Monkey Sighting! And Rotary!

I saw a monkey today!!! I was so excited. But, we'll get to that part of my day soon enough…

It's Saturday (Samedi), the day when my host siblings all go to the houses of the people who they're named after. It's also the one day a week that for multiple hours this house is quite tranquil. It was terribly hot today, one of the worst days so far. I spent most of my time, when I was at the house, laying on my bed with the fan blowing on me. It wasn't even comfortable outside in the shade with a slight breeze. I took two showers to keep cool, and I might be the person in the house who took the least number of showers today.

I met with my Rotary host counselor today! I've gotten phone calls this week from whom I thought was his personal assistant, except it turns out that it's his son who basically acts as his personal assistant. I was invited to their house for lunch. Laurent, the son, picked me up in his car with a friend of his and we made our way to the part of the city called Almadie. Laurent speaks English very well, and returned this year to Dakar after living for six years in Connecticut (he attended UConn, as did all the other sons of the family). Along the way, as I was gazing out the window and Laurent was serving as my tour guide through areas of Dakar I haven't been to yet, I spotted a monkey hanging from a tree!! I was absolutely ecstatic. I've never seen one outside a zoo before, so it made my day. I thought I might have to wait until I was on my way to a village or smaller city to see them, but I was pleasantly surprised. Probably 5 minutes after I saw the monkey, I quickly noticed that we were not in a neighborhood that was at all like the one I live in. The houses were huge and there was construction everywhere. The house my host counselor lived in felt much like an American house. It even had flush toilets, which of course I was very excited about. I ate lunch with the family and then was invited to sit in the family room and relax for a bit, while Mr. Sene, Laurent, and the friend got some work done on the other side of the room. So, I watched what basically is the African version of sports center for about an hour. It was more interesting to me than Sports Center, but I was disappointed to see that the Irish rugby team had lost to France. I was served diet coke, ice cream, and the strongest tea I've ever had. It was nice but also odd to be in a home that felt like I was in the States. They had air conditioning as well, which was much welcomed today. The family was incredibly welcoming and kind. I talked with Mr. Sene (host counselor) for awhile about Rotary and my involvement, where the meetings are, when they are, how long they last; all the basics. He also told me that I am always welcome at his house. I can stop by any time I like to eat lunch or dinner with them, or simply to spend some time relaxing or visiting with them. He seemed to insist that I could spend time with his daughters. Becky, the maybe 10 year old, spent the afternoon looking at me from across the room and asking Laurent questions about me when she didn't think I could hear her, but she's very shy. The other girl was upstairs the whole time, 16 years old, so I didn't meet her. They also have an outdoor pool, which looked incredibly inviting in today's heat. I'll probably stop by to see them from time to time. It costs about $3.00 to take a taxi there, and I think it might be about a 20 minute ride.

The way home proved to be interesting as well. Laurent continued to serve as my narrator/tour guide. We stopped by a construction site and Laurent said he had to go check on something. It turns out their family is building a hotel nearby their house and that's what he was checking on. Then, we pulled into Club Med Almades. I've never been to a Club Med before, and I think the closest resort type thing I've been to like it would be at Disney World, which is also very very different. Laurent parked the car right up front in the circle drive and said we were just making a "quick visit." He has friends who work there, and Hertz Rent-A-Car runs its shuttles and transportation (Mr. Sene, my host counselor, is President of Hertz in Senegal). One of his friends gave me a tour of the resort and then we sat down at the bar/restaurant by the pool for a bit before leaving. The place was very busy because a huge group of Parisians had arrived this morning. I got some interesting looks from some of the guests, I'm assuming it was because I was the only white person at the resort who wasn't walking around in a bathing suit, but instead I was wearing a long skirt and walking around with four Senegalese guys.

It turns out that Laurent, the son, lives directly behind my house in an apartment, and I walk by it every time I walk to and from class. He invited me out with his friends last night, but after having a migraine I wasn't feeling up to anything but sleeping. But I'll probably end up hanging out with his group of friends from time to time.

It also turns out that Laila, the girl from Denmark who also lives with my family, has the same birthday as I do.