Ba beneen yoon Ngaye...

I'm on somewhat tight schedule, so I'll keep this short. My bags are all packed up, and I am moving out of Ngaye today for Dakar! Looking around my empty room, it's pretty hard to believe all the time that has gone by. 22 months ago, I came to to this town, nervous about how I would spend my two years here. Now, a new volunteer is ready to replace me, and I'm off for the big city. Things are moving so fast right now that I'm going to wait until I get to Dakar to write something more substantial. I'll try to update this blog a bit more regularly when in Dakar since I've neglected it a tad in the past few months. So, off I go to Dakar! Ba beneen yoon Ngaye...

P.S Picture is from Korite (my 3rd in Senegal!), just a few days ago.

Fallou Niang ponders the end of Ngaye

After almost two years here in Ngaye, it boggles my mind that my time is coming up. While most people in my group are leaving Senegal within the next month or so, I will be moving to Dakar until next March. I remember moving here in November 2008 and looking at my room, wondering "Is this really where I'm going to live for the next two years?" Having moved dorms every year in college, the idea of spending two years in this small nondescript town was intimidating to say the least. Yet, after 22 months here, my replacement is in Senegal and going through training (no clue as to who it is yet, but they're in Thies going through PST at the moment). Even though my service will go on until March, I feel that my true volunteer experience is ending. Working in the Peace Corps office in Dakar will be so different from my work here in Ngaye that I probably won't feel like a Peace Corps Volunteer at all anymore. I'd be lying if I said there weren't times I wish I could speed up my time here in Ngaye, and there have indeed been some tough moments, both with the family, work partners, and the community. But as my last month flies by, it's hard not to feel somewhat nostalgic already. Even my 8 year old host brother and namesake, Fallou, has started asking me when I will be coming back after my departure. While I'm looking forward to working in Dakar for a few months, when I look back on my Peace Corps service, the memories that will stick are those of riding my bike out to villages to inspect baskets and of the adventures I had with my fellow volunteers.

That brings me to another point, saying goodbye to friends. The morning I showed to staging in Philadelphia, I remember walking into the hotel thinking "This very moment will determine how happy I am as a volunteer". I was skeptical about what my fellow volunteers would be like. Truth be told, I was very nervous that it would be a bunch of rag tag hippies and that I would have a hard time fitting in. I figured I could tough it out in an African village for two years, but if the other volunteers weren't good friends of mine, things would be much harder. Having said that, I don't think I've ever fit into a social group better than I have here. I made numerous friends during my service, many of whom will remain good friends of mine for the rest of my life. Maybe some of it is due to the fact that we all went through this somewhat insane adventure here in Africa together, and maybe some of it is due to similar personalities. Either way, my service would have been so much more difficult if it weren't for the volunteer support network we are so lucky to have. One of the downsides of extending for even a short period of time is that I am slowly having to say goodbye to every one of these close friends. While at times it seemed like Peace Corps would never end, I spent last week wishing I could have another good 6 months to spend with my friends here and wishing they didn't have to leave. I'll definitely see many of them back home when I do finish my service, but it's still sad to see the end of an era.

Right after my group came back from Sierra Leone, we had our COS conference, which was great, mostly because our group had not been together since IST (in January 2009!). We went over all the required paperwork needed to be filled out in order to go home, and strategies for "re-integrating" back into the U.S. We got put up in a fancy hotel that had hot showers and air conditioning, which was glorious to say the least. It was definitely a great way for our group to have a sort of "communal" goodbye, and I'm happy I was able to attend. As for Sierra Leone, it was incredible. Beautiful beaches, wildlife reserves, diamonds, mountains, and a very cool Freetown were highlights of the trip. I won't bore everyone with the itinerary of our trip, but I am posting the 516 pictures I took on a Picasa album with a link here on the blog so everyone can see them. For the next few weeks, I'll be helping out with training in Thies as well as writing a grant proposal for my leather workers (they want a hydraulic press to make shoes faster) and also preparing things for my replacement. I'm off to write some of my COS report right now, but hope all is well back home and that people enjoy the Sierra Leone pictures!. Bunu nosee, temps bi dafa gao! (time flies when you're having fun!)

4th of July and Sierra Leone

It’s been a little while since my last update, so my apologies.  The last month has been a combination of changing work assignments and fun times.  With my artisan work slowly coming to an end, I am preparing myself and beginning to take on work for the next step in my life as a volunteer.  With my upcoming move to Dakar in mid September, I’ve been getting myself ready for the work I’ll be doing there.  Part of this involved redesigning the SeneGAD (SeneGAD is a group within Peace Corps here that focuses on girls advancement and education) website.  You can see the new version here at http://www.senegad.org/.  All in all I am very excited to more to Dakar, and it seems strange that enough time has gone by that someone will soon be coming to Ngaye to replace me! 

Much like last year, I made my way down to Kedougou for the 4th of July party.  Just like the last 4th of July, we ran a 4Km run on the morning of the 4th with the city of Kedougou to celebrate Independence Day.  The rest of the day was spent enjoying the pool and festivities that the volunteers down there had set up.  All in all, it was a great time.  We also spent quite some time watching World Cup games down in Kedougou, which was really fun.  Even watching games with my host family is a huge relief from the incredibly repetitive (and boring) Senegalese soap operas!  A nice bonus was that the road to Kedougou has been vastly rebuilt, so I was actually able to make the entire trip back to Ngaye on the 5th and be home before sundown! 

In a few days time, I will be making a long awaited trip to Sierra Leone with some good friends from my stage.  We have been planning on doing this trip since Tanksgiving, so needless to say, I am pretty pumped about it.  Sierra Leone has been fortunate to make some fairly significant strides in the right direction given its violent path, and has apparently become a beautiful place to visit once again.  With incredible beaches, wildlife, islands, and mountains, I am sure that our week in Sierra Leone will be incredible.  I am bringing my camera and will be taking a ton of pictures for everyone to see.  Coming back on the 3rd, I will briefly stop by Ngaye to pack some things up and head back to Dakar for the much hyped Close of Service Conference.  During these 4 days, my stage and I will be attending sessions on how to readjust to the United States after serving in the Peace Corps.  Much of the focus during the conference is on getting jobs back home, and even though I won’t be COSing until next March, I’m sure the information will be plenty valuable to all of us.  That’s about it for now, but I’ll post a long update when I get back from Sierra Leone with tons of pictures.  Hope all is well back home.  A plus tard!

Eco-T Expo and more...

Well, it's still unbearably hot out here. Every day the temperature rises to about 98+ in my room, and at night cools downs to around 90. It's sprinkled a few times here and there, but we're still waiting on our first REAL rain, which will be amazing. Other than that, things are progressing as normal. Just yesterday, our work partner (Abdou Dieye) coordinated everything to have a container full of baskets and other artisanal products from Thies and Dakar to be shipped out. It's really gratifying to see our work partners take the initiative and do this work on their own. They had been hesitant at first, but over my service they have gained confidence and are taking steps towards becoming independent from Peace Corps, which would be a huge success! In the interest of shameless self promotion, a media crew from the Peace Corps came to the villages and filmed our work a few months ago. It was made into a short Youtube video that you can see here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fw3p0uhdN7U

In other news, I had been volunteered about a month ago to help set up a large Eco-Tourism training to be held before a large International Tourism Fair in Dakar. We spent 3 days having guest speakers and talking about strategies to revitalize the Eco-Tourism component of Peace Corps Senegal. Even though I'm not an Eco Tourism Volunteer, it was a worthwhile conference/training, and the program seems to heading the right way. Then, we spent the following 3 days at the International Tourism Fair of Dakar, which was MASSIVE. There were thousands of people there, and the president (Abdoulaye Wade) even made an appearance! Just about every tourism agency in Senegal had a stand there, and most countries sent representatives from their respective embassies. One highlight of the weekend was when Senecart Tours (a car rental agency) offered us a free limo ride around the parking lot, which felt like a somewhat silly (yet fun) show of force by the company. It was a great opportunity for the Eco-T volunteers to promote their sites, and some of us also took the chance to display some of our artisanal products!

Not much else to report. The World Cup is making the heat more bearable, and it's exhilirating rooting for the U.S again after last years Federation Cup. In mid August, after my stage has its COS (Close of Service) conference, I will be moving to Dakar to extend my stay here in Senegal for about 6 months. Instead of coming home in September/October-ish, it turns out I will be here until about March of next year. In Dakar, most of my work will be aimed at media production (helping make instructional videos for agricultural volunteers) and adding content to our pcsenegal.org website. Needless to say, I am really looking forward to it, especially since two of my best friends will be rooming with me during the 6 months. For now, I'm off to watch some more World Cup matches with the host family. Go USA!!!

Senegal dafa tang waay!

For anyone who thought my proximity to the coast gave me a cool ocean breeze, here is a picture of my thermometer that will shatter those illusions. The picture was taken at 4:40 P.M today just outside my room (it was a cool 96 degrees inside the room). Enjoy.

The Trek!

It only took 10 hours and 15 minutes, but the Trek has been completed. On Saturday the 1st, 5 of my friends (Ian, Thomas, Ankith, Chris, and Emily) and I woke up at 4:15 A.M and were out of the house by 5 A.M. By the time the sun rose, we were already 10 kilometers outside Ngaye Mekhe, following a bearing of 280. We wanted to avoid the factory from last year because it was a lengthy detour and we were trying to make good time. With our cloudy morning keeping us cool, the heat didn't become a factor until the early afternoon. As we skirted north of the factory, we ran into a really cool area that had canyons and even a pretty lake! Crossing through this area, we took a bunch of pictures, and then kept on going. Much like last year, we passed through the occasional village that left everyone dumbfounded. Invariably, each villager would ask us:
- TOUBAB, Fooy dem? (Where are you going?)
- Noungiy dem gej ba (We're going to the beach!)
- ...(insert confused look)...Foo jogge? (Where are you coming from?)
- Ngaye Mekhe lanu jogge! (We came from Ngaye!)
- Jambaar ngeen! (You are all very brave!)

Around 1 P.M, we hit our ending point from last year. Thinking the ocean was at most an hour away, we started getting pretty excited (it was, after all, only 1 inch on Google Map...). This is the only mistake we made on the day. As it turns out, the ocean was still two and a half hours away. As our energy level started to drain, our attitudes shifted and the walk suddenly became less fun. As we got closer and closer, the scenery changed completely and became quite lush. Palm trees, Mango trees, and watering holes were popping up everyone. As the villages became more frequent, each one we passed would tell us that the beach wasn't far, just over the next hill. But each little hill we climbed revealed yet another plain with a small hill in the distance, and no beach. With the sun now in full force, we were getting pretty weary, but there was nowhere to stop even if we had wanted to, so we pressed on. For a brief stretch of time, everyone could faintly hear the ocean but nobody said anything because we all thought we were getting delirious. But sure enough, after a few minutes, we all agreed that we could in fact hear the crashing waves of the Atlantic ocean teasing us on this final stretch. Finally, we passed a villager who assured us that the ocean was literally right behind a small forest in the distance. Exhausted, we kept on going. With the sand becoming as thick as I have ever seen it, walking became more tiring than ever. Every one of us had enough sand in our shoes to fill up a sandbox, and we had eaten nothing but peanuts all day. Walking to the edge of the little forest, the waves were getting incredibly loud, and it was clear that we were only maybe 500 yards out. As we tramped through the forest as quickly as our tired legs would allow, it seemed that there was no end in sight. Finally, Thomas (who was in the lead), let out a scream and started sprinting. A few seconds later, I saw it: the beautiful waves crashing onto an empty beach. We had done it, 36 kilometers through the desert in 10 hours and 15 minutes. Each one of us ripped our shoes off (which aproximately doubled the amount of sand on the beach), and sprinted into the ocean, diving in like little kids. For maybe twenty minutes, all we did was laugh and flop around in the ocean. After a few pictures were taken, we gathered our stuff and gingerly walked to the main beach, where our friends had a house waiting for us.

The rest of the day was spent enjoying beers and eating a mexican feast (thanks to everyone who helped cook and set the house up). Coming back to Ngaye the next day, I was sore and stiff, but very satisfied. Blisters and other ailments had prevented us from reaching the ocean last year, so completing the trek was essential to me. Also, the walk was made much easier by the fact that I had some very good friends with me on it. All in all, it was a great adventure. Now, I'm helping prepare my artisans for a big fair we're having at the end of the month. Abdoulaye Wade (El Presidente) and the minister of TOurism have organized a large fair to promote Senegal as a tourist destination. They also want to display the work of Senegalese artisans, which is where I come in. 5 artisans have been chosen from the Peace Corps Artisanal network to be present at the fair. We only have one table for the artisans, so space will be limited. For now, we are focusing on creating some marketing (brochures, pricing sheets, pictures, etc...) for the artisans to display at the fair. We're also shipping out another container of baskets on the 20th, so I will be pretty busy for the next few weeks. That's about it for now, will update people on the tourism fair later. For easier viewing, I'm putting all the pictures of the Trek at the bottom of this post. Enjoy them! Ba ci kanaam!


Trekking through the morning.


Descending into one of the canyons.


Studs of the Dakar region.


The random (but very pretty) lake we came across.


I am awesome.


Ankith struggling through the last 200 yards.


The final stretch. This part seemed like it would never end.


Victory!


Not of the walk, but my little host toddler with his new "girlfriend".

Jambaar lanu!

Tomorrow morning I will be meeting 5 of my friends to enjoy one massive lunch at our favorite chicken restaurant before the walk (see last year's post for pictures). I had originally planned on keeping the trek to 3 people, but some of my realy good friends were adamant about going, so I couldn't cut them out. We have a great beach house rented out in M'Boro and should have about 20-25 people for our party there. All in all, I'm very excited. It's going to be hot, really hot (last few days have gotten to about 110 towards midday...), but with 5 good friends, I'm sure the time will pass pretty quickly.

Just wanted to show everyone what I've been working on this past week. On Tuesday, we sent out yet another container of baskets, and will be doing so again in late May. Unlike the last order, we chose to fill the container right on the national highway that leads to the main village, Diama Thiendou. Not much else to say, but wanted to post some pictures of the event. First picture is what counting thousands of baskets looks like, and the second is my nearest neighbor Christine posing in front of the container as it gets filled up. Hope all is well back home, and I will make a post about our walk sometime next week when I get back! Ba ci kanaam!