Well, I meant to post this sooner, but I've been busy getting ready for Lindsay's visit. I was lucky enough to be able to celebrate both Passover and Easter in Dakar over the holidays. Through some connections of my Canadian friend Arlene, I was invited to celebrate 2 Seders in Senegal. Who knew there was a Jewish community in this West African country? Well, I didn't until now!! Apparently, the community consists of between 40 and 100 people (based on 2 different estimates), and I was really thrilled to be able to participate in the food and festivities. The first Seder was at the home of a man who has worked all over the world for the American Embassy, and as you can see in this photo, his table was beautifully set and he had stunning pieces adorning his apartment from around the world.
For the second Seder, I was invited to the home of an American couple for a more family-centred evening, which was also lovely. Since I had been in Israel just before this, I brought back matzah for me and some who had requested it. As a result of this and the ingenuity of my hosts, we dined on matzah ball soup, gefilte fish, brisket, kugel, maror, and haroset. Also, I was able to make chocolate matzah crunch, probably my favorite Passover dessert.
The following weekend, I was also fortunate to be able to celebrate Easter with my friend Lilly and her family. We decorated Easter eggs and went to an evening mass at the downtown cathedral, where a very talented choir performed some African-inspired hymns. The next day we made some pastries for breakfast and I hid my Easter eggs before taking off to spend the rest of the day at the beach. It was a busy, but very fun week, although I really look forward next year to being able to spend these holidays with family and friends in Canada.