Sandwich Crave

Thursday, July 27, 2006

Cravings for American food come and go here. There isn’t a day I have not thought about either Bojangles or Weaver D’s. I often think about McDonalds or a good steak from Firebirds in Charlotte. I would probably settle for Mexicalli if I had to as well.

For some reason, I got a crazing for a sandwich today. I don’t mean a sandwich from Blimpie’s, Subway, or Jersey Mike’s, but a plain sandwich. Get a little white bread, mayonnaise, mustard, ham, turkey, and roast beef, and then make one up. Yeah, it would be nice.

Well, being in Dakar, I do have a lot of luxuries, including Score, which I have talked about before. It is a very western grocery store, but often times, above my budget. I got suckered into going when another volunteer who is in town asked if I wanted to go, and all I could think about were sandwiches. I said yes. I need to learn how to say no to things though.

I went and took a look at the deli meats and soon realized that they were out of my price range. I stop looking pretty much as soon as I started, so maybe I was looking at the Rolls Royce’s of sandwich meets and should have been looking in the back room at the out of date products. I did see a pack of 4 pieces of ham for about $9.

As much as wanted a sandwich, I quickly changed my mind.

Pushing Car

Thursday, July 27, 2008

In the States, if you are driving a car that is more than 5 years old, it is often times thought that you need to get a new one. In Senegal, if you are driving a car that isn’t 25 years or older and only has a working engine and wheels, then you are not in the cool crowd.

Often times, you will see people having to push cars here to get them started and going. Rarely do we see this in the States, but it is a daily occurrence here. A lot of times, it is one or two people pushing. For the past few months, I have been fascinated by this and come to the realization that I need some action.

My fascination turned into a reality today. I had just gotten out of a car rapide and was walking to catch another car home, when I saw a man pushing his car up a bridge. Another guy on his bike stopped to help. I didn’t know what to do, but realized that this was my chance. I had my book bag on, stuffed to the brim as well as my sandals on, but neither stopped me. Running across the on-ramp, a car nearly clipped me, but that was cool. I would nearly compare my running and determination to the opening of Baywatch, when the cast is running into the ocean, but take away the beach, the gorgeous girls and music, put my head on that of David Hasselhoff’s body, and throw a car on the road that needs to be saved.

Finally, in my shinning moment I helped push this beast of a car up the bridge until it reached its crest and the car had started. It was a proud moment for myself. This may not be something that some people get excited about, but I think I will probably remember this moment for a long time.

Bed Sheets

Thursday, July 27, 2006

As I just sit here, I am sweating. The past 72 nights (minus 5 when I was out of town) in which I have been in Dakar I have sweated. If I’m not sweating, then I know something is wrong.

With that being said, as I think I have said before, the sheets on my bed probably needed a good washing a long time ago. In college, I was pretty good about keeping the sheets washed, clean, and sweat free. Typically, about every month they got thrown in the washer.

Well, things are a little different here and I have had to do what the higher ups at Peace Corps call “adaptation”. I still do my laundry in a washing machine, but in order to utilize this luxury, I have had to “adapt” and go to Libertie VI (Dakar Regional House), about 2 miles from my house to do it. It is a rough life I tell ya.

I try not to go there to often, unless I am going to do laundry, which is about once every two weeks. For some reason, the washing machine takes close to 2 hours for one cycle and the drier I don’t think works. As a result, I don’t like to take up a good portion of my day doing laundry.

Well, that all changed on Wednesday afternoon when I had to drop some stuff off at the Regional House. I had the novel idea, that since I had just washed my clothes a few days before, I would strip my bed and pillows and wash my sheets. It was a pretty big accomplishment.

The one problem I came across was that by the time my load of laundry was done, it was nearly dark and by the time I could make it home it would be dark. Laundry does not dry when it is dark as I found out around 11:00 pm when I was about to crawl into bed. My sheets were quite yet. The pretty boy in me came out when I decided that I wasn’t going to sleep on just the mattress. So, I decided to use two soft mats that I have, placed them on the floor, and then put my Thermarest pad on top of that, and I just slept on the floor.

It wasn’t very comfortable and I woke up several times, but that is no different than any other night. In the earliest of science classes, they always tell you that heat rises. That may be true, but not in Senegal. It was just as hot on the floor.

I never thought I would stoop this low and write about my sweat stained bed sheets but I’m running out of topics and there is a good chance I will write about the same thing in four months.

I feel dumber for writing this.

Garden Update

Sunday, July 23, 2006
I haven't talked much about the Hopital Fann Garden lately, so I wanted to give you an update. While I haven't talked about it, don't think I haven't been busy there.

Last week on Friday, we had the wife of an American diplomat who was visiting Dakar came to the garden with a group from the Embassy, including bodyguards (which was cool). Much of the past week or two was spent ironing out the details and then getting the garden shape as well. Whether it is a high-profile visit or just an individual coming to look at the garden, they are all very important to the potential expansion of the garden as well as the idea behind it. In the end, this visit seemed to go very well.

This week at the garden will hopefully be an eventful one as well. The plan is begin excavation on a second garden on the grounds of the Infectious Maladies Department. The purpose of this new garden will initially be for fruits (papaya trees, banana trees, and melon), but eventually expand into medicinal plants as well. Currently, the site is covered with rocks and improperly disposed medical supplies, so Tuesday, we are hoping to get it cleaned up.

The second thing that I hope to get done this week is initiate new pest management procedures. Currently, we use mostly chemical pesticides and apply them when needed, not on a schedule. The new plan is to try to use natural pesticides on a 2 or 3 week rotation. The purpose of this is to make the garden a little more natural (I'm not going to say organic) and hopefully less expensive to maintain. The question is, will it work?

I am hoping to use a tobacco based liquid solution, tobacco dusting for certain crops, and a solution potentially consisting of peppers, mint, onion, garlic and soap. I am currently trying to do a little more research and in talks with my Peace Corps boss and another volunteer who currently has an all-natural garden. Hopefully I can conclude my research early this week and start making and applying these solutions.

So, this is what is currently going on at the garden, on top of its daily maintenance, upkeep, and increase in temperatures. Thanks for all the support and interest a lot of you have shown.

Wolof Struggles

Sunday, July 23, 2006

While things as a whole have been going pretty well lately, I felt this past week flustered with my Wolof. Dakar has proven to be a difficult place to sit, use it, and learn the language. I think my French has actually gone down hil, but then agai, I rarely use it at all. It just isn’t easy and I have not had time to find a tutor yet. For some reason, this past week things just weren’t clicking.


This is nothing that I had not heard would happen. I definitely was told that walls would be hit when learning the language. It is a weird feeling though and in a sense, a hopeless one.


Hopefully, a new week brings new strength.

Jehovah Witness Encounter

Saturday, July 22, 2006
I had an interesting encounter this morning when I got back to my house with my brother from an unsuccessful trip to the police department. We were standing in front of the compound and three guys came up asking if anyone spoke English. It was kinda weird, but since I was the token English speaker, I said I did.

They introduced themselves and they were Jehovah Witnesses from Nigeria. I guess they were sent to Senegal to do their work, but as a recommendation, I think they need to atleast learn French if they are trying to reach out to the masses here in Dakar, not an American Peace Corps volunteer. Regardless of that, I do give them credit for what they are doing.

There are three things that I have never enjoyed talking about; political beliefs (not politics in general), religious beliefs, and money. Even more so, I'm not a fan when these topics are pressed upon me.

So, going back to the front of my family compound, surrounded by a few Senegalese and the three Jehovah Witnesses, I was asked right off the bat: “Do you think the world will come to an end if no positive changes are made?”

I took a deep breath, shook my head alittle, and then was off at the races. My response covered every angle in why their question was flawed, primarily because the way they phrased it, suggested that nothing in the world was currently positive. Also, it is a very deep question that I personally think has no right or concrete answer.

We continued to talk and it turned out to be a decent conversation. They tried to focus the conversation onto one subject that they felt that needed changing. One of the guys reached into his briefcase and pulled out a 30 some page pamphlet on “How to build a happy marriage.” I tried to tell them that I wasn’t married, but I guess he didn’t understand my southern accent. He pretty much went through every single page with me. If anybody wants to have this pamphlet, let me know and it can be yours for 100 CFA (amount that I felt obligated to donate when I got asked for a donation) and the cost of shipping and handling.

I guess as I re-read all that I have written, it may sound as if I am being quite negative of this situation. That is not what I am trying to portray at all. Obviously my outlook and the way I view things are different from that of these three gentlemen. That is no different than anyone else though. I find it fascinating to learn about others views and perspectives, especially when they aren’t necessarily being pressed and possibly similar to my own. I give them credit and respect for what they are doing. Needless to say, it was a very very odd situation.

I suppose of if he pulled out the pamphlet “How to find a cute girl in Senegal that would make my Aunt Betty proud of me,” then I might have been more receptive.

Big Fan of Emails Like This...I want to go watch

Consular Warden Message
July 19, 2006
U.S. Embassy Dakar

Subject: 20 July - Rally and Possible Demonstration

The U.S. Embassy in Dakar is issuing this Warden Message to inform American citizens that the Lebanese expatriate community has requested permission from the Ministry of Interior to demonstrate against the current Israel-Lebanon situation on July 20, 2006. As of noon July 19, the only government-sanctioned event is a rally at 3 p.m. at Radio Television Senegal (RTS) in the neighborhood of Medina. Additional requests, including a march to the Place de Independence, are pending approval by the Ministry of the Interior.

Americans are advised to avoid areas where marches and demonstrations are going to be held. If you see a large crowd of people forming, immediately leave the area and take an alternate route. Remember even demonstrations intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational and become violent.

Another week...

Monday, July 17, 2006

It just never ends in this city. With the two stitches in my hand coming out later this week, I thought that I would be able to focus the things that are important and not have to waste time dealing with petty things. My plan changed tonight, when it was discovered that my bike was stolen sometime between last night and tonight in my family’s compound. I had it chained up to the bars on my window, but apparently that wasn’t enough. Who knows? The only thing I do know is that if I come across a red Trek mountain bike in Dakar, it will probably be mine. Unfortunately, this is just another unnecessary thing I have to spend most of my day dealing with. You just can’t win sometimes.

Food For Thought

Sunday, July 16, 2006

Recently, the number of meals I have eaten at home has drastically reduced. This isn’t because I don’t like the food, but in order to go to the pool after work or anything else I need to do, makes it difficult to be in the northern end of town at 3 pm for lunch. If I can’t make it home, I usually eat on the street and then again when I get home. Unfortunately this isn’t always possible because my rice lady outside the hospital isn’t always set up yet, but I now have a sandwich guy I go to as well, so I’m starting to have options. The past few days, I have missed dinner a few times, which I don’t like, because I was socializing.

Because I have missed these meals, it seemed today that my family thought that I just hadn’t eatin because they would not let me stop eating at lunch and dinner until I was about to throw up both times. Usually, I can say that I am full and leave it at that, but not today. For lunch, we were eating out of the bowl and my mom kept pushing rice to my section…I had to eat it. At dinner, we were eating cere and it really isn’t my favorite dish, but I was starving. I put alittle on my plate and ate it. I was asked if I wanted more and I said yes because I wasn’t full and felt I could tough it through a few more bites. Well, my sister decided to keep pilling it on my plate. When eating from a plate, it isn’t cool to leave stuff on it, so I had to eat it all. Following dinner, we had mangos, which are absolutely amazing. While full, I wasn’t going to let that stop me from a piece or two of mango. Well, I was given the slices of an entire mango. Not a big deal, but I knew I would struggle. As I brought my plate of mango outside to eat, my mom made me take a slice of hers. By the end of the night, I was a very full kid.

With this said, I also do not think I am eating as much as I should. I feel like I am always hungry, regardless of how much I eat at meals. If they had corn nuts here, I would probably have a pack or two in the spirit of my dad. Since they don’t, I have been going through Biskrems and Pringles at a costly rate.

I decided to weigh myself at the Peace Corps office last week. I had lost a little weight since arriving, but not a significant amount. I think my weight fluctuates a lot more here because of the amount I sweat throughout the course of the day and night (I wake up in a pile of sweat and my sheets are typically wet each morning). I am trying to compensate for this by drinking between 2 and 4 liters of water a day. This may sound like a lot, but 95% of my day is spent sweating. I couldn’t imagine being in the hotter portions of the country.

My final note concerning food and sweating is the dish of yassa poulet. While I am a huge fan of maffe as I’ve stated in past posts, yassa poulet causes a stir in my head if both are on the menu. Yassa poulet is a plate of rice and rotisserie chicken on top, smothered with a sautéed onion sauce. I am not going to lie, but it is pretty good. I ate it 3 or 4 times last week, on top of a few bowls of maffe as well.

Bon Appetite

Friday, July 14, 2006

I just wanted to thank everyone who sent me a note or called to wish me a happy birthday. It was greatly appreciated. Also, some of you have said that you sent stuff, so hopefully the good ole La Poste cooperates and they show up soon. As of Wednesday, July 12, one out of five that I had been told about, had arrived. Hopefully the stats will be different when I check next week. Thanks again and miss you all.

Last Bit About Hand

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

For some reason, I have always had interesting hospital stories. When I was a kid and lived in Conyers, I had to go to the hospital after I built a bike ramp and then had alittle accident. At the hospital, my dad and I had to wait on the doctor because he was apparently eating a salad. In college, after hitting my head on the exit sign, we had to wait for Gumby’s to deliver our food before we could leave. Today, not only did my Peace Corps doctor have to wait an hour for my doctor to show up, but I nearly had to wait till after August 10, for the rods to come out.

My orthopedic doctor here is a character. He is leaving tomorrow on a month long vacation to France and he still hadn’t packed. I don’t think he wanted to take the rods out because he wanted to get home. My Peace Corps doctor and myself pleaded with him. The rods in the hand have proven to be pretty painful and have limited some of my activities at times. Finally, he broke, and we were heading to the operating room.

Just before entering the operating room, I had to put on a gown over my clothes and booties on my feet. I entered the operating room, accompanied by my Peace Corps doctor, around 11:50. I laid down on the surgical table. My doctor entered with his scrubs on. He cleaned my hand and then jabbed it about 4 or 5 times with local anesthesia. After the anesthesia had time to do its magic, he made a couple incisions in the hand.

During the next portion of the procedure, I learned something new. I believe that the rods were inside my bone, not on the outside as I thought. The first one came out with a simple yank. While I couldn’t see any of it being done, I could feel it alittle, not painful though. The second rod wasn’t as easy and took a few hard yanks. After the first one proved to be unsuccessful, I think my Peace Corps doctor was concerned for me. The only thing I was concerned about was getting a hold of the two rods that were in my finger. Finally, after the second or third hard yank/pull/jerk, the rod came out.

By 12:10, I was stitched and bandaged up, ready to go. I have been told that I have to exercise and stretch my finger so it gets back to normal. Right now, it is not normal. If you have seen Bob Dole’s hand, that is how I feel. Also, I learned that I broke it in a bad spot, so the little sprain that I thought it was, was much worse.

By the way, I did manage to get my hands on the two rods, and they are a lot bigger than I was anticipating.

Mom and Dad Visit

Tuesday, July 11, 2006
So I got good news late last week that my parents locked in on dates for their trip to Africa and bought their airline tickets. They are coming for two weeks in December, including Christmas. It should be a lot of fun and I’m looking forward to it. While it is going to be difficult to show them entirely everything I do throughout the course of my day, such as the modes of transportation I take, I am thrilled and fortunate that they are coming. Part of the Peace Corps experience is to provide Americans an insight into a different culture.

The difficulty now is to figure an itinerary, so my parents can make hotel reservations for when they are in Dakar. I laugh every time I talk to them because they want to know when and where we are going to be places. The problem with this is that it doesn’t work that way here, especially this far in advance…it is hard to relate that point across the phone or via email. Hopefully by mid-September or late November I can develop[ a minute by minute itinerary only to show that 30 seconds in, we will already be off schedule. Needless to say, I am not worried.

Inagural Post Office Visit

Monday, June 10, 2006

I had a huge achievement today which I am very proud of. For the last 117 days, I have been anticipating its arrival…fortunately not 9 months of waiting. Today, I conquered my fear of going to the Post Office.

Up until now, I have mailed three things. The first was a pre-stamped postcard that Peace Corps gave everyone in my stage. The second was a card in which I managed to buy stamps from another volunteer. The final one was a birthday card for my mom, which I had a Peace Corps Volunteer returning to the States mail from San Diego

I realized that with my dad’s birthday coming up later this week on Friday, I was going to have to figure out some sort of solution. Also, I had a package slip in my mailbox at Peace Corps Headquarters from the Post Office stating I had to come and pick up a package. I don’t know why it wasn’t delivered to Peace Corps, but I think it was because it was taxed a lot more than any of the other packages I’ve received.

Needless to say, I was forced to go to the post office. Basically, up until this point, had it been Halloween and I saw somebody dressed up as a La Poste, they would have scared the hell out of me. I walked about 300 yards from Peace Corps to the post office my package was at, and started the package retrieving process. Being the first time, it was far from easy. First, I went to a window in the main hall to provide them with my package slip. They then handed me the US Postal Service/US Customs form that had been filled out. After that window, I went to a back office, unsure entirely where to go, then I was pointed in the direction of an adjoining office. I don’t know whose office it was, but the guy seemed to kinda be a big deal. He took my forms, looked at them, then filled out some forms. After his office, I was sent back into the other office to pay 2,500 FCFA ($ 5.00). In a sense, that is a lot of money here. This step involved stops at two people’s desks. After paying, I had to go back into Mr Big Wigs office to get my receipt and paperwork stamped again. I then went back into the main portion of the post office. Here, I went one window where they ripped off one of the sheets of paper I had. I then went to the next window where I had to pay 1,000 FCFA ($ 2.00) as a holding fee I believe. The longer it is there, the more you have to pay. Also at this window, I managed to buy stamps for my dad’s birthday postcard. After this window, I had to return to the previous window, where I finally got my package.

So, my first pot office visit lasted between 30 minutes and an hour and included stops at 8 places.

Pictures

Here are pictures from the past two weekends. The first few are from Toubab Dialaw. The restand bulk of them are from St Louis this past weekend. I havent had a chance to write anything and I probably wont.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?Uc=7cwno9h.11vi7lv9&Uy=-mbt5n6&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0&mode=fromshare&conn_speed=1

Familiar Sighting

RANDOM FACT OF THE DAY....So I am walking down the street today, and I come across a guy wearing a Charlotte Hornets jersey for Muggsy Bogues. Needless to say, I got a good laugh.

Fourth of July

Tuesday, July 4, 2006

I just wanted to wish everyone a great Fourth of July. Hopefully everyone is having a good one and enjoying the festivities that surround the day. If you are having a hamburger or hot dog, at a baseball game, or watching fireworks, I am quite jealous.

I’ve gotten this question from a few people, so I felt it would be appropriate to answer here. The questions have surrounded what I will be doing this Fourth of July, other holidays (American and Senegalese), and birthdays.

First, my Fourth of July celebrating here in Dakar has so far included a busy day at work, which was quite productive and good, and typing up this. For lunch, we are having maffe, which is my favorite Senegalese dish, so I suppose, you could compare that to hamburgers or hot dogs. After lunch, I intend to head to the regional house to do some laundry and use the Internet. That really is my day.

As for other American holidays, there will be little celebrating here, unless I’m with other volunteers. There is a party at the Kedougou regional house, but I am unable to attend the festivities. Also, there was a big Fourth of July party at the American Club this past weekend, but I was at the beach.

Regarding Senegalese holidays, I really couldn’t tell you when they are. A lot of them are based around Islam. Some require fasting. Some last for days. I am looking forward to learning more about them, but I’m sure I will still go to work, by choice though.

If I were reading this, I might feel as I am being negative on the situation and want sympathy. That isn’t what I am shooting for or what I want. While there are things I miss/will miss about American holidays, especially Thanksgiving, they aren’t going anywhere, and 2008/2009 will be a big year of celebrating hopefully.

As for birthdays, I am taking, and want the same approach. Every day here, you get unwanted attention and are in the spotlight all the time. By celebrating your birthday in an American fashion here, you are only putting more attention on yourself and that really isn’t something I want. I didn’t come here to be different. There is a good chance though that I might splurge and go buy a Corona and quietly celebrate.

So, to everyone…HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!!

Dead Rat

Monday, July 3, 2006

I have been running out of things to talk about, and my list is getting shorter and shorter, but, today, something interesting came across my nose. I walked into my family’s house after work and realized there was a horrible smell. I was unsure of what it was, but it poured down rain this morning, so I figured it potentially could be a sewage problem. I let the issue rest and quickly retreated to my little, smell free, house.

Later this evening, I was at the same location in the house, and was talking to one of my brothers, but overcome by the putrid smell. I came close to throwin up a little in the mouth, but managed to hold it in. My brother, somewhat laughing, told me that a rat/mouse had died in the wall. I don’t know how that is possible, since the walls are solid cinder blocks, but I went ahead and believed him. There was no reason to discredit him, unless he said there was no odor.

Fortunately, the smell was only in one area of the house, so we didn’t have to bear the smell during dinner. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of asking my brother if he had any Youssou Ndour (internationally acclaimed Senegalese artist) music. I went to his room, near the hub of the smell, to listen to some songs. The minute I sat down, I was itching to get back to my house, no offense to him. Finally, after several songs and a few Senegalese singers later, I felt that it wouldn’t be rude to leave. I was begged to stay for more, but the smell had overcome my nostrils…the time was right to retreat.

That Guy

Monday, June 3, 2006

I was sitting in the bank today and I had one of those rekindling memories of my time at UGA. Just about everyday after class on the bus home, there would be “that” girl who would be on her cell phone talking away without any clue that the bus had other people on it. By the end of the bus ride, one would typically know her quite well. Over the course of time, you would often come across the same phone talkers and not forget the things you heard. I mean, I heard some pretty good stuff.

Today, when I was at the bank, I came across this older patrone, who I would consider “that” guy. The bank had a decent number of people waiting to be helped and this guy was just talking away, clueless that anyone else was around. While I am unsure entirely of what he was talking about, my guess is that the topics were far different from those that I heard on the bus.

It’s the little things like this, that make me miss the States.

Weekend Away

Sunday, July 2, 2006

I have been alittle lazy this past week in my writing and have actually run out of things for the moment, to write about, so I apologize. Fortunately, this past weekend is worth writing about.

Finally, after a month and a half at site, I was finally able to get out of Dakar for the weekend. It was well worth it and I can see the importance of getting out every once in awhile.

My weekend started when I left work on Friday around 11. It is earlier than normal, but not knowing things, I wanted to make it out of the city as early as I could. My plan was to walk to the garage from the Hospital. It wasn’t the shortest of walks, but like always, I did manage to get lost. So, not only can I get lost on the buses, but walking in the streets of Dakar, with directions in my hand. Sometimes I wonder if I have any common sense.

I ended up making it to the garage around 12:15. The main garage in Dakar is where hundreds of Allhums and Sept-places are and you can get to literally anywhere in Senegal, but it isn’t always easy or quick. While I probably should have known, I don’t recommend going to the first Allhum you see going to your destination, especially if no one is in it yet, because you have to wait for it to fill up…this may take hours.

Around 3:00, the Allhum was full, and we were off to Mbour. My clothes were dripping with sweet and quite disgusting I’m sure. The cost was 950 CFA or less than $2 for the 83 km trip.

I got to Mbour around 5 or so. The minute we pulled into the garage, the allhum was swarmed by taxi drivers and potential thieves. I switched into my ass-hole persona, put the sunglasses on, set the hat low, and brushed past all of them unscathed.

I was headed to my buddy Randy’s place. I didn’t know exactly how far it was but he said that he recommended taking a taxi…I walked. After about 45 minutes, I strolled into his place. I met his family and his dad’s name was Aziz too.

Randy’s place is awesome. He lives what I guess you could call an apartment building. He has his own room and bathroom accompanied with a small balcony. He shares a kitchen with the two or three other tenants, but apparently none of them use it. Also, the roof of his building is amazing. It has views of the ocean and the surrounding areas. Needless to say, I was quite jealous.

By this time, two other volunteers from my stage showed up and unwinding began. A bottle of Black Whiskey, Senegal’s finest, was opened up, and stories were told. We decided to go across the street to have dinner, which turned out to be pretty good. A round or two of beer was ordered, we talked to some locals (one of them had family in Houston), and two of the volunteers got henna put on. I can definitely say that I did not partake in the henna action. I can say that I broke a glass while at the restaurant. It just isn’t a Friday night in my book if you aren’t out breaking stuff.

After dinner, we headed for the corner boutique on the way back to Randy’s. Like myself, Randy has become friends with his boutique workers. As a result, Adam and I told them that, we were poor, but Randy was made out of money and they should charge him more whenever he comes in.. We had them laughing for awhile.

Afterwards, we headed back to the roof for a bit to hangout. That didn’t last long, as the night was growing old and we had a big day ahead of ourselves.

Slowly, the four of us awoke Saturday morning. The plan was to hunt down some bean sandwiches, then head to the garage to get a car to Tobab Dialaw. The plan was successful, but it took alittle longer to leave the apartment then it probably should.

Once at the garage, the drivers and their posses’, saw the four toubabs coming in, and swarmed us. We probably had 30 people around us trying to get us to ride in their car. The initial offer they wanted us to pay was 15,000 CFA…far too much. We ended up paying 8,000 CFA, and it probably could have been brought down to 6,000 CFA if we were more focused.

The next day and a half were spent on the beach, playing in the waves, enjoying the company of other volunteers (most of whom I didn’t know), and a 30 minute regional meeting. The tan only continues to improve.

I headed back to Dakar on Sunday afternoon with a few others. On the way, the motor of the Allhum we were in suddenly just cut off. We figured that it just ran out of gas, wish isn’t uncommon in these neck of the woods. Turned out it was much worse and they started searching for wrenches and stuff. We were close enough to Dakar, that we jumped in a taxi and I was let out in Patte D’Oie. Home sweet home I was.

I was too tired to write any thing for this or any emails last night after the beach,so you will have to wait till tomorrow. Happy 4th of July.