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Published: June 16th 2006
Senegal Flag
On my way to Goree Island (more on that later) with the Sengalese Flag.I have finally stepped into the new age of mass communication and I am starting a blog. I have been gone 3.5 months and have yet to send any mails out explain where I am or really what I am doing. There is a lot to catch up on which is a daunting task, hence my overall avoidance. Through the encouragement of my co-worker/roommate Kristen I finally decided to sit down and at least catch everybody up on my time here in Senegal.
So here I am in Dakar, which is the capital of Senegal for those who don’t know. I added a map below so everybody can visualize where in Africa I am….(sorry if this offends anybody…I was just trying to help). You can also click in the bottom right corner of this page to get a close look at Senegal.
I still have the most difficult time trying to articulate life here in Dakar. I don’t think anyone who is not actually here can really understand/appreciate this place. Daily I am surprised by something else. Here are a few of my observances based on daily life here:
Sights There isn’t much to SEE here in
Africa Map
Find Senegal!!! Dakar in way of buildings, sculptures etc…. In fact it’s a pretty ugly city. But the “sights” are endless and provide lots of comedy to fill our days. I never cease to be surprised.
Goats everywhere!!! On the streets, hanging on the beaches, tied outside of houses, tied to trees..…everywhere.
The
traffic is terrible in Dakar it can take over an our to go 2-3miles. This is partly due to road construction, poor urban planning, overpopulation, and partly due to the horse driven rickshaws you shares the road with. All sorts of things. They have mass transit here called “car rapide” which are very colorfully painted minibuses that you can hop on or off up. And I mean that literally…people just run and jump on the back as the bus is moving…and hop off in the same way. They are super crowded and people are just hanging out the back, standing on bumpers etc. It is popular with some of the locals but I have yet to try it.
The
women of Senegal are the best “sights”. They all are beautiful and wear this amazingly vibrant dresses with colors and patterns I have never seen before. Like
Car Rapide
Contrary to the name...these do not move very fast. Great way for massive transit women everywhere in the world they are always doing something or carrying something. Whether it be a baby on their back, balancing something on their heads, selling roasted peanuts, carrying bags. They always seem to have it together. Sometime you actually see women balancing something on their head AND have a baby strapped to there backs. Pretty impressive if you ask me.
The
flowers here in Senegal are amazing. The is this one flower (of course I don’t know they name in English) that grows EVERYWHERE….even in the parts of the city you don’t think can actually grow things. Is comes in orange, purple, pink, blues. They are so beautiful and really stand out in a city and is mostly brown…I comment on them everyday (much to the dismay of Kristin who is sick of hearing it).
Vendors Everybody is a salesmen here in Senegal. And I mean everybody. There are street vendors everywhere…….and they have NO SHAME. I have been to places where they see foreigners and up the prices 20%!w(MISSING)here you haggle to lower a price….but Senegal is a whole new level. They literally TRIPLE the prices of things. These are prices I would never
Rickshaw
Notice the refrigerator. even pay in the US. Bargaining is part of the culture here and it is part of the social interaction. Unfortuantely I am terrible at it, either I get frustrated (shocking) give up and try and walk away (in which the follow you for blocks) or I just pay the price and get ripped off. Luckily Megan (my other co-worker) is pretty patient and with her minimal French is able to limit the highway rubbery that is committed daily. The strange thing about Senegal is these people will rip off EVERYBODY not just because I am foreign…it is everybody.
Not only are there street vendors whilst you are walking but also while you drive. Since the traffic if so bad the “vendors” walk up and down the streets in traffic selling things. They sell anything and everything….of course nothing that you need at the time you need it….but its there… items range from q-tips, hub caps, work shirts, phone cards, boxer shorts. In fact on the way home from work the other day I got “glue crazy” to hold my shoe together and 2 Williams and Sonoma dish towels. Saved me a trip to the store. You just roll
Streets of Dakar
It is interesting to see the mix of traditional 'western' attire versus the more traditional. down the window haggle a bit and get the goods. I have gotten the best deals because when the traffic moves you start driving away and they know if they don’t take your offer you are gone.
Sounds Ahh…the sounds of Dakar. Daily sounds include LOTS of honking on the crazy streets. We haven’t figured out why exactly people honk….but it is ALL the time. It can be to say “hi”, “get out of my way”, “do you need a ride” or its just for fun when the street is empty….the just honk the horn. The sounds of the Muslim prayers 5x a day. As Senegal is 90%!M(MISSING)uslim there is constant praying. We happen to have a huge mosque across from our office and we here the praying over the loud speakers at the (2-3 times a day). Lastly and my least favorite is the sound of the people that follow you around. People (mostly men) will follow you…literally for blocks to try and talk. Sometimes it is to sell things, sometimes I think its just to see me get frustrated.
But they are persistent and will walk behind us and just talk, either in broken English, in
The Team
This is the Accenture team here is Dakar. From left Agnes, Kristen (also my roomate), Megan, and myself. French, Wolof….it doesn’t matter to them…they just make noise. Those that speak English will literally say “hi”, “why are you ignoring me” “why are you ignoring me” “why won’t you talk to me” for 5-10 blocks. It is very bizarre. Luckily now that we have moved from downtown people seem a bit more “normal” and leave you alone. Last weekend we went to the beach and men would just sit down next to you and talk……and talk…..and talk. We asked them is 3 languages to please go away….they laugh…and keep talking. Last weekend this guy sat next to us for 30 mins and would not go away…even after I yelled straight in his face. He would say every “white girl” name he knew….”hi Stephanie, hi Sophie, hi Laura”…..i mean every name he could think of. Eventually he guessed Nicole….and that’s when I left.
Smells There are a lot of ‘interesting’ smells, but the main one is exhaust. There definitely are no emission restrictions here! The others smells we usually cannot determine (usually a mix of goat, fish, garbage its hard to tell) and figure we are better off not asking.
Touch - This is a very friendly, hands
The Women
Always Multitaking. on, culture. You usually start and end every day shaking hands with everyone. I have already mentioned how ‘friendly’ the guys are here, but they are like that with everyone, including each other. It is quite common to see men (not women) walking with their arms around each other or hand to hand on the street. It still gives me a chuckle every time I see macho 20 year old boys holding hands and what in out culture would be considered cuddling.
Taste - We have had many great ‘tasting’ experiences. There is a lot of French influence in the food here, so often eat sandwiches/baguettes, pizza, etc. However, the traditional Senegalese food is quite good. It usually is fish or chicken, accompanied with rice. We have the wonderful experience daily that we can go downstairs and eat with all of our co-workers. A HUGE plate is brought out with the meal for the day (yassa, ceebu jen) and everyone grabs a spoon and just digs in together! Kristen and I were confused the first day and we were waiting for somebody to hand us a plate……when then realized that no plates required….just spoons. I am definitely going to need to learn to make the dishes so I can enjoy when I go home too.
I could write forever trying to explain my life here in Senegal.....but I think this is information overall for one “blog”. I promise to write more soon.
Hope you all are well.
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Chris the Girl
non-member comment
Ok, so i'm new to this "blog" thing too. is being a "blogger" cool? ha. Nic, I LOVED this. I was about to write you an email but then I remembered that you "post" on a blog. this is an amazing experience for you, it sounds like you're really soaking it up. Enjoy it while you can. We miss you though - keep the updates rolling in you blogger!!!