Rural Visits!

Last week our program organized “rural visits” for us, another week of no classes! Another student (Matt) and I were assigned an agriculture and environment Peace Corps volunteer in the Kolda region (central-ish Senegal, just below the Gambia), we honestly had no idea what to expect, and so I am glad to say, we had a fantastic week! The trip to Kolda took two days, since we traveled around the Gambia, Sunday morning a group of 13 of us took a minibus to Tambakunda (a 9 or 10 hour drive). It may have been a bit faster, but our driver was severely ill, we think with malaria. He stopped often to get out and either throw up on the side of the road (a pleasant green/yellow color), or to lie down on the road for a few minutes. We asked/told him several times he should go see a doctor, but he refused, and got pretty grumpy. Everyone made it to Tamba alive, and we spent the night in the Peace Corps house there. The next morning we woke up bright and early, divided into smaller groups (depending on where we were headed), and continued our journey. Six of us headed to the Kolda area took a “7-place” a station-wagon looking car with seven seats (ten points for anyone who can guess where the name comes from). The drive from Tamba to Kolda took about 5 hours, and we arrived just in time for lunch! Our six went to the Kolda Peace Corps house to meet our host volunteers.


Matt and I found Jason easily, and we quickly headed out to the village of Salamata, population 700. Although reluctant to get on another bus, we were eager to get to the village, and this leg of the trip was only 45 minutes. We arrived at the village just as night was falling, and although we couldn’t see very well, it was immediately clear how all aspects of life were different from what we have gotten used to in Dakar. We greeted the members of the host family we saw as we made our way to our Peace Corps Volunteer’s hut, but even that was difficult since the local language is Pulaar and not Wolof. We pulled water from the well in Jason’s compound (I was voted better than both Matt and Jason at this, but my victory was short-lived since they told me—in jest—that it was a woman’s job anyway), took bucket showers, ate leaf sauce for dinner, and then went to bed, although it was only about 10:00, without any electricity in the village, dark mean AMAZING stars, but also that there is not much to do but go to sleep. Another result is that we woke up pretty soon after the sun rose. Our day Tuesday was spent exploring the village. We got to see Jason’s projects such as an orchard, a vegetable garden for the woman’s group, and a bridge across the stream that grows to a river in the rainy season. It didn’t take very long to see the whole village, so we hung out in a neighboring compound. In the shade of a papaya tree we ate freshly picked peanuts off the roots. Since Jason only spoke English and Pulaar; Matt and I, French, English and Wolof; some of the one man from the village spoke Pulaar and French; and another Pulaar and Wolof. To say the least, our conversations were a hilarious mixture of the four languages, and I am amazed that we were able to talk about so much given our lack of a common language. We drank four cups of attaya (local tea) as we discussed topics such as: why Pulaars are better than Wolofs, what Matt and I are doing in Senegal, and how many cows each family in the village had. After three or four hours of this, we made our way back to Jason’s compound for lunch. The afternoon was uneventful; it was too hot outside to do much, thankfully it was cool (almost cold) at night, at times I thought I should use a sheet (Connecticut winter will be a shock to come home to in December).


Wednesday brought me to Diaoubé, home of the largest open air market in West Africa; vendors come once a week from Mali, Mauritania, and other countries to sell all sorts of goods. We walked around the market, and met up with some other students and their PCVs (Peace Corps Volunteers). Since Jason had friends that would be in Kolda for only one night before going back to the US, he left Matt and I with Dave, another PCV in the Kolda region. Dave’s “village” more closely resembled a bustling metropolis. A separate elementary and middle school, a health clinic with a real doctor, several boutiques, a paved road, electricity, and two banks all come together to serve the 5,000 people living in Dabo. Dave was already hosting 2 students from the program, so the five of us had a great time. We helped Dave’s 7 year old host brother chase the baby goat named Skippy around the compound. The best part of this is that since Senegalese people don’t think words can ever start with the letter “s” they add an “e” to the beginning, so you have to remember to order an “Esprite” to drink, or you play “Esport”s, and you chase around goats named “Eskippy”.


On Thursday the five of us went to join even more toubabs in Wilma’s (another PCV) village. Wilma was also hosting two students from our program, and lived in a village of 150, so having eight Americans for lunch made quite the spectacle. After we ate the family sat in a circle, turned a metal bowl upside-down to use a drum, and started a dancing/drumming circle. The young girls would pull us in one at a time and make us copy whatever they were doing (which usually was impossible for me to imitate), while another girl would make a drum beat on the bowl. They got bored after a while, and so asked us to show them some American dances. We came up with the Macarena, the Electric Slide, and some miscellaneous dance moves that were laughed at. We also taught them to play limbo, and hopscotch, both were greatly successful!


Sadly, since getting to and from Kolda took us two days each way we could only spend three days in the villages. We spent a night in the Kolda Peace Corps house, and took real showers! Another LONG ride back to Dakar brought me home on Saturday night around 6, exhausted, and pretty smelly. I also thought I had gotten tan, but it all disappeared after I showered, so it turned out to be just dust. Overall a week well spent, I learned so much, and saw so much I have never seen before. Now we have a two-day week of school, and then Tabaski, a Muslim holiday for which every family has to slaughter at least one sheep…I will let you know how it goes!