almost to my home for the next 2 years

Hi friends and family,

Sorry it has taken me so long to post another message. Training continues to be extremely long, but it is almost finished. It’s a little crazy to think that in less than three weeks I will be living on my own in Senegal. I found out my site last week – I am going to Nioro, which is a small city 50 km south of Kaolack and 25 km north of the Gambia. Its population is about 17,000 people, but I guess I can buy all of the essentials (ranging from cereal to toilet paper) there. I will be the 5th volunteer in the town so hopefully it is already well adjusted to the presence of a Peace Corps volunteer there and I won’t need to explain why I would ever want to leave the comforts of life in America to live in Senegal. It is also the departmental capital so all of the state development organizations have offices there, hopefully meaning that I will have plenty of work to do.

This past weekend, all of the new volunteers rented a house on a beach about 40 km from Thies and took a much needed day of relaxation. After class Saturday morning, 35 of us somehow piled into a rented bus (actually about the size of a 15 passenger van) and headed to the beach. After a very bumpy and cozy ride, we made it to the house and spent the night and the following day there. It was so nice to have a whole day where my head wasn’t hurting from thinking in French or feeling like I was constantly on call with my host family. And even though the majority of us had to sleep on the floor, arm chairs, or the beach it was definitely worth it. I’ve attached a few pictures from the weekend.

Two weeks ago Ramadan ended which was great for me on many different levels. First, and probably most importantly, the Mosque that is directly across the street from my house has stopped broadcasting prayers through the night and now only calls for the 5 daily prayers. Also, everyone has a lot more energy and is a lot friendlier now that they are no longer fasting. During Ramadan, to compensate for not eating or drinking all day people would sit in the shade and nap for the whole day and the majority of businesses shut down or at least have limited hours. Now everyone is much more active and lively. The celebration at the end of Ramadan is called Korite and is essentially a day of non-stop eating. Everyone gives food to their neighbors in the morning and the rest of the day is spent eating it. Despite living with a Catholic family, all of our neighbors and family friends still brought us food. It’s amazing how religiously tolerant and accepting people are here.

I hope you are all doing well. I miss you all. Also, if you are thinking of writing me a letter or sending a package hold off for a few weeks until I get my new address at my site.