Diary, Senegal 2. October 2015

by Marielle Furter

After arriving in Senegal, I could hardly wait to see how far the construction of the kindergarten had progressed during my absence. So my friend and assistant Elhadji and I drove to Niaguis the same day, despite the very exhausing journey to Africa.

The long awaited erection of the roof had just recently been started. Originally the roof beams had been planned to be out of wood. But an external expert judged the wooden main beam as a safety hazard and so the main beam had to get replaced by one made of iron. The smaller cross beams are as originally planned made of wood.

Apart from the delay with erecting the roof, other tasks got started according to plan. All of the water pipes got installed, so the toilets and also the sinks in the kitchen could get mounted on time. The electrical wiring also got laid. Almost all of the windows are mounted and next week the doors will get installled too.

So that everything will look mostly finished for the grand opening on 17. October, the head of construction was told to finish the roofing and make sure, that all the windows and doors were installed by then. The whole Kindergarten should also have gotten the first coat of paint and the laying of the tiles should at least have been started, so the classrooms would look almost finished.

The external expert has his attention especially focused on the quality and safety of the building. After all, it is all about the safety of the children. and since that is the highest priority, the delays are secondary.

I am very much looking forward to the grand opening of our first Kindergarten, even though some things will not quite be done and the children can't begin attending kindergarten until November.

I am especially happy, that the president of our association, Werner Brunner, and his Wife will attend our grand opening on 17. October. My Mother will also be here for the event as well as Marcel Brühlmann (lifegard/pool attendant at the Swimming Pool Villmergen), both of whom have helped our project with alot of dedication.

You can visit us and our project any time you like, out of interest/curiosity, as a volunteer, to learn the language or just to enjoy some vacation time.

I am looking forward to letting you know all about the festivities after the grand opening of the Kindergarten.

Greetings,

Marielle Furter

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