Sunday, December 14, 2008

Letting it All Hang Out

One of the small things that surprised me when I moved to Senegal was the ubiquitous presence of laundry drying outside--hanging out of windows, lying on bushes,

stretched across clothes lines. Very few people, even in the city, own electric or gas dryers. Rain is so infrequent as to be inconsequential. (Dust is more of a problem in the dry season than rain in the rainy season.)

I was struck recently by the rainbow of colors hanging on a line outside my bedroom window. I took this photo through the screen, so it lacks the brilliance of the actual sight. Still, I like the image. There is nothing on the other two lines that stretch parallel to this one, making this an uncharacteristically artistic arrangement.

This view out this window began to change this week. Soon I will be posting photos of the construction work that has begun. An extension is going to be built on this end of the on-campus dormitory (the building in the upper right corner).