My First Semester After Undergrad

By the time kids are out of school for winter break, I'll be finishing up my training in Senegal. I start my training on Septemeber 27th. Two days after I leave home. For the next three months, I will be in class just like the rest of you college kids. I must admit that ever since graduation I've constantly felt more and more stupid every day. I really miss the classroom. I will be learning three different categories while I'm there. First, I have to touch up my foreign language. The official language there is French, though they do have a few other languages. Wolof, an arabic? language, is spoken throughout the country as well. I haven't spoken a lick of French since I took two years of it in highschool. Though I did take four years of Italian in college and they're close enough. I'm nowhere close to being fluent in Italian, but I can make conversation with the Don on his daughter's wedding day. I also have to go through a cultural understanding class. Here they'll teach me everything I need to know about Senegal. I'll learn the what-to-dos and the what-nots. They'll teach us how to shop for food, clothes and supplies without being screwed by the locals. Mostly it will be a class on how to interact with a different society that's nowhere close to ours. The last class will be technical. I'll begin training in my field. It won't be intensive because I can't really learn so much without actually being in my official community and on the job. After my three months are up, I'm either sworn in or sent home. If I don't work my butt off you all might see my around Christmas, but don't count on it. I live for challenges. All of my training will take place in a city called Thies. It's the second largest city in Senegal, following Dakar-the capitol. The town is said to be very peaceful and I'll only be a short distance from the Atlantic Ocean. I don't know where I'll be after Thies, but I will let everyone know. I can't post the village I'll be in for the following two years for security reasons, though important people will know right away. Hopefully I will meet new friends and learn interesting cultural norms in these few months. Once I get pictures and get settled in, I will make sure that you'll see how my life turns out. Take care for now.