Happy St. Paddy's Day

I'm hanging out at a cafe called "Times Cafe," which pretends to be NY-inspired, but still serves traditional Senegalese fare for dinner.  But, they do make a good latte.  And, it's close to my swanky temporary headquarters at the Place de l'Independance downtown.  As I think I already mentioned, I'm kitty-sitting for the lady who took care of Minou while I was gone, and so I have been enjoying the chance to live downtown for a week.  The transition from her super-silent apartment (the generator makes no noise, and since it's 6 floors up, the deafening noise of the streets below is severely muted) to the raging hustle-bustle below is quite shocking.  Every time I leave the apartment and enter the street, it hits me - "Oh, yeah!  I'm in Africa!" because of course her apartment is a little American haven, with English books, American grocery treats, etc. 

Today I hung out with my friend Serge, a former drummer who played at the 1966 festival.  He has a keen musical ear and great taste, so it's always fun just to hang out with him, listen to music and talk.  He has very strong opinions about music and about the recent 2010 rendition of the festival, and luckily for me, he has thoroughly documented the process of its manifestation in the form of a highly-self-editorialized scrapbook.  In the margins of various articles he has written all sorts of critiques and scathing puns that make fun of the folly of the festival's organization, etc.  To him, the first festival was so meaningful and carries such strong memories for him, that to have seen the current one unfold so differently has felt almost like a personal insult.  At any rate, I appreciate his perspective as one among many, and his candor is refreshing.  He's been very weloming and very generous with his time, his thoughts, and his information.  So, thanks, Serge!  (And thanks, Zal, for introducing me to him!) (My friend Zal is a drummer I met while playing at l'Endroit, and Serge has been his drumming mentor since he was a teenager). 

So, in other news, I won't be downtown to see it tomorrow since I (alas) have to move back to my regular apartment (which, don't get me wrong, I am quite happy in, but it ain't no embassy pad, let me tell you), so I won't be there to witness firsthand what will come of the proposed protest at Place de l'Independence for tomorrow.  I have heard mixed reports.  The news report I read said that the Lebou, an ethnic group who has its own grievances against the government, are the ones responsible for plannng it.  But other people I know have said they've heard it's just to be a mass protest generally, and of course there's always something to be discontent about here - the power outages that leave everyone but the wealthy without power for an increasingly large percentage of every day, for instance (in some areas, as little as one hour of power a day!).  Supposedly the governent and police are prepared to act should it get out of hand, and some wonder if things will get violent.  My Senegalese friends, one and all, scoff at the whole idea.  Many of the protesters claim they want to do a Tunisia-Egypt-Libya-type affair, but my friends point out, logically, that of course the history here is entirely different:  there hasn't been any decades-long dictatorship here, and elections are scheduled for just a year from now (although it's true the current President wants to run again and technically I don't think he's allowed to but he wants to change the rules and run anyway).  And, my friends also point out, the Senegalese do not have a history of violent protests, and when push comes to shove they won't have it in them to hurt each other.  I, too, seriously doubt that anything particularly newsworthy will happen tomorrow, but just to reassure any of you inclined to worry, I won't be anywhere near where any of this is happening and will instead be safely tucked away in my Baobab-neighborhood apartment.  So, don't you worry!  And I'll be sure to give you all a full report on what goes down. 

I guess that's it for now.  I'm taking advantage of my last night in America-ville to attend a beading party.  Not exactly my normal evening's entertainment of choice, but the idea of hanging out with other Americans (other embassy employees who live in the same building), speaking English and "crafting" actually sounds quite appealing right now.  So - yay!  Crafting!

I'll post a picture if I make anything interesting.  So, that's all for today!

AND:  HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!