In Senegal, part 2
Ian was a bit anxious to go to his village because he had to take care of the well he was building with the villagers, so we took the earliest Neokolo lines truck-bus to Salemata that we could get. We got off the bus at Diarapont, the bridge that lends its name to the village where Ian works. The driver climbed up on top of the bus and untied our bikes, then handed them down. We got on and started riding the 3 km to the village, but halfway there Ian stopped to talk to an old man we were passing on the road. It turns out that Ian's (village) grandmother had died, just two days before, and the funeral had been yesterday. She was the oldest woman in the village, and was more or less the matriarch of the place. In fact, she was far older than the village, which has only been around for about 35-40 years. She was one of the adults who initially came down the mountains from Guinea to found the place.
Not long after we arrived, a visitor arrived at the family compound to pay his respects, the first of many who would come to do so while we were there. He had rode on his motorcycle, on the treacherous and difficult gravel road down the mountain, but as soon as he arrived, he got off his bike, fell to his knees, and started wailing. The family members came and started crying and wailing with him, joining him on the ground, holding each other and rocking back and forth. Eventually it settled down, and the people sat in groups, mostly talking sadly and quietly, but with the occasional burst of laughter. I didn't need Ian's translation to realize that they were reminiscing and telling each other stories about the deceased; some things are universal. Ian told us that this is normal for a Pular funeral: they usually spend 1 day in abject mourning, but then quickly return to normal. The difference here was that because the woman was so important to people in other places, mourners were arriving all week, prolonging the bereavement.
After the family and the new visitor had talked together for a while, we were invited to join them for dinner. This is when we got our first taste of truly typical Senegalese food.
It was terrible.
It was rice with peanut sauce, and I will share the recipe here in case anyone wants to try a little taste of the Senegalese countryside at home:
Ingredients:
White Rice
Peanuts
1. Shell peanuts, then grind them into a very fine paste/liquid. You can skip this step by purchasing unflavoured, unsalted, sugar free peanut butter.
2. Cook rice.
3. Heat up peanut butter.
4. Put rice in a huge bowl, then pour hot peanut butter on top.
5. Serve.
Note: I do not recommend actually trying this at home. It's exactly as good as it sounds.
To be continued...
Not long after we arrived, a visitor arrived at the family compound to pay his respects, the first of many who would come to do so while we were there. He had rode on his motorcycle, on the treacherous and difficult gravel road down the mountain, but as soon as he arrived, he got off his bike, fell to his knees, and started wailing. The family members came and started crying and wailing with him, joining him on the ground, holding each other and rocking back and forth. Eventually it settled down, and the people sat in groups, mostly talking sadly and quietly, but with the occasional burst of laughter. I didn't need Ian's translation to realize that they were reminiscing and telling each other stories about the deceased; some things are universal. Ian told us that this is normal for a Pular funeral: they usually spend 1 day in abject mourning, but then quickly return to normal. The difference here was that because the woman was so important to people in other places, mourners were arriving all week, prolonging the bereavement.
After the family and the new visitor had talked together for a while, we were invited to join them for dinner. This is when we got our first taste of truly typical Senegalese food.
It was terrible.
It was rice with peanut sauce, and I will share the recipe here in case anyone wants to try a little taste of the Senegalese countryside at home:
Ingredients:
White Rice
Peanuts
1. Shell peanuts, then grind them into a very fine paste/liquid. You can skip this step by purchasing unflavoured, unsalted, sugar free peanut butter.
2. Cook rice.
3. Heat up peanut butter.
4. Put rice in a huge bowl, then pour hot peanut butter on top.
5. Serve.
Note: I do not recommend actually trying this at home. It's exactly as good as it sounds.
To be continued...
Comentários