Week 7 - Joal-Fadiouth

Speaking of a lizard on a Roman road:

“His coat is the colour of ashes: and ashes are the symbol of hopes that have perished, of aspirations that came to naught, of loves that are buried. If he could speak, he would say, Build temples: I will lord it in their ruins,; build palaces; I will inhabit them; erect empires: I will inherit them; bury your beautiful: I will watch the worms at their work; and you, who stand there and moralize over me: I will crawl over your corpse at the last”.

Speaking of Morocco:

“The people of Tangier lived in the rudest possible huts, and dressed in skins and carried clubs, and were as savage as the wild beasts they were constantly obliged to war with. But they were a gentlemanly race, and did no work'.

“I have caught a glimpse of the faces of several Moorish women...and I am full of veneration for the wisdom that leads them to cover up such atrocious ugliness.”

Speaking of the Azores:

“The community is eminently Portuguese – that is to say, it is slow, poor, shiftless, sleepy, and lazy.”

Mark Twain's The Innocents Abroad is a hilarious look at the thoughts and prejudices of Americans, travelling through Europe and the Middle East in the 1800's. American wealth, and feelings of superiority that this breed are clearly evident, and a disregard of 'history', in favour of modernity and convenience feature throughout. Much of the subject matter is equally applicable today!

My Monday morning activity – working at the health clinic – is tough at the best of times, but this week was extremely hard, and helped to re-enforce the fact that I am completely unqualified for this role! A teenage girl came in, suffering from the late stages of breast cancer. Being too poor to receive treatment, it had been left to spread, and all we could do was clean and bandage the remains of her right breast, and send her away. Added to that, a cute 3 year old with full facial burns, and having to remove a maggot from a man's finger, and it all added up to a really difficult day.

After working with this cross-cultural group now for seven weeks, some of the problems inherent in any team have boiled and bubbled their way to the surface. Namely (lack of) communication, and people just being unable to think logically and clearly. Nothing serious really, but they have lead to a number of difficult moments. All part of the fun, and working on ways to improve them is part of the reason I am here doing this.

After going to the NGO PLAN to seek more work, we have been working well with them. This week, my group visited a Paular village to survey mosquito net usage. Traditional nomadic herders, their villages still retain a temporary look, with basic single room huts, thatched roofs and certainly no plumbing or electricity. Living on the outskirts of towns, they do not take part in formal education or indeed much in what would be called 'Senegalese life'. They look more Arabic in features, with bigger and sharper noses, and not as tall or dark as many people here. They are also the tribe that does the facial tattoos which I highlighted in an earlier post about the Daara. Little evidence of mosquito net usage, although most had nets in drawers.

On Monday we visited the best daara yet. While still far from ideal, with overcrowding and dirt clearly evident, the kids we actively and vocally learning when we visited, and there were even girls learning (although in a separate group to one side). With a positive environment than the other two, it is refreshing to see that it is possible for the system to work. 

 (Cemetery island on the left)

The weekend saw our mid-term review, nicely located on the coast. Unfortunately the water was filthy and un-swimable, but the hotel had a pool, and the sea breeze was refreshing. Nearby is a town built entirely on a island of shells. Only reachable by boat or a new bridge (lovely built by Total Oil), it is a lovely little place, and despite its clear tourist appeal, was thankfully muted, although the rain may have helped. About 80% Christian, with enough free-roaming pigs to support that number, there is still a mosque, and the cemetery, on a neighbouring island of shells, features graves of both religions (even if the Muslim ones are off to a side).