Michelle and I made breakfast for the post-wedding brunch for the two families this morning--pastries, mango, french toast, etc. Kate & Claude opened a few gifts (people were very good about NOT bringing many gifts since they have to transport them to the States!) and we all said our goodbyes. My mom and dad both cried as they thanked Claude's family and said goodbye...it was cute. The goodbyes continued when my mom and dad left for the airport to head to Kenya where they're going on a safari! Matt & a few others went into Dakar to go to the market but Michelle and I decided we just needed to relax and just stayed home. We made friends with two cute little girls staying next door who were excited to have someone to speak English with! We also went down to the little beach briefly hoping to swim, but the waves were huge and the beach is pretty rocky. We played with Diego (dog who lives at the Phare) and he got a little too excited and managed to "punch" Michelle in the face giving her a fat lip! =( But it's all better now. The rest of the night was pretty chill with a lot of packing and logistics getting sorted out.
Tomorrow should be another relaxing day. We'll get up early to see Matt off to the airport but then just relax and pack. We're going to the Meridian to meet Kate and Claude for lunch and then just relax by the pool there most of the day. Kate recommended a Vietnamese restaurant by the hotel that we'll probably try for dinner before packing and going to bed!
We'll probably be pretty MIA from the blog for a bit as we head out on the next phase of our trip. We've been spoiled here the last few days with free internet and use of Matt & Claude's computers, but that all changes tomorrow morning! =( We will try to find some internet cafes to keep blogging, but the posts might get a little shorter since we'll be paying by the minute! =)
We've thoroughly enjoyed our time here in Senegal and have met a lot of amazing and wonderful people!
-mari
sidenote...Michelle just said "we haven't talked about bissap juice at all because we've had so much to talk about!" So we'll tell you now! Bissap juice is made from hibiscus flowers and reminds me a bit of cranberry juice. It's delicious and we wish we could bring some home but that would be WAY too hard. =) Oh, and while we're talking about juice...last night at the wedding we got to try baobab juice! I was a little nervous about it because it was really thick...like the consistency of a smoothie and was very sweet. It kind of reminded me of applesauce. =) Matt says he likes the "ananas" (pineapple) soda the best!
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Wedding Part 2- June 26th
With the wedding not starting until 5pm I kind of thought we'd have the whole morning to just hang out at the Phare but the van came at 9:30am to pick up all the girls and take us to the Meridian to get ready. That actually worked out great for Michelle and I because we knew it wouldn't take us very long to get ready so we packed our suits and enjoyed a fabulous hour lounging at the pool. We missed a minor disaster when the women who came to do Kate's hair forgot the curling iron they were supposed to bring! But Kate handled it well and when we came up from the pool I ordered her a mojito from room service. =) Michelle and I also took care of getting lunch and drinks. We got a tip from a pilot staying there that there was a little stand just outside the hotel grounds that sold drinks WAY cheaper than the hotel. So I was brave and ventured out on my own to get drinks. I was very proud of myself because I did the entire thing in French and came back with 5 sodas for $3. =)
The remainder of the afternoon was a flurry of picture taking and trying to stay in the shade as much as possible but still sweating like mad! We arrived at the church early and just hung out in the air conditioned van for half an hour before the ceremony. So, since things were not exactly standard American style I'll give you a quick rundown of the wedding itself.
To start the bridesmaids and groomsmen danced in on either side of the aisle (this was the simple dance...just a little side step and snap) and then we turned to face the aisle (still dancing) to welcome the families into the church. After both families were in our dance changed to a zulu song with some symbolic dance moves that went with it (kind of reminded me of hula...we imitated paddling a boat at one point). Claude and his mom danced in together all the way down the aisle and then "broke it down" a little once they got to the front; it was very fun and he was obviously very happy. Oh, did I mention that all the songs were being sung by a choir on stage? They were amazing! Then Kate and my dad walked in (while we swayed side to side facing the aisle) and Kate looked incredible! Her dress was beautiful.
Once everyone was in things proceeded in a pretty standard western style with some prayers, some readings, and a "message" from one of the pastors (the message had a decent premise but I could have done without this pastor and his tangents). The choir sang again which was fun. Oh and there was an emcee for the wedding and he would ad lib things sometimes which was kinda funny. He got a little mixed up and skipped the lighting of the wedding candle and signing of the register but they just reminded him and things all worked out in the end. Then once the ceremony was finished, the new Mr & Mrs. Betene danced out of the church followed by both families.
The reception was a little different for me because the wedding party wasn't sitting at the head tables with the families but on chairs behind them (no table). We had quite a few "jobs" throughout the night including learning two dances on the fly!! The communication was sketchy and Matt & I often had no idea what we were supposed to be doing and the language barrier didn't help! Only the families actually had a table and everyone else sat in rows of chairs and were served a plate of food in their seats. The families were served...by US!! The guys carried big plates of food and the girls served each person one at a time (all while some of the speeches were happening...fathers, best man, etc) I felt a little out of sorts the whole time and was glad when the eating part was done and the music started! The music was fun and Ben, Monica & Esperance(Claude's friends) taught Matt and I some African dance moves. Then my mom and great aunt Nancy joined the lesson and that got everyone excited and there was a lot of hooting and hollering! =) Overall a great time!
Congrats to Kate & Claude Betene!
Au Revoir,
-mari
The remainder of the afternoon was a flurry of picture taking and trying to stay in the shade as much as possible but still sweating like mad! We arrived at the church early and just hung out in the air conditioned van for half an hour before the ceremony. So, since things were not exactly standard American style I'll give you a quick rundown of the wedding itself.
To start the bridesmaids and groomsmen danced in on either side of the aisle (this was the simple dance...just a little side step and snap) and then we turned to face the aisle (still dancing) to welcome the families into the church. After both families were in our dance changed to a zulu song with some symbolic dance moves that went with it (kind of reminded me of hula...we imitated paddling a boat at one point). Claude and his mom danced in together all the way down the aisle and then "broke it down" a little once they got to the front; it was very fun and he was obviously very happy. Oh, did I mention that all the songs were being sung by a choir on stage? They were amazing! Then Kate and my dad walked in (while we swayed side to side facing the aisle) and Kate looked incredible! Her dress was beautiful.
Once everyone was in things proceeded in a pretty standard western style with some prayers, some readings, and a "message" from one of the pastors (the message had a decent premise but I could have done without this pastor and his tangents). The choir sang again which was fun. Oh and there was an emcee for the wedding and he would ad lib things sometimes which was kinda funny. He got a little mixed up and skipped the lighting of the wedding candle and signing of the register but they just reminded him and things all worked out in the end. Then once the ceremony was finished, the new Mr & Mrs. Betene danced out of the church followed by both families.
The reception was a little different for me because the wedding party wasn't sitting at the head tables with the families but on chairs behind them (no table). We had quite a few "jobs" throughout the night including learning two dances on the fly!! The communication was sketchy and Matt & I often had no idea what we were supposed to be doing and the language barrier didn't help! Only the families actually had a table and everyone else sat in rows of chairs and were served a plate of food in their seats. The families were served...by US!! The guys carried big plates of food and the girls served each person one at a time (all while some of the speeches were happening...fathers, best man, etc) I felt a little out of sorts the whole time and was glad when the eating part was done and the music started! The music was fun and Ben, Monica & Esperance(Claude's friends) taught Matt and I some African dance moves. Then my mom and great aunt Nancy joined the lesson and that got everyone excited and there was a lot of hooting and hollering! =) Overall a great time!
Congrats to Kate & Claude Betene!
Au Revoir,
-mari
Wedding Part 1 - June 25
We decided to relax during the morning before an afternoon and evening of pre-wedding events. We did some laundry, worked on some trip-planning stuff and enjoyed just...sitting.
At 2pm, Claude's family came to the Phare and we began a Cameroonian cultural ceremony. This ceremony was considered a wedding, so at the moment I'm writing (June 27th) Kate and Claude have been married twice, with one to go (US wedding).
The cultural ceremony was very interesting and had 7 phases (I don't remember ALL of them...) Both fathers gave speeches, Kate's great-aunt symbolically "gave" Kate to Claude's grandmother and both family "matriarchs" said a few words. The fun parts of the ceremony were the airplane game and the culinary integration.
In the airplane game, 5 men walked in one at a time all wearing Claude's clothes with their faces covered. Kate had to say whether or not the man was Claude. She learned that she was "supposed" to get it wrong because it's funnier that way, so she put on a great show and the families laughed a lot. Everytime she was incorrect, the Therrien family had to pay a "tax". The "airplane" part came in at the end when all of the men came in under a sheet making airplane noises. They walked around the room and then "landed" in front of Kate. She had to say which man under the sheet was Claude. When she got it wrong, the family paid another tax and the airplane took off on another lap around the room.
In the culinary integration section, she had to eat foods of Cameroon without grimacing or making any sort of face...again, the family paid a tax for any mistake. We were expecting a Survivor-esque moment, but because of time constraints, Claude's mom wasn't able to prepare any dishes. I think she ate carrots (obviously no grimace), kola nut (which are not so delicious, but still, not so bad), and a lime. Of course biting into a lime is very hard to do without grimacing and so another tax was paid. Although we speak different languages, we were able to communicate through laughter during these parts of the ceremony!
Towards the end of the ceremony, each family presented gifts to the other family. We all received Cameroonian outfits. You'll see a pic in the album!
After the cultural ceremony, we were off to the church for a rehearsal. Mari and Matt danced well! :) We did a quick run through of the ceremony and then traveled to Claude's church to practice the dances with the choir, but there was no power at the church, so that plan was canceled and we all just hoped it would go well the next day! :)
We were very excited to go to a Brazilian restaurant for the rehearsal dinner. SO delicious! It was a fun time and I enjoyed chatting with a friend of Kate and Claude's named Esperance. She had been working SO hard all week to help Kate and Claude round us all up and shuttle us around the city, and because her English is so good, she was able to do a lot of translating for us, getting us taxis, etc. We are soooooooo thankful for her. Plus, she's very fun to be around :)
We fell into bed exhausted, as usual! Mari's writing about the wedding next!
I don't know if it's this computer, the connection, or what, but I'm still having trouble with the pics, SO, we've uploaded highlights to a picasa web album. Here's the link: DakarPics
Enjoy! (We love the comments too...keep writing!)
- Michelle
At 2pm, Claude's family came to the Phare and we began a Cameroonian cultural ceremony. This ceremony was considered a wedding, so at the moment I'm writing (June 27th) Kate and Claude have been married twice, with one to go (US wedding).
The cultural ceremony was very interesting and had 7 phases (I don't remember ALL of them...) Both fathers gave speeches, Kate's great-aunt symbolically "gave" Kate to Claude's grandmother and both family "matriarchs" said a few words. The fun parts of the ceremony were the airplane game and the culinary integration.
In the airplane game, 5 men walked in one at a time all wearing Claude's clothes with their faces covered. Kate had to say whether or not the man was Claude. She learned that she was "supposed" to get it wrong because it's funnier that way, so she put on a great show and the families laughed a lot. Everytime she was incorrect, the Therrien family had to pay a "tax". The "airplane" part came in at the end when all of the men came in under a sheet making airplane noises. They walked around the room and then "landed" in front of Kate. She had to say which man under the sheet was Claude. When she got it wrong, the family paid another tax and the airplane took off on another lap around the room.
In the culinary integration section, she had to eat foods of Cameroon without grimacing or making any sort of face...again, the family paid a tax for any mistake. We were expecting a Survivor-esque moment, but because of time constraints, Claude's mom wasn't able to prepare any dishes. I think she ate carrots (obviously no grimace), kola nut (which are not so delicious, but still, not so bad), and a lime. Of course biting into a lime is very hard to do without grimacing and so another tax was paid. Although we speak different languages, we were able to communicate through laughter during these parts of the ceremony!
Towards the end of the ceremony, each family presented gifts to the other family. We all received Cameroonian outfits. You'll see a pic in the album!
After the cultural ceremony, we were off to the church for a rehearsal. Mari and Matt danced well! :) We did a quick run through of the ceremony and then traveled to Claude's church to practice the dances with the choir, but there was no power at the church, so that plan was canceled and we all just hoped it would go well the next day! :)
We were very excited to go to a Brazilian restaurant for the rehearsal dinner. SO delicious! It was a fun time and I enjoyed chatting with a friend of Kate and Claude's named Esperance. She had been working SO hard all week to help Kate and Claude round us all up and shuttle us around the city, and because her English is so good, she was able to do a lot of translating for us, getting us taxis, etc. We are soooooooo thankful for her. Plus, she's very fun to be around :)
We fell into bed exhausted, as usual! Mari's writing about the wedding next!
I don't know if it's this computer, the connection, or what, but I'm still having trouble with the pics, SO, we've uploaded highlights to a picasa web album. Here's the link: DakarPics
Enjoy! (We love the comments too...keep writing!)
- Michelle
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Goree Island 6-24
Today we all (both families) hopped on a ferry over to Goree Island. The island was basically a slave island from the 1400s until the end of the slave trade. It was under the rule of various European governments over the years including the Dutch, English, Portugeuse & French. You can really see the European influence in the architecture; it felt like a European town in the middle of Africa. We toured the major slave market which was eerie to say the least. There were small rooms labeled "hommes," "femmes," "enfants" and "recalcitrants." In the center was a long hallway that ended with a doorway called "the door of no return" where the slaves were taken to the ships that took them to the Americas. After the tour of the slave market we walked all over the island (it's very small) and saw remnants of the French military and the many, many artisans that have taken over these former military spaces.
The highlight for me was the sand painting demonstration. It was very interesting to see all the different colored sand and hear where each one was from. He showed us how he layers the glue and the various colors of sand to create the paintings and in a matter of seconds had "painted" a traditional "case." Many of us bought some of his paintings to bring home. After that we had lunch where we practiced some French with Claude's family. The water at Goree was beautiful and clear and very inviting but unfortunately we hadn't worn our suits so just got to put our feet in.
After we got back to Dakar on the ferry I then had to make my third trek to the tailor for my dress; fortunately this time it fit AND I could sit down in it! =) And as soon as we got back to the Phare it was dance lesson time with Carol and Esperance! The wedding is western style in general, BUT has some decidedly African touches to it! Namely, the bridal party and both families have to dance their way in and out of the church!! Since Matt & I are in the wedding, we actually have four different dances we have to learn! The lesson went better than expected and hopefully I won't look too silly on Saturday!
Tomorrow is another busy day with a traditional Cameroonian cultural wedding ceremony (not really sure what this entails yet!) followed by the wedding rehearsal (more dancing!) and what promises to be a delicious rehearsal dinner at a Brazilian restaurant! Whew! Are you tired yet from reading this blog?! Can you believe this is only the first of six countries cuz I can't!
Bon nuit!
mari
The highlight for me was the sand painting demonstration. It was very interesting to see all the different colored sand and hear where each one was from. He showed us how he layers the glue and the various colors of sand to create the paintings and in a matter of seconds had "painted" a traditional "case." Many of us bought some of his paintings to bring home. After that we had lunch where we practiced some French with Claude's family. The water at Goree was beautiful and clear and very inviting but unfortunately we hadn't worn our suits so just got to put our feet in.
After we got back to Dakar on the ferry I then had to make my third trek to the tailor for my dress; fortunately this time it fit AND I could sit down in it! =) And as soon as we got back to the Phare it was dance lesson time with Carol and Esperance! The wedding is western style in general, BUT has some decidedly African touches to it! Namely, the bridal party and both families have to dance their way in and out of the church!! Since Matt & I are in the wedding, we actually have four different dances we have to learn! The lesson went better than expected and hopefully I won't look too silly on Saturday!
Tomorrow is another busy day with a traditional Cameroonian cultural wedding ceremony (not really sure what this entails yet!) followed by the wedding rehearsal (more dancing!) and what promises to be a delicious rehearsal dinner at a Brazilian restaurant! Whew! Are you tired yet from reading this blog?! Can you believe this is only the first of six countries cuz I can't!
Bon nuit!
mari
Gulu Gulu
Day 3 in Dakar was, again, eventful. This time, only the Therrien family (which had two additions, Mari's great aunt and uncle, Nancy and Carl) plus Claude, piled into the van in the morning. We were headed to Saly, a resort town about 2 hours from Dakar. On the way we drove through a few small towns, each with many interesting things to see. In many places, people constantly walk by cars sitting in traffic trying to sell their wares. From the car, we could have bought: underwear and bras, the game "Sorry", a jump rope, a hair-cutting kit, a broom, mangoes, roasted cashews, etc... For each thing you want to buy, you must bargain... Today, Mari's dad said he needed a new band for his watch and I said "go drive around Dakar!" Surely, someone would try to sell him one!
In Saly, we met a guide who had impressed Rae (Mari's mom) last year during her trip to Dakar. His name was Dou Dou and he was very nice and told us a lot about the village. We explored an old slave house and the place where the fisherman bring their fish in and lay them out to dry (that was kind of stinky). We enjoyed our tour and then, of course, we were asked to SHOP. After many many "No merci-s", we headed out for lunch and a tour at Bandia Game Reserve.
Bandia was AMAZING. We sat outside at a table near a small lake. While we ordered and ate, we watched monkeys playing around, a warthog family with four babies, water buffalo, crocodiles and many pretty birds. Even if we had only eaten lunch, it would have been a worthwhile excursion, but after lunch it got even better.
We jumped back in the van with our tour guide, Amy, and drove around the reserve searching for animals. Here's the list of animals we saw: Elan (a kind of large antelope), impala, warthogs, ostriches, giraffes, zebras, rhinoceroses, savannah buffalo, and again, some beautiful birds. We were told there was a chance we would not see the rhinos as there are only two in the park. According to Amy, the female rhino doesn't like the "gulu gulu" and therefore there are no new additions to the rhino family in the reserve. :) We were allowed to get out of the van and walk quite close to the rhinos and giraffes and took some great pictures! One ostrich tried to attack our van and was pecking at the window! It was incredible to see all the animals so close and essentially in the wild...very different from visiting a zoo. We're still working on adding pictures, but we will TRY to figure it out soon.
It was an amazing day in Africa and we drove back to Dakar feeling satisfied and quite tired. Sadly, just before bed, we received the news that a good friend in Portland had been killed. We felt quite shocked and sad, and we are struggling with not being able to share our grief with our other friends. We were happy to have the opportunity today to finally access the internet to be with some friends virtually and are sending many hugs to Portland.
In Saly, we met a guide who had impressed Rae (Mari's mom) last year during her trip to Dakar. His name was Dou Dou and he was very nice and told us a lot about the village. We explored an old slave house and the place where the fisherman bring their fish in and lay them out to dry (that was kind of stinky). We enjoyed our tour and then, of course, we were asked to SHOP. After many many "No merci-s", we headed out for lunch and a tour at Bandia Game Reserve.
Bandia was AMAZING. We sat outside at a table near a small lake. While we ordered and ate, we watched monkeys playing around, a warthog family with four babies, water buffalo, crocodiles and many pretty birds. Even if we had only eaten lunch, it would have been a worthwhile excursion, but after lunch it got even better.
We jumped back in the van with our tour guide, Amy, and drove around the reserve searching for animals. Here's the list of animals we saw: Elan (a kind of large antelope), impala, warthogs, ostriches, giraffes, zebras, rhinoceroses, savannah buffalo, and again, some beautiful birds. We were told there was a chance we would not see the rhinos as there are only two in the park. According to Amy, the female rhino doesn't like the "gulu gulu" and therefore there are no new additions to the rhino family in the reserve. :) We were allowed to get out of the van and walk quite close to the rhinos and giraffes and took some great pictures! One ostrich tried to attack our van and was pecking at the window! It was incredible to see all the animals so close and essentially in the wild...very different from visiting a zoo. We're still working on adding pictures, but we will TRY to figure it out soon.
It was an amazing day in Africa and we drove back to Dakar feeling satisfied and quite tired. Sadly, just before bed, we received the news that a good friend in Portland had been killed. We felt quite shocked and sad, and we are struggling with not being able to share our grief with our other friends. We were happy to have the opportunity today to finally access the internet to be with some friends virtually and are sending many hugs to Portland.
Tour of Dakar with both families!
Our 2nd full day in Dakar was a busy one to say the least! At about 9:30am both families met at our home base Le Phare Esperance and loaded up in a 15 passenger air-conditioned van (thank goodness for the AC!) and took a tour of Dakar. But before we left Claude's uncle Luc gave all of us gifts from Cameroon and asked that we wear them for our tour of the city. Matt & I both got Cameroon soccer jerseys and Luc told Michelle got a hat and bracelet (check out the pics to see them!) We saw pretty much all the sights of Dakar including the " Millenium Door" statue, the national assembly, the presidential palace, a few mosques, a bunch of markets and just the general hustle and bustle of the city. It's never boring to be in the car because there is so much to look at from the endless market stalls to the women carrying baskets of mango on their head to the horsecarts loaded with goods.
After the morning tour of the city we all came back to the Phare and enjoyed a delicious Senegalese meal of a spicy couscous with veggies and sauce. Then we all loaded up in the van again and went for our VIP tour of Senegal's version of the statue of liberty. This trip was a wedding gift to Kate and Claude because one of their friends is the project manager and it is not yet open to the public. The statue is called the Renaissance of Africa and is a man, woman and child looking out to the ocean. It is taller than the statue of liberty and has a lookout point at the top of the man's head. According to the police man who took us up we were the first group to ever go to the top. It's a very impressive statue and we took a bunch of pics.
After the statue we went on quite a journey to the "suburbs" of Dakar to see du lac rose (the pink lake). The lake has a very high salt content and the water looks pink. It was quite a long ride (maybe 1.5hrs) and over VERY bumpy roads; I'd say that maybe 30% of the roads to the pink lake were paved. As soon as we pulled up to the pink lake 5-10 women came running over with their baskets on their heads (I have NO idea how they can walk nevermind run with these big baskets on their heads!) trying to sell us their jewelry and take pictures with us. We eventually got away and on our way out we got to see camels!! Fortunately the driver took a different way home that was a little longer but paved and not so bumpy! We were very tired by this time but already had dinner pre-arranged at the place Kate and my mom stayed last summer; dinner was Yassa Poulet which is a traditional Senegalese chicken with onions.
Finally we got to go home to the Phare and we both slept like rocks, mosquito netting and all! I think that was it for day 2...I'll let Michelle tell you about day 3! Hopefully we can figure out how to post pics soon!!
-mari
After the morning tour of the city we all came back to the Phare and enjoyed a delicious Senegalese meal of a spicy couscous with veggies and sauce. Then we all loaded up in the van again and went for our VIP tour of Senegal's version of the statue of liberty. This trip was a wedding gift to Kate and Claude because one of their friends is the project manager and it is not yet open to the public. The statue is called the Renaissance of Africa and is a man, woman and child looking out to the ocean. It is taller than the statue of liberty and has a lookout point at the top of the man's head. According to the police man who took us up we were the first group to ever go to the top. It's a very impressive statue and we took a bunch of pics.
After the statue we went on quite a journey to the "suburbs" of Dakar to see du lac rose (the pink lake). The lake has a very high salt content and the water looks pink. It was quite a long ride (maybe 1.5hrs) and over VERY bumpy roads; I'd say that maybe 30% of the roads to the pink lake were paved. As soon as we pulled up to the pink lake 5-10 women came running over with their baskets on their heads (I have NO idea how they can walk nevermind run with these big baskets on their heads!) trying to sell us their jewelry and take pictures with us. We eventually got away and on our way out we got to see camels!! Fortunately the driver took a different way home that was a little longer but paved and not so bumpy! We were very tired by this time but already had dinner pre-arranged at the place Kate and my mom stayed last summer; dinner was Yassa Poulet which is a traditional Senegalese chicken with onions.
Finally we got to go home to the Phare and we both slept like rocks, mosquito netting and all! I think that was it for day 2...I'll let Michelle tell you about day 3! Hopefully we can figure out how to post pics soon!!
-mari
Day #1 in Dakar
The past two days have been a whirlwind of adventures. We have certainly had NO trouble sleeping at night!! Here's a run down on the first day in Dakar...Mari will pick up on day 2. :)
Day 1: Monday, June 21: We arrived in Dakar at 5:30 am (a little late cuz of a delay at JFK). We slept for a while, but not too much...wanted to get over the jet lag as fast as possible. Our big outing for the morning was taxiing to the grocery store (western style and therefore slightly expensive). Taking taxis is always an adventure because of bargaining over the price. We leave that to the French speakers...at least so far. We rested some more and then it was to the tailor to try on Mari's dress. It was so tight through the waist and thighs that she couldn't even sit. He is working on it and we're hoping it will fit fine by Saturday! We also found out that this wedding involves the families (ESPECIALLY those in the wedding party) DANCING their way in...Mari and Matt have to dance the most, but I've been informed that I will also be dancing. This will be hilarious! (We are practicing with the dance instructor over the next few days).
In the evening, we met Claude's family at a friend of Kate and Claude's home for a Cameroonian meal prepared by Claude's mom and Aunt. Meeting the whole family was a little overwhelming, but fun and everyone was very friendly. Mama Christine (Claude's mom) kept trying to get Mari and I to speak French... especially "ca va bien" which we've got DOWN now as "ca va" is how we greet everyone here! Our dinner was pistache (made from ground pumpkin seeds and meat), cassava, a bush meat dish (interesting...), one Senegalese dish of meat, veggies and a delicious sauce, and lots of Fanta! :) Mari and I were singled out to eat first...which makes it hard to just do what everyone else is doing...so hopefully we didn't blunder too badly. We spent a good portion of the evening sweating PROFUSELY as it was a MILLION degrees and the twin two-year-olds took a liking to us and we did a lot of picking them up, twirling around, piggy-back rides, etc...
It is very hot here, but not as unbearable as I expected. When heading to bed, we had our first experiment with sleeping under mosquito nets. It is interesting :)
I'm realizing that this is very long and I'm describing the SLOWEST day here so far. On Day 2 we toured the city and on Day 3 went to a resort-town and then a game reserve... We'll tell you all about it soon!
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Trying again
Well our plane's taking off late as they try to fix a bathroom door
but they say we'll still get in on time. My first attempt to blog via
text failed so now I'm trying to email this post. Hopefully this one
works! Oh and an update to the post below if that there were some
empty seats so our seat mate moved and we now have an open middle
seat! Hooray!
Well we had to hustle but we made it onto our plane that departs for
senegal in 15 minutes! Had to rearrange the stuff in one backpack to
get it in the overhead bin but we got it eventually. This flight is a
good introduction to the next two months. I think there are fewer than
10 caucasian people on this flight and three of us are in our row.
We're sitting with a very nice woman who works for unicef in haiti and
is on her way to a course in dakar. We're REALLY hoping we sleep a lot
on this flight because we arrive in dakar at 5am tomorrow. The good
news is that wine is free on intercontinental flights so that should
help.
Hopefully we'll be able to find an internet cafe sometime this week
so we can tell you about our first few days in Africa!
-mari & michelle
but they say we'll still get in on time. My first attempt to blog via
text failed so now I'm trying to email this post. Hopefully this one
works! Oh and an update to the post below if that there were some
empty seats so our seat mate moved and we now have an open middle
seat! Hooray!
Well we had to hustle but we made it onto our plane that departs for
senegal in 15 minutes! Had to rearrange the stuff in one backpack to
get it in the overhead bin but we got it eventually. This flight is a
good introduction to the next two months. I think there are fewer than
10 caucasian people on this flight and three of us are in our row.
We're sitting with a very nice woman who works for unicef in haiti and
is on her way to a course in dakar. We're REALLY hoping we sleep a lot
on this flight because we arrive in dakar at 5am tomorrow. The good
news is that wine is free on intercontinental flights so that should
help.
Hopefully we'll be able to find an internet cafe sometime this week
so we can tell you about our first few days in Africa!
-mari & michelle
Leaving Today
Well, the day has arrived. It still feels...unreal. Am I really boarding a plane to Africa today? I am feeling conflicting emotions...I am VERY excited, but also a little nervous. I'm definitely going to be out of my comfort zone for a month or more. The rational part of me (which is a big part, as most of you know) knows that being out of my comfort zone is a good thing. I definitely won't be complaining about the mundane day to day for a while. But there is a little part of me that feels like a kindergartner on the first day of school.
It's time to leave my house in Naperville and head to the airport, so I guess I should stop writing now. I look forward to sharing more exciting stories with you! Please check back when you can and leave little messages!
Au Revoir!
It's time to leave my house in Naperville and head to the airport, so I guess I should stop writing now. I look forward to sharing more exciting stories with you! Please check back when you can and leave little messages!
Au Revoir!
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Our bags
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
testing out technology
We're setting up ways for us to blog from our phones today! Hopefully this works!! :)
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
just trying to breathe...
We leave in less than 48 hours and as you can probably imagine our to-do list seems insurmountable! So now it's time to separate the "must-do" from the "to-do" list and focus our efforts. Michelle's working today and I have to finish up a couple of work things as well and then I can focus on trip preparations. Oh, yeah, and we're having a little graduation party for Michelle and our friend Ruth at our house tonight! (not sure what we were thinking when we planned that, especially at our house!)
We packed last night so now it's just adding a couple little things here and there. We have a small sling bag to take to Chicago that has clothes we plan to wear in Chicago and then donate to Goodwill so that we don't have to unpack our backpacks this weekend. No offense to our friends and family in Chicago but it feels a little anti-climactic to us to be all packed for this trip around the world and then stop in Chicago! =) But it will be great to see everyone and especially Laura & Justin and their new baby Samantha Claire!
Besides trying to finish up stuff for work and do homework (just me now since Michelle has officially graduated!!) we have to pack up all the stuff in our bedroom & bathroom because we found a subletter for the two months were gone. The guy who's subletting loves boxers so it will be great to have him to help Matt & Trevor take care of our babies while we're gone.
Okay, time for me to head out and get some things crossed off the list!
-mari
We packed last night so now it's just adding a couple little things here and there. We have a small sling bag to take to Chicago that has clothes we plan to wear in Chicago and then donate to Goodwill so that we don't have to unpack our backpacks this weekend. No offense to our friends and family in Chicago but it feels a little anti-climactic to us to be all packed for this trip around the world and then stop in Chicago! =) But it will be great to see everyone and especially Laura & Justin and their new baby Samantha Claire!
Besides trying to finish up stuff for work and do homework (just me now since Michelle has officially graduated!!) we have to pack up all the stuff in our bedroom & bathroom because we found a subletter for the two months were gone. The guy who's subletting loves boxers so it will be great to have him to help Matt & Trevor take care of our babies while we're gone.
Okay, time for me to head out and get some things crossed off the list!
-mari
Monday, June 7, 2010
10 days and counting...
Our departure is approaching at lightning speed and the to-do list just keeps growing!! We can't wait to get on the plane and just breathe! Wish us luck as we try to conquer our list before we take off on the adventure of a lifetime!
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