About Rachael Cullins

Recent Posts by Rachael Cullins

4 Frustrating Things About Living in Senegal

I like my life about 99 percent of the time. But sometimes I worry I give stumblers upon my blog who are soon to live in or visit Dakar the wrong impression with my glittery unicorn of a blog. There are things that suck, just like anywhere. (Although I do occasionally commute to work on a rainbow and gumdrops fall from the sky each weekend.)

Complaining is difficult for me, because we want for nothing and big glasses of white wine don’t taste great when you’re living a privileged life in a third-world country. But here’s a shot at some things I don’t like about Senegal (oh, this is painful…):

1. No personal space on sidewalks
Josh asked me for my number-one complaint about Senegal and I said this. See that pretty sidewalk up there? If one was, say, huffing through an evening jog on said sidewalk and there was but one person heading the opposite way, they’d somehow manage to take up the whole damn thing. I can’t count the number of times I’ve had to jump off the curb into the street to continue running, crash partway through the foliage, or turn sideways to squeeze past someone. There is no concept of “scooching over” in Senegal, even when a lumbering, tired runner is heading straight toward your face.

2. “Oh, you’re fatter!”
In Senegal, it’s a good thing for a woman to beef up. Girl, if you thick, you healthy. But that’s obviously not the mindset for many Western women. Just yesterday, my best Senegalese friend happily told me that, roughly translated, I’d “enhanced my weight a little” since the first time he saw me. Now, that may very well be true, because I’ve managed to put on about 7 pounds since we moved here, what with all the weekend beverages and palm oil-covered plates of ceebu jen. My girlfriends have experienced similar incidents. I explained to my pal that he should never say something like to an American girl. Ever. Unless he’s not all that fond of his man parts, that is.

3. The street vendors
Most of the time, the guys hawking various crap on the streets – everything from Phil Collins CDs to brooms to remote controls – are ok. Ignore them or say no, and they go away. A few, though, are relentless. When I reallyreallyreally don’t want to buy a random watch but the sales pitch gets forceful, it bugs me.

4.  There are no visas in my pocket
I’ve only had this happen to me with one person in Senegal, but it perturbed me enough to write about it. A man at the grocery store has approached me on two separate occasions to ask me to take him to America with me. I explained it’s not that easy – he needs an immediate family member who’s a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident to petition for him, or to study there, or to get an employer sponsor. He’s not convinced, though, and thinks I can just “invite” him there because I’m a U.S. citizen. I explained it doesn’t work like that, not even for a tourist visa for a Senegalese citizen. He started to get a bit upset with me, as if I were lying to him, and held my arm and wouldn’t let me leave the store.

It makes me sad someone is that desperate to go to the United States and leave their home country. Regardless, I can’t take you with me, grocery-store man. I jokingly suggested we get married, since that’d be one of the easiest ways for him to immigrate. He grabbed my hand and immediately said yes.

A fall wedding sounds lovely.

(By the by, lots of expats here complain about the trash. There’s no public trash service and people litter – a lot. If you’re coming here, expect it. It doesn’t bother me, so it’s not on my bitch-and-moan list. Perhaps because I tend toward slovenliness myself. )

Berlin’s Faux-Village Alexanderplatz

Alexanderplatz – one of the main squares in Berlin – isn’t really known for its looks. But this little faux-village set up among the businesses and subway bustle was quite sweet and was a pleasure to walk through at night. Little kids on a merry-go-round, the smell of roasted almonds in the air, everyone bundled up in coats….

 

4 Interesting & Historical Things to do in Berlin

Contrary to most of my chatter, we did in fact do more in Berlin than run and watch a half-marathon. Because my love of enumeration is ever-lasting, here are four of the most interesting things we did during our Berlin excursion.

1. Toured an underground bomb shelter

This English-language guided tour took us beneath one of Berlin’s U-bahn stations, through restored bomb-shelter areas used during World War II when train-riders were forced to hide during raids. Although we weren’t allowed to take photos in most of the rooms, the photo-approved location in the image above shows some of the original beds used during long raids. The tour also took us past the bathrooms (totally more interesting than it sounds – people often committed suicide in the stalls), the holding rooms where candles would measure the levels of available oxygen for passengers, and much more. The collection of historical artifacts was great – board games teaching kids what to do during a bomb scare, war propaganda manufactured by the German government, old war-items-turned-household-goods, such as a Nazi helmet made into a colander. We learned a lot and the tour was well worth $10.

If you’re going to Berlin and interested in the tour, you can find more information at www.berliner-unterwelten.de.

2. The Stasi Museum

Pre-wall fall, Germany was quite Orwell-esque in its Big Brother spying techniques. The German Democratic Republic had an extensive monitoring system led by the Ministry of State Security (a.k.a. the “Stasi”), which employed more than 90,000 people at its height, plus more than 170,000 unofficial informants.

Stasi leaders modeled their organization after the Soviet KGB and would regularly arrest people who appeared in any way to be against the East German regime. Surveillance, especially in workplaces, apartment buildings, schools, etc., was huge. Tiny cameras to monitor citizens’ daily activities were planted everywhere from tree stumps to purses to trash cans. The museum has a great collection of these spy devices, plus original office spaces for Stasi leaders, like the one above.

More information: www.stasi-museum.de

3. Topographie des Terrors

Thoroughly depressing yet extremely interesting and well-done, the Topography of Terrors maps the anatomy of the Nazi regime. Photo- and text-heavy displays leave nothing to the imagination; sections are divided by country or demographic (i.e., children, homosexuals, Jews) and detail how each was affected – and slaughtered – by Hitler and his cronies. You can also check out a still-standing section of the Berlin Wall next to the museum and walk past the former sites of Nazi government buildings, such as the Gestapo headquarters.

Admission is free; more information at www.topographie.de.

4. Stroll down Unter den Linden

Starting just past Berlin’s huge TV tower (above) and the beautiful Berliner Dom, Unter den Linden is one of the most historic streets in the city. A one-hour walk on this road – ending at the Brandenburg Gate – takes you past the Lustgarten, site of many a Nazi rally; the childhood palace of Frederick the Great; luxury automobile showrooms that even a non-motorhead can enjoy; and more.

Dakar Scooters: Not Exactly the Safest Transport…

Riding a scooter in Dakar is dangerous. The crappy drivers, the crowded roundabouts, the lack of turn signals or brake lights – it’s an easy way to get smushed.

Therefore, you should find a scooter-owning friend and go for a ride as soon as possible.

 

Food, Drinks, Movies & Giant Bronze Penises in Berlin

We learned a lot, we (er, I) ran a lot – but Berlin still presented some fun things to do. Four more great things to take in…

1. Reacquainted ourselves with fast-food gluttony

I didn’t think I missed fast food until we caught sight of the Golden Arches in the Madrid airport on our way to Berlin. McMuffin. Bacon. Take-away counter service instead of a waiter (just about, oh, nowhere in Dakar does this). I’m surprised I got a picture of my glorious breakfast sandwich before it was devoured.

2. Acquainted ourselves with German gluttony

Excuse me, I think I need a little more celery with my Bloody Mary. This minuscule stalk will just not suffice.

Dakar has no shortage of good restaurants, but food in Berlin was even more yum. We ate at three great places in particular: the oldest restaurant in the city, which has served famed patrons such as Beethoven, Angela Merkel, and me; a Jules Verne-themed place that had awesome brunch; and a pub that gave me a cherry-flavored beer that changed my life.

3. Went to the erotikmuseum

If you’re offended by a picture of a big, bronze weiner on this blog, I’m truly sorry. Now go away.

It was cold in Berlin (great for running, not great for walking around when I’ve officially become wimpy and Senegal-blooded), so some indoor activities were necessary. Visiting a sex museum was an entertaining way to kill an afternoon. Did you know the Japanese used tied-on, reusable cloth condoms in the olden days? Use that for a ice-breaker at your next dinner party.

4. Saw a movie in English

Pre-Senegal, I would have shot myself in the toe before going to a movie on vacation. But movie-going was on my things-I-really-like-to-do list in America and Dakar has zero theaters – so one night, after all the touristy spots had closed and we’d finished up dinner and drinks – a late-night flick sounded amazing. We got popcorn and the biggest Diet Pepsi I’ve ever seen. We saw a movie called “Shame” starring Carey Mulligan and it was, er, graphic to say the least. See the above photo of the golden penis for clues.

Jacky Sall to Lead Senegal

According to various news sources, Senegal has a new president, Macky Sall. Assuming the hand-off of power is smooth and uneventful, this is great news for Senegal (and sets a good example for other West African nations). There were reports of vote-buying, paid “supporters” – but people stayed informed and determined, and there was a high voter turnout today for this second round of elections.

I got a text from my best Senegalese friend as soon as the reports came out that President Wade called Sall to concede defeat, and one of our night guards did quite a crazy African dance when we went outside to tell him congratulations. Our friends around town are reporting celebrations in the streets. Felicitations, Senegal.

Side note: living here has made me realize how, well, big America is. The comments below the elections story on Seneweb included phrases (in English) like “YES WE CAN!” and “YES WE DID!” All political persuasions aside, it shows how closely watched the U.S. of A. really is. From Rihanna on the radio to random backpacks with President Obama’s face on them, ‘merica is permeating.

Scenery In Senegal

This photo, taken in Palmarin, Senegal a few weekends ago gave me a “Huh, I do live in Africa!” moment. The random cows in the road and begging children by my car must not be enough for me.

The reserve we camped in near Palmarin was so beautiful. The landscape was (obviously) pretty and it was a nice escape from the everyday honking and bustle of Dakar. Just us, the mangroves, and two people in our group passing horrid gas in a small tent. Ahh, what comes with travel.

Senegal’s Palmarin via a SEPT “Vehicle”

 

Recently, we took at voyage to Palmarin, a town about five hours south of Dakar, with two of our closest pals. We kayaked, we slept in little tents on the beach, we used the bathroom outside sans toilet paper. It was utterly fantastic (and surprisingly chilly and windy!).

Our transportation to Palmarin and back was a sept place, a station wagon-esque vehicle that, true to its name, seats seven (sept!) people. In actuality, we didn’t take “a” sept place. We took three.

The heyday of sept places, if there ever was one, has passed. These vehicles were made in the mid- to late-1980s and are, by and large, rumbly, rusty and sputtering on their last fumes. I, for one, think this mode of transport is awesome. Foam-spewing seats and uncertain engine reliability are the spice of life.

We suffered a flat tire on the way to Palmarin – no problem, we had a spare and were back on the road within 10 minutes. On our return trip, the same sept place suffered a bit of a transmission problem, and by “bit of a problem,” I mean the transmission completely blew, leaving us stranded on a little dirt road just outside Palmarin with about 12 minutes of cell phone battery life among us. Luckily, we reached our kakaying guide and help was soon on its way.

Cue sept place number two. This driver agreed to take us as far as Mbour, about two hours south of home. We agreed and cut through many dirt-roaded villages…and suffered our second flat tire of the weekend. We sat in the weeds and played cards while we waited for our driver to slap on the spare. A random Senegalese woman accompanied us for this part of our trip. She didn’t say a word the entire time.

After finally reaching Mbour, we (a.k.a. our Wolof-speaking friend) negotiated our third and final sept place, in a big parking lot of sept places, taxis and buses. The four of us were joined by a booming-voiced man who was also heading to Dakar. We made great time and got back to the city well before dark.

Total sept place cost for the weekend: about $105.

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