Today I started to learn a tiny bit of wolof. While Brikama is a mandinka area, I am living with wolof family and most of the taxi drivers are wolof speakers. As long as the everyone sticks to one of my 5 standard phrases...I should be able to pass as a local in no time at all! I can ask whether you have peace (Jaama ngaam)? How you are (Nanga def)? How is your family (Ana was ker ga)? How is the work (Naka ligey bi)? What is your name (Naka nga tuda)? I was able to practice on the Peace Corps staff and might start to try my very much beginner skills on everyone I meet.
In other news, despite the fact that the Gambia is in the middle of it's dry season, there are still plenty of mosquitoes As per usual, I already have a handful of bites. Lucky for me, I have anti-malarial drugs to keep my safe-ish. I'm adding the -ish since it's not impossible to get malaria while on anti-malarial drugs. But it is certainly a much lower risk than without the drugs. I'm starting on doxycycline and will transition to mefloquine after two weeks. I am lucky to not have the major side effects associated with mefloquine (I don't have the horrible nightmares, but I do sleep walk) so I don't mind taking it, especially since it is just once a week compared to every day for doxy and malarone. And luckily, there isn't dengue nor chikungunya in West Africa ..yet. I know this will come off as a bit strange, but I kind of hope that chikungunya comes to the Gambia while I am here. Not that I want to get chikungunya or really even for other people to get it...but it would be kind of cool all the same. And for once, I wouldn't have to travel to the chikungunya since it would come to me!
While tourists are more at risk to malaria due to a naive immune system, that doesn't mean that locals are not at risk. I asked my language teacher how often he gets malaria and it turns out that he gets it on average, twice a year. Every year. And each time it lasts about a week. Most people only think about the effects of malaria on the health of the person who is sick. But when you miss at least 2 weeks a year with malaria, that can add up. Lost wages for the family, and loss of productivity for the employers. And even with an extended dry season, malaria is year round in the Gambia so there is no relief from this endemic disease. And for such a small country, the costs, both individual and societal, can add up quickly when you consider the population level effects.
So despite my love of mosquitoes, beware of the yoo (mosquitoe in wolof)!
In other news, despite the fact that the Gambia is in the middle of it's dry season, there are still plenty of mosquitoes As per usual, I already have a handful of bites. Lucky for me, I have anti-malarial drugs to keep my safe-ish. I'm adding the -ish since it's not impossible to get malaria while on anti-malarial drugs. But it is certainly a much lower risk than without the drugs. I'm starting on doxycycline and will transition to mefloquine after two weeks. I am lucky to not have the major side effects associated with mefloquine (I don't have the horrible nightmares, but I do sleep walk) so I don't mind taking it, especially since it is just once a week compared to every day for doxy and malarone. And luckily, there isn't dengue nor chikungunya in West Africa ..yet. I know this will come off as a bit strange, but I kind of hope that chikungunya comes to the Gambia while I am here. Not that I want to get chikungunya or really even for other people to get it...but it would be kind of cool all the same. And for once, I wouldn't have to travel to the chikungunya since it would come to me!
While tourists are more at risk to malaria due to a naive immune system, that doesn't mean that locals are not at risk. I asked my language teacher how often he gets malaria and it turns out that he gets it on average, twice a year. Every year. And each time it lasts about a week. Most people only think about the effects of malaria on the health of the person who is sick. But when you miss at least 2 weeks a year with malaria, that can add up. Lost wages for the family, and loss of productivity for the employers. And even with an extended dry season, malaria is year round in the Gambia so there is no relief from this endemic disease. And for such a small country, the costs, both individual and societal, can add up quickly when you consider the population level effects.
So despite my love of mosquitoes, beware of the yoo (mosquitoe in wolof)!
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