Return to the land of Teranga

This post was originally written in March 2011 when I visited Senegal to plan for a development cooperation project "Woomal 2" between the Guides and Scouts of Finland and Les Eclaireuses et Eclaireurs du Sénégal. The post, however, remained as a draft. In August 2022 I noticed the draft and edited it slightly to be finally published.

My previous post in the end of September 2010 was on my return to Finland. This one will be on my return to Senegal - very intense four days I spent last week in Dakar, Saint-Louis and Mboro. 

Sunrise in Dakar 

Strangely enough, I had more butterflies in my stomach than when arriving in Senegal last time. I felt worried that perhaps I would feel a stranger in the country again. In fact, Senegal is the only country in Africa where I have ever returned second time - and this was already the third time I laid my feet on the ground of Senegal, the country of "teranga" (= hospitality in Wolof language). My fears proved to be wrong, and already on the first night I felt like I had never left the country. Everything seemed so familiar, including Wolof language which I assumed to have forgotten during my 6 months away from Senegal, only with some occasional phone calls from friends and colleagues. 

Environmental education bureau in Saint-Louis 

Most of my time in Senegal was spent in meetings with different people. The aim was to plan for future: what will be done after the current project focusing on environmental education? What themes, which sites and cities of Senegal will be involved? The full project plan is due to be ready by the end of May, and my trip was preparation for that. 

The newly renovated iron bridge of Saint-Louis, designed by Gustav Eiffel famous for a more vertical building in Paris 

Somehow I felt more balanced this time. I was also living a more luxurious life - instead of using public transport, I used taxis for short and long trips because of the lack of time. Schedule was tight, and many things had to be accomplished in a very short time - it was not reasonable to spend two hours in a bus in Dakar, or 6 hours in a seven-seater car from Dakar to Saint-Louis, the way I usually would have travelled last year. Power cut during a football match of Senegal - Cameroun on the TV -> riots on the streets with burning car tyres 

When returning home, I used my time at the Dakar airport by reading one of the Senegalese newspapers, Le Soleil and enjoying my only Flag beer I had time and occasion for in Senegal. A Senegalese movie "Teranga Blues" (2007) came on the TV channel at the airport. I had hoped to see that one for a long time, and only reluctantly moved to the boarding of the plane when the movie had just started. 

It took a while for the bus taking us from the gate to the airplane to start moving. One of the passengers was congratulated and asked to take photos with around half of the airport personnel. Looking at his gear and bag, I realised that he must have been among the Senegalese football team - "Lions of Teranga" - which had just beaten Cameroun 1-0 with an overtime goal. Based on the photos spotted online afterwards, I had Mickaël Tavares from the Senegalese football team on the same plane with me from Dakar to Brussels. 

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