Some Days Are Better Than Others...

Dear Readers,

Okay, where do I start? I know it's been a while since my last post but its because I haven't been able to make it to the cybercafe this week. On Sunday I went to Brownie's house for lunch which was nice and then Matt and I went to the gate of no return and I got to take some pictures of it. It is right next to the beach which is beautiful but unfortunately it is extremely dangerous to swim in the sea here because the current is so strong. Brownie told me that a father and son died because they drowned in the rip tide. The gate of no return (as I mentioned in one of my previous posts) is the gate that the slaves would exit through to go to the States. It's so cool to be able to see historical landmarks like this after studying about the slave trade for years in school. 

Monday was probably the worst/toughest day for me here so far. The director of the orphanage told me to escort the kids to their school and go with them to their class and so I did. When I got there one of the teachers was talking to me and she brought me to a class and left me inside. I was so confused I had no idea what to do. I then realized that I was expected to teach all 40 of these children on my own for 5 hours. I couldn't believe that I was expected to do that. I had no plan and no idea what to teach them. The children were from the ages of 5 to 8 and so they were extremely rowdy and did not listen. The moment the teacher left they started to jump on the tables, they were hitting each other, it was chaos. I tried to write some simple math equations on the board and maybe 3 girls listened to me and the rest were out of control.  The worst part is still to come. At certain points in the morning the teacher would come and see how the kids were behaving. The teacher grabbed a little girl and started to whack her with a wooden stick, and these hits were very strong they weren't just a light tap.The little girl's cries and screams from the pain and anguish were enough to break my heart. She later came back with a small whip and whipped two small boys on the back several times. The whole day I wanted to scream and cry. In Benin it is acceptable in the culture to hit children as a form of punishment and upbringing, its something that I am not used to and I strongly disagree with, but who am I to say anything, who am I to tell them they are wrong? 

However, there was not a chance that I would be able to do that everyday for 8 hours a day. I am not a certified teacher nor do I speak French very well nor did I come to Benin to be a teacher. I told Brownie what happened and she was shocked and said that she can hardly control the kids that she teaches and she has been teaching for 40 years. So imagine what a naive 18 year old girl who has absolutely no experience with teaching would look like in front of a class of wild, little children. Luckily, I spoke to my orphanage director and explained that I could not do the job and would prefer one that is in the orphanage with only the orphanage children. We figured out a schedule where I will be caring for the baby while the other kids are at school, I will help cook and prepare meals and clean, I will walk them to and from school and spend time with them in between their classes. The director was very kind and understood and I am SO relieved because I would not have been able to live in Benin for much longer under the former schedule I had.

Whenever I walk to and from the orphanage I have not failed to hear the famous "Yovo Yovo Bonsoir" song. Only little kids sing the song but adults yell out "Yovo" when I walk by. Yovo literally means 'person who lives well'. I asked my teacher if kids would call a black person Yovo if they seemed wealthy, he said no they only call people who are white or  mulatto "Yovo". The kids always run up to me and touch my hand, it's a fascination to them that I have a different skin colour. I find one thing here a little bit rude and annoying, whenever I meet someone and talk to them for a bit they ask me what I have brought them, literally, what did you bring me. It's really uncomfortable because obviously I don't have anything for them, it's as if they think I have a bag of goodies to pass out to everyone who I meet in anticipation of meeting them. I mean I understand that people here see a white person and think that they come from a place of wealth (especially compared to Ouidah) but I still find it annoying when they ask me that. 

However, the rest of the week was pleasant. I went to the orphanage each day and helped the older girl prepare the children's lunch. They eat a lot of 'pate' which is maize (corn kernels) crunched down to a powder and then cooked. It looks like a big heap of white goo. They also eat 'gumbo' which is okra, and rice. They kill a chicken or a rabbit each day (they have a chicken coup and several cages with wild rabbits at the orphanage) I watched two children butcher the chicken. It was honestly so gross but it is what everyone who eats chicken eats, and I think being able to see that and know how your food is prepared is important. However, they share one skinny chicken among 50+ children, which is hardly any meat at all. The children take a high dosage iron pill after lunch so that they don't become anemic. Protein is a sparsely available food here because it is expensive and it is hard for people to preserve it because most people don't have a refrigerator. 

 I also took care of Alexandre, the baby. He is so adorable I cannot even describe! He calls me "Tata" which means aunty, but thats all he can really say. He'll point to something with a lot of excitement and say "Tata! Tata! oh! oh!" All of the kids are amazing. They are so kind and they help with everything. They all help perform chores in the orphanage, they take care of each other, and they are so well behaved. They always come and say hello when they get back from school and they appreciate everything that they are given. The director wants to slowly give the children all the things I brought so that it's not so overwhelming. Yesterday he gave me the towels to give them and I got a picture of all of them. I helped them sew their names on each towel so that they can recognize whose is whose. I have days that are harder than others. Sometimes I feel a bit low but whenever I go to the orphanage the children really cheer me up. Just seeing them and watching how they play or helping them with something reminds me why I am here. 

On Wednesday night my french teacher invited Matt and I to his house for dinner. He is such a nice man and the dinner was amazing. His wife prepared rice with beans and fish, mmm it was so delicious and whenever I have the opportunity to have meat or fish I get so happy. It's crazy to think that I am feeling this way but it is true, it just makes me appreciate the food that is so readily available to me back home. My diet mainly consists of pineapples, tomatoes, avocados, onions, eggs, beans, couscous, and bread. There is not a big variety here and getting meat is not an easy thing. I try to eat meat if I go to a 'restaurant' or on Sundays at Brownies house. But usually I get my protein from a boiled egg or a can of beans. 

Oh one more thing! There was a power out in all of Ouidah on Wednesday night and they are quite common here. Thankfully it only lasted for a couple of hours but my french teacher told me they can last up to a few days. I hope that this does not happen because I can't imagine not sleeping with the fan on. I already sweat non-stop here because of how hot, sticky, and humid it is, and without the fan it would just be torture. I have to change my shirt three times a day and shower at least twice a day. I miss the feeling of being clean, but it's something I have gotten more and more used to as the days go by.

That's all for now! 

Bisous 

" LA PORTE DU NONRETOUR"

The School

Maze before it becomes pate