It’s been a hectic few weeks! I moved into my apartment a two weeks ago. I had a house warming party last weekend where some of my friends came to see where I was living (surprisingly there was good turnout, considering my party-planning skills). Last weekend, I really focused on finding good transportation to the university… and I discovered the clandos! Clandestine taxis are soooo cool! They are illegal taxis that drive people around on set routes, and you only know the routes by taking the clando and asking around. So I spent most of last week learning the clando system and trying to get taxis out to the university. The reason there are so many clandos in my neighborhood is that Yoff is a self-governing city and has few, if any, policemen. Of course if you don’t know clandos exist, it’s pretty difficult trying to figure out why there aren’t any taxis in Yoff.
I also just purchased a bed finally… I have been getting furniture for my room slowly but surely… petit a petit as they say in french. Before I had the mattress, I was sleeping on the floor. So… it’s coming along. I just ordered an armoire and a desk.
I had a stalker all last week, and finally Rebecca confronted him when I was out in the market and we all had it out. He thought she was getting in the way of him and me and I had to explain that no, he was scaring me and he needed to stop following me and looking for me everyday. My favorite person thus far is the boutiquiere… he’s so nice and so cool! Whenever I show up, he always makes sure that he gets around to me, which I’m sure he does for everyone who comes in the boutique, but I don’t have to push and shove my way to front.
I lost my cellphone… so now I have a new number… not that anyone calls it anyway. But for those interested in having it, it’s 011.221.440.0538. I guess on the upside, I have a brand new cellphone. The screen did something funny yesterday, a line of text refused to show up… and so I sent an SMS to the guy who owns the store (he gave me his number so I could come to his place and have tea and discuss the differences between our religions… sounded a bit sketch to me) and then the screen started working again.
At the university, classes have started…well really only two, sort of three. Two professors are showing up on a regular basis. One showed up today to say that he wouldn’t be around till next week. So it’s just a lot of wasted time. I don’t really like wasting my time, so I’m now known as “Katie Sawyer” (as in Tom Sawyer) because I come as irregularly as the professors do. I have made some really nice friends in class. Sandrine is a student, and she’s from Cote D’Ivoire, and she’s really sweet - and always poking fun at others. Ibrahim is another student, he is Senegalese, born in France, studied in England, and is here for a year to check out the Franco-Senegelese school system. He’s so nice, he’s been lending me his notes and helping me find information and giving me a ride home. Today, I was helping a student figure out a french crossword puzzle… I got one word! but it was really easy.
We are waiting to get internet in our apartment… but we have to wait for the guy who lives downstairs, he’s such a nice man, and very powerful. Powerful enough to get an electricity pole that was in the way of his driveway moved about five feet out of the way. It was quite impressive. He is going to get the internet for his house, and I hope he does it soon. He said he would do it within the week but that usually means sometime in the next four weeks. Maybe longer. That’s the update for now.
