alive and well in Dakar

Hi again. Sorry I haven't updated at all this week. Don't worry, it's not because my illness from last week suddenly got worse or anything...in fact, it's mostly a good sign. There are two main reasons I haven't written in awhile...the first is that since I only have a little time left in Dakar, I've been trying to get out and about and take in the city and its surroundings a bit and spend less time at the office. The second reason is that the two times I've been at the office this week we haven't had any electricity (or internet). In fact, there have been sporadic power outages all week, which has made it pretty hard to get much of anything done. But it has made me feel less guilty about ditching work to play a little.

This past weekend, I didn't really get out and about much because I was resting and recovering from being sick and working hard at the conference in Mbodiène. But on Monday, I went around town and had a great day. Papis and I went up to the top of the lighthouse where we could see the whole peninsula of Dakar, which was beautiful. I also went downtown and did a bit more shopping at the market. I've gotten pretty ruthless in my bartering skills, although I have to admit that I'm not going to miss haggling over prices when I get back home.

Tuesday I tried to go to work but didn't have power after about 10 am, so I went back into town and did more shopping, this time with my co-worker. Another thing I'm not going to miss too much is feeling like I have to have a chapersone everytime I go into town. I mean, I'm learning ly way around and I could easily go into town and be fine on my own, but if I don't have a Senegalese person with me, people constantly come up to me and try to sell me things (or ask me to marry them and take them home with me...)

Wednesday I got out of Dakar and went to Lac Rose, which is a salt lake whose water is pink because of the minerals and salt (i think...they explained it to us but I didn't quite understand the chemistry of it). In any case, it was really interesting and I had a great day there. You'll have to see the pictures to really get a sense for it. But it was one of the few days I've had here where I really felt like I was on vacation...except for the busride home, which was awful - we were stuck in traffic for several hours, crammed into a bus that was hot and crowded. But it was a small price to pay for the day off.

Today I'm trying to work again, but we still have no electricity. So I'm across the street at an internet cafe that has a generator. It's hard to believe that I only have one more day here. I'm trying to take it all in and take advantage of it. There are so many things I'm going to miss and a lot of things that I'm going to be happy to leave behind, so I guess overall my feelings about leaving are really mixed. I'm ready to come home, but I hope to come back before too long too.

I'll try to write once more before I leave, but if I'm not able to, Ill provide a full update of my last few hours here when I'm back in DC this weekend.