Week 1- Arrival

The flight I took to get here was frankly ridiculous, as I hope the map shows. I can only assume it was cheaper than the direct flight from Freetown to Dakar, as it meant I was in transit from 8am to 8pm, and had had to catch the 5.30am speedboat to Freetown airport. A very long day indeed.

 

(Freetown to Accra to Lome to Conakry to Dakar)

I didn't fill in my leaving card from Sierra Leone, as no one could find a pen. Symbolic of the shambles of West Africa? Or a subtle way to limit the bureaucratic load of airport staff, you decide.

 (Propeller planes as well)

In the waste land that surrounds every airport, I assume for safety reasons, which is normally just left as grassland, was being used to grow corn in Togo. All of the airports I visited were largely the same- small single story terminals, reached by walking or busing from the plane on the runway.

These were my initial notes after arrival.

“The guest-house- hot showers, amazing food, washing machine for my laundry, paradise!”

“Sounds of Senegal evening – goats, sufi singing, and just background city noises – so very different from Freetown's car horns, electricity generators, and street hawkers”

(Local transport)

My first impressions of Senegal, based almost solely from what I could see on the drive from the airport to the guest house, and a brief wander around the neighbourhood, are that, Dakar at least, is more 'developed' in the material sense- the roads are better, the electricity runs 24hours a day, people filter the tap water and drink that, as opposed to using endless packets of bought stuff, there is a semblance of architectural merit in house design, people have greenery and especially bougainvillea, and that there is a genuine feel of suburban neighbourhood unity.

Yet, countered with this, is the fact that there are donkey carts everywhere on the quieter roads, lots of begging boys (part of their Quaranic education apparently, I will find out more about this), and a much more austere Islamic feel to the streets. Kids didnt run up to say hello, adults didn't becon me over to talk, and no taxi followed me demanding I take a ride. Indeed, during the walk around, I almost felt anonymous. 

 (Mosque from the car)

Again, it is too early to really make any serious comments yet, but I do know that I will enjoy exploring the country, the museums of Dakar, the mosques of the hinterland, and the beaches and national parks. And the work will be good as well. A different focus here, instead of slum based development and advocacy, we will be doing more community and youth health education. It will be much closer to my Peace Corps experience actually, and I hope it proves to be as much fun.