WOW, I have been in the village for two weeks, which has thankfully flown by. When the Peace Corps car drove me up to Madina for the first time, the entire village was outside in a drum circle with guys wearing corn husk shirts and leaf skirts dancing. I was really honored that they all came out to greet me but also totally overwhelmed, as you can imagine. My hut is new with a cement floor, thatch roof and cement bathing area, all as promised. There is also a well in our compound, so water is not an issue. And there really are at least thirty people who live in my compound. As bad as it sounds, I actually don't have everyone's names down. My family has been really nice and welcoming, but I have been having a really difficult time with the language. I learned a fair amount of Mandinka during training but they speak Bambara in the village (and also Pulaar). There are some similarities between Bambara and Mandinka, but not enough! I have re-learned the greetings at this point, but not much more than that. The women are busy all day with the kids and cooking for the entire family and doing laundry, and the men are either doing something in the village or playing chess or napping or drinking tea, so I haven't been able to talk to a lot of people anyway to improve. It has been really hard! I have spent a lot of time with the two teachers in my village who are from other parts of Senegal and speak French. They are young and don't have the responsibility of a family-just like me! We have had a couple interesting talks about religion and politics.
Otherwise, I think my village is really pretty. It is 8 or 9 km off the main road surrounded by farmland but also areas of forest, so to speak. There are lots of trees and lots of mango trees, but it isn't quite what I would call a forest. Nevertheless it is not a desert! Our neighbor does indeed have a small monkey in their compound that they found nearby when it was a baby. Farm animals are everywhere, including sheep, donkeys, goats, horses and chickens. No pigs though. Hearing donkeys bray (is that how you spell it?) at all hours of the day and night is still the most hilarious sound. When I first got to my village someone gave me a chicken that inhabited my small backyard for a few days until my family decided it would do better running around in the courtyard.
Last week I went on a 50 km bike ride with another volunteer to the Gambian River. It was great to see some more of the area and get some exercise, and also spend a day by a river. In the afternoon we went a bit further along the river and happened upon a campement or a hotel, so to speak, with a restaurant. It seemed pretty surreal to have a cold soda next to this huge river in the middle of nowhere Senegal. And we saw baboons and hippos at the river. That was a pretty cool day.
Besides the language issue, I am really having a hard time figuring out what it is I am supposed to DO here. The health project plan is to train members of the community to be health educators and give causeries on various issues, but my local counterpart and host brother works with the American NGO Africare to do just that. I don't just want to be his assistant, but I really don't know what it is I am supposed to do. I having a hard time finding my place here. It seems that everyone has a role but me--so far it feels like I am just taking what my family gives me without giving anything in return.
Anyway, for the most part, things are going okay. I am still healthy and fairly happy, just a bit frustrated!
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