Les Bijoux

Public vans provide the traditional and sole means of city transportation in Dakar, Senegal. In a frenzy of activity, from the outskirts to downtown, people from all walks of life as well as fruits, vegetables, chickens, etc. are transported daily in these public vans.

Can madness be described? Is it possible to express the pain that it entails? In 1994, when she was about to fall prey to her illness, Khady Sylla met Aminta Ngom, who exhibited her madness freely, without fear of provocation. During her years of suffering, Aminta was her window to the world.

We hear the thoughts of Amy, a girl from a rural area of Senegal who works as a domestic for a well-to-do family in Dakar. She complains about her employer, who continuously criticizes her and gets on her case, and she talks about her dream of one day opening her own eatery. In Dakar, some 150,000 young women work as housekeepers for rich families to survive and help their families instead of going to school.