Finally here!

Welcome to Erik’s wonderful blog.  

Well, it’s taken me a while to get this thing started, but finally, here we go!  Le Sénégal! Well, I’m here now, and WOW are things different!  Too much has happened so far to make this a diary-like blog, so I think I will pick different aspects of life here in Senegal and describe them as I have experienced them.  As I post more entries, this will hopefully paint a (semi) clear picture of what I am doing here and what I am experiencing.  I hope you enjoy!

Note: Some of these events may have been embellished (made up), but they portray the general emotions and feelings of the author... aka what was going on inside my head.  Most of the comments should not be generalized to portray "all" of Senegalese culture.  I will note when I think something is a good explanation of Senegalese culture, but otherwise, the blog should be taken as mostly humorous with a few interjections of cultural significance.  Thanks for reading.

So, for the first few entries, I’ve decided to have a short countdown of the 5 things that have been most surprising to me so far.  This will mostly be material/physical things because those are the most immediately apparent and the easiest to describe.  As mentioned above, I prefer to add a little humor to my entries, so please don’t take them as an extremely accurate portrayal of life/culture in Senegal.  These are simply my own (often exaggerated) impressions.  I will make a note when I think something is a good description of Senegalese culture, and I wish to make a point of it.

Let's start the countdown.  In last place, but certainly not least

#5.   Some Like it Hot!

Probably the first thing that was immediately apparent... it's damn hot here!  Every day I step outside and the sun starts to burn my skin.  The sun really does feel like it's closer to Earth here ('cause it is, I guess).  I cannot tell you how much I sweat here, gallons upon gallons a day, I'm sure.  I honestly think Senegalese people are afraid I'm melting.  To illustrate just how hot it is--- here's a short example before I had adjusted to the heat.  The day after we arrived, we headed to the Baobab Center, where we take all of our Wolof classes, participate in activities, and basically get orientated.  After a short introduction, it was time for our first activity- the "neighborhood sortie."  Now, I'm not sure who planned our time here, but having us do a neighborhood sortie (which by the way means neighborhood excursion) at 11:00 AM during the hottest time of the year was definitely the WORST idea.  Almost immediately when we stepped outside, my sweat glands started doing their job.  After five minutes, I stopped and asked our guide, "How long is this supposed to last?"  "Two hours," she replied.  I almost cried.  I have no idea what the temperature was, but it had to be at least 95 degrees with 80% humidity.  If you're wondering what that feels like, picture yourself as a green bean being steamed on the stove.  It's similar.  Thankfully, the shade was much cooler, alxamdulilaay (Thanks be to God), so whenever I found some, I quickly ran under it.  Anyway, eventually we returned inside, and I collapsed in a sweaty pile of shriveled awfulness.  Most days I check the weather, it says it's about 88 degrees... and feels like 102 because of humidity.  Yuck!  They tell me it's getting cooler soon, and I pray they are not lying to spare me pain.

And, coming in at #4:
 "Baa, Baa, Blacksheep have you any wool?"  "No, 'cause it damn HOT here, yo!"

Sheep, sheep everywhere, and Tabaski’s still a month away!  The Senegalese seem to love their sheep.  I don’t think I’ve seen as many sheep in my entire life as I have seen in the last week here.  They are EVERYWHERE--- in the road, hanging out in road medians, chilling on the sidewalk, and yes, even in my own host family’s house.  We have five sheep (now 6, but the one’s a goner anyway--- he’s getting sacrificed for my host brother who’s leaving, more on this later), and they are quite possibly the loudest sack of animals I have ever had the misfortune of having as an alarm clock.  Who needs an annoying alarm clock when you can have a flock of goats that baa’s their fricking heads off at 5 AM?  And then 7 AM… and then 9 AM.  Although I am vegetarian, I cannot WAIT until we slaughter them for Tabaski, a holiday in November when each family slaughters a goat to celebrate something (I’m not quite sure what yet).  It’s an Islamic holiday, and the people here seem to get really excited about it.  Everyone goes and buys new clothes and sits around as the butcher slays their goat.  Woot!  


More coming soon!