(Photo from the Senejug kickoff in 2007! Click the photo or here to see the set)

Hello, Senejug from afar, from Michael in sunny Florida. As I write this, I am about to continue admiring the Africa Challenge 2012 entries and I am flooded with pleasant memories of what I have experienced in Africa to date.

I just read an article about Senegal published by students from the University of Kansas: http://www2.ku.edu/~wolof/testimonials.html It reminded me of all the things I have learned about West African culture in general and Senegalese culture in particular by being a part of this wonderful group. 

What do I love about Senegal? Well, there is the language, Wolof, that is so easy to speak with a little coaching. Mangi fi rek! The Senegalese people live their lives in a rich culture of music, cuisine, beautiful clothing, art, and so much more. The Polytechnic University of Dakar has everything a student could dream of and at a rich, fertile campus. 

I recall learning to speak a few words of Wolof and practicing on a street with a vendor one morning. By the time we had finished greeting each other, hoping each of our families were well, that we were happy, we nearly hugged eachother. 

I recall coming home to hear someone playing a djembe in the distance after a day came to a close. Another day, I heard a woman singing at sunset off toward coast. 

And now, we have a vibrant group of software developers, entrepreneurs, teachers, students and more that all are part of our West African Java User Group. Thank you all for being a part of it. It gets better every day. 

I hope to see you in person soon. Until then, keep up all the good work, amazing application development, and wonderful conversation here at Codetown and over the internet in our mailing lists and various meetings. 

Until we meet, 

Michael Levin