Whoever said roosters crow at the crack of dawn was a liar...they start cockadoodledooing around 4am and don't stop. After a breakfast of millet surprise, we repacked our bags and headed out of the campement. It turns out that it is tradition for people to sing upon leaving the campement in Ende, so we gamely started with "The Circle of Life" from Lion King (Disney was the only thing we all sort of agreed upon). Just outside the building, though, we ran into about half the village children waiting for us, so we got a bit flustered. We tried some Red Hot Chilli Peppers and showtunes while giving them high-fives and waving. We were all prepared to trek the 8km to the next village before it got too hot, but Salif told us he had arranged ... read more

Our long awaited trip to Mali started off without a hitch, surprisingly. Of course, our Air Senegal International flight took off late, but that was to be expected. I must admit, I was a bit concerned about flying a "budget" (too bad that didn't reflect in the price of our ticket!) West African airline, but I was incredibly impressed with Air Senegal. We had lunch and a drink as soon as the seatbelt sign was switched off, and the hour and a half long trip went smoothly. Getting out of the airport and into the capital city of Bamako was a bit more difficult. I was in line behind two of my friends whose French isn't exactly the strongest, so I had to go and help translate the exchange between them and the customs officer. Turns ... read more

Well, Ramadan is in full (rather boring) swing. I feel like I've pretty much gotten used to living in a Muslim country, and I must say, it is much different than I ever would have thought. When most Americans think of an Islamic nation, many think of the rather fundamentalist countries, like Saudia Arabia or Iraq. The atmosphere here in Senegal is so different. Women are not required to wear veils (though some do choose to), and you certainly will never see anyone wearing a burqa (the full veil covering everything but a woman's eyes). The main regulation as far as clothing goes is that your knees should be covered, but tube tops, spaghetti straps, and halter tops are all perfectly okay (weird, huh?) The men can wear whatever they want, as dressing modestly doesn't seem ... read more

Today is the first day of Ramadan! This means that the Muslims (95% of the population here in Senegal) cannot eat, drink, smoke or have sex during the daylight hours. They get up at 5am to eat a meal before morning prayers and then suffer through the day until they break the fast at 7pm. I know several people who fast in Pittsburgh, and that's hard enough...but it's so hot here, and they can't even drink water! I have always wanted to be in a Muslim country for this month-long holiday, but it turns out it's pretty boring and people get cranky. A lot of restaurants are closed and I feel so guilty carrying around my HUGE 1,5 litre bottle of water. My American body is just not cut out for this heat, and I would ... read more

Life just keeps moving right along here in Dakar. It's still very hot and humid and dirty, but that feels pretty normal to me now. Losing power several times a day also feels pretty normal...is that weird? haha. It's the little things that make life here great...like how we found a fruit stand in Mermoz today that sells oranges! They'll probably cost an arm and a leg, but it's nearly impossible to get oranges here this season. Also, we have found a few restaurants that sell Western(ish) food. We had mushroom pizza with Coke the other day, and you have no idea how exciting that was!! This afternoon was a very important football match here in Senegal. Les Lions de la Teranga (literally translates to the Lions of Hospitality, haha) played Burkina Faso. The outcome determined ... read more