Pictures from tournee (September 18 - 21)

With the start of my third year, I have been able to go out and visit with urban agriculture Volunteers. Not only is it great to go out and see different sites and see how I can support them, but for someone who rarely got out of Dakar in his first two years, it is a cool way to visually see the country (a lot of time is spent in a Land Cruiser on the road)

This last tournee I went on, my boss and I visited Mbour, Kebemer, Linguere, Richard Toll, St Louis, and Louga. Enjoy

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Pictures from atop downtown Dakar

Here are some photos taken from my buddy's apartment downtown. Think you might enjoy.

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Madelyn Jane Schoenfisch

While I am a little late getting this up, my sister and her husband had Madelyn Jane Schoenfisch on September 12. I couldn't be happier for Ash and Mark and really can't wait to see little Madelyn, apparently sooner than later.

Dakar Floods

Just wanted to post some pictures that new Dakar Volunteer, Jared Tharp took. They were taken in Patte D'oie, my old neighborhood. This pictures were taken the day after it rained, so the water levels are much lower than they were when it rained the night before. Enjoy and stay dry!

For any of you that have had breakfast breakfast at the Land household or attended a Matson family gathering at our mountain house, then you've probably had Swedish pancakes. They are pretty much to die for, especially when you load them up with powdered sugar, syrup, and being thousands of miles away from home.
With the ability to cook now at my apartment, I decided to take a stab at this traditional family staple. The recipe said it would make 16, I managed to get 8 out of it, which was primarily due to the fact that they were a lot thicker than they should, but they tasted just as good.

As I talk about food, I must also mention that the Muslim holy month of Ramadan started yesterday in Senegal. It is a time when Muslims around the world fast. As I said the past two years, it is really cool time to been in a Muslim culture and see people's faith at work.

Last year, I decided to fast for about two weeks, waking up around 5 am to have breakfast with the family and then go all day without food or water (some cheat and have water) until sun down. It is tough and I definitely have a greater respect for those who make it through the entire month.

This year is far different. Because I no longer live with a family and somewhat live the same life as I would be in the States, Ramadan has not affected me too much and I guess we can say that I'm not fasting this time around...my deli sandwich and leftover mashed potatoes for lunch today were really good.

But, but for all the Muslims in Senegal and around the world, this is your month....Bon Ramadan

Trip home....one last story...I think

The other day in Atlanta, I took MARTA up to Buckhead from Atlantic Station to meet a friend for lunch. I took the bus and then subway up there. Public transportation in the US is far different than in Senegal. While I found it to be far more reliable it felt sterile and lacked character.

On my return trip, I decided to just take a cab back to my buddy's house. I got in the cab and told him the address. He asked me if I was from Atlanta and I told him I lived in Africa. He went further and asked where and I told him Senegal.

It turns out he was Somalian but when civil war struck he moved to Dakar for 3 years and lived in a neighborhood adjacent to my old one. It was another cool encounter. We spoke in English and Wolof talking about the things that make Senegal great...food and hospitality. Also, we talked about how Senegal has changed since his days there. He had been in the US for 11 years driving taxis.

As we do in Senegal, I tried to negotiate the fare (in Senegal set fares don't exist and negotiation is done prior to entering cab). We both laughed as my wallet cried.

It's a small world.

Trip Home

The trip back to the US is close to being over, very close, actually sitting in Concourse E waiting for the plane to arrive. Goodbye USA for 10 more months and then who knows where to.

The bags are packed with who knows what. Turned out my two checked bags were a bit heavier than I had anticipated…53 pounds and 51 pounds, so I had to do a little rearranging at the airport. I didn’t think I was going to have to be that guy. Turns out, my entire luggage, carry-on and all weighed about 135 pounds. It should be interesting getting it all to my apartment come tomorrow morning. I just didn't have enough room left for a blender.

The trip home has been a quiet and quick one. Most of the time was spent in Charlotte and the beach with my family, with stops in Chapel Hill and Savannah. Time in Atlanta was short, very short, lasting about two days, so I apologize for not getting to see nearly everyone I wanted to or for as long as I hoped too.

Go Dawgs!!!

Story Stateside

Fresh off Delta Flight 35 from Dakar, Senegal on the morning of Friday, July 18 a buddy of mine picked me up from the airport in Atlanta and we were off for the start of one of our friend’s bachelor parties. We made a stop at Chick-ful-a and then Costco to pick up food and drinks for the weekend.

The minute we got out of the car at Costco, I couldn’t have been any further from life in Senegal. While I consider Dakar home, coming back to the US to visit, especially the first day back, a lot of catching up occurs. My mind was on the number of pounds of hamburger meat we were going to buy.

Well, that soon changed and it became clear yet again that it I a small world. Walking in to the store, I looked over my shoulder and there were three men of African decent (African-American, African, other, I didn’t know) walking in. One was wearing an outfit native in Africa and prevalent in Senegal called a boubou. I didn’t find anything unusual about this, but his buddy was on the phone and all of a sudden, I picked up a bit of Wolof coming out of his mouth.

I couldn’t believe it, it brought me back home.

The minute his buddy got of the phone, I turned around to say hello in Wolof. Their eyes widened and smiles spread. We talked for a bit outside and then again inside the store for awhile. They all lived in the States now but were Senegalese.

I’m not going to lie, it was one of the coolest experiences I’ve had in two and a half years.

Oh wow....I've had writer's block too long...I promise I have some posts coming.