The Anglophone’s Guide to Dakar

Here is another reason why I get irritated when people refer to Africa as a country. As if the continent is a huge house where everyone who lives in it knows each other by name. Although, Senegal is in West Africa it’s uniquely different from the other countries in West Africa I’ve visited thus far. My friend always used to say, “We (Senegalese) have nothing in common with you (Ghanaians), well except jollof which tastes better in Senegal anyway”. I wanted to experience it for myself, so I took her up on her offer to accommodate me during my stay. I know right! Real friends how many of us?

I was in Dakar, Senegal for three weeks and what a trip it was! Since I have quite a number of English speaking friends (like 4 of them), I decided to come up with a guide for the English speaking traveler. As you may or may not know, Senegal is French speaking country (surprise!). The currency used the West African CFA franc. This post outlines a number of things you should bear in my mind and a few ways you could save money if you decide to visit.

1.      Wolof / French

Although the official language is French, Wolof is widely spoken in Senegal. If you’re visiting for the first time, I would recommend that you’re accompanied by someone who speaks either French or Wolof or both fluently. You’d be able to bargain better in the markets if you don’t reek of foreignness aka speak only in English (there’s nothing wrong with that, duh). You’d also avoid tourist traps in certain areas and get things for cheaper if you’re fortunate to have a native guide you. To start a conversation learn to be polite. Say Salam alaikum which means peace be unto you or hello. If that’s quite a chore for you, you can simply say Bonjour (hello) before you talk to anyone. It pays to be polite. Don’t start a conversation without greeting, it’s just odd. Since you’re also in a country where English is not the first language, just try to adapt and learn a few words in Wolof or French at the very least, learn how to greet in one of the languages.  

2.      Live with a family

All my best experiences travelling have always been with living in people’s homes. This sounds extremely weird but I thoroughly enjoy a country’s culture when I live with a family. You get to experience how the average Senegalese lives on a day to day basis, the foods they eat and more importantly how they relate to one another. Although travelling and enjoying an air bnb or hotel experience is preferable for many, living with a family that you’re a little familiar with can help you pick up a language and really observe how people live if that’s something you don’t mind doing. Also it can be a huge money saver if you know the family well enough to stay for free. Amazing, right? PS : Don’t let go of your international student friends.

3.      Visit during an event, festival or holiday

Again, I’m always in pursuit of learning how others live. I visited Senegal during Eid or Tabaski and I saw the city come alive. About 90% of the Senegalese population if not more is Muslim. Many people wore their finest outfits and people were generally of good cheer and there was a lot of food. I mean who doesn’t like a good party? Also for my artists, there are different art residencies you can take advantage of which are based there.

4.      Stray cats

There were so many times where I had to put my feet up because I dislike cats rubbing against my skin. I know I’m quite ridiculous. One time we had a meal on the Gorée Island and a couple sitting across from us noticed that I jolted anytime I felt a cat on my skin so they took it upon themselves to warn me when a cat was approaching. It was quite embarrassing. You can find stray cats everywhere especially in outdoor restaurants.

5.      Bathrooms

The bathrooms are different. Having some experience with living in a francophone African country in the past, this didn’t come as a surprise. Most bathrooms have an open concept where the shower is not enclosed. In the bathroom you’d see a toilet, sink and a shower head with no doors. Don’t worry the bathroom doesn’t get flooded. The drainage is built in such a way that the water drains properly. This is something to keep in mind if you’ve never used a bathroom like that before. However, I assume this is not the case for a lot of hotels if not all in Dakar. But hey, just something to keep in mind.

6.      Hey Taxi !

If you do not rent a car during your stay, your primary mode of transportation will be the taxis. As of September 2017, there were no ubers in Dakar. This may or may not have changed by the time you decide to go on your trip. A lot of the taxis are fairly older but they will get you to your destination. The taxis are yellow and they easily identifiable. The cab drivers are usually called taxi man and you can easily get a cab by flagging it on any busy street. Also make sure you have change or lower note denominations. It just makes life easier.

7.      Ask friends who have visited before

If you know me, you know I like to plan every single thing I decide to do. One of my friends visited Dakar about a couple of weeks before I decided to go on holiday. I got inspired from her snapchat stories and took note of places I wanted to visit. It really helped me plan my trip and think of things I could wear and activities I could participate in. I also reached out to her for recommendations on things to keep in mind for my trip.

8.      Follow travel pages on Instagram

One of the things that enticed me to travel to Dakar were a few travel bloggers whose work were featured on visiter l’afrique. This instagram account reposts amazing photos from travellers who visit the continent. Senegal happened to be a popular destination for a lot of them this year so I stalked the pages of the featured travellers and saw what they were up to in Dakar for inspiration.

9.      There’s always rice at home

If you live with a Senegalese family best believe that you will be eating rice everyday. You would eat different assorted forms of rice namely jollof rice which is known as thieboudienne (pronounced chebu jen). Another interesting thing is that people eat together from the same tray of food in the family setting. This is a huge bonding activity. If you stay in a hotel, you’d be most likely switching up your meals since the hotel will have a wide range of options and you’d probably miss out on the dining with all experience.

10.   Tea drinkers

I also learned that the Senegalese drink tea after every meal. This is due to the arabic influence. Again, I wouldn’t have learnt about this if I stayed in a hotel. After lunch is served, there is a serving of hot mint tea. Dinners were typically light usually a salad with french fries, or sometimes bread with meat. I preferred drinking tea at night because it was sweeter and didn’t taste as strong as the afternoon tea.

Hope these tips help ! Thanks for reading. I know this was a long time coming. I would like to know what you think about my posts so please don’t be scared to comment and share your experiences as well. I’d love to hear from you !