The Rains...?

I usually wake up every morning around 5:30am for morning prayer call and then promptly back to sleep. This morning, however, I woke up a second time before my alarm to a sound that I just did not comprehend....rain hitting the awning outside of my window. Real, actual, rain. Honestly I thought I was going crazy or just hearing things but I got a text message from Alyssa with news of rain in Thies and saw the two volunteers on either side of my site had posted on facebook about rain. Overreacting much? Have too much time on our hands? Yeah... possibly... but the first rain last year was some time during June. Senegalese responses seem to be between, "CATASTROPHE!" and, "a freak rain. the heat will still come."

The rain seemed to give everyone energy which might sound like a good thing until you're the only white person in the room and, on top of that, a girl. I went to Thies and back but life here isn't that easy (and apparently it's harder after a 15 minute sprinkle). Let's just say every person that saw me today thought it was appropriate to try to talk to me, ask me how I was, ask me to marry them, ask me to buy bananas, or just generally ask for money.

So, what I learned today was that, though the rain brings cooler weather it apparently makes everyone feisty in a kind of annoying way and less enjoyable way. Oh well, I shouldn't be complaining much work is starting to come along. Let's hope the rains hold off for a few more months though - I'll take the heat to not screw up the growing season.

KO