back to the land of milk and honey

At least it seems that way from my point of view. I am staying with a volunteer in Brikama, in the Kombo region of Gambia for a few days - to get some idea of what actual volunteers do, I assume - and they have regular electricity, restaurants, and even - gasp! - the internet! So, I have returned to this space to give a bit of an update on my activities, and to write that I will be in a permanent site with fairly regular chances to get online. I will living in a town / city called Fara Fenni, and working for three schools in the area. It's exciting to know what I will be nominally tasked to do for the next two years, but I am not too sure of what it will actually entail, nor how it will work out, so I am trying to keep my expectations to a minimum.

I have been splitting time between Bambakoo - my training village - and Tendaba - where they have all the "trainees" together for technical training and seminars - since I last wrote. Bambakoo is great, I love learning Mandinka and hanging out in the village. Tendaba is okay - there is great variety of food, and more of it available, plus a pool, but there are lots of mosquitos and the schedule isn't as kind as it is in village.

Highlights of the last however many weeks: the first night in village - a little fear and feeling of being overwhelmed by the heat, language barrier, lack of privacy, and general difficulty dealing with the whole situation; naming ceremony - I am now called Sekouba Demba (also written Seekuubaa), and very happily a participant in family life in the Demba compound where I live; my Mandinka has been coming along well and I am able to have some simple conversations beyond just greeting people. Getting together with all the other trainees in Tendaba is a lot of fun, and our group is good without any real problems. All the other IT volunteers from the group are coming down to the Kombo region for their permanent sites, which is good for them, and I am equally glad to not be joining them.

There are a million things that I want to write about - a nighttime bike ride back to my village through the rain, laughing hysterically about the most mundane jokes in Mandinka, the joy of being a little bit accepted by my 19 month old host sister, the delicious taste of foodbowl in the village when I'm about to starve to death, late night chats with my host mother - how cool and badass she is, going out to the rice fields to see the women working, and on and on. It's been a great time thus far, I absolutely love it here, and my time runs a bit short so I will end here from now. I am looking forward to getting back in touch with everyone once I am back down here for a week, and I will be getting a phone as well! So anyone will be able to call me and chat, I hope.

I hope everyone is well, and I have lots of pictures to post when I get a chance! Love to you all,

Zac