No wa'ii? (What's up?)

I'VE CONVERTED TO ISLAM!!

Just kidding, Mom. This picture is actually from yesterday which was the culmination of Ramadan, a festival called Korite, where after going to an outdoor service everyone spends the day, well, eating, where they couldn't before, and going around to the houses of friends and family asking for "forgiveness" - it's all a very cleansing thing, Ramadan.
In any case, it was also the culmination of our longest homestay experience to boot, 10 days, and I'm both proud and a little impressed to say that upon our return to the training center today, all 40 of our original "stage" are still present and accounted for. It really was a great 10 days, though not without it's challenges...as one of my fellow trainees commented, I'm already a pretty seasoned Peace Corps volunteer after only a few weeks, and I fought the urge to tell her that, no, my last name just happens to be Sullivan; I'd be more worried if everything had gone completely without incident.
My return to the homestay started out great, and I continued my record of being in Senegal upwards of three weeks without having any digestive issues. However, Friday night, my bean sandwich I had tried for the first time that afternoon for the "fast-breaking"fought back, and needless to say I was glad I had purchased some buckets a few days prior. My Senegalese parents came to check on me, and I attempted to sleep it off for what was left of the night; however, I wouldn't sleep for very long before a passing monsoon would reveal that my roof contained about 6 or 7 leaks from which there was no escape, and at 7am it became a mad dash to pack everything back up and find a dry spot for it until the rain passed. This is where I will give Peace Corps its due credit, because after I decided to call and let someone know what was going on in my room, it was within the hour that the homestay coordinators were at my door, apologizing profusely.
Unfortunately, it was their decision that I should move out until repairs could be made, and given the Senegalese sense of hospitality, my family must have felt terribly that they had failed me in some way. However, they still remain my family, as I was moved to another house in Pout where one of our trainers is staying, a mansion really, that had an extra room but no Pula Futa speakers, so I live in once house and then go to visit my family for meals and to practice language. Despite this inconvenience, it is more than made up for by the fact that my new house has Western-style toilets (meaning I can sit to poop).
The last few days, however, did pass without incident and were a lot of fun, especially getting to be the Toubab (foreigner) being paraded around by my family in his native Senegalese garb, and even getting to participate in the prayers in the AM. But, now I have an ear infection, which I haven't had since I was approximately 6. Peace Corps is again taking good care of me, and the same afternoon after I reported it, I have drugs on the way.
Today was also monumental in the Peace Corps trainee universe, because we were presented with our sites that we'll be spending the next two years working in! Despite how my description of my site might sound, I really am excited. First off, it's in the Kedougou region of the country, the South-East, which is the Country Director's favorite region and one where he has high expectations for his volunteers (but being the CD's favorites doesn't hurt). Second, I am in a village surrounded by mountains, which houses approximately 200 people, about half the size of my graduating class from high school. It's easily the most isolated site of nearly ALL the sites presented today, but I think I'm up for the challenge and I was honored to get such a distinct assignment...no one's been sent there for over 12 years!
We leave tomorrow for our visits with current Peace Corps volunteers in our regions for a week-long "shadowing" experience, which I'm very excited for since we'll be going to the Kedougou region and I'll be able to see some of what I'm in for.
Thanks to everyone who's been sending me their well-wishes and telling me about how things are going back in the States; I love hearing from you, so keep them coming. If you really are interested in sending me a package (which I got today - THANKS MOM!), I'll post a list of things that would be useful for me to have at site.

Talk to you again soon!

En ontuma,

Steve "Adraman Barry" Sullivan

Pics: my "classroom", and some of my siblings