the weekend

On Saturday, we participated in a 5 mi walk/fundraiser for Malaria Prevention. It was a gorgeous morning and lots of people showed up to walk off the Thanksgiving turkey. The route took us from the Embassy, up the Corniche along the ocean, ending at Ebbett's Field.


On the route we passed the fish market with the beautiful bateaus. Each bateau is painted to identify ownership and each is a work of art.



We also took the opportunity to travel to Bandia, an animal reserve south of Dakar. While there we had the opportunity to see a small sampling of the animals that roam the more than 30,000 acres of the reserve. We'll be sure to return to Bandia to see all that it has to offer.

a month, really?

Who would have thought that a month could pass by so quickly with hardly a peep from us! I guess we'll just have to fix that, now won't we.


Our truck has finally made its way to us and for that we are grateful. Honestly, I had forgotten what it looked like! We now have the freedom to explore outside the city and see what the countryside in Senegal actually looks like. We are anxious to get to the game reserves to the south of us, all the while remembering to "stay in the vehicle!"


Of course, we'll need new armour for the adventures on and off these city streets. Carl's looking at a black rhino guard for the front grill. Not that we've seen any rhinos, but those taxis are pretty pesky. With the exception of parking, we'll be glad to have this larger, 4X4 vehicle.


Carl and I attended the Marine Corps Ball last weekend and had a lovely time. After the ball, I got my first opportunity to drive. As much as I usually choose not to drive after dark regardless of where I am in the world, the lack of traffic made it totally do-able. I haven't even attempted driving in daylight yet. Courage. That's what I need. Courage.

The weather has definitely shifted. It's just lovely - daytime temps in the low
80's, night temps in the 70's. And a breeze. Just right. With the shift out of the rainy season, our surroundings will quickly change from green to brown, with sand swirling and piling up everywhere.


Over the past week, we've been taking care of Abigail. Her family is in the states for the holiday. She would love the chance to chase both the peacock and the cat, but hasn't been given the opportunity for either activity. I doubt she'd be prepared for what the peacock could give back to her. It's better for us all if they don't connect.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

the view from here

Hello everyone, it has been quiet here for us, thus the lack of posting. We are busy creating our new familiar, our daily routines, our everyday normal - which once established, doesn't seem that exciting or new anymore. With that in mind, I'll fill you in on some of the particulars.

It continues to be blazing hot here. Not for a moment do we forget that we are at the edge of the Sahara desert. The forecast for this week puts us near 100 degrees every day. The humidity seems to be moving out though, so it's just hot. As Carl calls it - Africa hot. I feel like we're extending the summer season by continuing our trips to the pool. But really, I know we'll be going to the pool year round. Once the tourists leave, the beaches will be quieter and we will probably be the only ones at the water (kind of like New Englanders in Florida in February). I hear that by January, the ocean will cool down, suggesting it's more like a northern Maine beach in the middle of summer. I'll let you know if it ever reaches the ankle numbing stage of cold. Something tells me this side of the ocean, this near the equator, doesn't know that kind of cold.



Every weekend we try to get out for lengthy walks. On Sunday we took a nice hike up to the lighthouse where there is a gorgeous view of the penninsula and the western most point of the continent. And, yes, it was well into the 90's in the morning as we were walking. I won't go so far as to say we've acclimated to the heat, but we all did fine. Matthew even commented that the walk will be much nicer when it's cooler - this is in stark contrast to his distinct desire to not join us on the walks every weekend. I guess he's given up on the protests and knows he's walking.



Our truck continues on it's extended European vacation. Last postcard indicates it is in La Havre, France. If you're up on your geography, you will note that it is still quite a distance away from us. With any luck, it will arrive within the next couple of weeks. Of course, we've been saying that for quite some time now.



We are all engaged in our French language lessons. Matthew gets French every day at school and Carl and I are provided lessons (intense lessons) twice a week for 1.5-2 hours. Did I say intense? Today, for me, was grammar review and those pesky verbs. My class partner was absent today. She sent me her best wishes for the session, knowing full well that as the only student I'd be on for the whole lesson - no sleeping in class today! I survived, barely able to babble in English (let alone French) when I arrived back home.

Is there any topic in particular any one is curious about? Anything anyone wants to know about living here that they just haven't been able to ask? Matthew might share how loud the toilets are; I'm sure Carl would love to talk more about the seafood or maybe his new grill - let's just say, he's missing the Weber.

A little fabric

As many of you know, I have been anxiously awaiting a trip into the fabric district here in Dakar. I had been advised not to venture down without someone knowledgeable about fabric and the area in general as it is a very, very busy marketplace. After a couple of false starts, a trip was scheduled for last weekend and with two other intrepid souls, I set off to begin the acquisition of fabric.

The day started with the promise of a torrential downpour as seriously dark clouds gathered over the ocean and a strong wind whipped the dust around. Carl suggested we reschedule. Was he kidding? There was no cancelling this trip! It would take a lot more than rain to keep us away from the possibilities to be found in the market. Besides, if it was raining, less people might be there, right? Armed with raincoats and umbrellas, we set out. As it was, the rain quickly cleared off and the market was wall to wall people. Our one saving grace was that the temperature stayed quite pleasant for the duration.

Once downtown, we set off on foot through the market area. To say that the area is congested is an understatement of gigantic proportions. What we in America consider personal space is very definintely public space here in Senegal. There is no comfort zone to surround you (either real or imaginary) and one must be prepared to be jostled about, encouraged to purchase things you never knew you needed or wanted, and be completely overwhelmed by the proximity of so many people, sights, sounds, and smells for the duration. Having said that, if one carries a healthy sense of caution and awareness, you can survive said adventure unscathed.

We had not intended to go into the Sandaga market on this trip - our plan was to visit a few shops on the periphery, look for fabric and stop in a gift shop or two. Sandaga is located in the very heart of downtown Dakar. It is crowded, hot, and very, very oderous (for the sake of brevity, I will not share with you my real feelings on the odor). Anything and everything can be purchased here and this is where we found the fabric we were looking for - the bright, patterned batiks so often admired in this country. Senegalese women use this fabric for their day to day and special occasion dresses with stunning results. The colors are mostly bold and provide striking contrast to the desert landscape.


At one shop, the vendor invited us to tour his factory where hundreds of men were sewing - clothing, bags, anything and everything made of fabric. These items would then be sold on the street or exported. The shop reminded me of Lowell, Massachusetts, at the turn of the last century, only more colorful and staffed by men rather than young girls. Literally, every space in the building was crammed with sewing machines, fabric, and people.

As I didn't take any photos while on this trip, visit www.khm.uio.no/utstillinger/madeinafrica/english/marked_2.html for a bit more history and some photos.

We're going back to the market again, once we've recovered from this trip and have done something with the fabric we bought. Next on the list is to find a tailor.

I LOVE GREEN MOUNTAIN POWER

Carl here, greetings from West Africa,

OK, so one of the things that we really take for granted in the states is having a pretty cheap and perhaps more importantly, a dependable power source. In Vermont, there are times when there is a significant storm and a tree or seasonal deadfall takes out a power wire and the lights go out. This pisses us off for a few minutes but the outage generally lasts for a short hour or 2 (with the most recent exceptions of Irene and the ice storm of '98). Dig out the flashlight (that never works), light a candle and try to enjoy the quiet dark. For some, you crank up a generator to power a few lights and refrigerator. Life goes on. Then magically, power is restored, lights come back on, the computer is functional and life goes on. For this service, we pay a good dollar to Green Mountain Power or CVPS. I can not believe I am saying this but I LOVE GMP! I have been unhappy with them over the years but generally it is over the cost of their service. The dependability of the product they deliver was never in question. I am a spoiled American, I get it.

Dakar is a major hub of economic activity and population center in West Africa. There is a major deep water port for moving goods in and out. The city has grown significantly and now includes several "burbs," if you will. All of this activity requires power. The elecrical grid was developed over time but has not kept up with the needs of an expanding population, let alone business. The city suffers from ever increasing "managed blackouts", which is another way of saying that there is just not enough power to go around. It is a significant political issue for the current President and is a major source of discontent when speaking with the Senegalese.

Since the world does, in fact, revolve around me, let me tell you how this affects the Hauslers of Dakar. We have a house that is enclosed by a large wall. Inside the wall (covered and out of the way) is a 75KW Caterpiller Diesel Generator that will not allow the Hauslers of Dakar to be without power for more than 5 seconds (that's a very important 5 seconds if you are on the computer). The moment the power from the street is interupted, we hear the trusty Cat fire up and then we listen to the low hum of the diesel keeping us in power, lights and AC. No complaints from me at all, this is great even by Embassy standards as some folks have generators that are not strong enough to power all the needs they have. Some have had to go without AC for a while (and it's hot, hot, hot). So the short story is that the Hauslers of Dakar are very well taken care of on the power side and we are grateful, believe me. The problem is that our generator might run 10-12 hours per day! Great to have the back up system but the back up more often seems like the primary source and the back up is coming from the street!!! Am I painitng a picture here that brings me back to the title of this Blog Segment?

"Old Sparky"

While all this sounds a little humerous and somewhat inconvienient, I always go back to how fortunate we are here in Dakar and you are back in the states. When the power goes out here, most Senegalese do not have the absolute luxury of dependable power and basically sit in the dark without AC or fans for hours and potentially days. They will lose the food in their fridges and just as importantly, they lose some of their livelihood if making aliving is attached to needing electricity. If you think about it, many of the modern conveniences are somewhat useless here until power is an affordable and reliable resource available to all. I dont have a solution but I really wish I did.

Happy Fall. Laurie told me that it is raining this week in Vermont (cause she still checks and reports on the weather for me). The best of days to you.

Italy

Carl here. I had a TDY assignment to Vicenza Italy at the end of August. Nice to travel there but yet another place where I do not understand the language.

I came accross this Fiat 500 in a parking lot. These little (the operative word) cars are still common in Italy. I thought that I pretty much looked like a giant standing next to it. I can't imagine driving it as everything on in the interior was tiny. I seriously beleive that Matt could easily drive this thing. Hmmmm.....

Goree Island

Greetings all,

Carl here! I had a pretty busy last week with a couple of Traveling Contact Teams (TCT) who were here working with the Senegalese Military. We had a group of Medical folks from Vermont who were doing some assessment work with the Senegal Medical system. I really had a great time with them and I am convinced that this TCT will pave the way for some great future work.



One of the things that I always try to plan for the teams is an opportunity to experience the culture of Senegal. Nothing mandatory or forced fun about it. Because this group had limited time, we stayed in Dakar.

We took a morning to visit Goree Island located about 4 km from Port of Dakar. This island is best known as a former West African hub of slave exportation begining with the Portuguese in the mid 1400s. It is currently a UNESCO World Heritage site as an historically significant location.



I secured the services of Ali who is a history major and fluent English speaker and all around good guy. He is of the Mandinka tribe of southern Senegal and Gambia regions. His English was perfect with a strong Woolof twang. He articulated some complex social and political history issues with great elegance. I really appreciated the fact that he looked at the history for what it was and did not pass judgement or inject his personal bias.

We left early in the morning to beat the daytime heat and to make the most of the day. The boatride was pleasent as was the company. What struck me most was how much transition there was from European influences with the Portugese, the Dutch, the French, the English, then back to the French. All had a part in West African development and in the slave trade.



The tour finished at the Slave House which was the actual point where people were stored waiting transport via ships to North and South America. "Stored" is the accurate term for what transpired as it was the last stopping point for these people before shipment to their destination. If males didn't weigh the required 60 kilos for shipment, they were force fed until they did. Slaves were housed in small rooms that were packed full without adequate ventilation or restroom facilities. 20 million slaves were reported to be exported from Africa to the west, but only 14 million survived the trip. I was actually quite depressed thinking about the enormity of the human suffering. I had the same thoughts when I toured the German prison camp at Dakau outside of Munich. I am always amazed at how badly man can treat his fellow man. All cultures have these problems with their past. Hopefully we learn from history.




Laurie and Matt are great. I had no idea how hard this transition would be for them. We are hoping that the next few months will allow us to settle in nicely. My best to you!

Carl