After four weeks...

Things I miss about the U.S.:

1) Change: So having change (monnaie in French, wecchet in Wolof) sounds like nothing. In the States, I had no appreciation at all for coins. Sitting here, I am thinking wistfully of the pouch full of American coins that I left back at home. Everything in Senegal revolves around change - having change, making change, keeping change. It's one of the little things that should be nothing, but ends up being extremely stressful. I need to have change to get on the bus or car rapide to go to dance and drum classes, to pay for snacks from the little boutiques all around Dakar, to buy a mango at the fruit stand. I need change to so I don't have to uncomfortably give the vendor that I've bargained with the money I originally said I didn't have. I find that I actually spend more money in order to break the 10,000 CFA bill so that I have change for the next day. One of the most satisfying events that can happen to me is to be able to get a few coins back....only to spend them again.

2) Public transportation: I've started taking the car rapide to get to my music classes in the evening, and the bus back to Sacre Coeur. Like everything else in Senegal, it's crowded, unpredictable, and always a bit questionable. I used to complain about when the Metro was delayed or overly crowded. Practically any bus system in the U.S. looks extremely attractive compared to this.

3) Clean air: I never really thought about the air around U.S. cities as being particularly lovely, but Dakar's mix of smog - there are people burning garbage, cooking over open flames all around the streets in addition to bigger sources of pollution - dust, exhaust, and general humidity makes walking less than pleasant. I simply cannot understand how Senegalese women keep their clothing so spotless in the midst of all this.

4) Mexican food: enough said.


What I do not miss about the U.S.:

1) Cell phone service: The cell network in Senegal is way more reliable and easier to use than that in the U.S - the country seems to run on Orange, the major cell provider. For about $30 you can buy a cheap phone, and then you buy a little card that has a code worth X amount of credit. For 1000 CFA, or about $2, you can send about 50 texts or talk for 10 minutes. It's super easy, fairly inexpensive, and perfect for study abroad students. And all cell phones have a flashlight built in... wonder why...? :)

2) Hot showers: Cold showers after a day in Dakar feel a million times better than any hot shower in the U.S.