Senegal Day 2 - Saturday October 16th

Today was a nice leisurely saturday which I spent with some of the other volunteers. Through word of mouth, all the best places to eat drink, use internet, find yogurt and even swim are passed around frequently. This is how I came to visit Hotel Mermoz. Hotel Mermoz offers free swimming and lounging for hours on end so long as you buy food and drink which we wholly took advantage of.

By the end of the day I found myself quite hot and dehydrated which is a great way to spoil everything, because the 45 minute walk home became an overwhelming experience of smells and sights down Market Street that made me long for home.

Nevertheless, I tried to take time this evening to unwind and observe the family. People here speak primarily Wolof and secondarily French (only for my benefit) which leaves me quite out of the loop during most conversations (unless the word Toubab comes up which means foreigner, or worse yet white foreigner).

I'm not too sure what to think about Toubab... it's hardly fair to say that being referred to as such is meant meanly however I realised tonight that the reason all the little kids in the house call me Toubab is because the Matriarch calls me Toubab. Otherwise she is very pleasant to deal with.

A digression on prayer: Given that Senegal is primarily Muslim, there are several prayer times throughout the day. So far I have observed a few men on mats here and there, and this morning I was aroused at 5am by someone on the loudest loudspeaker doing prayer chants ... hardly a way to relax on a Sunday morning! This evening, the man I assume is Grandpappy began his prayers while sitting languidly amoung the circle of women outside our house. He chanted with such gusto I almost began to clap along for lack of anything better to do (again, Wolof, not my second language) which was about the time I fetched my Journal so as not to insult or cause a ruckus.

I will be interested to learn more about this aspect of life here...