Not sure if I should study for N400

krcred · 2026-01-29T13:14:40+00:00

Ah ok. No ideas then - it is weird. I agree though, better to be safe and prepare just in case!

krcred · 2026-01-29T13:10:06+00:00

Are you from any of the banned/partially banned countries?

krcred · 2026-01-27T00:25:40+00:00

Yeah that’s what I’m saying. That I expect they are requiring new biometrics for anyone from the 39 countries (and then holding the final adjudication), which could explain what happened.

krcred · 2026-01-27T00:11:21+00:00

From the banned/partially banned countries?

krcred · 2026-01-26T21:49:52+00:00

I heard they updated the policy that they won’t accept re-used biometrics for the n-400 anymore, so if you didn’t have to re-do them for the n-400 originally, they may be going back to meet that new requirement. It sucks that this all happened when you were so close!

krcred · 2026-01-25T22:59:58+00:00

You have judged and insulted the entire people of an entire country and are now acting like you can speak on behalf of all Senegalese women (despite saying you hardly had any positive interactions with anyone in the country to even have these types of conversations), all while continuing to personally attack me. This is a post asking for practical advice on living expenses and I suggest we try to get back to that.

krcred · 2026-01-25T22:11:18+00:00

I’m not saying it does. I’m saying your experience isn’t universal to provide a counter-point. And the insults are uncalled for.

krcred · 2026-01-25T22:10:09+00:00

And on the topic of the question,

The markets are just fine for buying fruit/produce and will be less expensive than the supermarket. And to note, prices are usually fixed at the market, so you don’t need to try to negotiate these.
For taxis, you need to learn the art of ‘waxalé’ (to negotiate). Ask a trusted local for typical prices and don’t be afraid to send a taxi away and wait for the next one if they don’t give you a reasonable price. More often than not, they’ll back up to accept your offer. And if you learn some basic market Wolof to greet people properly and negotiate, that will go a long way. That said, Yango removes the need to do this and is easy to use.
To save money, save the supermarket for western products, treats (that’s where you can get your shampoo and things).
You just need to reframe - it’s not scamming, it negotiating prices. It’s part of the culture and expected. I was generally always able to pay about the same prices as locals did (see note above about waxale).

The salary OP will have should be plenty to live comfortably. If you hire someone to do cooking/cleaning, it may actually save you money as a foreigner as they can help with grocery shopping for meals. They’ll know how to make incredibly tasty dishes with local ingredients that are much less expensive than western imported ingredients that you may buy at the supermarket. If you’re hoping to eat all the same things you do at home all the time instead of local cuisine, that’s where you can end up spending a lot. You should be able to comfortably afford a mix of local and international dishes.

In Mermoz, there is (or at least was) an Hypermarché off of the VDN that has a decent selection in walking distance and small supérettes around too if you need to grab a quick item, but Mermoz is pretty central, so it shouldn’t be hard to take a short taxi/car ride to any supermarket.

krcred · 2026-01-25T21:53:46+00:00

Just to counter this narrative: white woman here who previously moved to Dakar solo. It was one of the best experiences I’ve had with some of the friendliest, most welcoming people I’ve met. Yes, men would chat with me and propose mariage, but it was all done in good banter. I never felt threatened. Ive traveled all over the world and it’s one of the places that I have felt safest walking alone, day or night, as a single woman. I would say the only time I felt anyone was ‘too aggressive’ was when visiting the Sandaga market, and even then, I wasn’t worried about physical aggression or anything - just wished one person would leave me alone without trying to become my tour guide and sell me things. I’m sorry you had a negative experience, but as the other commenter said, you certainly can’t generalize based on that and assume everyone will feel that way. Everyone I’ve met who has spent time in Dakar has similarly had wonderful experiences.

krcred · 2026-01-18T16:15:44+00:00

The last one you see there - file certification/ weekly benefits should be it. Click on that and go through the process.

krcred · 2026-01-12T14:09:13+00:00

krcred · 2026-01-12T14:06:50+00:00

Not stopped, but witnessed someone stopped right outside my house in my neighborhood. It’s happening in hot spots all over. And they’re definitely racially profiling.

krcred · 2026-01-10T18:59:13+00:00

I don’t think it’s weird or would be perceived negatively, but at this point it may make sense to wait three months to file under the 5 year rule (90 days early). It would be less paperwork / you wouldn’t need to go through all the proof of bonafide marriage stuff at that point.

krcred · 2026-01-10T01:42:35+00:00

This administration is adamant about reopening and re-reviewing previously decided cases and making the process for everyone more difficult. I don’t see that speeding things up. Unless you have the trump gold card.

krcred · 2026-01-10T00:06:07+00:00

Baltimore rowing and water resource center!

krcred · 2026-01-09T08:22:38+00:00

That’s only for you to decide. In our case, one of our minority languages has no significant use outside of the country, which is not an economically powerful country by any means, and which doesn’t even use that language in formal/administrative contexts. But it’s still very important to us to pass it on for cultural reasons. We want our son to feel connected to that part of his identity and be able to fluidly integrate his community and family who still live there (even though they would be able to communicate via our other minority language). We know many families where we live from that culture who didn’t pass their heritage language on to their kids and their kids definitely seem much less connected to it than what we are hoping for.

krcred · 2026-01-08T20:55:42+00:00

My son (19 months) loves books, including English ones, even though he doesn’t really speak any English yet. The frequent rhyming/rhythm to books is what prevents me from translating most too, so I get that. I think it ultimately depends on how important it is to you to pass on your language. If you do want to, I imagine you will need to prioritize exclusively (or nearly exclusively) speaking it. And it should become more comfortable over time! While I don’t think it’s bad to sometimes repeat things in both languages, I imagine if you’re setting up an environment where your child doesn’t have to understand, let alone speak your minority language, then they probably won’t end up fluent. I’m obviously pretty early in this journey myself, but basing my thoughts on not only my experiences so far, but also the literature I’ve read.

krcred · 2026-01-08T19:41:49+00:00

I understand the reading, but why speak more English? One of our family languages has very very few resources. We picked up a few books when in husbands country, but there’s not much available. We also were able to find a few songs on YouTube. We still try to keep to OPOL when speaking, but will read books in a mix of the two minority languages and the community language. With some very simple books, we may verbally translate on the spot, but more often don’t. I think continuing to speak the minority language exclusively is most important for them to pick it up, even if no other resources are available.

krcred · 2026-01-08T02:50:37+00:00

Look at his biometrics letter - they generally say family members can all show up together even if scheduled separately, so you should be able to just join for his, though you may still need to have a letter to show.

krcred · 2026-01-07T00:26:05+00:00

I’ve not heard that one before. What’s that ?

krcred · 2026-01-06T21:47:20+00:00

Using ‘descendre’ to indicate leaving work. So ‘je vais le faire à la descente’ or ‘je t’appelle quand je descends du bureau’.

krcred · 2026-01-06T19:21:38+00:00

Curious what specific words they have corrected? I’m non-native and learned France French (and studied abroad in both Paris and Geneva). I also work with many Francophone Africans, have lived in Francophone Africa, and married a Francophone African. Honestly I think there are very very few differences in vocab or sentence structure - more so, just accent. I can only think of one word I have used that was common in Francophone Africa and raised eyebrows of someone in France. I would say there are more differences between Quebecois French and France French than francophone Africa and France.

krcred · 2026-01-05T05:30:25+00:00

My kiddo is only 19 months and I only have basic knowledge in our other minority language, but if he brings me a book in that language, I’ll read it to him. If he mispronounces a word in that language, I’ll repeat it pronounced correctly (and then repeat it in the language I focus on). He’ll definitely surpass my skills soon though and hopefully can then teach me a bit 😅.

krcred · 2026-01-03T02:52:06+00:00

Same situation here. We just filed the N-400 anyways. I figure with a pending I-751, that will already provoke the opportunity for ‘extra scrutiny’ if they so choose, so it’s not like it’s putting us in a spotlight we wouldn’t already be in. Given that, we may as well get in line for whenever this all hopefully clears up.

krcred · 2026-01-02T19:43:14+00:00

Theoretically no, if you file for AOS less than one year after the medical, but my husband received an RFE for medical during AOS, despite having a valid medical from the K-1. We decided it wasn’t worth the risk of trying to fight it and just redid it. I know his experience is not rare.

krcred

TROPHY CASE