Monday through Wednesday our days begin with an hour of Wolof class and an hour and a half of French. While French is the official language, Wolof is used by nearly everyone on the street, in the shops and at home. And while we came to Senegal with a wide range…
On Friday this last week we all woke to the lovely sound and smell of the first rain of the season. It was just a little shower, mind you, but was so nice after the long, dry days. This rainfall pattern of a long 9-months of dry and short rainy…
Today we have a few pictures to share from our time together at Chez Goshen yesterday afternoon and today’s trip to Bandia, a wildlife preserve about an hour from Thiés. Our Chez Goshen times are when we can share what we are all learning and observing and thinking and wondering…
Not all of the students will have an opportunity to spend time in rural Senegal while they are here. A few get to visit rural areas along with their Thiés host families, and some will be in rural areas for their service assignments. But we thought it important that everyone…
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…
