We are continuing our week of focusing on religion in Senegal with a trip to one of the Catholic centers. Joal and Fadiouth are two towns that are connected by a foot bridge. Joal is the location of the parental home of Leopold Senghor, the first president of independent Senegal.
On Wednesday we went to visit the Mourid Holy City of Touba about a three hour bus ride into the interior. Islam in Senegal is organized into Sufi “orders” or “brotherhoods” (tariqa). Most of Senegal is Sunni but also Sufi, which means a more mystical Islam that accommodates cultural practice.
This week’s study theme is Religion in Senegal. Beyond the bare numbers (estimated 92% Muslim, 7% Christian (mostly Catholic) and 1% traditional) there is the fascinating detail, complexity and diversity. Each religion comes in many flavors, and families often have members of different religions. You will not find Senegalese who would…
A Memorable Trip to Saint Louis We are all safely back in Thiés and on this cool, Saturday morning thinking of all the things we experienced on this trip. Saint Louis, located right on the Mauritanian border to the north, was the capital of French West Africa (1895) and the…
We have had a pretty normal schedule this week, with language classes and lectures (colonialism and Negritude). This afternoon at chez goshen Jose and Ellen cooked for us (with Austin helping, too). We started out together with each student sharing a story they had written about from their…
One of the things we appreciate most about this group is their willingness to jump into the [metaphorical] pool even when they aren’t so sure they can swim. Malcolm rapping in Dakar and playing basketball. Jacob, Kyle and Ardy singing and playing instruments in church choirs and others participating in churches…
Friday we were back in language classes in the morning, and at Chez Goshen in the afternoon. Every week students gather at our house where we discuss the book African Friends and Money Matters as a way of thinking about ways we all may see the world differently and some…
Very early Wednesday morning we boarded our trusty bus to head to Dakar for the day. Traffic wasn’t quite as bad as we had anticipated so our early start paid off with some time for students to enjoy the rocks and surf of this western-most tip of the African continent.
If there is such a thing as a “normal day” for Senegal SST, I guess this would have been it. At least a normal schedule: the morning starts with Wolof class, then the two French classes meet. A looooooong break for lunch and a rest, then gathering again for a…
Everyone drifted back to the school this morning from their weekend with their host families. There are LOTS of stories — many of them funny communication snafus, some poignant, some hard. Everyone returned from the weekend having made a good start building good relationships with the people in their homes.
