Ana sa jumbax?

"Ana sa jumbax?" is my new favorite phrase in Wolof.... it means "Where is your bellybutton?" I still can't ask for directions without hesitating, but at least I've got that important piece of information taken care of. Anyway. Good morning from a really hot day in Dakar. Apparently it's pretty unusual that the weather's been as warm as it has this week and there's talk of the local impact of climate change. Pretty much between 11 and 3 it's sweaty-sticky hot as soon as you step into the sun. Not too much news to share. Toubacouta was an interesting and informative four-day trip to the Petit Cote region with the entire MSID program. We had a chance to speak with a lot of locals including a representative of an artisan fishing organization, the (only) health clinic nurse (a man), the heads of the local government, a schoolteacher and his hundreds of students, women farmers, a women's organization, a youth association, and university students. We actually gained a lot of information that I wouldn't have otherwise known, but I still felt uncomfortable traveling in our big group. Not only is it hard to have a conversation of any depth with someone local when there's so many of us students that every moment of communication has to be highly orchestrated... but also the expectations, needs and approaches of many of the students on the program are divergent from my own. I don't know how to put this more precisely in this particular (open) forum, but sometimes I feel rather skeptical of the group and I'm trying not to. I guess it's something to work on, for myself, and not to be too frustrated by. Now we're back in class and learning Wolof rapid-pace which is nice, and I've warmed up to our Country Seminar which teaches us about the inner workings of Senegalese political systems and the threat of anti-feminist religion and so on. She's a very outspoken feminist, which is refreshing, to have a teacher who's that passionate and opinionated. This weekend will be around Dakar, probably including an evening game of ultimate frisbee at a friend's house. Mantou finally came back from the Casamance after being gone for almost two weeks, and she's doing well. I bought some fabric the other day and did some drawings of it and I'm having it made into a sundress. Can't wait. Also, Nicole and I are trying to find the right public transportation to get us to an artists' village in Yoff, a northern suburb of Dakar. There's supposed to be a couple dozen artists who just rent small studios up there and I think it would be interesting to get to meet them. We tried today but couldn't find the bus. Maybe next week. That's all for now, hope it's not too cold back in the States!