Roads? Where I'm going, we don't need roads...

So a little less than two weeks ago 43 frightened stagierres were led
outside to the grounds of the Kaedi lycee, where a map of Mauritania
had been ominously drawn in the sand, cities and villages labeled, and
anxiously prepared to meet their fate.

It was time for site announcements.

By regions our APCDs, basically our bosses, in charge of the
volunteers in their sector, called out our names and the name of our
village or city. Then you went and stood on your village, so by the
end you had physically a very clear view of who you were going to hang
out with a lot the next 2 years, and who you would almost never see.

It was nerve racking in the extreme and the staff was enjoying that
way too much.

I am going to the village if Jidre el Moghen "jid-ree moe-gen", to be
henceforth referred to as "Jiddy" in the Trarza region.

That is the bottom left corner of the country. My regional capital is
Rosso, which you will find on a good map. You will never find Jiddy
on a map, but it is directly across the river from the city of Dagama
Senegal, which is usually on the map.

Dagama is nice. I know because I have been there already.

It is the rain season, I know I have mentioned this, and in the rainy
season many things happen:

Grass appears
Cows give really good milk
Mosquitos come out in droves
Rosso becomes the Venice of Mauritania (or the Bangladesh, if you
aren't feeling quite as romantic)
And most important, there is no road to Jidre el Moghen. Not until November.

So how do you get there, you ask?

You get to be the very first PCT in your class to cross into Senegal.

This actually sounds a lot more fun than it actually is. Crossing
borders in West Africa being sometimes a bit of a hassle. You take
the bac, a barge which reminds me a lot of the rafts you see the Coast
Guard intercepting from Cuba off the Florida Coast, from Rosso
Mauritania to Rosso Senegal. It feels kind of like beirut, or what I
imagine Beirut to be like.

When you reach the other side a policeman yanks your passport out of
your hand and you stand in line at the station for them to stamp it
and give it back.

Then you pile into a van that really should have died 10 years ago,
and you and 15 strangers drive to the town of Richard Toll, where you
hop into another van with another 17 strangers and drive to Dagama.
In Dagama you take a horse cart to the landing, and wait for a canoe
to cross the river from Jiddy. You wade in, hop in the canoe, which
feels like it will constantly tip over, with another 15 strangers, and
are rowed ashore to Jidre el Moghen, my home sweet home.

Then, to go home to Rosso, you do the whole thing in reverse, only
getting off the bac is a whole lot more annoying coming into
Mauritania, and getting your passport back takes an hour.

The travel aside, it is a cute little village with a forest and
monkeys and seems like it will be a nice place once everyone forgets
how perfect the volunteer I am replacing was.

And Rosso, my regional capital, is great. We have a lot of fun people
in our region, and Alexis, a health PCT who will be living in the
"house", is terribly sweet and promises to make it a nice place for us
poor "brouse" volunteers when we come in from our villages to get some
work done (and take a break). It is already nice, the current
volunteers made us pancakes and ice cream and chicken and provided us
with "libations". Being so close to Senegal and all things infidel,
we have certain responsibilities in the supply department, if you
catch my drift.

Another bonus is Dan, who will also be in Rosso. Not only is he a
nice person, although something of a Peace Corps Princess, but he is
our technology guru ,and is really good about uploading photos. So
check out his websites,
http://photobucket.com/albums/v142/stellargiggs/Africa/?sc=1&multi=4

and

www.livejournal.com/users/giggs106

There are some great pictures of Mauritania, and there are some of me
in the Rosso house with our regional group. If I'm looking svelt it
is because I lost 15 pounds on the giardia diet the week before we
came back to center. Gotta love the parasites, I'm ok now, il
hamdulilah.

We only have 2 more weeks of staag, and that's pretty terrifying. My
new address will be
Amy Conley, PCV
Corps de la Paix
BP 40
Rosso
Mauritania
West Africa

I may also use a PCV in Dagama's mail box, since apparantly mail to
Senegal gets here in a week (!), I'll keep you posted.

Thank you to everyone who is sending me mail, I feel so special!

amy

Of tanks and tantrums

This is really just a relatively quick note to say that I am alive and kicking.

Everything is normal here in our little corner of West Africa.

Seriously, this was just about the most boring coup in history, il hamdulilah.

At first I thought it was a joke, we were in class and my language
teacher Brahim comes up to the roof and says, "So, there is coup."

Just like he would say, "So, there is tea," or "So, it is raining."

And then we were not allowed to be anywhere interesting for two days,
and then it was completely normal again.

We really didn't understand why anyone would worry, until I listened
to the BBC and realized that "The military has overthrown the
government of Mauritania" really can't be qualified with anything that
is going to make it sound better.

The only real difference around here is that the 15 pictures of the
old president have been removed from where they were posted around the
walls of the internet cafe. He is now on permanent vacation in the
Congo and not scowling at me as I type.

Vive le liberte.

Elections are in 2 years, inshallah, and if that happens it will be a
very exciting time to be in country.

Right now is a very exciting time for PCTs. Tomorrow we find out
where our permanent sites are going to be, and we have a week to go
visit. It is also a bit scary, as you find out who is in your region;
and who you won't be seeing for a year at a time.

Thanks to everyone who sent mail. Mom, I got the crystal light today
and two of your letters. Lins; I got three letters last center days,
and Kevin that postcard was such a bonus because I was totally not
expecting it. I had one of the most impressive piles at mail call, I
was so proud. I hope to be better with the physical mail once
training is over, we just don't have a lot of time right now.

ps i have been getting some mail returned because of the wrong email
addres from Lins, so if anyone can give me her current email; i would
love it.
back to the heat
amy