Bonjour a vous tous

Time passes quickly. Centre Sunu Ker has been my home for five weeks now and I already feel integrated with the people living here in Santhiaba. I came to Senegal to complete my internship in French as well as to assist the coordinator of the center, who has fallen ill. Since my arrival, during the period of Ramadan, the activities of the center has been on hold, until two weeks ago when the courses in analfabetism and the children s group started. The activities of the center are evaluating with time. Two weeks ago we started preparing the studio for the childrens club. It s been a lot of hard work since the studio was partly damaged during the rain period. We cleaned, scrubbed, rebuilt and threw away unneccessary material. When the children finally arrived on Wednesday afternoon the studio was as good as new. The motivation of the children was amazing. They were full of inspiration and presented many ideas for the Autumn classes. We already started discussing their future goals and ideal professions. The children s club teaches them to work hard in order to reach their future goals. The children of Santhiaba are the future of Santhiaba. The children s club does not only bring them closer to each other, it also teaches them moral, respect and broadens their general knowledge. They learn how to express themselves through theatre, painting, dancing, building, inventing, decorating among other things.

The literacy courses held for illiterate adults also started two weeks ago at Centre Sunu Ker. Adults of three different levels participate to practice their writing skills as well as their reading comprehension. I find this class particulary important for the people of Santhiaba as it enables them to reach a higher education and improve their French language skills.

The library, one of the few public libraries in Senegal, opens its doors in early November. We have already bought new childrens books in French and we are also about to update the rest of the library.

The locals are showing me around town and I find myself sharing a glass of Senegalese tea together with their good old friends from back in the days and listening to stories about how Centre Sunu Ker has unified a people who grew up having nothing. The center has a lot of capacity to make a change in on of the suburbs of Dakar. The solidarity of the Senegalese people is perhaps what strices me the most with this country. People live here in peace and help each other out when times are rough. Even the rooster and the cat eat together, side by side. I have already found my way to the Senegalese citchen to prepare the thieboudien, having the wife of the coordinator as my master. I study her way of cutting onions in her palm with fascination and I realized that we have a lot to learn from each other. Tuuti tuuti rek, as they say in wolof.

Julia