When All Else Fails, Suck on a Plastic Bag.

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It's been a busy, but great, couple of days here in Niamey so far. It is, really, atrociously hot. Despite my energy saving conscience, I find myself switching on the air conditioner for random 5 minute intervals, just to try and evaporate some of the sweat off of my face. Opening the windows is out of the question, as I would likely be carried away be the uncannily speedy mosquitoes, so circulation is at a bare minimum. At least I unplugged the (newly arrived in my room yesterday) mini-fridge in an effort to make myself feel better.

The meetings that were the impetus for my journey here were successful and now I'm just getting down to the business of documenting it all. Such a distraction might be a good thing, because it doesn't seem likely that I will be leaving the hotel tomorrow. As some of you might know (and thanks for the concern!) there is some recent political excitement here in Niger, as the president is attempting to prolong his stay in office, despite the constitutional 2 term limit. There will be a large "manifestation" (protest) tomorrow, which I hope will stay calm. But, just in case, I think it's better to lay low.

So, I took some time off today, to be sure that I would have a chance to explore the city a little bit before I go. A stop at the national museum was in order, followed by some perusing of the AWESOME art and leather work that Niger is famous for. I cruised around the Petite Marché a bit, as well, and was really wishing I could have taken one of these cook stoves (in the picture) home with me. They are brilliant! But, having had bad experiences with bringing anything stove-like on planes before, I decided against it. Shucks. 

I have happily found a MUCH cheaper (and less packaged!) source of drinking water - they are these kinda funny sealed plastic bags,which you tear the corner off of and suck down. They are 50 CFA per liter (approximately 15 cents) - about 10 times less expensive than bottled water. (Don't worry, Mom, it's still safe!) Given that I've been drinking about 4-5 liters of water a day, that's quite a savings. Do you know what that means??? I get to treat myself to some more gingembre. YES!

Well that's it for now. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed tomorrow and will update soon!

Hop Scotch in West Africa

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It's been an exciting few days, making my way here to Niamey. Thanks to the bankruptcy of the only Senegalese airline, there is a dearth of direct flights from Dakar to other West African cities. Therefore, I will have the pleasure of passing through Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, 3 times before arriving back in Dakar. (My route is as follows: Dakar, Ouaga, Niamey, Ouaga, Lome, Ouaga, Dakar...a little like hop scotch, yes?) Yeehaw!

This wouldn't have been a bad thing, really, except that I didn't know I would be spending time in Burkina until 2 days before I left to head out. No time to get a visa in Dakar. Luckily, it is possible to get a visa upon arrival at the airport in Ouaga. With one catch...you have to leave your passport there for a day.

Ahem. What?

I was at the visa counter, being very proud of myself for managing to take care of business in French. When I asked for a receipt, I was told I would get it tomorrow. "Tomorrow?" I said, rather confusedly. Why would I need to wait until tomorrow to get my receipt??? As I proceeded to stand there waiting for them to give me my newly visa endowed passport, he repeated "Not until tomorrow." It dawned on me. He didn't mean just the receipt - he meant the whole kit and caboodle. Passport, visa, and receipt. This was a disconcerting realization at first, except that all of the other people around me were doing the same thing.

So, away I went with my little slip of paper that would (hopefully) be sufficient to retrieve my passport the next day before I flew out. I don't know if anyone else has ever had the experience of being without their passport abroad (it's only happened to me once before) but it's like being completely naked. Highly undesirable.

But...it worked out in the end. I was able to retrieve my passport no problem before hopping on the plane to Niamey. Upon arrival here, however, I found out I would need to spend 2 more days in Ouagadougou, on two separate visits. But my visa was only good for one entry, so here I go again!

I made a stop at the American embassy today, just to get my facts straight and to have my paper work all in order to go to the Burkina consulate here in Niamey, to try to avoid being passport-less two more times. (and they were very helpful!) But, alas, I am passportless again until tomorrow afternoon, while they are processing my visa. Ugh. Hopefully, for the last time.

I'm sure it will all work out. I just hope I'm going to have enough pages in my passport to make it for the rest of the trip! :)


Is it me, or is the world shrinking?

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While I have, for the most part, ceased to be amazed when I encounter people I know in random places, it was still a shock to take a seat on the ferry between Dakar and Gorée Island, only to see someone I know sitting next to me. I did a double take...is that Patrick? I sat there for a few minutes, whispering to my friend Matilda, "I think I know him! But, could it really be him?" Finally, I had to just spit it out...

"Are you Patrick?"

For those of you who are affiliated with the World Affairs Council, it may not be surprising to you that I ran into Patrick Stewart...he's certainly someone you probably wouldn't miss in a crowd. :) But it was such a pleasant surprise to run into someone great, like him! His travels are more like an Odyssey than a trip, starting in Senegal, bouncing to Morrocco, stopover in Western Europe, and, to top it off, a week of biking in Finland. Wow, is what I say!

Anyway, after the brief encounter on the ferry, we were able to meet up last weekend, for a day at the beach. Our initial attempts to sneak into the fancy hotel, where the Pointe des Almadies (the western-est most tippiest tip of Africa) is located were squarely shut down. ( 10,000 CFA, or about $25 USD, just to walk in the door!) Harumph.

We were able to salvage our adventure by stopping in at a small beach just down the road, where things were much more affordable and relaxing. It was a good day, topped off with some gengembre (ginger juice) and mango ice cream. YUM!

Small world...and getting smaller!

That's all for now.

Taking friendly to a whole new level...

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Well, I've been here in Dakar for 3 weeks now and I thought that I had been settling in quite well here at the office.

That is until today, when one of my co-workers asked me why I was always so unfriendly to everyone. This had me truly confused. I knew coming to Senegal, that greetings were an extremely important aspect of societal interactions. So, I had been trying extra hard to be sure to greet everyone - in a way that we be completely excessive in the United States - to ensure that I was not being rude. I thought I was doing a good job...

But, I guess I still haven't quite mastered the art of greetings Senegalese style. Sigh.

I am realizing that it is necessary, any time you enter a room, to be sure to greet everyone there, either by shaking hands or making eye contact and saying hello. It doesn't matter if there are 2 or 20 people - be sure to say hello to everyone. (and this is generally regardless of the fact that you may have just said hello to them a couple of minutes ago!)

As I sit at my desk, which is on the way into several other offices, I am greeted again and again as people pass by, sometimes 2 or 3 times in a day - or more. This makes focusing on my work fairly challenging. At home in New York, I had gotten pretty good at tuning out all other distractions so that I could really get down to business (totally a survival tactic!). So now, when I am concentrating and forget to look up from my computer to say hello to passers-by, I am inadvertently laying down a pretty serious insult.

Oh dear.

This is only compounded by my sheepishness at trying to join conversations at coffee breaks or during lunch. Most of the staff will transition seamlessly between French and Wolof, and I therefore generally have no idea what is going on. Another challenge altogether! While I am desparately trying to get my French up to speed and to cram some Wolof into my brain as fast as possible, there is no chance of me keeping up with their conversations.

Oh well. I guess I'll just have to do my best to improve my greeting skills - and at the very least, keep smiling!!! :)

Settling In...

The whirl-wind started the moment I stepped off of the plane. And it hasn't stopped since!

But I am slowly but surely getting settled in here in Dakar. My living situation is quite ideal, with a pretty shiny, new apartment which is a block from the ocean and a picturesque view. (with glimpses of the ocean!)

The city is an interesting blur of modernity and tradition. People are just as likely to wear traditional clothing as they are the latest fashions. They weave linguistic masterpieces, using threads of various languages...French, Wolof, Arabic, Pulaar, Sereer, English...and who knows what else! The incantations wafting from the mosque compete with the trance-inducing beats of the mbalax music pouring from the radios in the street.

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