Phases of the Moon

At the end of September, everyone in Senegal was waiting for the new moon and the end of the holy month of Ramadan. It was overcast on the first night so the holiday, called Eid-al-Fitr in most countries but Korite in Senegal, which celebrates the end of the fast was called for the second night.

I was happy to see the new moon even if I had not spent the previous 30 days fasting from sun up to sundown each day. The streets have become lively again, business that closed for the month have reopened, and people who I would see lounging in the shade all day are up and about. I was selfishly relived to see my co-workers eating breakfast and lunch again as I always felt uncomfortable breaking for lunch when others were not. I am also happy for more company at lunch time too!

I have never before been to a country much less lived in one where the majority of the population is Muslim. Living in the US sometimes it is easy to have a very black and white view of individuals that practice the Muslim faith and that view is typically very negative. The Muslim faith was first introduced in the north of Senegal about a millennium ago but most of the followers of Islam here are far from the fundamentalist types that we hear about in the news. Muslims here are divided into different brotherhoods that have a leader that decides the interpretation of the Koran which tends to be fairly liberal I am told. I see maybe 2 or 3 women a day who are wearing a head scarf and have not seen anyone wearing a chadors. I was told before coming here to make sure to wear modest clothes, such as skirts below the knee and no revealing tops, but since my arrival I have found that the way I dress is frequently more modest than many of the young women I see on the street.

Days in Senegal like in other Muslim countries are marked by prayers, 5 different times a day preceded by ritual washing of hands, feet, and face and then the ubiquitous call to prayer over the loud speaker on the mosque. Many people go to the mosque to pray, others pray wherever they are which might be next to their fruit stand or in their shop. A few times I have come upon one of the mosques in my neighborhood during the noontime prayer; it is an impressive site to behold. Those who arrive once the mosque is full lay their prayer rugs on the sidewalk or even the street in perfect rows all facing Mecca. Then suddenly everyone stands, kneels, and prays together. It always makes me pause to watch this ritual prayer and to pray myself.

The Moon is a half full now, ten days after Korite, indicating not only a return to normalcy but also that I have been in Dakar 2 months now. Before I arrived in Dakar I knew that my second month here would be one of my hardest as the newness of the place would have worn off and work would become busier. The past month was, as I had predicted, difficult and even knowing that it would be only made it marginally easier to get through. Now as I pass the two month mark I can say that I am far less lonely even if I spend many of my evenings alone and that although work continues to be busy I am more use to it now. I am settling into a routine which starting next week will include Wolof lessons and trips to the gym, as well as dinner with friends.