The technicalities of life in Gambia

Some 'animals' in Gambia - I haven't worked out if they are sheep or goats - i haven't seen goats with tails so i think they might be sheep


For interests sake I thought I’d write a little bit on some of the finer points of life as a volunteer in the Gambia.

The first thing that is outstanding is that I am white. I know I am white every second I step out of the front door of the house as we are treated differently and stared at. Something simple like a run is incredibly nerve-racking because the whiteness of my skin gives young men the license to call out at me. I am told it is because they want us to give them money, or get a white girlfriend who might give them a trip overseas. They honestly believe we are tourists, but I don’t think they realize how bad it must make time in the Gambia for tourists. Having said that I really don’t mind, part of it is knowing that they have little money so some behavior (though not all) is borne out of desperation, another part of me realizes, that from watching the ‘Roots’ miniseries, why some Gambians may have little respect for white people. The overwhelming majority are incredibly kind, nice and helpful.

The next is the water pressure. I am learning so much about water conservation, simply because the water is not there, it is amazing. Firstly I really appreciate a decent cold shower, there is not chance for dipping your toe in and giving yourself time to adjust here, you have to jump straight in and use the water while it is there. With the toilets I am now finding that if I have just done a wee and the toilet flushes well I view it as a wasted opportunity. In fact if I fill the cistern of the toilet up to flush it, I use more water than if I have a bucket shower (which is every second morning if the pressure is not there to make the shower work). We have containers of water filled up at all times because there have been periods of up to 2 days where the water pressure has been too low for the water to come out of the taps.

The other three conveniences noticeably missing are a hot water service, microwave and washing machine. The cold showers are fine, but boiling water each time to do the dishes gets tiring! I am hand washing every three days, but hand washing underwear isn’t my idea of fun. The other thing is that you either have to eat leftovers cold or reheat a whole pot of food (which means you can’t keep what you don’t eat the second time). Really these are all conveniences that I realized I am used to, but I think my Grandmother would be laughing very hard if she was reading this – certainly none of it is something you can’t live without! Television, for those younger people, is something that none of us are missing!!!

Communications, however are excellent. The president has assisted with this to try and make Gambia more competitive on a global level, and also for tourism purposes. Mobile phone coverage is pretty good and cheaper than Australia (they offer free calls and sms between phones because there is a lot of rivalry between companies). Some service providers also provide internet on the phone (which means some volunteers use their mobiles as a modem for their computer). Currently i have good internet access as I am in the tourist area with internet cafes, but this will change when I move to Brikama unless I can work out how to use my mobile.