Sanakoro: a taste of the village life

pepper from Alana's family garden

As a city PCV in a fairly patron family, I don't have to pull my own water from a well, I use a western toilet and have fairly regular electricity as well as wifi.  This past week I decided to see how the majority of PCVs live and get a taste of village life.

Sanakoro is a community of about 250 people 7 km outside of Kolda and home to a lovely environmental education PCV, Alana.

This past Wednesday, after a half hour bike ride down a really nice dirt road - I was hoping for more difficult route as I was supposed to try and be 'roughing it' - I dustily rolled into Sanakoro.  Once I had greeted all of Alana's family, we shared a breakfast of sweetened 'lait caille' or milk curds and took a tour of her garden - which has inspired me to take better care of my outdoor space and add in some more fruits and veggies.  Then we toured the countryside trekking through the corn, rice and cashew fields, marking the first time I had seen rice in its pre-processed form - reminds me a bit of wheat, just shorter.

Once we were back at her compound, her sister grilled up the corn we (well, Alana's cousin) had picked in the field and we chatted while waiting for lunch - great practice for pulaar and wolof.  After a traditional Fuladu lunch of okra based sauce and rice, we helped me improve my language some more as we drank attaya tea under the mango tree, discussing American music and the upcoming football finals in town.

As Alana's family walked me out to the main road before sunset, my backpack heavy with cashews and veggies from the family fields, they all reminded me to greet my family for them (whom they have never met before) and encouraged me to come back and visit soon.  It was a moment where I was reminded how important hospitality and community are in Senegalese culture.  This was reinforced as I rode out of town and heard my name called and greetings shouted the fields and houses of people who had just met me that day. No one is ever alone here and while sometimes the quickness with which people become friendly and familiar here was at first almost unnerving, I am coming to love how quickly someone can become a member of the large family here.

A big thank you to my new Sanakoro family. I'll be back soon mostly because they do feel a part of my Senegalese family, but also because I forgot to try and pull water from the well - need to cross that off the bucket list.

Brewing Byssap

This is my amazing neighbor who has been key to my adjusting to life in Kolda.

First, she introduced me to a group of local students who play volleyball most evenings at the nearby middle school - an activity that has been a great way to burn off steam and some calories while getting to know people in the community.  It has also been a cross cultural learning opportunity where I've noted that some things are universal.  For example, blocking a boy who think he's a badass is fabulous fun in any country, especially if you do it 3 times in 1 game.

She has also been teaching me a bit about food in Senegal.  The other day we wandered the market in the early morning and then spent the rest of the morning and afternoon preparing 'ceeb u quecha', or dried fish and rice.  Its much better than the name sounds, but my hands did stink of fish for two days after the meal.

While the first cooking lesson's results were tasty, I decided to take our next recipe into my own hands and proposed a juice making day.  She and her little cousin came over and helped me prepare the byssap flowers (the red leaves below) and mint, get the charcoal fire started and demonstrated proper stirring, sifting and straining techniques.

All in all, there were no complaints from my family when we enjoyed glasses of cold byssap juice after dinner that night, so juice making might have to become a regular undertaking for me.