Better Than the Movies

On June 27th I was flying home to America for my Ramadan vacation and I had a strange sort of experience. I had a comfy seat, good food and a variety of movies to choose from all in front of me. What more could a Peace Corps volunteer want? The odd thing was, I could barely make it through a single movie. I was honestly just bored by them all, which is not a common occurrence for me. And then I realized, it was because my life is actually better than a movie right now. My life is better than a movie. I sound like a total asshat (my new favorite word, courtesy of Azar) for saying that, I know, but it's actually true. And it's the coolest thing. I am at a point in my life where I am really happy- I have great friends, I have adventures, my work is fulfilling and challenging, and I am growing as a person. I am the person I want to be. A person my kid self and my future self could both be proud of. It's a perfect storm of wonderfulness. Life goes in waves and I've certainly had some downs here, but I am on a serious up-swing now and I'm enjoying every minute.

I've done a lot of very cool work-related things recently that I will get into when they are completed, but I've also had the fortune to take on some social and cultural adventures in the past couple months. It's the merging of hard work and exploration that has made me so happy, so here are some of the more colorful (and luxurious) things I've done.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This June was the annual St. Louis Jazz festival. It was one of the best trips I've taken while in Senegal, which is saying something because I've gone to some great places here. I've always loved St. Louis for a variety of reasons. It's a relatively small city and the touristy section I usually keep to is especially small, just one island. Unlike Dakar, enough people speak Pulaar around St. Louis that I can get around fairly easily without having to do the French-Wolof struggle. Mostly though, it is just really beautiful.

Originally the French capital of Senegal, vestiges of French architecture have remained in St Louis but Senegalese style and culture has grown into the bones left behind. The mix of the two is beautiful and vibrant; just the perfect place to have a jazz festival. Throw in the cool ocean breezes, real coffee, crepes to die for and my favorite ever clothing store (http://www.ramadiawfashion.com/about/) and it's a wonder I ever left. My friends and I got rooms in an auberge a little off the island by the ocean, shopped and ate by day and went to the events at night. It was a rare and special occasion for us all to take hot showers, put on a little makeup and act like real people.

-------------
Before I left for America, I left site a tiny bit early to attend Fashion Week in Dakar with my friends Faith and Emily. Although events were going on all week, I made it in just for the Friday night runway finale.

I have been fascinated by Senegalese and West African fashion since I arrived here, buying way too much fabric and making fun clothes for myself and my friends and family. This, of course, was on another level. We shabby Peace Corps volunteers, dressed to our best, were far outmatched by the gorgeous crowd that came to this event, not to mention the models and collections. At the amazing Hotel des Almadies (which, fun fact, owns the beach that is the westernmost part of Africa) the Dakar fashion elite gathered and we watched collections from all over Africa parade down the runway. Coming straight from village that morning made the event that much more stunning, in all senses of the word. Dakar is truly a different world than the rest of Senegal. As much as part of me lamented that this event, this lifestyle, was unreachable to the vast majority of Senegalese people, I was impressed by the creativity and hard work of the designers and models. Overall, it was a mesmerizing event that I am happy I had the fortune to attend.


-------------
After the fashion show, I visited my friend Lindsay's site and we headed back to Dakar together to go on our vacations, her to Israel and me to America. Before we left, we got to watch some World Cup games, attend a pop-up warehouse party, meet other expats in Dakar, go to brunches, and take more hot showers.

And then I found myself on a plane to America. Smiling, fulfilled, and a little bored by the movies.