We are the kool kats! (July 3rd)

Kool kats yi lanu! 

Benn Àllarba, toggoon nanu maffe ak yaasa ganaar. Seetaanoon nanu Tali ci El Darado, itam. Maa jàngoon tëgg akontiŋ. Te, am naa ay mbokku Wolof ci Gainesville. Ci guddi, ci Afrika Lekk, sunu show moo raw ci AFLI.

On Wednesday, we cooked maffe and yaasa ganaar. We watched The Road to El Darado, also. I learned to play to play akonting. And, I have a new Wolof family in Gainesville. In the evening, at Africa Eats, our show was the best in AFLI.

Maffe is a dish in which the sauce is made of tomato paste and peanut butter. Usually, you put potatoes and sweet potatoes in it and it’s often made with red meat like beef and goat. We made a smaller vegetarian sauce with no meat. 

Adding “kat” at the end of a Wolof word indicates someone who partakes in that profession. So for example “jangale” is “to teach” so a “jangalekat” is a teacher. That’s where words like “jazz kat” and “cool kat” comes from (I think).

The akonting a Senegambian instrument much like the guitar and the banjo. I learned to play Mary had a little lamb on it. Thanks Scott! =)