Check out my new blog dedicated to all things about the move to Dakar.

The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. ~St. Augustine

I had pre-ordered Insurgent many months ago, but ended up also buying it on my Kindle so I could make sure I had it on release day. I had read Divergent that way originally so I thought it would be interesting to continue in that tradition. No sooner had I read the first several pages and then re-read the pages, it was apparent that I was going to need to re-read Divergent to refresh my memory of characters and plot lines. I know some people always read the preceding books over before reading a sequel, but that is not my MO. I’m always anticipating book releases and don’t want to take the time away from other reads to re-read. I decided I could probably keep plowing through Insurgent and get the gist of what I hadn’t remembered, but I REALLY wanted to enjoy reading Insurgent. I set it aside and fast read Divergent. I am very glad I did as it also served to remind me why I had liked Divergent so much on the first read.

I like the descriptions of the factions, the main and supporting characters, and the many intricacies that are woven throughout the book. It’s interesting to think about the choices the characters made that led them to leave or join a faction and then consider what you would have done in that situation.

The Dark Days tour-Cover to Cover June 7th

I have actually seen Veronica Roth at ALAN/NCTE this past year and while she is super cute and young, she was not that impressive as a speaker. I actually feel really bad writing that but I was surprised by how underwhelmed I was after being such a huge fan of the book from the release of Divergent. Now just because you are a great author, does not mean you have to be a great speaker. Being a great public speaker is just as hard as being a great author in a different way.

Despite that I am ready to give her another chance and will be joining book blogging friends to see Veronica Roth, Aprilynne Pike, Ellen Schreiber, and Josephine Angelini. Now I haven’t read anything  by the other YA authors, but stacking up a great TBR pile to kick off the summer seems like a great idea!

1 Comments on Insurgent, Divergent, Dark Days Tour with Veronica Roth, last added: 5/9/2012

Some of the books that I had or have added to my home for my children and family members to look at include:

Material World: A Global Family Portait by Peter Menzel and

Wangari’s Trees of Peace: A True Story From Africa by Jeannette Winter

Beatrice’s Goat by Page McBrier

One Hen-How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference by Katie Smith Milway

Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain by Vera Williams

Africa is Not a Country by Margy Knight

One Well-The Story of Water on Earth by Rochelle Strauss

Seeds of Change by Jeannette Winter

If the World Were a Village by David Smith

Where Children Sleep by James Mollison (link with photos)

Hungry Planet: What the World Eats by Peter Menzel

A Life Like Mine: How Children Live Around the World by DK Publishing

Guy got to check out the time-consuming process while in the Market.

Once again, turned off by the Disney-esque cover, I almost passed this one over the last time I was at Cover to Cover. Forutnately Franki was there to say, “It’s Patricia Maclachlan!”

I loved this story but it took me a long time to get through it. Not because it was a hard or long read, but I just kept thinking that there was no way there way going to be a happy ending, and I just kept not being in the mood to read anything that might make me cry.

Hence, this slight 120 page book took me over four months to finish. Patricia MacLachland knocked it out of the park again with this one. I loved the relationship between boy and grandfather, as well as grandfather and dog. What a great story.

Everyone who has a daughter or is friends or family members with someone who has a daughter should read this book. Brave Girl Eating has been on my shelf since 2010, but as I packed up books for the move, it grabbed my attention. I read the whole book late into the night. I considered myself pretty educated on eating disorders but this memoir gave me a whole new insight into one family’s struggle. How the simple pleasure of having a meal together as a family can be forever altered into the worst part of your day. The author (mother) is a research reporter and does an excellent job of incorporating her research about this disorder into the book.

There are no movie theaters or big grand malls or theme parks, but if you ask me if
there is anything to do in the Dakar – below is the detailed account of what I did last
Sunday, and loved every minute of it.

The temperature was perfect. It felt like OBX North Carolina in spring time. The
breeze was fresh, the sun was bright and the sky was perfect baby blue. Contrary
to my previous week’s note’s declaration that I would be running the marathon,
I didn’t. I stayed at home on Saturday, apart from a quick pizza at the Surf Shop
along Route les Almadies as we enjoy the view of the ocean, read books that
I’ve not had the chance to, and watched Modern Family like it was my job. So
cooped up the previous day, which I preferred, I decided to hit the road on Sunday!
I did not need to travel very far as everything was literally 2 minutes away.

We started at 10:30 am (It was a Sunday, obviously we slept in). My boys, husband
and child, hit the driving range at Hotel les Almadies. Never crowded, you are
guaranteed to get a spot most of the time. And if you are not a golfer and want to
learn, Levi – the golf pro – will be there to help. He also gives private lessons, and
could even take you to the course as your pro guide.

Since I am not a golfer, I went to the Nature SPA inside the hotel. Located below the hotel lobby reception on the
right soon as you walk in, it is one of Dakar’s well kept secret (I find peace and tranquility when I visit – really!).
Heading towards the spa on a small ramp, you will find a little store of wellness treasures from candles, massage
oils to perfume and scented products for home. These items come from France, and although a little pricey, they
are guaranteed to be enjoyed. My first treatment was a mani-pedi. They do these treatments on a small porch
facing the ocean, where you can relax and unwind whilst drinking a cup of tea on a comfortable lounge chair. That
has already made my day. After that, I jumped straight into their ―Sportif‖ massage treatment. Like a tenderized
meat, I was paper weight soon after.

Alas lunch time! Although we’ve discovered that Hotel Les Almadies is still doing Sunday Brunch buffet, which we
marked for next time as it truly looked scrumptious, we all drove down to the boat stop for Ngor Island. We went to
Maison de Italia, formerly Chez Carla, by boat, which was an experience by itself. Truly a paradise in Dakar! Some-
one even uttered that it felt like we were in the French Riviera, which I could not contest. It has a pier lined-up with
lounge chairs, where you can relax and read a book and sun bathe (do not forget those sunscreens, though). We
had hearty meals of grilled seafood, huge fish and gambas, whilst my pasta lovers had Spaghetti Basil and Arrabi-
ata! As we wait for our meals, we played at a tide pool, which is perfect for a dip and playing for kids.

And of course, Ngor Island is perfect enough to explore by foot!

We made it back home at 5pm, having a mini-holiday just around the corner, which we didn’t need to drive or get
stuck in traffic for – priceless! Try it sometime; it made us realize how amazing it is to be in Dakar this time of the
year!

I’ll start by saying that this isn’t me and that these aren’t my photos from the trip. The are images from a Google search but are the same facility that I saw.

The Franciscan sisters have run this amazing orphanage since 1948 for children and infants under the age of two. We’ll be spending part of Saturday afternoons volunteering here after we move in August. Dakar La Pouponniere has been one of three charities that ISD has focused their outreach/service learning on.

I was pretty scared about what I was going to see when we went into La Pouponniere (French for nursery). There have been plenty of Dateline specials over the years about different orphanages around the world and none have necessarily been able to shine a positive light on any of them, at least that I have seen on television.

La Pouponniere is run by Franciscan nuns and is a bright and cheery place. The walls have been recently painted pink with Winnie the Poo mini-murals around (think pediatrician office waiting room). There are two sections-one for infants and one for toddlers under 24 months. All in all, there are currently ninety-three children in the Sister’s care. Guy and I had a chance to meet the nuns, as well as some of the many young women that they have working as “nannies-in-training” that help to care for the children. There is a small school for those young women that is part of the facility. My understanding is that the young women are from rural villages and that they receive education (think one-roomed school house) and job training that will be of help to them in finding paid employment upon adulthood. It’s also my understnading that the majority of the infants/toddlers are at La Pouponniere because the mother either died in childbirth in a area where they had no access to medical care or the infant was abandoned. Without a nursing mother, the families do not have access to formula or the ability to take care of the infant. The sisters take care of the infants until they are 2, eating table food and able to return to their family. Families can visit on Sundays if they are able to get to the city.

There are a few YouTube videos of La Pouponniere that different volunteers have made. It’s a pretty amazing place.

http://youtu.be/hVLzY5IQ-xw

Guy started with the infants and I started with the toddlers. It was a hot day and there didn’t appear to be air conditioning, but there was a nice breeze coming through the windows. Guy ended up with some of the older toddlers outside with another volunteer playing with toys in a little courtyard. I stayed with the toddlers, played toddler games, gave hugs, rocked some, helped give a  bottle to one (the bottles had little metal hang tags with numbers on them that identified which child got which bottle). The young women helpers were playing with children, handing out bottles, taking a couple at a time for a bath, etc. I’m sure they have many other things that keep them busy non-stop. While I didn’t have enough French to communicate with the girls, they were very smiley, sang and played music for the children and seemed very personable. My inability to communciate with the girls and nuns as well as I’d like to, will be one big reason that I keep brushing off my very rusty French.