Xonee, Xonee

Xonee, Xonee (x makes h sound). This means “slowly, slowly” in Sarahule. This is a great way to describe my learning of a new language so far, ha ha. I have been tasked with learning the language Sarahule, which is one of the less commonly spoken languages in The Gambia. Language training began once I along with some of the other volunteers arrived in the village Madianna. The village is predominantly a Mandika speaking village, which is the language that most of the volunteers placed here will be learning. Other volunteers have been sent to other villages to learn either Wolof or Pulaar.  Only I and one other volunteer have been chosen to learn Sarahule. We arrived at our assigned training villages two weeks agos.  Training so far has consisted mostly of language and cross cultural issues. Part of the cross cultural training includes living like a Gambian. My house is a very simple one room place with no electricity and a pit latrine as a bathroom. I also don’t have running water in my house. I have to fetch water from a tap and carry it in buckets back to my house. I then have to filter and bleach it before I can drink it. I also bathe by simply pouring water from a cup over me. I sleep with a net over my bed to keep the mosquitoes and other creepy crawlies out. Although this seems like hard living, I have actually been able to adjust to this lifestyle rather quickly.

Xonee, xonee is also a great way to describe the lifestyle of the people of my village. No one ever seems to be in a rush. It is never too much trouble to give a polite greeting or to sit down and have a chat. Families eat all meals together. They sit around a large bowl of food and eat with their hands. Meals here consist mostly of rice and other things added with it. There is no 30 minute lunch breaks here, lunch is over when it’s over. The people here have been very accepting of us. A naming ceremony was conducted at the home of the head of the village two weeks ago. There we all received Gambian names. My Gambian name is Bubacar, after my host brother. It is what I will be referred to as throughout my service here. The Village Head advised everyone that we are no longer outsiders, but people of the village. As I learn more about Gambian culture, I find myself further integrating with it. I definitely enjoy sharing a good laugh with my host family and kids around the village. It is also great to relax on a bench and visit with new friends. Xonee, xonee is the way of life here.

I also found out where I am going to be placed after training. I will be in a village called Baja Kunda. It is a big village toward the other side of the country in the area referred to as the Upper River Region (URR). Out of all the volunteers that I came here with, I will be the one that will be placed the furthest into the country. I do not know too much about the village yet, but I imagine that it will be quite similar to how I am living in Madianna. I do know that I will be working in a Basic Cycle School, which includes 1^st through 9^th grades. I will also be close to the river and mangrove swamps, so hopefully I will get a chance to see some hippos and other wildlife!

First View of Gambian Culture

What an amazing last couple of days! On Friday I got to meet the training staff that will be guiding me and the rest of the group in getting prepared for service. They are a wonderful group of people; they’re very friendly and have a lot of positive energy. That is one thing that I have observed so far about Gambians, they enjoy a good laugh and aren’t afraid to smile and wave at you. So far my group and I have received overviews of what to expect during our training. It sounds very intense and will take a lot of work. What most of the volunteers, myself included, are concerned about is learning a new language. We will likely have to learn Wolof, Mandinka, or Pulaar before we can serve. We will also have to undergo cross cultural training as well. We got to experience Gambian culture first hand by viewing a performance by Gambian musicians and dancers. The musicians used mostly drums and singing and at times one of them would blow a whistle. The dancers had a variety of costumes that they would wear, most of which included masks and heavy clothing. We even got to participate in some of the dances, which was very fun.

Yesterday we had a couple of training sessions at the Peace Corps office. Afterwards we headed back to the transit house to pack our stuff. We then hopped into the coaster (our vehicle) and made our way to Yuna Village Garden Resort, where we will continue more training. It was supposed to be about a 30 minute ride from Banjul. However, the coaster over heated and we had to wait for other vehicles to come pick us up. We broke down right by a village compound. Many of the children there saw us and were quick to come over. They were very well mannered and greeted us with smiles and handshakes. I ended up getting my picture taken with some of them. They were really excited once I showed it to them on my camera. Interacting with them was a very enlightening experience. It makes me really look forward to settling into my own village, but first I got about 10 weeks of training to complete.