No, this is not an Andy Warhol. This is an expression of the Senegalese love for chocolate spread.
Category Archives: travel
May the horse be with you
Notice something unusual about this motorcycle? Well, it’s not so unusual in Dakar. I’ve seen a million taxis and motorcycles with manes tied to their bumpers. Superstition? A nod to tradition? Qui sait? Well, I’m sure Google does, but unfortunately I’ve earmarked what meager Internet time I have for more important tasks. Could someone else figure it out and get back to me? Thanks!
Contamination is a state of mind
I was lost in thought while brushing my teeth last week, trying to puzzle something out, when I stopped short in horror. I was rinsing my mouth with tap water. In panic, I spit it out like it was Liquid Plumber, rooted around in my bag for my travel-sized mouthwash, confirmed alcohol was the main ingredient, swished it around in my mouth until my cheeks went numb, and then swallowed two probiotics that are useless since my antimalarial antibiotics wipe them out in seconds (along with any harmful water-borne bacteria – but don’t try telling that to someone whose brain can only process worst-case scenarios).
I realize there is very little risk in consuming very small quantities of the local water, but I am one who follows safety instructions to the letter (especially when those safety instructions can result in not puking). So it’s a big deal the first time in my life that I put tap water in my mouth in a country where “don’t drink the water” is protocol.
The next day I was talking to a fellow student at the language center about my fear of food and water-borne illness. He spent the last five years working in humanitarian aid in Uganda and South Sudan, always brushed his teeth with the local water, and never got sick from it. He said something about how liberating it is to just say, “Ahh, fuck it,” sometimes and throw all caution to the wind. Hahaha, he has no idea who he is talking to.
But I have too much pride to be that self-deprecating, so I will add that week by week, in my own very small way, I’ve been loosening up on the restrictions that are just not feasible for long-term travel. Much as I would like to be more of a badass, baby steps work much better for me than the “Ahh, fuck it” approach.
[Photo: JG Sobez]
un petit périple
Tomorrow I’m starting my first video job in Senegal / with my new camera. I’m a wee bit stressed but also looking forward to the work and to seeing more of the country. We’ll be visiting sites around Saint Louis and Kaolack. I’ll share photos when I get back in a week or two (it’s still unclear how long the shoot will be), but in the meantime I’m scheduling a bunch of the posts that I wrote but couldn’t publish last week because of the Internet access situation.
a catch-22 of my own design
Every morning I pull the four corners of my mosquito net up over the four posts of my bed, so that during the day I don’t have to avoid a massive fenced-off area in the middle of my room. Every night I bring the mosquito net back down and tuck it in securely to the bedframe.
Last night I found myself in a bit of a pickle. There had been a mosquito floating around somewhere in the room – it had already bitten me twice – but it was nowhere to be seen at bedtime. What if it was hiding out somewhere on my bed, and when I put the net down I trapped it in with me? That would be a bit like those horror movies in which the killer calls the victim on the phone but it turns out the killer is actually in the house about to chop them to bits.
The funny thing about this situation is that I don’t even think malaria is a problem in Dakar. This whole net up, net down, net up, net down ritual is just practice for more rural areas. I think part of me enjoys feeling the thrill of danger when the back of my mind knows there is actually very little danger.
Nuts for Nespresso
It’s not that my disdain for Nescafé comes from being a coffee snob. It’s more that it just doesn’t work. As I’ve noted before, I’m super sensitive to caffeine, but I can drink seven cups of Nescafé and still feel no more awake than the second after my alarm clock goes off.
But there are really no other coffee options here, apart from a drink called Café Touba, which is sold in mini plastic cups at all the road-side kiosks (like the ones in the photo above). The coffee is ground with peppery spices and mixed with lots of sugar. I tried it. It tasted okay – though it smelled uncomfortably like Robotussin – but it had absolutely no effect on my level of alertness.
On my first Saturday here, during my stroll along the Corniche, I stopped in at a fancy hotel to see if they might have honest-to-goodness coffee. My desperation for caffeine was such that I was overjoyed to find them serving Nespresso. It tasted frothy and delicious, and more importantly, I spent the rest of the day properly wired for the first time in a week.
Since then I’ve found a pan-African / Caribbean restaurant a couple blocks from my house that also serves Nespresso, and I’ve been going every day for my daily fix. I thought the problem was solved… Until I went to the restaurant this morning only to find it closed on Saturdays until later in the evening. I am literally beside myself in my longing for a Nespresso right now. I know this is utterly ridiculous in quite a number of ways. And yet the fact remains that I about to lose it.
Last Saturday, or: the honeymoon may be over
Having studied my map diligently, I set out on foot at about 1pm in the direction of downtown. It was supposed to take about an hour and fifteen minutes. I saw a lot of familiar sights and a lot of new ones; it was a nice walk. After about an hour I decided to stop in at a supermarket for a drink and to check where I was. I had not busted out my map before then because being seen with one would make me susceptible to all sorts of propositioning I didn’t want. Continue reading
a walk in Dakar
Last Saturday was the first time I really ventured out in Dakar to see the sights. Here are some of the highlights from my stroll around town.
First I walked down my street in the direction of the ocean. It’s a busy road and to cross it you have to dodge constant two-way traffic, including amazingly decorated cars rapides.
le week-end is here…
Tonight I was planning to check out an acoustic set at a restaurant only two blocks from my house… but then I got lazy. I literally haven’t been out once past 8pm since arriving in Dakar so it’s high time I get my nightlife on. Tomorrow! I’m going with someone I met at the language center to see a popular Senegalese band, Pape et Cheikh, at a club called Villa Krystal. Or we might change our minds and go to see a reggae band, Tiken Jah, at Just4U, which is apparently a very cool place in spite of its ridiculous name.
I also just found out that Youssou N’dour, whose music is half the reason I’m in love with Senegal, is playing a benefit concert at the fanciest hotel in town next Saturday. The unfortunate thing is that tickets are $100. I don’t think I’ve paid that much for a concert anywhere, ever. $100 is a small fortune here… though it’s worth a small fortune to see Youssou in his home country. Then again I’ve heard he plays here often, and I’ve also just heard about another great show the same night, so I might go to that one instead.
Anyway, it’s nice to be spoiled for choice. I hope your weekends are similarly filled to the brim with amazing options.
Here are some weekend reads, provided your internet access is not, like mine, virtually nonexistent.
What do free, open, and peaceful borders look like?
This article about straightening out croissants is not from The Onion, but it could be.
Both this lady and her lawsuit are awesome.
“How scared or not you are is an emotion, not a statistic.” How to make rational safety decisions when it comes to travel (and many other things).
Language learning has made me more open to try new things, but unfortunately not in the way illustrated in this cute cartoon.
Two dishes tied for France’s favorite. For some reason neither of them are choucroute garnie (which came in third).
This documentary about an Afro-Cuban community’s links to Sierra Leone is on my to-see list – for the next time streaming video becomes a remote possibility.
You can now download all of NASA’s beautiful / awesome retro-style space travel posters for free.
An alfajores recipe (alfajores = best cookies on earth)
Passez un bon week-end!
[Photo: boys playing soccer one street from my host family’s house.]
Impressions from one week in Dakar
I feel like Annie. Every five seconds something prompts me to sing to myself, “I think I’m gonna like it here!” Continue reading
talk foreign to me 