Author Archives: TravelGal

In early August, I received news that my return to Senegal from Global Authorized Departure had been approved. While COVID definitely was not gone from Senegal, I think the entire world was coming to grips that this wasn’t going away … Continue reading →

Three and a half months in to Global Authorized Departure from Senegal, and it’s still unclear when I will return to Senegal. The U.S. Embassy Dakar is at Phase 1, meaning that things are still not great, but holding steady. … Continue reading →

After the Secretary of State’s visit, I focused on getting my foot better and getting off crutches. We all figured life would finally get back to normal. However, there was a growing rumble of this virus COVID-19 around the world. I … Continue reading →

In my previous post covering through December 2019, I forgot something that was quite exciting. I was chosen to be on the election monitoring team for the presidential run-off in Guinea-Bissau. Since there is no Embassy in Guinea-Bissau, the U.S. … Continue reading →

October-December  In October, I did a quick weekend up to Amsterdam to meet up with some of my friends from Dhaka. They came from Honduras, Ukraine, and France – and of course me from Senegal! We spent the few days … Continue reading →

July marked the culmination of  everything I’d devoted much of my energy to the past five months – the U.S. Embassy’s Fourth of July celebration. Now, I know that sounds like a lot of fun, but trust me, it is … Continue reading →

OK, as you can see, I forgot about this blog over the past year. But what a year it has been! Incredibly busy yet fulfilling. Lots of travel (because that is what I do). Now that I have temporarily evacuated … Continue reading →

I can finally say I’m feeling settled here in Dakar, Senegal. All of my stuff arrived, including my consumables. So I have most of the creature comforts of home. Granted, running water sometimes disappears, and some mornings mid-shower my electricity … Continue reading →

Well, I’ve been in Senegal for about a month now. I haven’t been able to post previously because I didn’t have good wifi until now. I’m getting settled in, I have my computer actually set up, and my apartment is … Continue reading →

After a frantic rearranging of my test date due to the day of morning for President George Bush, I managed to eke out a 3/3 on my final French exam. Apparently this means I have “Professional Working Proficiency.” For the … Continue reading →