Newton's First law of Senegal

The other night, I was sitting comfortably and reading a book after dinner time. It was a bit breezy and all of a sudden, a round green object the size of a softball hit my skull.

My first reaction was to yell at the nearest sibling who threw a mango at me, then I realized it was merely Newton's 1st law at work.

If Newton were an African, I'm pretty sure he would've been as startled, confused, and injured as I was that night. By the way, a mango is larger, heavier, and therefore much more painful than an apple...

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Byron Yee

Peace Corps Volunteer - Senegal, 2009

Hosting an Exchange Student

For the past week, I hosted another American named Will, who is studying abroad in Senegal for a semester.

Will was a trooper and walked through the brush, got dirty and dehydrated, and made a decent PCV for a week. Throughout the week, we also studied a bit of French, Wolof, and I gave him my insight into Senegalese culture and society.

Will, thanks for visiting, it was a pleasure and my family (but mainly me) really enjoyed the chicken you bought us for lunch :)

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Byron Yee

Peace Corps Volunteer - Senegal, 2009

"Au Revoir, Madame Dewing"

Last week, a bunch of us business PCVs gathered to send off our program director, Nicole. She'll be leaving Peace Corps Senegal, but due to her passion and resilience for this country, will most likely be back soon in some other form of work and genius.

We had a lovely dinner and a great mini-reunion in Dakar. Nicole, here's to your continuing success in whatever continent you may find yourself *(Insert wishful cup of wine here)

PCVs also took this opportunity to say goodbye to 3 other fun and awesome PCVs, Oliver, Ankith, and Chris P. After some delicious Chinese food and a small party, they got on a plane heading straight for Las Vegas.

Careful guys, your Readjustment Allowance is just that - to readjust to life back in the US. However, if one gambles it all away, you will be broke, jobless, hungover, and still needing to - well, readjust...

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Byron Yee

Peace Corps Volunteer - Senegal, 2009

Master Farmer Program

The Facts: 80% of Senegal's population engages in agriculture as its main source of income. However, only 45% of total consumption is produced by these millions of farmers. Problem.

Peace Corps has teamed up with USAID (the former being the field workers, the latter being the sugar daddy) to train various farmers in select zones of the country. My village has just introduced a new farmer into this program, which is a 4 year contract. The strategy is to train trainers; we train these farmers who are then responsible for teaching the rest of their communities.

So I'll be working hard to help get Mr. Samba Ly set up in hopes and faith that the next set of PCVs to follow can really help him continue his work. So wish us all luck. Its a big project, with lots of potential rewards, but lots of potential pitfalls as well.

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Byron Yee

Peace Corps Volunteer - Senegal, 2009

The 5 Senses of Senegal - Sight

Time for another installment of the 5 Senses of Senegal. Its been written for awhile, just needed the right time and place for sharing and recording it.

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Byron Yee

Peace Corps Volunteer - Senegal, 2009

Photos online!

After a much needed update,

My picasa was just uploaded with all new exciting photos and entertainment. Hopefully, you all enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed these moments.

www.picasaweb.google.com/TheByronYee

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Byron Yee

Peace Corps Volunteer - Senegal, 2009