Here comes the president

So... It's been a while since I've written, but I don't want to flood you with wordy descriptions and stories. Instead I'll give you a few gems:

Benn: The president lives a short, pretty much straight drive from the airport, which happens to go along the road that I live off of. When he is coming back from taking a trip, which seems to be relatively often, it is suddenly necessary to get him back to his house ASAP, nothing can stop him! They block off all acess to the road, making people turn around or wait for him to go by. Then, at lightening speed his fleet of police cars, trucks and big black SUVs come whizzing by, with a few motorcycles to pave the way. Individual guards have to stand at every intersection to make sure no one is in the road. Needless to say, it's a huge ordeal, and kind of exciting and probably unnecessary. Speaking of the presidentm he is 81 and running for presedency again this winter. He also looks like he came out of a horror movie because he has very little facial expression.

Naar: A while ago I was walking to school along that same road, past the small shack-compound and in front of the sign that said TUMMYTUCKS above a white woman lying on her stomach in a bathing suit. Next to the sign was a group of about 7 boys all under the age of 10 naked, throwing water at eachother. I smiled at the funny image of it all, and as I was looking over I caught their attention. They however, thought that I was the funny one, and all started pointing at me. The irony of the whole scene still tickles me, and seems almost representative of how I feel here: a little out of place, struck by ironies of the first world clashing with the third, being laughed at and laughing at it all.

Nett: Wolof is not so easy for me to pick up, but it is getting better. I've noticed a bit of a change in the way people treat me when I make an effort to speak it too, it gives them something for them to joke about and for us to laugh about. Also university courses are becoming a headache to deal with, not because they are hard or anything, but because so far they have failed to exist. Today is day three of trying classes and hoping that the professor will decide to come. Eventually they may pick up, but it looks like I have a lot of free time to figure other parts of my life out, apart from academics and such.

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. We tried to replicate it, and did a pretty good job for what we had to work with. It may be one of the only thanksgivings that I will have that includes having to change clothes because of the hot hot day and going to a huge market to haggle for prices of zuchini and green beans.