Settling In

I'm settling in quite well still. The people in my neighborhood are beginning to realize that I'm not just stopping by or vacationing, but that I'll actually be here for awhile. That means people have started to talk to me when I walk down the street. I see most of the people in the exact same spots everyday, it is merely the people whom are also walking on the street who tend to change. A woman called me over to the side of the road today and among other things asked me if I wanted to learn how to sew a dress like her daughter was currently doing. By the end of the conversation, we had used French, Wolof, and English. Her English and my Wolof capabilities were equal… very limited. She began to introduce me to members of her family who also worked in the tailor shop, but I had to cut the conversation short because I was going to be late to class if I didn't continue my commute. There is a little girl who calls me "tubab" (white person) every afternoon when I walk past her and then immediately asks me what my name is. Everyday she repeats "Shannon" twice. But always she forgets before the next day or merely wants to ask again.

What did you eat for dinner tonight? Or last night? I bet it wasn't eggs made with onions and topped with French fries, was it? That's what I ate for dinner tonight. Yeah, I was a bit surprised as well. We put a little salt on it, and it was quite delicious. The eggs might have had a little cheese in them, but I'm not sure. They didn’t taste like plain eggs, and I really liked them. They were cooked like a fried egg with a hard yoke. Next time you don't know what to eat for dinner, I recommend trying it. It's an experience, to say the least.

I bought a cell phone a few days ago and have received a few phone calls both yesterday and today, all related to Rotary. I'm going to meet with my host counselor on Saturday. Someone, I believe his assistant, will pick me up at my house and take me to my counselor's house for lunch. I'm looking forward to finding out more details about Rotary here in Senegal. A fellow Rotary Cultural Ambassadorial Scholar was supposed to arrive in Dakar today, so I hope to meet up with him within the next couple of days as well.

I also received my first text message tonight, and it was from a Senegalese friend wanting to make plans with me. Aside from that, I already have plans for both Saturday and Sunday (with Rotary, my host family, and friends), and I haven't even been here a week yet. As I said before, I'm settling in quite well.

Also: On my way to class this afternoon I watched a boy about three years in age delightfully chase a chicken down the sidewalk, barefoot. I found it amusing, as did he. That spectacle is not typically something you see in Bloomington, Grand Rapids, or Chicago for that matter.