Back in Thies

Hey friends!

I finished up my Environmental Assessment and have nice pretty graphs and maps to prove it. It was very informative and I had fun doing it... I can say that now that it's over and presented and everything. As for the community center, I talked briefly to my dad about about it and when I said I needed to know how serious the village was about wanting one, he jumped up and said, I'll ask them to have a meeting. Do you want it before or after you leave for IST? Before would be better... I could ask questions of my boss if I know before I go. (This was Friday afternoon and I left town on Tuesday morning). Miraculously, there were meetings held and issues discussed and as I was walking out the door Tuesday morning, I was handed an official paper signed by the president of the village youth club. It listed several sectors where I could help develop the village including the community center, public toilets, and uniforms for the referees and goalposts and nets for the soccer team. They promised a site set aside for the community building, a group to take care of it, and 25% of the cost funded by the village if I can find funding and furnishing for the rest. Great start.

I left my power cord and camera connector in Velingara accidentally, so I cannot upload photos but I promise, a photo of the hut is on the way. I was waiting and waiting until I felt like it was finished so I could do a video presentation, but I got a request from Leslie and Kayla that included such lovely pictures, I felt it was only fair to post a picture of my hut. Hopefully, one of the volunteers that will come to help with training will pass by and bring the cords to me. Until then, no photos, sorry. But there is one in my camera and as soon as I can, I'll put it up. In response to the excellent question is there anything I like about not having electricity, YES! I love that at night, after dinner, the entire family sits outside under the stars together. Since there isn't electricity in my village or the areas immediately around it, there is very little light pollution and on a clear night (if the moon isn't shining too brightly) you can see the Big Dipper, the Southern Cross, AND the Milky Way. It is very beautiful. Besides having this beautiful picture above us, there's no tv to distract us and we simply spend time together. Sometimes we talk, sometimes we listen to the radio, sometimes we sing and dance, and sometimes we just sit and relax. It is one of the best parts of the day.

When I left the village, I went to Kolda for a house meeting and to use the computer and printer at the house for my report. After our reports were all done, we went to the beach in Toubab Dialaw (just south of Dakar) at a magical wonderland of a hotel. It was spread out with rooms on different levels in a collection of stone buildings with passages winding in between. Parts of it felt like a castle and a lot of it was decorated with seashells and mosaic tiling. Very pretty. The food was yummy, in a western quality kind of way that may be hard to understand unless you've been eating at restaurants that serve only traditional Senegalese foods (which are good, but, it's comforting to eat somewhere catering to a western palate). After the beach, we came to Thies and went back to our homestays.

The family I stayed with during PST have houseguests right now, and so I was moved to Paul's host family for these 3 weeks. Monday night, several PCVs went out to dinner together and biked home afterwards. I had Nathaniel help me find the house because after having spent only one night there, I wasn't confident in my ability to find it in the dark. I recognized most of the way, but near the neighborhood, we wound through some streets I didn't recognize and arrived at a door, where Nathaniel says, "Ok, here it is." "I don't think this is it." "I've been here tons of times, this is where Paul lived... They wouldn't have moved in the last 2 months would they?" "Well... this doesn't look like the house I left this morning. No, it definitely isn't."

We knocked. The people who answered were not, in fact, Paul's (slash my) family. They had, in fact, moved since May. They found the cell phone number of the family and we called. They walked over (just a couple of neighborhoods away) and helped me find the way home. Meanwhile, we had been having a pleasant chat with the family that now lives in the house where Paul lived for PST. That was the fun part of Monday night part one. There's more.
We arrived back at the house and went and sat on the porch a bit. They asked me if I liked the Senegalese wrestling because it was on tv in the other room. I replied I didn't think I'd seen it (I realized later that I had) and got up to go see. I went into the room where 3 guys were watching wrestling. I sort of greeted, and stood in the doorway, watching the tv. One of the guys said, Aminata! How are you? (in pulaar). I looked at him, did a double take and stared for a moment (I'm sure I made a weird face) because I thought, that looks like someone I know in Kedougou... no, that doesn't make any sense. Greeted him and then after watching a few more seconds of wrestling left the room. He came out to the porch and said, "You don't recognize me? From Kedougou?" !!! "Yes! Of course, but I thought I was crazy because it doesn't make sense... that's why I looked at you so weird." It was Daniel's brother... from the family I stayed with at Demyst in Kedougou. Apparently he was on vacation in April when I was down there and actually works in this part of the country. He was staying the night at the Diallo's (our) house because he was working as a guide for a group of youths from America along with my new host dad. Senegal keeps getting smaller and smaller. Such fun to run into a familiar face though.

Last night was also fun. A few of the pula fuutas went to Mary's house for dinner and enjoyed some pulaar jokes and conversation and some really great food and the best mango I've had in a good while (and that's saying something). I don't know why we never did that kind of thing during PST. We should have. It would have been great practice with the language and was a good time. Training has been good so far, mostly technical and practical (the gardening parts). It's good to see people, see how they've changed, and eat the really great training center food.

My battery is almost out now, so I'm out too. Hope everything is going well back home. I want to hear about some of the cool trips you guys are taking. Hopefully I'll be better with emails when I have more battery and more internet time. Pictures coming too!