Means “I want.” Also, like some kind of conspiracy, the most difficult word I have ever tried to pronounce. Bghreet the used collected poems of Boris Pasternak, for sale in the ALIF bookstore. The bookstore carries an eclectic mix of books: books on Morocco and the Maghrib, of course, but also books about America and English-language classics, often for steeply discounted prices. In fact, the bookstore operates at a loss because it tries to provide English-language books to its many Moroccan students– an effort I wish one could see at, say, [...]

Means “I’m full,” and it is definitely a useful expression. Moroccans, or at least my host family, have a talent for bringing mounds of delicious meat, bread, and vegetables, then encouraging you to eat as you protest “shbet.” Then, Omar, my host father, brings out a huge bowl of grapes, a big yellow melon, and three of the best white peaches on planet earth. “Shbet” no longer. All this while I trade funny faces with my little host brothers, Abdullah (4) and Mohammed (2), who are absolutely the cutest children [...]

Yesterday was my first full day in Chile and also the orientation for my program. Matias and I walked to the metro station together so that I knew how to get there and how to use it. Since he and I go to the same school, we rode all the way together which was much easier than going alone. The metro ride (once you get out from underground) is really beautiful. It passes right alongside the ocean and you can see the coast of Valparaiso in front of you- so [...]

On Wednesday we finally got to learn who our host family is, and yesterday we met them and spent our first day in their homes! My host family has a mother and a father, Reem and Ali, two sons, Aymad and Bashar, with a third son working in the US, and a daughter who will be in town soon, Tamara. My host family speaks English well. That has made the transition to their home so much easier. Nonetheless, it also means I have to be very assertive about speaking only [...]

Well, I was definitely not excited yesterday afternoon. Once I got to the Atlanta airport things started getting a little better. I ended up meeting one of the people from my program, Jackson, at our gate and it was nice to see a “familiar” face (we’ve been facebook friends for a week or two). After we boarded I heard two guys in front of me talking and we realized that we were all studying at the same university, so my class of 4 students doesn’t mean I won’t meet other [...]

This weekend was my first weekend with the family. It was interesting to say the least. Friday night we were exhausted so we just played with the boys and had dinner. They eat dinner a lot later here. Normal time for dinner is around 8:30 PM. Lunch is normally around 1 PM and breakfast is around 8 AM. There is never any snacking in between meals. I think I am finally used to the eating schedule, although at first I was ALWAYS hungry. The food is really good but I [...]

Today we visited St. Thomas Health Center in Arusha town. It is a private health center so it is a little bit nicer than public health centers. There is no insurance in Tanzania, so for health you just pay after you receive a service. The center that we were at specialized in gynecology. We got a tour of the center and than observed some some nurses giving vaccines to newborns and some laboratory work.The owner of this health center, Dr. Msuya is our instructor for the medicine portion of our [...]

Yesterday (Wednesday) our group went to Arusha National Park. It was a lot of fun but the roads were very very bumpy. We were gone all day. We saw many animals—zebras, giraffes, cape buffalo, baboon, columbus monkeys, water bucks, water buffalo, warthog, dig-digs, flamingos, and bush bucks. We did not see any lions or elephants on this trip but we will when we go to the Serengeti. Our driver was very knowledgeable about the area as he use to be a tour guide. When we returned from the National Park [...]

I just arrived in Senegal and things are going great. Thankfully, I am remembering enough of my French to navigate life here so far, and I’m sure it will only improve with practice. My host family is wonderful, and this morning I played “cache-cache” (hide and seek) and “un, deux, trois, soleil” (like red-light green-light) with some of the children. Here is a photo of men playing pétanque (similar to what you may know of as bocce ball) across the street from my host family’s home. They were at it [...]

This summer I am spending ten weeks Senegal, a small country in West Africa on the Atlantic Ocean. After a two week homestay, I will be doing a project for USAID/Senegal with three other students in my Master of Development Practice program. We will be working with USAID/Senegal’s Local Capacity Development Team to assess the capabilities of local capacity builders. What is capacity building? Generally speaking, “organizational capacity” refers to an organization’s ability to do what it sets out to do effectively and efficiently. “Capacity building” is a process aimed at strengthening an [...]

I can’t believe it’s less than 24 hours and I will be on a plane to Amsterdam. After a four hour layover in Amsterdam I will be on my way to Tanzania. People keep asking me if I am nervous about going, but to be honest I don’t even know what to expect. I’ve never even left the country, so I can’t imagine what it will be like to live in Tanzania. Thankfully I’ve gotten a lot of help from my coworkers that have either lived in or traveled to [...]

Well, I can’t say the past two weeks in Fatick have been easy, but I’m actually starting to feel at home here, believe it or not.  Sophie and I went to Dakar for Easter as planned. On a trop trop trop mangé l’ngalax (the delicious concoction of peanut butter and baobab juice served with sweet cous cous). Like, seriously, we abused the ngalax. But it was so good! Getting out of the car in Dakar I felt incredibly light–life in Fatick had seemed a bit difficult before I left. It was like [...]

There are many things I’ve become accustomed to in my first few weeks in Fatick, like eating my weight in bread every day, sharing my dresser with a petit mouse I have named Franklin, walking about eight times slower than any New Yorker would ever dare, falling asleep sweating from the heat, being followed home by every child in the neighborhood, stopping for cows and goats in the street, and not knowing before opening the door to the communal shower if the resident cockroach will be joining me for a [...]

Hello world! Long time no post . . . je m’excuse. Life in Dakar got busy last week with homework, weddings, tailors, and such exciting things as that. Today’s post, however, is about food. Sitting here with a rumble in my stomach waiting for my poisson et haricots to arrive, it’s only fitting that I should describe the wonderful nourriture that I get to experience here. Meals with the family are always served on one big communal platter, often while seated on the floor; the meat (or fish) and vegetables [...]

What to say…this past week has been pretty tame compared to the first few, but it definitely had its moments. I’ll just note a few for now: Tuesday is now cleaning day for me, since I don’t have class. Maman laughed at me because I didn’t know how to sweep properly. Thursday afternoon, after a meeting with the US embassy about safety precautions as we near election time, we visited the markets in Grand Dakar and picked up some fabric. We are learning to haggle! When I got home maman [...]