News from Senegal

Hey everybody!

Sorry I haven't updated this more religiously but I guess that is expected in a developing country with not the same internet access as the US. But regardless so much has happened since coming to Senegal so I better jump right in!

So I've been in Senegal for around 12 days. The first 8 days I was in Thies at the Peace Corps training center. It is actually really cool. It is part of the old french military barracks. My time mostly consisted of medical (shots :( ) and technical training which consisted of classes on different projects and ag strategies that they are using or pushing in Senegal. Additionally they have a interview process to get a better feel of where you would be best fit. Like a lot of my peace corps adventure this has been the most frustrating part: not knowing. So most of my time has been centered around thinking about where I'm going and what I'll be doing (and of course what my situation will be like).

Luckily, I found out my assignment. We actually don't find out till September 8th (and I could potentially be switched) but the PCV (peace corps volunteer) I am suppose to replace is leaving her assignment early to start grad school. You can leave the PC up to 2 months early to start grad school or a substantial career. So anyway she tracked me down to tell me so she could pass me some advice about the area and projects she had started. To be honest we haven't gone into too many details and am hopefully suppose to meet up with her this weekend. So I'll be in a village just outside Kaolack (about a 10mins. bus ride she said once you get to the main road which is about a 5k bike ride). The village is called Bane. The PCV before me, Natalie, was a agroforestry volunteer which is really exciting because a lot of agforestry is long term type of projects. So all the agforestry projects already have a good start. She said her family is really fun! They are a middle class Senegalese family (which obviously a middle class Pulaar family in rural Senegal is a bit different then the US) and have cows! That is big in a Senegalese Pulaar family and Natalie said she has milk everyday. So basically it is sooooooo nice to know where I am going. Can't wait to talk to Natalie and get a lot more details. So many questions!

So because I am going to a Pulaar village I am learning Pulaar at my homestay now. Pulaar de Nord to be exact. I'm in a local village just south of Dakar called Nguekhokh. It is about 8k from the coast and am hoping to go there this week! My family is amazing! My Senegalese is Amadou Ly and my babam (Senegalese father) is Mamadou Samba Ly. Really loved my name until my little sister Fatamata pointed to the baby goat and then to me while saying "Amadou" which I roughly translated into the fact that I was named after the goat. Nice. My family is HUGE! There is due to the fact that my father has three wives. It is interesting to say the least but I love the opportunity to live/get a first person perspective of a polygamist family. It is a really strong family bond that is awesome and extremely inviting. I'm currently back at the training center in Thies until Wednesday but really can't wait to get back! It is tiring though with basically the entire day being a language class trying to communicate with them and practicing my Pulaar in between classes. It is extremely helpful. I am by no means good but what would of taken a month in a language class I did in a week. It is literally a 12 hrs language class everyday. I couldn't escape Pulaar even if I wanted to. That and if I tried my little sisters and brothers would run me down and quiz me again (we have moved on to high numbers and asking how to get around).

That is about for now. I have one more rabbis shot before I am done with my medical. I'm going back to my homestay for 2 weeks this time. Then i come back to the training center and everyone finds out their placement and then go on visits to their sites as long as it is in relative distance from Thies (i believe). Though I got my assignment unofficially already I did talk to some of the PCV's whom said there are still some positions that haven't been decided yet. This is mostly in the Woloof community as there is a lot of positions that require that. There are only 5 of us learning Pulaar du Nord. So we all have placements already because there is only so many positions that require Pulaar du Nord as is similar with other minority languages in Senegal.

That is all for now. If anyone wants to give me a call it is about $0.26 a minute through skype and free for me to receive.

Intro post

So this is my first blog. It is bound to be a work in progress so bare with me everyone. I guess to back up a bit introductions are in order. My name is Brian Bartle and I am a recent graduate from James Madison College at Michigan State University. I majored in International Relations with a Specialization in Western European Studies. Over the years I’ve had the opportunity to take on many adventures from studying abroad in Europe to volunteer work in Honduras and New Orleans and interning for an amazing organization in South Africa. This blog will be about my next adventure as a Peace Corps volunteer working in Senegal.

I have recently been official accepted for a position working in sustainable agriculture in Senegal. My official title is a sustainable agriculture extension agent working with the Senegalese Department of Agriculture implementing their policies on the community level in rural villages. Yet I’ve been warned that you really never know what you are exactly doing till you get there. Anyway I am heading out for a pre-departure orientation on August 9^th. Then I’ll be heading to Thies, Senegal for about two and a half months for an orientation/training program. This will mostly consist of work related training along with an intensive language program to get me caught up to speed with my French (which is definitely behind) and also learning Wolof I believe. I get sent to my host family in October and where I also get started and introduced with my work.

Yet I think I may be getting ahead of myself. I still have a mongoose to worry about. The mongoose story is a bit of an inside joke in regards to some friends taking a safari in South Africa. While at Kruger National Park their guide had a pet mongoose that I guess was very affectionate. Long story short I became obsessed with this thought of how awesome a pet mongoose would be. They are actually illegal to own in the United States due to being an extremely harmful invasive species. In Porto Rico they caused an estimated seven reptile and amphibian extinctions after being introduced there. Yet in a native environment they are exceptional pets that work equally efficient as pest control-especially with snakes like Rikki-Tikki-Tavi. This was by no means my primary reason for joining the Peace Corps to go to Africa but once I found out I would be placed in Africa I set it as a primary goal of mine-if for nothing else to keep the snakes out of my bed.

Anyway, on to my quest for a pet mongoose. In all honestly this has probably been regulated down to my number 2 or 3 priority behind learning the language and job skills so I know exactly what I’m suppose to be doing at my job in Senegal. But closely following those two priorities is finding a pet mongoose. Luckily Senegal has six native species of mongoose. Initial research has led me to favor the Marsh, Egyptian and Banded mongooses. Leaning toward either the Marsh or Banded mongoose at the moment. Yet concern arises with both breeds with the description like that of the Marsh mongoose of being a “voracious carnivore …and extremely territorial” while also “considered tame and very clean if raised from a young age.” I’m not sure how “voracious carnivore” and “tame” coincide with one another but I guess if other people have tamed the mongoose it must be worth a try.

Thus the quest continues……