Our last day in Senegal

January 9^th was our final day in Senegal. It started off with a guest lecture from a woman that works for an NGO called yellitaare. The goal of the NGO is to empower woman. Specifically, combating incision and child marriages. Although these practices do not happen throughout Senegal, they are common in some areas and in other neighboring countries. The woman that gave the lecture had an incision. Incision and child marriage are difficult to combat because they are rooted in tradition. That said, they have no foundation in Islam. Education and men play an important role in ending these practices.

Afterwards we all had some free time, me and two others ate lunch and explored Dakar. We found a lovely restaurant with delicious food. After lunch we went to a bustling market that had everything from clothing and food, to trinkets and silver. None of us bought anything. We ended up by the train station. Although beautiful, it is one of the many reminders that Senegal was once a French colony. From there we trekked closer to the water and found a spot where we can relax and get a drink After that we got a taxi to take us to the SIT headquarters where we reconvened with everyone else. During the evening, we had dinner with the SIT family. I can truly say on behalf of all of us that our trip to Senegal was an amazing experience full of laughter and learning.