Women from all over the countryside get dressed up and make the journey on foot from their villages into town to buy or sell produce and socialize. Today, we make a beeline for the bike-man because I need to replace the tube in my front tire that has recently gone flat. He has exactly what I need which is a miracle! I buy the tube and a pump for just 3.500,00 CFA or about $6.50. We greet people who call out our names and socialize with some women who recognize me from the health post. I also stop by a stall I’ve been eyeing for a while and purchase ten pairs of earrings, made by a local artisan in the traditional Pulaar style. I’ll keep these and give them as gifts to my family back home in America. I’m ready to head back to work, but I don’t leave the market before getting a karam: a frozen juice bag. It's purple and sweet and so cold on this hot afternoon. It comes in a plastic bag that I bite the end off of and spit onto the ground. The sticky goodness runs down my hands and arms while I drink it, but it's okay; many other people at the market have the same markings from giving in to the same temptation.
5:45 PM
I’ve made my way back to the health post to do some record entry. I greet Diallo, the assistant manager of the hospital who is sitting outside with his wife. They live onsite at the health post because he is on call 24/7. I wave to other employees who have just now gotten to work as well. The hours for official business are very flexible in Senegal. Even though the clinic's hours are supposed to be 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM, people arrive when it suits them best. I listen to some Christmas music while I input patient records into a database.
