At long last...

I ni su! Good evening!

I was kind of slow getting onto the blog thing, but now I have one so I hope you enjoy! I will try to update the normal goings on of my life here, as well as what I am learning about in class and the cultural insight I am gaining. Luckily, my host family has a computer with internet (very rare) and it normally works (except when it rains or is really cloudy), so I can update regularily.

First, I assume some of you are wondering what I am doing here in Bamako, Mali. I am studying abroad through SIT (school for international training) in a program focusing on Gender, Health, and Development. The classes are not taught at a Malian university, or anything like that: they are seminar style with myself and 20 other students from universities around the U.S. in the same classroom together for all our classes, except french, which is split into four levels. The other classes are Bambara (the main language spoken here), a field study seminar, and a thematic seminar, covering history, culture, gender, health, development, and music. We have three main teachers and overall guides, who are Malians so they give us a real Malian experience, all the time. Also, lectures are often taught by guests from local universities or NGO's in their areas of speciality.
The program places much importance on field based learning, so we have assignments like interviewing a person, or making a photo essay. The most important source of direct contact with the culture comes in the home stay family (I'll write more about mine later, since I can say a lot on that topic). The culmination of our learning here is a month long independent study project (ISP). I haven't picked a topic yet, but I have many ideas and resources for a health based project.
I chose this program because it is in a francophone African country and has a focus on health...and frankly, I didn't have that many options. The field based nature of all of the SIT programs also drew me to it. I wanted a unique learning experience in a completely new culture, and a break from my normal hermitage in lab (not that i don't also enjoy that!) and thus far, my experience has been beyond fulfilling my expectations.

I will write more details about what I've been doing here soon, but right now, I am sick of the french keyboard with its misplaced a and w and nearly impossible period. Plus, I need to get back to my tea, dates, and millet porridge:)
k'an ben!