DOmanding Domanding in Mandinka means “slowly, slowly.”

We have been here in the Gambia for a little over one week now. If I had to chose The first few words that come to mind to describe the experience of being here so far, they would be: HOT!, greetings, food.

• I have been in incredibly hot places, but this is a wet blanket, sauna, humid kind of heat. I don’t think that my hair has dried once since being here. Thankfully it is pretty socially acceptable to be sweaty.

• Gambians have infinite greetings! they are Incredibly warm and social. YOu say hello and then say hello again. then you say how your family is doing at home and where the people of the compound are. Then you reassure them that there is no trouble and wish them peace. then you might get asked all of that all over again!

• Food= the Gambian Love language. My host sister makes the largest, greasiest, most delicious meals and then gets mad at me when i don’t finish all the food in the bowl. this is the land of carbs and greasy meat. every meal (breakfast, lunch and dinner) comes with an entire baguette of fresh bread (yes, like the long skinny kind you can find at Kroger, but better!). Yesterday i didn’t have much of an appetite for breakfast so my sister made me a whole fried fish with eyeballs over rice for lunch. When i didn’t eat that, she got worried and went out to buy me deep fried fish cakes. she tore off pieces and put them up to my mouth to eat. She doesn’t speak any english, but her warmth and concern for me is clear as day. she force feeds me. but I’m thankful.

For our first four nights, we did not spend the night in the same place. due to some logistical issues we were moved into our training villages early. by early, I mean moving in with our host families who speak little to no english with only “Salaamalaikum/Malaykumsalam” in our language toolbox. there are three languages you can learn here in the Peace corps Gambia: Mandinka, Pulaar, and Wolof. these are Three different ethnic groups that volunteers can be placed in. with 13 volunteers in my cohort total: 7 are learning Mandinka, 3 are learning Pulaar and 3 are learning Wolof.

you would think that because my fiance is Mandinka i would be learning fast, but it has been a slow process for me. I need more flash cards! but I know i will learn with time and practice.

pace and time exist differently here. In many ways it has been a blur, while in other ways time stands still. I’ve only been here a week so far, but i would say that among all the major differences between life here in the Gambia and life at home in america that i have witnessed so far, time is the most bizarre difference. Half the time I don’t know what day it is or what time it is. But, socially there is just a rythym that you somehow understand. when to eat, to get up with the rooster crowing, when to rest, when to worry about where to be, etc.

getting water or doing laundry at home would involve walking to the sink or throwing in a load. to get water here you walk some ways to the public tap to walk with a sloshing bucket of water on your head and spend an hour HAND WASHING and hanging your clothes on a line.

this week feels like I’ve been here three months, while also feeling like today was only a few hours.

regardless, Domanding, domanding. Slowly, Slowly.

(The content of this website is mine alone and does not reflect the views of the U.S. Government, the Peace Corps, or the Gambian Government.)