Breeana Wheeler is a biochemistry major and Brandon Jimenez is a peace, justice and conflict studies major. In this post they reflect on the tensions between tourism, being a tourists and remembering the history of the slave trade at this world heritage site. On Friday May 13, our group was…
Language During our first week in Senegal we connected with host families and figured out the rhythms of study. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings consist of language study. Yacine Diatta teaches an hour of Wolof. Then students have an hour and a half of French. Wolof is a language spoken…
On the evening of May 6, a Friday night, fifteen Goshen College students flew into Blaise Diagne International Airport. The airport is 45 kilometers east of Dakar and some 25 kilometers from Thiès where the Goshen College Senegal program is located. We piled luggage on the roof of our bus…
In early April, the Yoder Lind family returned to Senegal. We came early to prepare for this summer’s Goshen College semester of global engagement in the land of Teranga –a Wolof word roughly translated as hospitality but with shades of meaning that include respect, community and sharing. Over several weeks…
The students all arrived safely in Thies from their service assignments on July 26. After a day of reconnecting with each other and their Thies families we boarded the bus for the final retreat at the beach. The weekend was delightful. Students presented their projects, talked a great deal, and…
We continue to marvel at the greening of Senegal, an amazing transformation that has come with the rains. As we traveled to Fatick to visit Zach and Lukas, we saw fields that were producing crops throughout the countryside and trees that are sprouting leaves. Lukas and Zach are meeting patients…
David, Julie and Tom traveled to the small town of Gorom and took a dirt road for about a kilometer to the nearby clinic where Morgan and Naomi are assisting the medical staff as they receive patients. They live with the women on the staff in dormitories on the campus. …
Six students left this morning for their service learning assignments. Zach and Lukas are off to Fatick where they will work in a mental health center (Fatick Centre de Sante Mentale Dalal Xelo. Ben and Spencer will spend their time in a Muslim community (Ndem) that has many development projects…
On Monday and Tuesday we had our final lectures on the status of women in Senegal and the heart breaking situation with street children in Senegal’s large cities. Thousands of children are brought into cities each year where they leave their families of origin. Parents hope for a better life…
Our week began with a visit to the artisan village in Thies where we had a lesson on a variety of drums, including the Jembe. Our next stop was at a silversmith shop. The artist created a silver bracelet while we watched him at work.
