Classification : Touristus éstagierus

When you step into the Village des Tortues, it is a different world from the rest of Senegal. Not only is it a haven for the endangered G. Sulcata turtle, but also for the ample toubabs that romp around Senegal. Of late, there has been a massive influx of what I like to call Touristus éstagierus- the eco-voluntiering tourist who comes for days, weeks, or even months. They come with good intentions- be it helping the Village, learning about the culture, or just a good old cheap vacation where learning and helping just happen to be on the agenda. Upon arrival, they bring their high expectations and good intentions where they try to do everything and all at once. They are then hit with the Sengalise bug, or one could say the turtle sickness of everything always going quite slowly, leading to discontent as they see much of their efforts being thwarted (unintentionally of course). This is usually the point when the Village turns into a sanctuary for them, a little escape from the culture shock and work style that rocks them out of their token gipsy pants. Whenever any fellow toubab arrives, you can see the relief spread across their features, as here surely is someone who understands what troubles they are going through at this moment, someone they can vent to about the tea-time obsession angst or how things never happen now. In the end, they tend to leave with dreads, trinkets, or diembés that stimulate the local economy, a list of things completed that has nothing to do with what they came for, and a new found patience for themselves and the ones surrounding them. It would be easy to say that these people have a real impact here at the Village des Tortues or even in Senegal as a whole, but the majority of that is through their spending sprees. The real brunt of the implications are loaded onto these people as they return home with knowledge and a perspective that makes them separate once again. They are no longer the common ignorant toubab, nor are they really part of the country, as the haven saved them from much of reality. Indeed, they are a species all to themselves.