some photos!

amazing have fast internet today and had a chance to upload some photos for everyone since my blog has been so dull recently. so in no particular order, here we go!
this is my friend nafi working at her sewing machine in thies, i went around one day to photograph disabled people working to have some examples for others.

here's a picture from a wheelchair basketball game i went to about 2 weeks ago with my disabled friends from thies- they won!

here are 2 of my new host siblings in ndayane, jaxtu is on the left and astou is on the right. they're 11 and 10 respectively but super cute and fun to be around. i just recently taught astou the song, ' i've been working on the railroad' she always wants to learn english.

here's the beach in my village, ndayane!

here is nafi's father and older brother at their artisan shop in thies. the father is a really nice guy who after i gave tea, sugar and powdered milk in thanks for staying at his house while i was in thies, said i could come back anytime. they make an effort to make me feel a part of their family whenever im in thies

here's me and aida, my little buddy who doesnt cry anymore when im around but plays with me now instead! i gave her the little stuffed animal which is named ami thiam (my senegalese name) and she was pretty excited. last time i was there she gave me little bits of her potato chips and she thought it was the funniest thing. aida is just what i need to brighten my day.

here's me wearing my friend soxhna's wig that she wore for a party bc she didnt like her braids. EVERYONE has fake hair here, and i just think its funny, funnier to see me with straight hair and bangs.

and here are the famous pants!!!!!! the pad sewn in to make the butt bigger. im so glad i have proof because otherwise no one might believe me!

and here is my room in ndayane!

i hope you all enjoy it!

a fun cultural note to get you thinking

for all the women reading this blog who have ever felt self concious about their bodies (in particular, their butts), i have a fun bit a senegalese culture to share. here, a big butt is what every woman wants to have and is a huge compliment if someone tells you you have a big butt. some senegalese women here who are tall and skinny, like runway models, they lament about not having a butt, while women who have got a larger backside are very proud about it. this is such a big deal that i have seen stretch pants with pads sewn in them to make someone's butt look bigger-- just imagine push up bra for the butt... i almost keeled over in laughter when i saw it, trying as best i could to explain that this is the last thing you would ever find for sale in the US and how anyone in the US who has a bigger butt is probably trying to get rid of it... needless to say, the women were appalled at this. talk about complete opposite conceptions of beauty.

it's been a while!

i know i haven't been updating, but things have been going really well! i'm in thies right now but about to go back to ndayane (where i went about a month ago and met the women selling beads on the beach) i live there now! after a lot of travelling around and looking for a base, i realized im just not cut out for life in the big cities. now, i have a room with a family in ndayane and i'm working in the mornings at the preschool in the village. i taught the kids the song 'london bridge is falling down' on friday, that was fun. but it's easier in ndayane to get to know people and become a part of the community. i'm still going to be trying to dig into the disability scene, and hopefully seeing if there are ways to link people in smaller villages to whats going on in bigger cities like thies. ndayane is really beautiful and right on the ocean too, the people there are of the lebu ethnicity and they're incredibly nice. i will have to upload pictures later bc this connection is really slow! but i wanted to atleast update some good developments in my work here.