Teach Yoga at a Studio in Dakar, Senegal: July-September
Dear yogis ~
This is an opportunity for you to teach at my yoga studio Prism Yoga Dakar in Dakar, Senegal from July to September.
The yoga teaching:
This is a offer for you to take over the studio while I’m gone. Whatever you make after rent & bills are paid, is yours. Here is the breakdown of what you could make, based on my current class schedule. Dakar has a healthy growing yoga community. Currently I’m teaching:
Mon 19:00 intermediate/advanced Vinyasa class (90 min)
Wed 19:00 beginner Hatha class (75 min)
Thu 19:00 basic Vinyasa class (75 min)
The studio has a comfortable capacity of about 22 students. Monday can get pretty full, Thursday is the next popular class and Wednesday is the least popular class (but I think it’s important to have an entry level, non intimidating yoga class, especially in a country where yoga is still quite foreign to some). But if you take a very conservative estimate of 10 students per class and a class is 5.000 cfa (7,5 Euro) than you get 150.000 cfa per week or 600.000 cfa per month, which is 900 Euro per month. Students all pay cash and what they give you is yours. ( I also offer classes for 1.000 cfa (1.5 Euro) to motivated Senegalese people, who wanna try yoga but just don’t have the means. They come to the Wednesday beginner class, but they are few & far between still. ) This is a very safe estimate for July. August & September are somewhat unknown territory because I’ve always been away. This is first year I’ve had a studio to keep open. Most of my clients are expats, some of whom vacation in August, but on the other hand many people come to Dakar for vacation as well and some vacation early (June, July) and come back in August. September is when the normal rhythms generally resume. But I cannot predict nor take responsibility if there will be more or less students during summer vacation. Of course, there are a thousand wonderful things to do & explore in Senegal if you find yourself with free time 🙂
You can also add classes or teach privately: My going rate is 30.000 cfa / 45 Euro per hour & I regularly get requests without even advertising the option. You may of course lessen the number of classes as well: It’s up to you how you feel to find the balance between income and time & energy spent. I only ask you not to bring down the number of classes below 2 per week for July. In addition to those studio sessions, I’m teaching each Saturday morning at a nice restaurant on the beach. This is a 6.000 cfa (9 Euro) class per person, where 100% goes to the yoga teacher 🙂 Class size has averaged 12 persons. I was thinking to ask them to create a canopy over the teaching space in case of major summer heat. It’s a gorgeous place to relax over brunch and get acquainted with the students after class.
You are welcome to conceive special events, for purposes of profit or not. Some special events which I’ve hosted include Punk Kirtans, Women’s Circles, Cacao Ceremonies, and the aforementioned Women’s Retreat “Wild Woman Wisdom.” I also give massages. The massage table will be there and you’re welcome to use it.
The studio and your room:
The studio is located on the second floor of a house on a quiet street in an upscale neighborhood. Downstairs, my Senegalese mom has a small school which is offering after-school activities (www.dakarium.com), but there is not too much happening. It’s pretty chill.
The monthly rent for the studio is 400.000 cfa. The monthly utilities are on average 45.000 cleaning (3 x per week), & 30.000 electricity. Water & internet is included. All income beyond that is yours. The studio space includes 3 bedrooms (one of which would be yours). All of these can be rented to help cover costs. Normally they cost 150.000 cfa (225 Euro), or the one with the private bathroom 170.000 cfa (255Euro) per month. Generally, these rooms are inhabited by cool people passing through Dakar. They know to be quiet during yoga class and keep things clean. Presently there is already one room rented through August. People who live there can take one class per week for free. Here are the three rooms on Airbnb so you can get an idea of how they look like:
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/11219007
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/16909090
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/18679344
You:
-An individual (or perhaps 2 seeking to share the opportunity together), able to commit to the whole 3 months. If not, my Plan B would be to cover the time with more than 1 applicant.
-Ideally with some living or extended travel experience in the non-West.
-Asense of responsibility rather than employee-ship, as this is not a regular job. We will work out a contract for both of us to feel safe, but you need to have a healthy sense of creativity, and not be afraid of being somewhat outside the matrix.
-A few French skills. You are teaching in English, but to get around here, some broken French (like mine) would put you more at ease. Wolof is even better of course.
-I don’t insist on you being a RYT, since I’m not either 😉 but a solid year of teaching experience would be preferred.
-Most fundamentally, an open-hearted interest in Senegal. Although your focus will be teaching yoga to mostly expats in English, all the surroundings and vibes touch us all and the studio itself 🙂 It’s important to me— and most of all for the quality of your own experience— that you feel love for this very peaceful and humble yet sometimes quite chaotic city of Dakar. To me, settling here was like one continuous Ayahuasca ceremony… It’s all blessed and opens your heart, but the process can be gritty just as well as magical.
-Ideally, you can come at the very end of June and catch some of my classes, get the vibe and be in the flow together. I’d introduce you to the students so they feel at home with you, and I’ll promote you as a guest teacher through social media and my newsletter.
-Huge plus if you are also a professional belly dancer and can take over my weekly Saturday night performance gig as well 😉
Me and my style:
I’m a yoga teacher since 5 years and also a belly dancer, vegan chef, masseuse, author, and baby witch. I’ve been based primarily in Dakar for the past 4 years and started Prism Yoga Dakar with my husband last year. I teach a freestyle Vinyasa for Monday and Thursday and for the beginners I teach a gentle Hatha Flow.
Here is my website: www.minafuhr.com
And here is a promo video I took for the studio: https://vimeo.com/210165619
If all or most of this resonates for you, I would love to hear from you. Please send a motivation statement and CV to me.
Thank you for taking the time to read all this. This time might be a little short notice, but please send me a message if you are interested in future opportunities, let’s keep in touch. I have a maternity break coming up in December/January. Maybe our paths will meet then.
Lots of love ~
Mina
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