I’m nearing the end of my Peace Corps Pre-Service Training
(PST), and what a journey it has been. I spent my first month of training in
Senegal, in a joint training program with the Senegal PC Trainees designed to
combine the resources of the two countries Peace Corps Programs. My time in
Senegal was filled with many challenges, benefits, laughter, and tears. I’ve
highlighted some of my experiences below that provide a glimpse of my month in
Senegal.
- Attempting to communicate in French and Wolof, while learning to speak the minority language, Mandinka. Thanks to my two semesters of college French, I was able to greet people and make purchases at the bitiks (small corner shops that sell biscuits, bread, basic household items, and if you’re really lucky, cold drinks). However, apart from basic greetings and business transactions, most people in the Senegal training towns (Thies and Mbour) spoke the local language, Wolof. This was particularly difficult, since very few people spoke Mandinka, the local language I’m learning for service in the Gambia.
- Living with a huge Senegalese host family (there were over 20 people in the house). They were my first introduction to the warm hospitality and humor of West African culture. And even though they made fun of my attempts to dance and remember their names (I tried unsuccessfully to explain that I might be able to recall their names more easily if they would stop changing their hair (i.e. braids, no braids, different wigs) throughout the day), they were extremely patient with me.
- Experiencing the effects of the encroaching Sahara Desert. Living on the edge of the Sahara meant sand, sand, and more sand (and not much vegetation). While sand is lovely at the beach, it’s a huge pain when you don’t have the beauty of the ocean to counter the fact that it gets into everything, EVERYTHING. While I was in Mbour, there was a huge sand storm (think the newest Mission Impossible movie), and absolutely everything I own is now permanently embedded with sand. On the bright side, I was provided with training on how to successfully grow a garden in sand (it’s actually possible) and established a couple small garden plots with lettuce, onions, moringa (a local miracle food), and peppers before I left Senegal.
- Changing my concept of clean. I’ve completely given up on having clean feet and clothes. I’m currently organizing my clothes into very dirty, kinda dirty, and cleanish. I still haven’t mastered the art of laundering by hand. Usually after 4-5 buckets of scrubbing and rinsing, I decide everything is about as clean as it’s going to get, even though the water is still brown/gray. My host sisters had an incredible ability to make even the dirtiest clothes spotlessly clean, but I lacked the strength and patience to invest such effort.
- Making and eating more millet porridge than one person should even do in their life. Every day my host family made huge pots of millet porridge to sell for income. Although I didn’t initially like the gritty balls combined with powdered milk (or sometimes baby formula) and a cup of sugar, the taste gradually grew on me once I was able to explain that I don’t like a lot of sugar and baby formula is not a appropriate substitute for powdered milk.
- Meeting and bonding with the Senegal PC Trainees. Love you guys and miss you. Thanks for welcoming us into your Senegal family during our brief time together. Can’t wait to see you all again at WAST, or possibly sooner.
While Senegal was an integral,
challenging part of my training, it is nice to finally be home in the Gambia. I
just finished the Gambia part of my training village experience in Mariama
Kunda (more on this later), and I’m visiting my permanent site (Jassong, a
Mandinka village in the Lower River Region) for the first time this morning. I
am very eager to see my home for the next two years and meet the community. Kayira
doloŋ
(Peace only).
Sorry for the lack of posts the last two months. I'll hopefully be able to post more regularly after I begin service.
