Introduction to My New Life

I have joined the Peace Corps and moved to Senegal in West Africa. Am I crazy? I still ask myself that. And I still think I might be. Senegal is a beautiful country with amazing people, food, and problems. I have joined as a sustainable agriculture extension agent. My objectives as a Peace Corps Volunteer are to provide the people of Senegal with the technical skills and knowledge in agriculture that will allow the people here to provide income and nutritious diets for their families. I also serve as an educator in culture. I will share with the Senegalese what the USA is like and share with Americans what Senegal is like.

I am living with a family of 12 in a 5 room house. Not a 5 bedroom house a five room house. None of those rooms are a bathroom. That is outside behind a piece of sheet metal. My family is very kind and generous. They share everything they have. I’m sure if I asked they would share their clothes! I have a Grandmother, Penda, Father Mol, Mother Mariam, and 9 brothers and sisters, Awa mac, Mohammed, Fatou nan, Awa bon doo, Samba, Penda, Motaala, Manjara, and Singfalu (These are all spelled wrong). Awa mac is 14 and Singfalu is 1. There is noise at my house from 4:30 am till around 11pm. This is mostly due to their religion, Islam. It requires they wake up and pray before 6am and there is a man on a loudspeaker at 4:30 am across the city calling people to pray. I am not thrilled with this aspect of the culture and how it completely dominates their lives, but I remind myself to open my mind. They probably think it very strange that I do not pray on a mat every few hours.

The food is very good, very oily, and very carbohydrate rich. I have gained an easy 7 or 8 pounds in two weeks. I do eat a lot of sand but it’s hard to cook outside and not have sand in your food. I have also been very sick, probably from some aspect of food preparation. I eat mostly rice and bread and I drink water and powdered milk. I do get a little bit of fish and few vegetables. When I am at the training center in Thies I get fed like a queen. J They have some westernized dinners and chocolate spread at breakfast. They also have showers which are not present in my home stay.

All of the above mentioned topics need expansion and stories to go with them. I will make my next entries focused on some of those topics and what I have experienced personally so far. Wish this crazy lady luck!