Tabaski

Tabaski: A quick history
Tabaski is a Muslim holiday celebrating the story of Ibrahima (Abraham) who was told by Allah (God) to sacrifice his son. Ibrahima obeyed but Allah spared his son and provided a ram to be slaughtered instead. As a celebration, each Muslim family prays and slaughters a sheep every year around late November.

The party(s) were excellent and lasted several days. Here's a quick daily summary...

Tabaski Day 1:
- Cleaned my compound and took the trash out on our horse with my brothers.
- Dressed in awesome Senegalese garb to go to the local mosque to pray with my family and the entirety of my town.
- Watched and helped slaughter our sheep. I skinned a sheep for the first time ever.
- Ate snacks of fried/grilled goat before lunch
- All the nearby neighbors came and ate lunch with us around 3pm. There were close to 40 people in my compound
- Slept very well that night

Tabaski Day 2:
- Breakfast: Sheep inards and couscous. That was the first time eating sheep brains for breakfast. First time eating them period.
- Church (The Catholic celebration)
- In evening there were not 1 but 2 parties: A "fete Sereer" and a "soiree" The fete was more traditional with lots of drums. The soiree was for the younger teens with loud hip hop music, both Senegalese, French, and American.
** I was already well known, but now I'm known in the town as the Chinese boy who is a great Senegalese dancer...

Tabaski Day 3: Rest, naps, and more sheep inards for breakfast.

Now, life is slowly returning back to normal. For those three days, no one worked, just prayed and ate.

I'm officially partied out. Time to get back to work...

--
Byron Yee
Peace Corps Volunteer - Senegal, 2009