Af-riikka

* marabout: "Today marabouts can be traveling holy men who survive on alms, religious teachers who take in young talibes at koranic schools, or distinguished religious leaders and scholars, both in and out of the sufi brotherhoods which dominate spiritual life in Senegambia" (Wikipedia) The great mosque of Touba in Senegal. Last week-end I visited the city of Touba : the holy city of Mouridism , the second-biggest Muslim brotherhood in Senegal and the one with most economic and political power. Since its inception in 1888, and especially during the last decades Touba has grown to be the second most important city in Senegal after Dakar. It has also become independent from the Senegalese government and the city runs itself with the donations given by the Mouride community and with its revenues from vast peanut fields. Every year millions of Senegalese and other nationalities flock to Touba for the yearly pilgrimage, Grand Magal - besides the big one, there are several small p...

During the last two weeks my lunches have mostly consisted of apples, porridge or bread with spread cheese and/or sardines. Besides the end of delicious free meals with loads of rice, oil and fish at work, the month of Ramadan in Senegal means that everything slows down when people are more tired due to fasting during daytime. August is one of the hottest months in the region of Thies where I am located, and this does not make fasting easy. Yesterday the rain cooled the temperature to a level where I actually felt cold – this has not happened often since May, so every time when I get shivers I am worried that it might be a fever coming : ) But today the humidity and heat are back, and the sky shows no signs of rain as yet. As it was already difficult to concentrate and keep up the energy levels throughout the hard afternoons before the fasting, I am wondering how do people manage here? Thank God for the rain! I was told before the beginning of Ramadan in Senegal that ”soon you will see...

As in most Muslim countries, henna (in Wolof fuddan ) belongs to the women's beauty traditions in Senegal. The usage and patterns of henna varies from country to country, but in Senegal it has been very different than what I have seen in Morocco or Tanzania, for example. I tried it the first time two days ago, and here's the story: A woman often visiting the project had a few weeks back very beautiful henna patterns on her feet and hands, so I asked where I could get similar ones. She suggested that she could do the henna for me, but of course, she was not the one who had made the ones on her...in any case, the patterns turned out quite nice, though not as artistic as hers. The patterns of henna are made with the help of thin pieces of plastic which have a sticky side and attach to the skin if it is not too sweaty...for me, feet were alright, but hands I had to leave for another time. Then becomes the weird part that I also have not seen in other countries: feet are wrapped in ...