Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Finally, all this heat has paid off!

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The spike in temperature with the rainy season has resulted in the most fantastic sunsets this past week in Dakar, Senegal

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The sun setting over the Atlantic Ocean - The Corniche in Dakar

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The sun setting over Dakar's Grand Mosque

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Couldn't resist another shot of the colors behind the mosque!

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The last remnants of light over the Plateau area of Dakar

Sunday, August 28, 2011

A Call to Prayer in Les Almadies

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As Ramadan nears nears its end, a man prays in Les Almadies, Dakar, Senegal

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Iles de la Madeleine and the coast of Dakar

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The Corniche and Mermoz - Dakar

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The mural at the underpass at the Monument of the African Renaissance

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A mosque being built in Les Almadies
In Senegal, mosques begin their calls to prayer regardless if the mosque is not completed 


Thursday, August 25, 2011

The Canal Road

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Shoe shopping on the Canal Rd in Dakar, Senegal

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The canal

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Furniture for sale, for repair...for storage? It's a bit unclear, but furniture like this lines the Canal Rd.

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The Canal Rd.

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Drying laundry

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Life on the Canal Rd.

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Sunday, August 21, 2011

Soumbédioune



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Two boys at Soumbédioune, Dakar, Senegal
It's hard not to take a photo when they pose so proudly!

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In desperate need of rain

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This past week is the first real rain in Dakar this rainy season.
How different Soumbédioune looks during the driest weeks before the rain

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Soumbédioune

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a boy leaving Soumbédioune down the Canal Rd

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I couldn't resist a second version of the previous photo;
different boy leaving Soumbédioune towards the Supreme Court (in background)

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I was trying to take a photo of the bench, but when this guy came back to pose, a photo was necessary!

Thursday, August 18, 2011

The Lighthouse & Senegalese Hip Hop!

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Leaving Dakar, Senegal's lighthouse

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The lighthouse

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Friends leaving the lighthouse

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Stopped by the Institut Français Léopold Sédar Senghor in Dakar to experience some Senegalese hip-hop
This is Bideew Bou Bess--They won Youssou N'Dour's music competition
And started performing in this hoods with their logo on their lower back


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The performed in Wolof, Arabic, French, some occasional English, and some languages I didn't recognize

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Which caused my friend and me some confusion during this number as the men in animal masks jumped and danced around during a spoken word piece.
We suspect it was a folk tale..but who knows!

Here's one of their songs with some fantastic imagery around Senegal:



Here's another video with a different sound but from a local music channel:




check out Bideew Bou Bess's website!


Monday, August 15, 2011

Babacar's Recycled Art -- Tin Can Style!


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Recycled Art: Tin can art by Babacar and his brothers

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Even the trucks are loaded up ridiculously high--just like the actual ones on the road
that I find myself saying a prayer every time I pass that they won't topple over on me

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Amazingly creative, isn't it?  Especially when you realize that it was once soda cans

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I admit: I have a fanta, coca-cola, and a tomato can tray

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recycling at its finest: nothing is wasted
that kettle on the floor can be found in every Senegalese household

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Santa Claus!  Behind him is a sous-verre painting
(Or Senegalese glass painting)

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Babacar came from Mali and opened up a little studio near Soumbédioune
He's been so successful supplying boutiques around Dakar that
he's just opened up this little shop next door
I suspect my patronage over the years has played a part :)

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car rapides, VW Beetles, scooters, planes!

15 December 2013 update:
I've just learned that Babacar has his own website showcasing his lovely art.
Check it out here!
It even has photos of his new studio, completed just prior to my departure from Dakar.
(Thanks, Matthias, for letting me know!)

18 July 2012 update:
Babacar's been featured on a segment by the BBC!
So excited that this hidden gem of Dakar is getting his due--
Check his interview out here.




Saturday, August 13, 2011

Train station in Dakar? Yes! Trains that actually use it? Skeptical...

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The train station in Dakar, Senegal

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Hanging out at the station.  The train has tracks to Bamako, Mali.
I'm told trains run between the two...I'll believe it when I actually see it.

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a man selling peanuts and small groceries near the station

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A close up of the station's beautiful mosaics

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women street vendors
look closely, you'll see everything from mangos to papayas to palm oil to peanuts to cashews
and this man is a perfect example of how tall the Senegalese are

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Playing fusball at the station.  Everywhere I've been in Senegal--
major cities, small villages, huts in the middle of absolutely nowhere--has had a fusball table.


Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Philip Monteiro!!

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Philip Monteiro at the Institut Français Léopold Sédar Senghor in Dakar, Senegal

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He has a very island, West African vibe to his music

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these women performed an amazing combination of mbalax and belly dancing

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He opened with an absolutely fantastic cover of the Black Eyed Peas' Tonight's Going to be a Good Night

I didn't film the cover, but here's a quick taste of his music:

and here's a better quality one that has a full song:

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Notre-Dame des Victoires de Dakar

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The confessionals and Stations of the Cross in Notre-Dame des Victoires de Dakar
[Our Lady of Victories] - Plateau, Dakar, Senegal

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The dome

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The Baptismal Font

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It is Dakar's Cathedral and also known as La Cathédrale du Souvenir Africain de Dakar
[Cathedral of African Remembrance]

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2011 marks its 75th anniversary

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After Sunday Mass

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A close up of the unusual painting on the Dome

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A close of up the facade's statues.  
It reads "To the Virgin Mary, Mother of Jesus the Savior"



For more information on the Cathedral


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