Senegal - the hub of West Africa? Part 2: The wedding.

A friend of Alpha and Matilde (you really need to read the "escape to the countryside" post below first!) was having a wedding party last night in the suburbs of Dakar. They said it would be fine for us to tag along, so not giving up an opportunity to see the real-thing, Agathe, Julia (2 of the french girls) and I joined the others in this one taxi going to Dakar. I'm not joking, there were 12 of us in one taxi, though I suppose the toddler doesn't really count. Ok, so it was a sept-place, but still it was a squeeze!

We arrived at the party in the early evening. There were about 200 people all crowded in and around a big gazebo in the a dusty side-street in a residential area of Dakar. I was a little nervous how we were going to be received at this party- random white girls, curious to observce the goings-on, but we were warmly welcomed. The family of the groom, and especially the groom's mother, welcomed us with hugs and kissed. We were immediately ushered inside where we were given fruit juice.

All the women were dressed in their finest, brightly-coloured and elaborately decorated cloth. The groom was dressed in a colourful orange Muslim traditional dress, but the bride wasn't anywhere to be seen. I couldn't understand why until the end of the evening when I had time to ask Julia. The bride was German, and currently in Germany; this was the Dakar-based celebration for the groom's family and friends of a wedding that happened a few weeks ago. Large platters of delicious chicken and chickpea stew appeared for everyone. We all huddled round the platters on the floor in groups of 7/8, eating with our hands. Who knows how much everything cost? This was the Senegalese bourgeoisie!

The groom used to play in the same dance/music group as Alpha so there were many musicians there. It wasn't long before the djembe's were brought out and the musicians got down to business. The party was alive and kicking, literally. The crowd around the edge (now probably numbering 350-400 people) pulsating to the same rhythm, leaving space in the centre for individuals to dance. They, often the young women, took it turns to energetically flail their arms and legs in all directions, thrashing their hair around, and nearly always loosing their head-dress, sending sand flying at those sitting near by.

It continued like this for about 2 hours, until people started to disappear off. It was an incredible evening, a completely unprecedented opportunity to see Senegalese culture at its very best. I now have no doubt that this country deserves its rhythmical reputation.