I woke up later than usual today- around 9:30. It's my Sunday.

It's difficult to sleep late because of the loud street noises and children yelling. My host mother went to the the Casamance Region in southern Senegal for her older brother's funeral- he died peacefully in his sleep two nights ago. I have been trying to figure out how to accomplish for myself all that she was doing for me. For example: Where does water come from? The faucets and toilets in the bathrooms only work occassionally (I haven't figured out any pattern or reason). Where do I get the water that I must heat on the propane stove for my morning bathing? Where does the water come from to flush the toilet? The only people in the house right now only speak Wolof, so I had to gensture and watch to learn that you must go outside to the one working faucet to fill a bucket. Voila.

Although I am craving my morning coffee, my small one-cup water boiler seems to have broken on me. I'm not sure how to ask for hot water in Wolof; I guess I will do without. I went across the street to receive my morning bagette that my family has pre-paid for, came back to my room and ate it with some Vache qui Rit cheese and some water. This is my breakfast until we eat our traditional Cee Bu Jen at 3:00 for lunch - Rice and Fish. It is truly delicious!

This past week was an intro to the next 3.5 months that I have before me. I have class Monday through Thursday, a three day weekend during which I plan to take many trips. Tomorrow I'm going to the Goree Island/ le Maison des Ecleves/ The Slave Warehouse. It's close to here, but requires a ferry ride. Most people believe that this was the island and building where 1000's of Africans were stored and then transported to the Americas and Europe for slavery. It will be intense.

Next weekend I plan on visiting Le Lac Rose- The pink Lake. A lake about 2 hours from here where the natural salt and mineral deposits subservice have turned the water bright pink. The locals harvest the crusty bottom of the lake- which is all salt- to sell for it's beauty and thereaputic properties.

The diet of bread starch and rice starch with very little protein veggie leaves me feeling a little fatigued. I'm trying to eat more cheese and yogurt, the only available, easy sources of protein that I have found. Oh wait, there's Peanuts. They grow and eat a lot of peanuts here. Sweet peanuts, salty peanuts, a solid-state sugary peanut paste that they sell at the markets- yum!

I'm still loving it here, trying to assimilate as much as possible. My classes are great. Senegalese cutlure and Society (in English), Wolof (en Francais), French (en Francias, bien sur), Environmental Issues with Development (English), and L'Economie et Developpement de Senegal (en Francais). This would be an excellent class except my french is not good enough to fully comprehend all that my professor is talking about. I get most of it, but occassionally we touch on something that he feels strongly about and begins to talk faster and faster...

My family has 3 maids- all girls no older than 20, all are very sweet. Their french is as good as my Wolof which leaves us hello, goodbye, and How is your family?. Traditionally young rural girls come to the city in search of work as domestic helpers- hoping to get in with a member of the extended family so that they will be treated better. It is VERY strange having 3 maids, they sweep and mop the floors every day, do all the meal cooking, cleaning. My host mom introduced me to (what sounded to me like) Gory (what a name!), my 'designated helper'. If I have need of anything, just as Gory. well, Okay! I just have to learn how to ask in Wolof!

I have some school work to do, and I need to work on French congugation. It's getting difficult to tell stories when you are limited to Present Tense and Past Tense. Also, I learned not to say, "Je suis tres excitee d'aller au la marchee pour acheter les peigne!" There is no direct translation for excited- Excitee means horney. Oops, silly americans!

Off to my studies...