The day I lost feeling in my butt...

The day I lost feeling in my butt…

The Sept-Place Experience:

Eight People Deep 

After being in Dakar for almost three weeks trying to regain my health and strength, I finally got medically cleared to go back to my site. It was bittersweet knowing I could go back. The rest of my Stage stayed (or attempted to stay) at their sites for five consecutive weeks, but that was not the case for me. I was “present” at my site for two weeks before I started to feel sick(er), and then I stayed in my hut for the third week before my “long” stay in Dakar, where I lost all the language that I learned and ate all the food I started to “forget,” needless to say, going back to my village was daunting. I bought an insane amount of food to bring back to Kolda, so much that I needed to buy a huge duffle bag to transport it. I couldn’t even carry the bag by myself it was that large/heavy. I knew that I was going to have to barter the price of my baggage on all fronts. There is typical a set price to  buy a seat in modes of transportation, but baggage is up in the air. 

Going back to Kolda from Dakar is a huge ordeal. 

I had to get up at 3:30am, leave the Peace Corps Medical Hut by 4am, and get a taxi to go to the “Garage” where people get a “sept place” to travel to certain cities throughout Senegal. To get to Kolda, we travel through The Gambia and it is necessary to leave super early in order to get to Kolda in one day AND not have to wait for HOURRRRRRSSSS at The Gambia River to get a boat to cross over to the other side. Once I got to the Dakar Garage, I had to wait until seven (7) people bought a seat in the car, including myself. (P.S. Sept is Seven in French, ahh haah!!) When I say car, think station wagon with a bench seat in the middle and an elevated bench seat in the back and a front passenger seat plus the driver;s seat, totaling eight people in a tiny, broken, barely drivable/ridable, station wagon. It is rough. It is the most uncomfortable 13+ hours one can have. My butt and legs literally went numb and/or were throbbing to the point of extreme vein popping pain. I’ve decided that the WORST seat to buy is the middle bench, middle seat. The second worst seat is back bench middle. Both middle spots have the hump in the ground where the people have to straddle either side and/or raise their feet/legs to the level of the hump putting even more pain on the lower back.

Once we get to The Gambia, because I am an American/Non-Senegalese, I have to get out a total of four times to get my passport stamped at each location—exiting Senegal, entering The Gambia, exiting The Gambia, and reentering Senegal. Once we arrived at The Gambia border, we have to buy a ticket to get on a ferry boat to cross the river, that costs 200 CFA. Depending on the time of day and the amount of trucks/buses/cars arrived before you, you can wait a very long time (I’ve heard people waiting over eight (8) before!), but we only waited two hours. It was pretty interesting because the Pulaar people heard their cattle and one ferry had pretty much was filled with all cattle to cross the river. (You can bet that I was the “tourist” taking the pictures!!) 

Ferry at the Gambia River

After getting out of The Gambia it only takes about another three hours until reaching the Kolda Garage. It is so, so hot right now that by the end of the ride it is a putrid smell of body odor. (Just FYI, my solar radio reads upwards of 130 degrees, plus humidity on some days) Since it was almost dark upon my arrival, I had to stay at the Regional House one more night and return to my village the following morning. Because I live in the “Bush” a taxi from Kolda to my village costs 5,000 CFA (it is only about 10-12 Km drive) whereas the sept-place from Dakar to Kolda costs about 9,500 CFA (which is 672 Km, but in actuality probably longer because of the windy roads). That doesn’t seem quite right, does it? Oh well… 

I asked a cab to take me to my site, he said he would so I loaded my stuff up and we were on our way. The issue was, he didn’t know my village, and I had only driven there during the day time once and in the night time once; plus, I don’t have the greatest directional sense in new places with no road names and the only landmarks are sand, trees and huts (that ALL LOOK THE SAME!!), so I also didn’t know exactly where to turn off to get to my village. I knew that I had to turn left into a smaller village, but I forgot the name and I wasn’t paying attention to all the recognizable landmarks that I told him to turn into a village, I thought could be the through village… it wasn’t. It was, however, another village I knew and I knew that the next village was the through village. What I didn’t know was that Sare Samba had a back road that took us to Santancoy and not to the road we previously left, so I told him to turn down the wrong road. Once I noticed that there was no way back out to the other main road, I tried to figure out how to tell him that he had to turn around. Finally, we reached another village, the village preceding Santancoy, where my dad’s family lives, and they told my driver to turn around. Once we got back to Sare Samba, one of the men there ran out to the taxi and told my driver how to get to my village. My driver was M.A.D. at me, but I honestly don’t think he should have agreed to the trip if he didn’t know how to get to my village himself. He just wanted the money. But, once I arrived at my village, I had a great reunion with my kitten, counterpart, and my family. I am, however, a big gossip piece about how I didn’t know how to get home and I got my driver lost… oh well, there could be worse things that people said about me. 

Now, I am trying to reintegrate into my community and figure out how to speak Pulaar again,  but I am currently in Kolda for my “language seminar” and will be posting a few more blogs within the next few days. I go back to my site on July 5th.

The (first) day I finally saw not only meat, but a vegetable in my lunch bowl..

Korite 

Korite is the day of celebration of the end of Ramadan. Everyone wakes up early, they get dressed to the nines in their new komplets, shoes, jewelry, etc and show off. (Although most of my village could not afford new komplets, so they either just got new skirts, or a new pair of shoes and dress in an older outfit, but for the most part everyone has a new braids in their hair (except me)!) They go and pray together and then go household to household greeting everyone and giving small tokens like a 10/25/50 CFA coins or candy. They go pray again and then they start the preparations for their “feast.” Most families purchase a goat to eat on this day of celebration, but because my family and the people in my village are exceptionally poor, not everyone was able to conform to this standard. My family went in with a few other households to buy a goat, some of the other households in my village bought a few chickens instead. 

My counterpart came to ask me to use my knife to cut his family’s goat’s throat to kill it then to skin it and so forth, but I down right refused him that option. Firstly, I didn't want my knife to kill an animal and secondly, it was my best knife, I didn’t want them to dull it and ruin it with cutting bones. It has become apparent to me, like children, adolescents, and even some very privileged adults in The States, most Senegalese do not take care of anything that is lent to them because they didn’t buy it so they don’t appreciate the value; they ruin/break it, give it away and/or will never give it back. I wasn’t about to lose my knife this early in my service, plus I am working on being able to say, “no” to people. (It is actually on my 30 things to do before I am 30 list, and I thought living in Senegal would help me with that, but I find myself caving in even more than I did before.. Stay tuned (next blog) for the juicy details of that statement!) But this request was easy to stay strong to because I have refused to let my counterpart’s family kill a rooster they “gave” me to eat. I told them if I know the rooster, I will not eat the rooster, but if it is an unknown rooster and it shows up as meat not as an animal, I can eat rooster/chicken. (After I said that, they joked with me about it for a few weeks, then one day I asked where my rooster was, and they said they sold him since I didn’t want to eat him. Heh.) They don’t really understand  how I could be ok with eating a random piece of meat but not one that I knew because here they buy the live animal, they kill it, pluck it, skin it, cut off the meat, and cook it. It isn’t like back in The States where we go to the grocery and find all the options of meat with the degrees of quality, cut or portion size and there is no option of boneless of boned meats, they have one option: kill the animal, prepare the meat, and figure out how to store the meat not immediately consumed without electricity to cool or freeze it. Most times, people in village eat meat several days old that is evidently spoiled because they don’t want to waste the meat that their precious money bought and they end up getting very sick from that consumption decision. 

I knew that our family bowl was going to have meat in it, which was very exciting since it would be the first time we had any form of meat, including fish, to eat, but when lunch was ready, to my surprise, I saw my first vegetable too! I finally ate some onion!! I was only allowed to have a very tiny piece of meat, no bigger than my thumb (which I secretively gave half to my cat since he is looking a little malnourished as well), but I was able to eat several spoonfuls of onions! Our meal consisted of rice, onions and some goat meat. That is the big feast of a poor bush village family. However, I don’t want you all to think this is the eating habits of everyone in Senegal, but because I am in the poor south in a poor village, this is how they live. The majority of my stage mates (even volunteers in my region) have more variety to their everyday meals and defiantly to they holiday meals. I just “lucked out” on my site placement so these details are the only ones that I am accustomed to and can illustrate in my blog. 

After everyone ate, the adolescents went to dance the rest all day.  The day was filled with extreme heat, where some girls/women wore komplets that were so extravagant that had headscarves with bows and flowers on top of their heads where even at 0900, I could see beads of sweat rolling down their faces, not even penetrating the thick layers of makeup they applied earlier in the morning.(Which, by the way, when my sister came to my room in the morning, I had no idea who she was because of how they put on the make up here, they don’t look ANYTHING like what they normally do.. it is kind of scary actually. It is stage makeup boarding clown makeup!!) I am still confused on how that can be managed. I personally took several breaks throughout the day where I had to go into my room, strip down naked and just poor water over myself to cool off and just lay there for an hour before I could even think about putting on my komplet and facing the heat again. I guess they were born here and are used to it? When I get too hot and need to “rest” aka, go strip down and cool off, they tell me that my body isn’t strong yet, but after two years I will be strong. I didn’t realize that “strong” meant being able to endure heat, but here it does. 

When people asked me how I liked Ramadan and how Korite was for me, I would reply, Ramadan wasn’t nice, Korite was hot, but I am happy because from now on (until next Ramadan) I can eat lunch! 

The day I reflected on my packing list...

Five months ago I arrived in Senegal. Although, (way) more than five months before that I started researching and reading blog after blog trying to figure out what I was going to bring with me on my 27 month stay in a developing country with little means, and how in the world I was going to get it packed within the weight limits. This task was the worst part of my anxiety of my departure and my service. I have never been a "light packer" and with all my research and purchasing, my dad swears that I was keeping Amazon in business and they are bound to go bankrupt since my departure decreased their sales significantly.. at times I thought he was right. I went overboard. I have been planning my Peace Corps journey for over a decade, so of course I had plenty of time to contemplate my precious cargo. 

Below is the list of what I actually brought with me--because I had to leave double what fit into my suitcase back in Ohio. This list was going to be one of my first posts, but since I was repacking up until the very second I left for the airport, I wasn't able to take a true tally until I reached country. This list is now accompanied by my thoughts on my choices and things I wish I knew were easily available in-country allowing me to pack something else instead.  

My Packing List: 

• 2- pairs of gardening gloves ---> luxury item, but I am very glad I have them since I work with manure all the time for my garden and compost pile
• 4- tubes of super glue ---> Easily found in-country
• 1- multi tool/knife ---> So glad I brought it, I use it daily and it is great for mango season!
• 1-nail kit ---> So glad I brought it! 
• 1-pumice stone ---> Your feet will be worse than you can ever imagine 
• 1- bottle of medicated body powder ---> This stuff is GLORIOUS! You can get powder in Senegal, but the medicated aspect is the key. I am getting more shipped to me in my next care package
• 2- outlet converters ---> Yea, maybe only one 
• 2- rechargeable battery devices ---> I use them all the time 
• 1- MacBook Air ---> You need a computer for reporting, but they are working on getting computers at all the regional houses, so computers aren't necessary, but I personally would never come without one 
• 1- 64 GB iPad ---> Nice for site because I don't have electric or cell reception to buy an internet stick at my site, and I don't have a solar panel system that can change my MacBook Air, so it is the only entertainment piece (besides my Kindle Paperwhite) that I physically have at my site. The regional houses have trunk spaces you can buy into that allows you to keep your stuff there... safe
• Kindle ---> Great for acquiring all the digital books on hard drives, but I wouldn't recommend reading it in front of people in your village. You don't want to seem any more patrone than what they already think you are
• 1- 2 TB passport external hard drive ---> So incredibly important. Load it with lots of good stuff, keep space so you can acquire new stuff from other volunteers 
• 1- headlamp ---> Priceless. Make sure you bring one
• 6- battery operated lights (the "push" on kind that have wall sticker mounts on the back, so that when you walk into your hut at night, you push the light, almost like flipping on a switch. I was proud of myself on this idea)---> I use them every night, but they are a luxury item
• 1- solar powered flashlight ---> It helps save on charging batteries all the time
• 2- small solar hanging lights ---> Luci lights are amazing
• 4- toothbrushes ---> You can get them here, just bring one to start out with
• 1- hamper ---> So glad I brought it, but it is not necessary 
• 3- 8 pack of crayons ---> Gifts for host family at CBT
• 3- kites ---> Gifts for host family at CBT
• 1- dry erase wall sticker/memo --->  Amazing, I do all my weekly planning on it
• 1- manduka travel yoga mat ---> I have bad wrists so I needed the good mat for support, but there are plenty of alternatives for yoga mats in-country
• 1- backpack --->  I use this for in-country travel 
• 1- daypack --->  I use this for day travel on my bike from village to village 
• 1- sewing kit --->  Bring one. Nothing extensive because you can resupply here, but Senegal is rough on everything
• 1- shower caddy ---> So glad I brought it. I wish I had two: one for my hut and one to keep at the regional house 
• 6- rolls of duct tape ---> Right now I think 6 might be excessive
• 1- pair of waterproof hiking shoes ---> I have yet to use these, but when I travel to Kedougou, I am sure I will get some use out of them.. Although, I am not sure the 1-2 times of use will be worth the space and weight
• 1- pair of trail runners ---> Horrible. Sand filled when worn outside
• 3- pairs of sandals  ---> Excessive. You can buy cheap (nice leather) sandals here
• 1- pair of shower shoes ---> Don't bother, you can buy cheap flip flops in-country 
• 4- tubs of witch hazel cleaning scrubs ---> Senegal is rough on everyone's skin 
• 3- 1 subject notebooks --->  You don't need them, they are provided during training and you can buy them if you want more.. however, they are the grid type, not the college ruled
• 1- clipboard that opens up for storage ---> It is a luxury item, but I love it for field surveys.. Which you will do a lot of
• 2- packs of note cards//flash cards --->  Great for PST language learning 
• 3- packs of pens ---> Pens are just not the same here
• 1-paper organizers --->  It is great to keep the lose papers together that you're given throughout training to reference if you don't have Internet access frequently
• 1- peel and stick chalkboard ---> You can buy chalkboard paint here
• 1- pack of liquid chalk ---> You can buy normal chalk here
• 1- bottle of shampoo --->  You can easily find shampoo here.. just not Aveda, which is what I use 
• 2- bottles of conditioner ---> You can buy conditioner in the bigger cities in the "western" stores
• 2- loofahs ---> You can buy the local equivalent here for 1$
• 2- sponges ---> I use them all the time, but you can find them in-country pretty easily
• 3- water bottles ---> I'm glad I brought 3. Each have a different purpose: My Nalgene bottle is my daily use. I have a Hyrdoflask that is amazing because it keeps water cold (if you added ice or it was cold before you put it in your bottle) for up to 24 hours, which is a luxury in the hot season. I also brought one that was a Lifestraw bottle that that conceals the fact you are filtering the water. This feature is great because if you are in the "bush" more than likely you won't always have easy access to "clean water" (for instance my village doesn't have a boutique to buy it and you're traveling without your filter.. So this way you can put it in your water bottle and they don't know you're using a special filter per se. Using items that are out of their reach and not available for a behavior change you are trying to promote can hurt your endeavors 
• 1- tube of toothpaste --->  Good to start out, but Senegal has lots of toothpaste options.. Surprisingly
• 4- packs of 4, rechargeable AAA batteries --->  Essential for my light sources without electricity and it keeps my overall expenses down by not having to constantly buy batteries
• 4- packs of 4, rechargeable AA batteries ---> Read the above 
• 1- alarm clock --->  No. Don't waste your space or weight. Use a phone, and honestly, you will just wake up with all the morning noise
• 1- pair of scissors ---> So glad I brought them, but they are a luxury item. You can buy scissors easily here, but the quality obviously will not be the same
• 1- bag of wooden clothes pins ---> You can find these everywhere here
• 1- clothes line ---> Don't bring one
• 1- can opener --->  I cook a lot at my site, so I use mine all the time
• 3- cooking knives ---> At least one good knife
• 1- set of Tupperware containers in varying sizes ---> You can buy these here
• 1- fast drying towels ---> Yes. I am actually getting h one mailed to me because my towel isn't cutting it. I switched to the REI one that pretty much everyone else has and raves about
• 1- rain jacket ---> Luxury item. Depending on where you are placed, you might never even consider using it
• 30- pairs of underwear ---> Don't question it, wait for a sale and just load up
• 10- pairs of socks --->  Maybe 2 pairs would be sufficient, but I am not running all the time
• 12- bras --->  Sweat wicking bras. Get a variety of strap designs. I only brought a criss-cross kind and my straps are always showing. I'm getting some new ones sent to me
• 2- pairs of jeans ---> Honestly, 1 should be sufficient .. It's too hot for jeans most of the time
• 2- long skirts ---> To start out training with, but most likely you will get a lot more made with the local fabric 
• 3- t-shirts 
• 5-tank tops --->  Bring the wider straps, highly recommend the fast drying/sweat wicking kind 
• 3- sweaters ---> I was in a fantasy world. Bring one sweater
• 1- wall sticker map ---> Luxury item for my hut decoration
• 1- box of bobby pins
• 6- packs of hair ties 
• 1- travel pillow ---> I wish I would have brought a "real" pillow, you can't find nice pillows easily here
• 1- brush
• 1- comb
• 1- journal
• 1- atlas of West Africa 
• 2- note taking travel pads ---> These are AMAZING for your first few months at site and language learning/ acquisition, but you can easily make them yourself and safe the space and weight in your suitcase
• 1- pack of ear plugs --->  Senegal is so noisy. It's a great idea to have more than one pair (especially if you get a cat like mine that always manages to find them and eat them)
• 2- solar battery chargers --->  Great because I can't always get to electricity to charge my batteries
• 1- box of bandaids --->  The water resistant kind. You don't get the "good" stuff in the MedKits
• 2-pair of tweezers
• 1- USB/ solar power STERI pen --->  I lived on the STERI pen when I lived in India, but it isn't ideal because of what Peace Corps represents and promotes. We don't want to teach clean water habits one way to the people of the country and then use a high tech technique for ourselves that is not feasible for them. Think integration  
• 1-ENO double deluxe hammock --->  I use it every day in my backyard at my site
• 4- carabiners --->  Useful for endless reasons
• 1- cooling towel 
• 1- wall stencil --->  Luxury item for hut decoration 
• 1-solar/crank/weather/AM/FM radio --->  I don't use it..At all. Except to check the temperature. Record temp 131 F
• 1- bike helmet ---> They told us we had to bring one but they ended up giving us all helmets. It's a tough call 
• 1-cloth produce bag ---> I use it for pretty much everything, especially shopping in the markets
• And a lot of ziplock bags varying in size ---> Yes, a million times over. Bring tons!

Things That I Had Shipped To Me: 

• Powdered Cheese 
• Parmasean Cheese
• Protein Powder 
• Protein Bars 
• Fiber Bars 
• Bike Basket 
• D Battery Operated Fan ---> I am not talking a hand fan either. I highly recommend getting one of these things! 
• Rechargeable D Batteries 
• Portable Battery Charger for Mobile Devices
• Macaroni and Cheese 
• Tuna Helper 
• Spices 
• Bike Tool 
• Shampoo
• Conditioner
• Castle Soap
• Wet Wipes
• Vitamin C Supplements
• Acne Face Wash
• Acne Spot Treatment
• Face Lotion
• Face Sunscreen 
• 70 SPF Sunscreen 
• Resistance Bands 
• Closet Organizer
• Storage Bags
• GRE Books
• Acrylic Paints & Paintbrushes (Actually, I am still waiting on this package to arrive)
• Bathing Suit---> Bring one. We have beach weekend and at most regional houses you can find a nice hotel that you can go swim in their pool
• Baby Clothes for Baby Ceremony Gifts
• Cat Med Supplies and Toys
• Swedish Fish
• Pop Tarts
• Marshmallows 

Obviously, I have a very loving and generous family that is willing to send me numerous care packages despite the amount of effort and expense. I am truly grateful for their love and support throughout this adjustment period. 

If anyone was wondering how I packed everything, my answer is: carefully. 

I originally had 2 rolling suitcases, but the night before my departure I recruited my dad and mom to help me decide what was "necessary," and my dad convinced me that I wouldn't be able to handle 2 rolling suitcases plus my hiking backpack and my book bag all by myself. He was right. So, I cut my belongings almost in half as I discarded one of my large (50.0 lb) suitcases. I arrived at the airport with one, 49.9 lb hardshell suitcase to be checked, my hiking backpack that was 50.0 lbs to be checked, and a carry-on book bag (probably also weighing close to 50 lbs) with all of my electronics and batteries in it and a small-ish purse. It was a rough go. IF by any means you can manage to not travel as heavy as I did, I highly, highly, highly recommend it. However, as my parents can personally attest, it would have been cheaper to pay for the extra piece of luggage in the beginning than to ship all of my care packages. But, defiantly not as much fun on my end.