Swear-in and Install

Yesterday our Stage swore in at the home of the American Ambassador in Dakar and officially became Peace Corps Volunteers. The ceremony consisted of speeches from Peace Corps staff and volunteers, the Ambassador, and a representative from the Senegalese government. Most of the speeches were in French and I was pleased by how much I understood. After we took an oath 'to defend the constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic' (not exactly what Peace Corps is all about, but whatever,) We had a reception with excellent food. I ate past the point of being full knowing that soon my diet will consist of rice and leaf sauce.
Tomorrow at 6am we leave for our permanent sites, this means I have an 11 hour un-air-conditioned ride ahead of me. I get a few days in Kedogou to unwind and buy furniture for my hut before I officially move in on the 17th. After install volunteers are expected to attempt the "Five Week Challenge" which consists of not leaving one's site for the first five weeks of service. After this the average volunteer spends a night or two at the regional house a couple of times per month. I'll try to post again once I arrive in Kedogou but don't expect any posts for a while after the 17th.
Also, I'm not sure if I mentioned it earlier but my camera broke and I haven;t been able to take pictures since volunteer visit. I've got a new camera coming in the mail so I'll be sure to take lots of pictures as soon as it arrives.

Pictures!

This is Ben, the volunteer who hosted me during my stay en Kedogou, with a  couple of the many piles of mangoes I saw during my stay. 

I spent one night in a village similar to the one I'll be living in.  When we arrived they were putting a new roof on the chief's hut.  The chief is the man in the center of the photo, we ate lunch, rice with peanut sauce, with him after work was finished. 

Some workers adding the finishing elements to the roof. The  chief's hut is  is the largest in this village. I don't have a picture of my hut yet but it's a fraction of the size of this one. 

Me carrying a bucket of water on my head.

See above.

I wasn't able to take any pictures in my village during my brief visit there. This is a photo of another village nearby which looks very similar.

This was taken in the yard of my host family's compound in Sangalkam.  We had just finished making a batch of neem lotion, a sort of home-made bug repellent. From left to right: Anna, Katie, my host father Ibrihima making tea, and my Pular teacher Pape.

I Passed

I scored intermediate-mid on my language exam today which means I'll be able to leave for my site on schedule. I'll be going to Dakar to swear-in on the 11th and departing for Kedogou the next day.

Updates

Since my last post I've taken a trip to Dakar and spent a day at the beach in Popenguine. I hadn't been to Dakar since my first day in Senegal and never had the opportunity to walk around the city before. Overall, it's a pretty modern city. We took a tour of the Peace Corps center and went to a bar called Le Viking. Popenguine was a blast, we rented a house and had a beautiful beach practically to ourselves. 

Tomorrow I have my final Pular test so I'm a bit nervous. I finally got a power adapter that will work with my laptop and camera so I'll be able to post pictures soon. ( in case you were wondering I've been posting from the shared computer at the center in Thies.)  

Counterpart Workshop

Over the next two days I will be working with my counterparts to determine what I will be doing for the first three months at my site. One counterpart is a teacher at a nearby school and the other is what is known as a community aunt, and older woman who acts as a mentor to young girls. I briefly met with both of them this morning and they seem very nice and enthusiastic, though the language barrier will be a problem, at least for a while.

Pictures...

Minor setback, I haven't been able to charge my laptop. although I have a power adapter it only accommodates plugs with two prongs and my computer's has three. I'll have this sorted out soon. In the mean time here's a link to another volunteer's blog with photos of the Kedogou volunteers and a video of us interacting with some of the wild life. The scene in the video isn't any kind of set-up, we made a pit stop on our way  back to Thies and these curious monkeys just showed up. Really an amazing experience. Also, I'll be living in a hut exactly like the ones in these photos when I get to my site.

Back from Kedougou

I've actually been back from Kedogou for about two weeks but I've spent the bulk of that time in Sangalkam and haven't had internet access. My visit to my future site was amazing. My village is about 90- minutes away from the regional capital by mountain bike and involves crossing a river by rope ferry.The village has a population of 300 and is close to the Guinean border. The scenery and the wildlife are incredible, I'll post some pictures tomorrow. I came face to face with monkeys and a warthog and woke up to a four foot snake entering my hut through the roof. It was a bit scary to say the least. This weekend I'll be meeting my counterparts, a teacher and a women's group leader, who I will be working with when I install. I'm a bit nervous about the language barrier but I've been told the teacher speaks French so we should be able to communicate reasonably well. I'll be staying in Thies for a little while so I'll update my blog as frequently as I can while I have internet. Check back tomorrow for pictures.