Little Pockets of Peace

After finally getting used to the chaotic hustle of Dakar I've started to getting away from it. I've managed to escape into little pockets of peace and started to visit places outside of Dakar. I was suprised at how much I loved getting away from the city since I've always considered myself a city slicker.

I went to Lac Rose which gets its name from the pink hue that sparkles off the water under direct sunlight. The hue exists because the lake is very shallow and FULL of salt. I could even go for a swim since there is enough salt in the water to prevent anything from staying alive. After a nice swim and a quick rinse from Baba, Magueye, Cheick (the driver), and the three volunteers including myself went to visit where the pirogues (the name of the local boats here) collect salt. Senegal acutally stands for "our pirogue" in the local language of Wolof. The boats are so full of salt they have to be dragged back to shore where the rest of the family collects and piles the salt. Each family has a different coloured flag to indicated their pile. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to take a pirogue out since we were on our way to the village des tortues. The village des tortues is a turtle sanctuary where a very enthusiastic staff teach you fall about African turtles. The turtles come from different zoos, mostly from Europe, where they were mistreated or have gotten too large for the zoo to keep. One turtle in particular made me sad because they Dutch zoo had been feeding him dog meat which made him obese and aggressive. In fact, while the guide was describing what had happened to him he attacked two turtles. The guide grabbed him and carried him far away from the other turtles and threw some leaves in front of him. I have a great appreciation for people who work in rehabilitation centres. The other good news was that the offspring of the abused turtles were set free in the wild once they were 5 years old.

I also got to get away from Dakar and go to the island of Gorée. This island is famous for the slave house that remains there. The island is very peaceful minus the constant harassment by the locals selling jewelery. That is not to say that all the locals were agressive. I found that the women selling jewelry were so annoying I simply did not want to buy anything from them out of spite; where as the men selling art and tiedyed tshirts were more approachable and did not mind if I simply wanted to take a picture of them making the art without buying anything. The history of slave trade is really quite depressing and I was almost in tears when it was time to take a picture of me in the doorway of the door of no return. Fortunately, Magueye made me laugh when he demanded I smile because slavery is over. Across the street from the slave house is the African Women's museum. A museum dedicated to the hardwork and achievements performed by African women in and around Senegal. I learned alot in both places and I hope to go back once more before I leave. Oh yeah one major reason what makes the island so peaceful is that there are no cars, motorbikes, bicycles, or horses allowed on the island.

It's the African way

I'm already learning the African way out here. For instance, most agreements made between people are oral although my guide has provided me with an invoice for my participation with the program. On my second night, I started discussing the trips I would like to partake in while I am here and, fortunately, I can do all but one that I wanted. During our discussion about these trips I sat across from my guide, Mageuye, with my carefully drawn up chart which included the number of days and cost of the trip. Mageuye instead went into a speech about oral versus written agreements. It continued on for such a while I became frustrated and emotional. He was quick to stop and comfort me and further explained that he would look at my list to please me. At that point I realized I had to let go of this notion of list-making while here in Dakar since my persistence would result in culture shock. Culture shock is terrible for a healthy mind and healthy body.
I find the bustling streets of Dakar to be absolutely charming. There are children everywhere doing everything from running the internet cafe I'm in to playing fuseball all day long (the are currently on vacation). The traffice is a sight to behold thanks to the variety of vehicles which include but are not limited to: horse drawn carriage, street hustlers, Mercedes, car rapides, etc. Car rapides are one of three public forms of transportation, as of yet I have not had to get into one. The mini-bus includes a driver and a boy hanging out the back door. The bus is filled with people, animals, and food. My guide told me that this started off as a private form of busing but became so succesful that the government became involved.
I've been learning a lot about colonization and the different forms that Senegal and other African countries fought against it. The people here are very proud of their leaders but simultaneously are eager to keep their leaders in check. My guide explained that current President Wade is trying to favor his son into becoming mayor of Dakar but people are ready to boot him out of office simply for suggesting it. The mere mention of a dynasty or political favor is frowned upon and actively challenged. No one here has even stopped to consider Wade's son's competency but rather consider him a poor choice on mere principle.
One last thing, the word for peace in the local language of Wolof is jamm with the stress on the end of the word, in contrast, the word for slave is jam with the stress on the vowel. Both words make me nervous and I hope to avoid them as much as possible.