Senegal was an interesting port. I packed my suitcase and was so ready to get off the ship and go to Claire's house. Claire is my Senegalese friend at John Carroll and also went to ALA. Haimeng wanted to come with me and spend the day with a Senegalese family. While waiting for Claire's mum to pick us up, a bunch of street vendors approached almost all semester at sea students either to sell necklaces or persuade us to take taxis. Even if you said no, they would not leave you alone. A guy gave Haimeng and I necklaces claiming they were gifts. After 5 minutes he showed us a hole in his neck and asked for money to feed his baby. We returned the necklaces back since we had no money on us yet.
At this point, I almost got a sun stroke because it was SUPER hot. It is like Alexandria's weather in July or August multiplied by ten. Imagine how Haimeng and I looked like! :O Claire's mum arrived and took us in her air conditioned car, she literally saved us :D She spoke little English, so I had to practice my French. She was so patient with me trying to find the right words. We went home, and it was nice to stay in a house and get the sense of a family after a while.
We met Claire's siblings and Rockia, a family member who was staying at the house, as well. We visited the African Renaissance monument at night. Gosh, it is huge. It is beautiful, in building and meaning. It resembles the struggle of Africans during the colonization and slavery eras, mainly West African countries. It is financed by a couple of African countries and South Korea. No single North African country!
The following day was a family day, we celebrated Claire's brother and Rockia's birthday, and I enjoyed some quiet time to prepare for midterms. We had very delicious Yassa Poulet (Senegalese chicken dish). The third day was when I explored Dakar. Claire's cousin and I took the ferry to Goree Island which is my highlight in Dakar. I got to see the house of slaves and the door of no return.
I stayed there for a while trying to imagine how a man, a woman or a child would have felt when they were pushed to a ship not knowing where they were going or whether they would be back or not. What a terrifying feeling! The rooms where the slaves lived in before boarding the ships did not even qualify for mice. I remembered when Joseph, my Ghanaian friend, once told me that they, West Africans in general, and Ghanaians in particular, are never ashamed of the slavery era because it defines who they are today. The island is beautiful and has a different structure than that of Dakar.
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| Door of no return |
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| House of Slaves |
The French influence is highly present in Senegal. Most TV shows or channels are in French and most imports are either from France or past French colonies like Morocco. It is clear that the French colony created huge markets in its past colonies. Dakar is very simple, and its people are very friendly. However, poverty in many districts is very obvious and the vendors are eager to sell you their products. The gap between the rich and the poor is huge and clear. Almost all Senegalese people I met were eager to improve their country. They were very positive. J
P.S. Claire's family is a very very sweet and generous family. I loved staying with them. Make sure to try the fried bananas and bargain with the vendors :D
