Asalaam from Dakar!

Bonjour/Asalaam (the official language in French and the national language is Wolof)! I have to be honest, I had no idea what to expect when traveling to Dakar. After one week in this manageable, vibrant city I am pleased to report that I have fallen in love with this place. Dakar is entirely different from Delhi; where Delhi was large and dense with people, Dakar is very small and less crowded. Where Delhi was chaotic and busy, Dakar is incredibly mellow and relaxed. Dakar sits on a peninsula on the most west point of Africa, so the majority of the city boarder’s water. The beaches are magical; it has felt amazing to have the sand beneath my toes just steps away from the classroom door. The Senegalese people are extremely kind; every person I’ve met has modeled an exuberant white smile that contrasts the gorgeous shade of their dark chocolate skin. The colors—of fabric, fruit, graffiti, and beaches—are stunning and captivating. Yup, I have definitely fallen in love with Dakar.

Something that has certainly added to how joyous my time here has been is my host family. I am living with Mama, Papa, and my host siblings Didi and Junior. Mama is a loud and proud Senegalese woman who immediately kissed me and held my hand the entire afternoon on the day we first met. She always wears the most gorgeous traditional Senegalese outfits; it excites me every morning to see what print she’ll wear that day. Papa is a lovely man, a high school French teacher, whose soft spoken sweetness balances out Mama’s roaring laughter. Didi, is my sassy 23-year-old host sister who’s studying to be a doctor. She, like her mother, has been affectionate from day one, but she carries herself with a certain confident attitude which I absolutely love. And last but not least, my 18-year old host brother Junior is a true gem. He is the best English speaker in the house and has taken on the role of my French teacher and translator. He and I bond mostly over our shared love for music; from Drake to Adele to Shania Twain, he knows every song! It has been wonderful to live with a full family, a different experience than what I had in Delhi. Senegalese culture is defined by the phrase “what’s mine is yours,” I truly feel this living here; Didi and I share clothes and I often help set the table for dinner. I already feel very much a part of this family.

My time in Dakar so far has been filled with many afternoons on the beach, shopping through markets, talking to local people and exploring different neighborhoods. Dakar is different from Delhi in that there are not many touristy things to do here; it is much more of a city to wander in, and see what you come up with. Last week, a few friends and I headed to the beach ready to bake in the sun. After arriving by the water, we soon realized that the beach is much more of a social setting, rather than a place to plug your headphones in and forget about the world around you. We met many young, kind, local people at le plage who taught us Senegalese dance moves while they played the drums and other African instruments. We had such a great time, laughing and dancing with our salty hair blowing in all directions. We were the only foreigners there, but rather than feeling alienated by this, I felt warmly welcomed as I were a local myself.

Another very exciting aspect to our experience in Dakar deals with the political climate here. The current President, Abdoulaye Wade, is a very controversial figure that many, if not the majority of Senegalese people are unpleased with. His term was due to end this year but he argued that he had the right to a third term (based on reasons too intricate to get into here) and the Supreme Court agreed. This caused uproar for many people here; they feel that he has not provided for the country in the way he had promised. For example, rather than putting money towards health care, clean water and housing, one of Wade’s largest projects during his 12 years in office was the construction of an African Renaissance monument the size of the Statue of Liberty. “And for what? Why?” exclaimed my Senegalese friend Sohkna when explaining this to me. Even so, Wade continues to have many supporters, as does his opponent, Macky Sall. The elections, which will determine the future president for Senegal, take place this Sunday. It is such an exciting opportunity to be here at a pinnacle time in the history of this country. I will keep you updated on the results!

An academic theme of our time in Senegal is to study the influences of urbanization. To do that, we will compare our observations of city life to that of a village. Tomorrow, my fellow IHPers and I are leaving the capital city of Dakar for a rural village, seven hours way by car. We will live in the rural desert  for three days with new host families, using all five senses to gather information on village life in West Africa. This will be a very raw, authentic and a once-in-a-life-time experience. I don’t know quite how to mentally prepare myself, but I know I am feeling excited, present and ready to soak it all in.

In my last post, I commented on how my time in India would be hard to beat. What I’ve realized here in just one week is that one does not need to surpass the other; they are two very different experiences which are already holding different meaning and bringing out new feelings in me. I look forward to continuing my travels through Senegal, to meet new people, to get lost, to find my way, to swim, dance, taste and explore with an open heart.

“It is better to travel well than to arrive” – Buddha

A few pictures from Dakar below!

Lots of  love,

Rachel

Feel So Alive

Hypnotic

Last weekend, eight friends and I traveled to Agra, India to visit the world famous Taj Mahal. After a sleepy five-hour car ride (departing at 6 am) we arrived, and the images I have only seen in books, magazines and photo albums came to life. It’s rather difficult to articulate how absolutely stunning this monument is; the white marble gleams and the intricate details make your eyes wide and jaw drop. It was simply magnificent. While touring the Taj, I continued to think about how romantic the whole thing was; it is a mausoleum built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife. Although he was certainly a controversial figure, I couldn’t help but think that this wonder of the world represented much more than state of the art ancient architecture, it was an act of love.

My friends and I a full day of all things touristy in Agra and headed back to Delhi that evening. It was the 

closest to a road trip we’ve had; snacks, music, laughs and napping. Both the journey and the destination were equally significant for me that Saturday.

Hopeful

During a neighborhood day activity last week, my classmates and I explored an urban village outside of Delhi known as Aya Nagar. I chose to visit a nonprofit in the village called Jan Madyham. The organizations mission is to help young girls who are mentally and physically disabled to become self-sufficient and gain skill sets they have never been given the opportunity to receive. Some of the programs of the NGO include classes on cooking, pottery, sewing and “self-help.” The murals on the walls painted by the 52 young girls partaking in the program were thoughtful and beautiful. My heart was filled with both joy and sadness while at Jan Madyham; I was so happy to witness local people helping each other making their part of the world a better place. However, I was sad because these health problems are not unique to Delhi; so many people suffer from these same disabilities all over the world.  My visit to Jan Madyham strengthened the part of me that believes I want a career in helping people; whether on a local or larger scale, I would like to make an impact in making life better for people. I am hoping that through this experience on IHP I will gain more of a sense of what kind of people and through what channel I would like to make a difference.

IHP urges us to look with a critical eye at what we see going on in the city around us. There have been many moments where I feel the future looks unpromising based on the roles of particular actors in planning, politics and the economy. My visit to Jan Madyham made me feel genuinely hopeful for the future.  It enlightened and empowered me that if we have the desire, we can easily make a contribution to create a better world.

Heavy Heart 

For the last two weeks of our program in Delhi we have moved out of our homestays to stay in a hotel all together. Living together has been utterly enjoyable and so much fun. However, saying goodbye to Auntie was not an easy thing to do. Auntie Nalini was truly a blessing; she opened up her home so generously to Sam and me and cared for us like we were her own daughters. I felt such sincere love from her, and I believe she felt it from me too. We parted over a lovely farewell dinner where Auntie held my face and spoke sweetly to Sam and me; “May you live happy lives, may you have prosperity, and may you remember your Auntie loves you always.”

Holi

Holi: the festival of colors. The Holi festival has an ancient origin and celebrates the triumph of good over evil. The colorful festival bridges the social gaps that are deeply ingrained in the city. It is essentially a day where the entire city shuts down for people to throw powdered colors at each other. It is also a day eat, drink, hug, laugh, dance and play. Manu’s daughter, Piya, invited a few friends and I to “play holi” at an amazing farmhouse outside of Delhi. The yard was covered in colors, as were the people. There is no event in the United States to compare this to, it was unlike anything I had ever done before, but it was fantastic. It was so freeing to just let my hair down and not care about the mess. It was a food fight of sorts, for the 20 million people of Delhi. We had such a blast, playing and dancing throughout the day.

Happy

As I reflect on my five weeks here in Delhi, the first word that comes to mind is happy. Happy about where I am, who I’m with, what I’m doing and why I’m here. I am looking at the world through a new lens, asking different questions and critically analyzing the answers. I am absorbing new knowledge about cities, people and myself. I feel like I am in the right place at the right time. I am taking with me a million impressions- of color, energy, care and hope. From dinner conversation with Auntie, to watching Vihar dance his heart out at CHETNA, to practicing yoga at sunrise, to dancing at a wedding, to visiting the Taj to gazing at the full moon on Holi, I have had the most incredible time here. I am both excited and nervous as we reach the second leg of our trip and travel to Dakar. I am feeling more confident in myself as a student, traveler and teammate than I did when I landed in Delhi, and I am excited to see how these new parts of me will show themselves as I adjust to an entirely new country and way of life. India will be tough to beat, but I am feeling very optimistic about the journey that lies ahead.

P.S. I am posting this entry from the airport in Dubai! What to do with a ten hour layover in Dubai from midnight to 10 am? A few friends and I took a taxi ride into the city for a drive through tour and ended at a public beach, dipping our toes in the Persian Gulf at 3 am! It was such a freeing moment, I felt so present and invigorated dancing by the edge of the ocean. Fiona, Jesse, Ashley, Sam and I sat on the sand and I lead a group meditation for a few minutes; it was thrilling yet so peaceful. As I walked on the beach with Ashley, I recited to her a line from one of my favorite songs; “Everybody dies but not everybody lives.” In that moment while inhaling the fresh ocean air, I felt so alive.

P.P.S. I am sorry I can't post pictures right now because the internet is too slow and all of my prompts on the screen are written in Arabic! I will add pictures to this post as soon as I can. My apologies!

I will write next from Dakar!

Namaste.

Lots of Love,

Rachel