Come on Down!

Danga am gan ?

Over the last few months, I’ve been lucky enough to receive a few visitors. In April, my dad took advantage of a business trip to Europe by swingin’ down here for a few days. I made him sit through some of my work stuff, but he met the World Peace Corps Director, so hopefully he wasn’t too bored. We took the rest of the time to see a bit of Senegal. We went to Bandia, a wildlife reserve, where we saw giraffes, impalas, crocodiles, antelope, and even rhinos! We visited my site and stayed with my host family. It was really cool to take him around town, and show him my life here. I think he appreciated the chance to hang out with my host family, and to compare his Peace Corps experience to mine.

A month later, my birthday present was a visit from Becky Regan. Once again, this was a great opportunity to show her the country that has become my home. I was surprised to discover a beautiful desert of sand dunes and camels a mere hour and a half from my site! For better or worse, Becky got to hang out with some Volunteers and catch a little jazz in St Louis. Of course the best part was taking her around to show her my ‘commute’, my friends around town, my work partners, and even the main village that I work with.

Last, but not least, Molly Buccola and her mom came in August. We packed a lot of sites in- Gorée Island, Dakar, Bandia, Lompoul desert, and my site. A highlight was Keur Bamboung in Toubacouta- an amazing spot in the mangroves of the Sine-Saloum delta. I put them through the ringer of public transportation (even riding a donkey cart), and they took it right in stride.

Sometimes I forget that my guests don’t understand Wolof, and have no idea what’s going on when I’m negotiating for a cab or what have you. I appreciate their not telling me that I’ve gone off the deep end. Molly recounted the interaction like this: ‘At one point I thought you were so mad! Then you were laughing with your arm around the guy, so I thought you had become friends. Then you were yelling at him again with your finger in his face, so I was worried. Next, you started to walk away, only to turn around and get in the car, saying ‘let’s go’. I have no idea what happened.’

I want to thank all of you for buying plane tickets, taking long journeys, and putting up with my idiosyncrasies. It was more than a pleasure to have you. I hope you help me convince the rest of our family and friends that this place is worth 2.5 yrs of my life. More than anything, I’m comforted to know that, better than others, you will understand what I am talking about when I start my ‘In Senegal…’ stories.