March 7

Okkkk so I am back from Toubacouta and while it would be impossible to fill you in on all of the details/mishaps on the weekend, I can give you a brief overview and some highlights of the trip.  So here we go.
So we stayed in a rural village practically right on the border of Gambia called Keur Moussa (yes, also the name of the monastery we visited, but they are unaffiliated), which is the village where Wally, one of our program directors, was born and raised.  Each student was assigned to a new host family that spoke exclusively Wolof (yikes), where we were to be treated "as though we were the son or daughter of the family," meaning that we were asked to help out with daily tasks to really experience life in a rural village.  Which basically meant that us womenfolk got to experience the following activities:
Catching a chicken to be slaughtered for dinner
Dismantling said chicken
Cooking said chicken
Peeling several kilos of onions and potatoes
Making beignets
Drawing water from the well and transporting the water in buckets on our heads...which, by the way, is soooo much harder than it looks
Pounding millet, using a human-sized mortar and pestle
Playing with the children and carrying them around strapped to our backs
And the men did this:
Lounged around in the shade
Played with the kids
That's all.
So basically I have decided that I really love America and am super happy that this was just for a weekend...especially since there is no electricity, running water, or any sort of bathroom facility there.  Although I started to think I really did belong there when, at 1am, after a late-night dance circle with all of the village in attendance, as we were preparing for bed, my host mother non-chalantly strips off her boubou, and plops down naked, on our shared bed, and proceeds to devour an entire chicken.  Because let's be honest, the number of times I've had an urge to do something similar in the United States late at night is a little bit embarrassing, seeing as it's entirely socially unacceptable there.  Shoot.  Looks like I'll have to forego that perk if I do return home then.
Beyond that, here were some highlight:
We saw our first real-live wild monkey, just strolling about as if it was no big deal.  But obviously it ws.
We all got to ride motorcycles...without helmets or any sort of protective equipment, entirely off-roading it with no visible medical care in case of an accident.  Just added to the thrill.  And I'm pretty sure I want a moped now.
We took a pirogue through the mangrove forest on the river, which was absolutely stunning...for the first time, I felt like we really got to experience the African wilderness, rather than exhaust-polluted Dakar.
We watched a lutte tournament...which, yes, is Senegalese wrestling, but also dancing and chanting and drumming.  It's more of a general spectacle, and also I need to add that Senegalese men fight dirty.  Its like WWF, but real.  Like Large men dressed in nothing but spanky pants and a colorful loincloth are throwing sand in each others' eyes and punching each other in the face, and throwing each other over their shoulders and into the crowd and stuff.  It's a little terrifying.  But mostly awesome.
We also took part in about 6 mandatory traditional dance circles...seeing as electricity isn't really a 'thing' in rural villages, theer are other more creative forms of entertainment, the foremost of which is music and dance (which is also a major form of communication and ceremonial life).  Basically they just loved harassing the toubabs into being publicly ridiculed for our lack of rhythm and grace.  But I suppose it's not that embarrassing, seeing as we will likely never see those villagers again, and I plan on destroying all photographic evidence that surfaces of these nights.
Let me see...I think I hit most of the major events of the weekend.  It was really an eye-opening experience, but while I am so happy to have gone, I am even happier to return to Ouakam (with a quick, much needed stop at the Radisson Blu Hotel with Bruce and Sandy in between for my first hot shower in 2 months...Alhamdulilai).  I'll keep you informed if anything else comes to mind.
Ba ci kanam