The Color Orange

My mother wrote recently and asked if I had been drawing. I have, mostly for other people or for the Jardin des Enfants. Yesterday, Marfoula, Hawa's cousin, pulled a bucket hat on over her mulafa, then asked me to take her portrait. Marfoula is seventeen and came to Nema just before Tabaski in December. Like Hawa, she was raised in Cote d'Ivoire and speaks Bambara in addition to Hassaniya and some French. The portrait doesn't look exactly like her, but it's fun and captures the silliness. :)

We in the Girls Education and Empowerment (GEE) sector just finished our In-Service Training today. Each of us invited a mentor or community counterpart. It was wonderful to see them interacting with each other and the volunteers and staff. I asked Hawa, who came and is using extra time in Nouakchott to start the paperwork for her Bac exam in the spring. She was also voted coolest mentor by the other PCVs! Go Hawa!

The photo is of Hawa with Kelsea and her mentor from Tawaz, near Atar.

So, New Year's in Saint-Louis, Senegal. I was looking forward to being in a more Euro-centered environment. Sleeping in late, wandering around quaint streets, sipping coffee and watching passersby from a corner cafe, basically being in a city. Okay, do I miss Chicago a little? Maybe ;)

Saint-Louis is actually an island with land mass to the east and west. You can walk from end to end in less than an hour. It reminded me strongly of the Petionville area in Port-au-Prince. The nicest section of the city is on the island proper. Crossing the bridge you come to less affluent sections. Still picturesque, but not catering to the tourist. And I felt like a tourist there, too. More solicitations for money, more taxi drivers and merchants trying to rip me off. I also started feeling ill a day into my stay, so take the above criticism with a grain of salt!

It was pretty, though, and I had some amazing food (before I got sick-though after was fine, too, because I ate only ice cream!). The Senegalese culture is more liberal and free, especially after being in RIM. I'm glad I went but am burned out on traveling. I just want to be back in Nema! Now THAT'S weird!