Novotel - Dakar

... just Senegal but Africa. Our driver was also named Doudou, so in French, I was with "deux Doudous" all day, which sounds really funny when pronounced in French and I laughed about it a lot with Julie and Kareem when I returned at the end of the day. I saw the Presidential residence, Dakar University, the food market with the biggest lobsters I have ever seen, and then Ile de Goree. The island was established as a slave trading base by the Portuguese ...

... it was amazing, and possibly the best shower I have ever had in my life!! For those who have never had to suffer this, you have no idea how good this feels. A fantastic weekend wouldn't be complete without the premature departure of your roommate now would it? And this is exactly what Lucy did to me, not going into too much detail but she was not enjoying her placement here and thought she would be more useful at home. So as I sit and write this she ...

... organized and therefore a lot harder to get up and running. However it seems like I have an extra special staff group on board because there is so much nicely organized activities on board. Later on in the night I watched the MDP (Mobile Dance Party) dance their way around the ship. They were having a blast making sure they went and danced in every room. I played cards with a big group and two of my ...

... crise que os experts esperam que não seja mais do que o fundo de um ciclo de Kondratieff e que em breve a curva se tornara ascendente. Quando america peida todo o mundo sente o cheiro e não sera o Obama que vai perfumar a coisa com spray de WC. Reformas estruturais ruinosas comandadas pelos académicos incompetentes do FMI e Banco Mundial, corrupção e divida externa estranguladora, os ingredientes são sempre os mesmos para quem escolhe andar a toque de caixa do ocidente.

... why we wouldn't just take a taxi. Just fyi a take would have cost about 12000 (ãbout $30) francs where the bus was about 400 (about $1). The fishing village was interesting. We had a guide show us around and it was a very enjoyable afternoon. We were quite amusing for the local childrn who would run up to us yelling toubabs, toubabs and coming up and saying hello or showing us a fish they had caught. This one little ...

... med student who I discussed medical issues with, as well as, a very tall Senegalese man who took up his seat and half of mine. He kept falling asleep and slowly leaning further and further my way until I would wiggle a little and bump him back over into his section. Right now, I am eating fresh mango which is delish and slamming cups of coffee to get through the day. We are going to Pikine which is one of poorest neighborhoods in Dakar with my mom's ...

... of stalls to let someone pass. As soon as you step "into" (by a foot) someones stall space, you immediately provoke a vociferous and loud welcome ... "salaamaleekum, regardez-monsieur, many tissus, beautiful "wax" (wax dyed cloth), haut qualite". At the heart of all this .... if you can work your way in there .... are the really good little stalls. The holies of holies .... probably the most expensive to rent, and with the best stuff. I found one, with fabulous fabrics (more ...

... a friend in another village and doing a 40 k bike ride to the famous bird park of St. Louis, Dakar was hardly relaxing. However it does bring some perks, like the super market, free modern dance show at the French cultural center, great great Lebanese food and Thai (which was eaten on my birthday) and fun surrounding islands like Ils de la Madelene and Ngor Island. I got my fix of nature and exploring and am now ready to return to the ...

... truly talented. There's certainly an element of village communism present there and in most small communities, jealousy and resentment, the great equalizer. I usually relegate such platitudes to the 'superficial impressions' folder. Nevertheless, it's always nice to find a place worth hanging, time to wash the clothes, buy some bread, and make some tea, especially after a week or two of rough travel. This is the way I like to ...