health oriented radio show that i'm excited to take over in the podor area...it's really really excited to be able to start on projects and get involved in the community.
the install at my village was great...they had a little party for me the night i arrived and there is was given my senegalese name, banel maal (bah-nelle). it's a little bit unfotunate that my hut wasn't/isn't done yet so i've been staying with a family. i have such a huge urge to nest and make a home that it's driving me mildly crazy i can't do that. but my village is great. they've never had a volunteer before and are really really really excited to have one. there are about 350 people in my village which is in the middle of two others. emily is in the largest village and is like than a kilometer from me. if we stand outside our huts we can see each other. there is about 1000 people total in the three villages. i personally think mine is the best (not biased at all). it's small, everyone is super friendly, it's shady which allows for a slightly coller breeze than the sun (all relative because it's still hoooootttt) and the door to my hut is only about 200 yards from the river! thankfully there are no crocodiles or hippos or anything bigger than a fish in the river so i've been swimming everyday with the village kids. it's quite a site; none of the adults swim and because it's culturally inappropriate to wear a swim suit i go swimming fully clothed but am surrounded by a bunch of little naked african children. they love the fact that i swim with them and have been able to form a lot of great bonds with the kids.
right now for the next three months or so we are just supposed to adjust to village life and focus on learning the language. however, emily and i are both antsy and we've started murals at the elementary school. we figured it was a good project to start out with because it will take a long time and it allows us to do something within our limited volcabulary. the village seems excited that we've started this and i think they will like the murals once they are done. other than that, for the most part everyday i just chill out with my family. i actually live with one great big extended family that is three different houses. there are about 30 people total in my family although i "live" with only about 10. however, we eat all our meals as one big unit and the children go from house to house. since family is more loosely translated here i just consider everyone in the area of my hut my family. it seems to work out fine. i've also been brainstorming other ideas for projects i want to do; nutrition is the biggest for me...there are a lot of malnourished children in the village and the food that is grown here is misused. i also think that i will be able to do a lot of work with the health post and women's groups in the village as well. the nurse in charge of the post is absolutely amazing and so excited that we're there i think we'll have a lot of freedom in the projects we choose to do.
it's been such an emotional three weeks. i'm so glad to finally be in my village and my reception has been so great. but the language barrier as well as cultural barriers have been tough. the lack of privacy and the american sense of "me time" has been hard getting used to. i think that is also in part to not having my own space to escape to. also, the language is much more difficult to understand locally than the formal classroom setting and i get easily frustrated. it's been an emotional rollercoaster from being really happy/enthusiastic/excited to frustrated/tired/overwhelmed. luckily emily and i are able to vent to each other and keep each other sane. she also comes over everyday to swim with me.
the other day we went to taredji which is a depot town 7 km from us to check out the lumo, a weekly market. it was a nice escape and we were also able to get cold beverages to drink as well as buy fruits/veggies/and EGGS! it was only our second time taking public transportation and we ended up hitching a ride with a truck that was meant to hold ten people and actually held about 20. we got two flat tires within two km of each other. such is the life of a volunteer. today we're in podor, enjoying the cyber cafe, electricity (phone charging), post office, and visiting lauren, the other volutneer who lives here. it's only 17 km from our village, about a twenty minute ride. i think that my site is in the perfect location; i've been able to get the village life (and an amazing village life) but i'm close enough to charge my phone and check mail every ten days or so. most volunteers don't have that luxury so i consider myself spoiled. plus podor is a fabulous city. there's sidewalks and streetlamps and has the feel of a wild west town. in fact the last time we were in podor we were walking down the middle of the street and we looked like we were headed for a shoot out. the good the bad and the ugly came to mind.
as of right now, i'm still struggling with posting photos. i've been online for about two hours right now and have been able to get a handful online....slow go but i think i will screen my pictues in my camera and post my favorites. i've created a collection of albums that i will hopefully be able to add more to. http://jaimeinsenegal.shutterfly.com is the link. i hope you all enjoy!
that's all for now...miss everyone and love to you all!
peace,
jaime
Sunday, May 4, 2008
as i post this blog entry, kenny g is playing
sometimes the little things just make your day. like the fact that i can listen to kenny g in the middle of africa for an hour. okay, now there is a michael bolton duet with him on...i want you all to appreciate how awesome and hilarious this is. i lust look like a crazy person right now because i have a huge smile on my face.
this past week was jam packed. monday we went to dakar to register at the embassy. i also had the best ice cream i've eaten in country at a place called n'ice cream. i also giggled at the pun. tuesday and wednesday we had classes, thursday was the start of our counterpart workshop. the workshop was an oppurtunity for us trainees to meet the one, two and sometimes three people we will be working closely with once we et to our sites. they act as mentors, cultural guides, and professional team members. mine came all the way from sinthiou diambo and diambo soubalou (the neighboring village that has a health post) one of my counterparts is a french teacher at the school there and the other is a nurse at the health post. both seemed really really nice and were excited by my few ideas of projects. we spent all day friday and saturday with them; teaching them about peace corps, our role as volunteers, their role as counterparts. it was a very valuable time for the three of us to discuss what the next two years will be like.
i was also able to get my first senegalese outfit made. i went to the market with emily and daniel, emily is my site mate and daniel is my biking partner. (we have a biker gang and our theme song may be "final countdown". yea, we're hard core). so back to the market...we got fabric from a store of ladies who happened to speak pulaar and we more than thrilled that we spoke it back, allbeit in broken chunks. then we went to the taylor; got measured, and described what we wanted. two days later we picked it up. let me just say...i look pretty sweet. we're going to wear our outfits next week when we swear in as volunteers (hopefully, fingers crossed i pass my language class so i can). for the ceremony we go to dakar to the american club. once there we will have a ceremony with a korean and japanese volunteer group (their equivalent to peace corps) followed by a cocktail hour and swimming. it's the bright light at the end of the training tunnel and we're nearly there. the following day we will all be heading out to our sites.
tuesday night we came back to our host families and my reception was unbelievable...i've never felt more missed. i know i've said it before but i have to say it again...my family here has been remarkable and is one of the main reasons i have been able to stay so positive. not every volunteer has had the same experience...and i am so so so thankful i'm so lucky. they were most surprised at my feet because i got them decorated with henna as well as my awesome farmer tan. they are convinced after two years i will look just like them and they tell me everyday how african i am. if only i could be so lucky. this morning my host-mother surprised me with the news of a party for me and the other three volunteers who live in keur issa at our house. it's going to be a great time. we've spent the past few days discussing who will miss who more once i leave. they say they will and i counter with i will more and so the argument goes.
well that's about all for today...this will probably be my last post for awhile as i won't be around internet access for a few weeks. in an effort to provide you with as much info about senegal as possible i'll leave it up to you to discuss what topics i should cover in my next post. some ideas... food culture, greetings, the many uses of duct tape, village life, the trouble with french keyboards, why donkeys are the worst animal in the world, talibes...let me know through comments and i will prepare a nice and long post for you all.
kenny g is no longer playing and i'm a little disappointed...hope all is well in the states. miss you all tons! lotsa love!!
peace,
jaime
this past week was jam packed. monday we went to dakar to register at the embassy. i also had the best ice cream i've eaten in country at a place called n'ice cream. i also giggled at the pun. tuesday and wednesday we had classes, thursday was the start of our counterpart workshop. the workshop was an oppurtunity for us trainees to meet the one, two and sometimes three people we will be working closely with once we et to our sites. they act as mentors, cultural guides, and professional team members. mine came all the way from sinthiou diambo and diambo soubalou (the neighboring village that has a health post) one of my counterparts is a french teacher at the school there and the other is a nurse at the health post. both seemed really really nice and were excited by my few ideas of projects. we spent all day friday and saturday with them; teaching them about peace corps, our role as volunteers, their role as counterparts. it was a very valuable time for the three of us to discuss what the next two years will be like.
i was also able to get my first senegalese outfit made. i went to the market with emily and daniel, emily is my site mate and daniel is my biking partner. (we have a biker gang and our theme song may be "final countdown". yea, we're hard core). so back to the market...we got fabric from a store of ladies who happened to speak pulaar and we more than thrilled that we spoke it back, allbeit in broken chunks. then we went to the taylor; got measured, and described what we wanted. two days later we picked it up. let me just say...i look pretty sweet. we're going to wear our outfits next week when we swear in as volunteers (hopefully, fingers crossed i pass my language class so i can). for the ceremony we go to dakar to the american club. once there we will have a ceremony with a korean and japanese volunteer group (their equivalent to peace corps) followed by a cocktail hour and swimming. it's the bright light at the end of the training tunnel and we're nearly there. the following day we will all be heading out to our sites.
tuesday night we came back to our host families and my reception was unbelievable...i've never felt more missed. i know i've said it before but i have to say it again...my family here has been remarkable and is one of the main reasons i have been able to stay so positive. not every volunteer has had the same experience...and i am so so so thankful i'm so lucky. they were most surprised at my feet because i got them decorated with henna as well as my awesome farmer tan. they are convinced after two years i will look just like them and they tell me everyday how african i am. if only i could be so lucky. this morning my host-mother surprised me with the news of a party for me and the other three volunteers who live in keur issa at our house. it's going to be a great time. we've spent the past few days discussing who will miss who more once i leave. they say they will and i counter with i will more and so the argument goes.
well that's about all for today...this will probably be my last post for awhile as i won't be around internet access for a few weeks. in an effort to provide you with as much info about senegal as possible i'll leave it up to you to discuss what topics i should cover in my next post. some ideas... food culture, greetings, the many uses of duct tape, village life, the trouble with french keyboards, why donkeys are the worst animal in the world, talibes...let me know through comments and i will prepare a nice and long post for you all.
kenny g is no longer playing and i'm a little disappointed...hope all is well in the states. miss you all tons! lotsa love!!
peace,
jaime
Sunday, April 27, 2008
new address
oops...forgot to include this in the last post. my new address is below. i'll have this address for the rest of my service. use this one instead of the other one because after may ninth i won't have access to it. i also updated it on the side link.
PCV Jaime Bodden
B. P. 79
Podor, Sénégal
West Africa
also, if you check out the link to other volunteers blogs you can find caitlyn's. it's a great blog so check it out, she got a few amazing stories as well as some great pictures. okay, bye!
PCV Jaime Bodden
B. P. 79
Podor, Sénégal
West Africa
also, if you check out the link to other volunteers blogs you can find caitlyn's. it's a great blog so check it out, she got a few amazing stories as well as some great pictures. okay, bye!
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