Dear Readers,
After a long journey I have finally arrived to Benin! When I arrived at the airport the head of customs wanted to see what was inside all of my luggage. Brownie, my new exchange manager, was with me. She was told that she had to get some sort of authorization to be able to bring all of the bags in but luckily in Benin people of an elderly age are highly respected and Brownie, being 73 years old, convinced the head of customs to allow all of the bags to come through. Brownie is an incredibly sweet and gentle lady. She is originally from America, but has worked in the Peace Corps and as an English teacher for most of her life in places like Jamaica and countries in West Africa. I am extremely lucky to have her as my exchange manager.
There are two other volunteers here with me. Mathew has been here for 5 weeks and has been helping me tremendously with getting settled in and showing me Ouidah. He is working in an NGO that is opening new orphanages in Ouidah. I will go to the orphanage on Monday (Orphelinat D'espoir) and I couldn't be more excited! Brownie told me that the children are so excited too- especially because of the fact that she told them I have long hair that they can braid!
I have been keeping a journal here so that I can write down all of my thoughts and impressions so that I can later share them when I have internet on my blog.
My first night was tough, the humidity and heat is ridiculous and I woke up several times drenched in sweat. There are roosters cocka-doodle-doing at 4 am. I woke up took a shower and unpacked. I later met my French teacher who only speaks French. This will surely force me to learn the language quickly...
I drank from the tap! Mathew and Brownie both told me that the water is clean and had has a nice taste, the both drink from the tap and never had any problems. So far so good for me too. I wasn't expecting to be able to do that!
In the afternoon Matt took me around Ouidah. Most of the roads are dirt roads except for one that is paved. I rode on a moto-taxi (motorcycle taxi) It was SO FUN! Ouidah is amazing, women walk around carrying huge amounts on their heads (goods, food, furniture!) but people don't have anything. People are so friendly, they all say bonsoir when you walk by and they expect you to greet them back. Matt told me that one time a man said hello to him and he didn't hear him and the man followed him asking pourqoui tu ne dit bonsoir? pourquoi?
Four little boys came up to me when we stopped for lunch at one of the most popular restaurants in Ouidah. They were laughing and playing and they wanted me to take pictures of them! They didn't have shoes, they were filthy and their clothes were ripped but they didn't have a care in the world. They were so boisterous and cute. It really shows how money can't buy happiness. It makes me think about how sad it is when people in first world countries have everything and still aren't happy and people who comparatively have nothing are full of joy and happiness. It really makes you question what is truly important in our lives.
Matt introduced me to the owner of the restaurant we had lunch in. She is used to volunteers coming to sit with her. I had a delicious sandwich (their version of a shawarma) and I had a beer, it was so refreshing in the heavy heat. I also met Raymond, another restaurant owner. Everyone is so pleasant and kind. They loved looking at my camera and the pictures I took. (I'm sure it was possibly the first time they saw what they looked like in a digital photo). Everyone is so chilled and relaxed, their #1 saying is "dousement" which means slow down, in essence, relax, chill. It's such a contrast to western life where "time is money" and life is scheduled down to the last minute. It is quite a culture shock, expectations are so different. Some locals asked me to pay them if I took a picture of their shop or the outside of their house. Some locals yelled out "why are you taking a picture of THAT?" To them its an old house or broken down car but to me its new, beautiful and so different.
The town has so much character. I saw tiny huts that could fit maybe one person at a time. Matt told me they are the prayer huts for the Voodoo religion. Gomez, one of Matt's local friends who had dinner with us last night, explained that there are 45 Voodoo spirits and each individual is assigned one the must worship. They bring clackers with them when they pray so that they can awaken their spirit. Gomez works in one of the five orphanages in Ouidah (it is sad how in such a small town there is a need for that many orphanages). He teaches them how to draw and dance. After dinner he was giving me and Matt a lesson on the drums (jambez). He played and sang a 'welcome to Benin' song, which was so nice. Roukeya, (the housekeeper) made us a delicious dinner of rice, plantain, and chicken in an amazing spicy sauce. Everyone here only speaks French or the local langauge Fon. I feel very lost but hopefully my French will improve substantially in the next few weeks. (It has to.)
Last night I was feeling a bit homesick and sad. I knew it was going to be a difficult adjustment, but last night I saw just how difficult it would be. I also had the biggest scare of my life. I saw a creature speeding across the floor of my room. I didn't know what it was and then I couldn't see it. I was freaked out because I thought it was a rat. Then on the pale blue walls of my room I saw what this huge black creature was, it was the biggest spider I have ever seen in my life. It was the size of my hand when it is fully out-stretched. I couldn't breath, I felt like my lungs were collapsing. I took my RAID spray and sprayed it and it disappeared. I went CRAZY I almost pissed myself with fear. THANKFULLY Matt took a glass and captured it and threw it out the balcony (he's clearly used to this horrific sight). I quite honestly would have preferred to smash it. Naturally I barely slept, how could I knowing that a creature like this could be sharing my bed! Blaghh!!!
Today I am going to have lunch at Brownie's house. That is all I have to say for now!
I will write soon,
A Bientot!
Here are a few pictures I have taken so far:
After a long journey I have finally arrived to Benin! When I arrived at the airport the head of customs wanted to see what was inside all of my luggage. Brownie, my new exchange manager, was with me. She was told that she had to get some sort of authorization to be able to bring all of the bags in but luckily in Benin people of an elderly age are highly respected and Brownie, being 73 years old, convinced the head of customs to allow all of the bags to come through. Brownie is an incredibly sweet and gentle lady. She is originally from America, but has worked in the Peace Corps and as an English teacher for most of her life in places like Jamaica and countries in West Africa. I am extremely lucky to have her as my exchange manager.
There are two other volunteers here with me. Mathew has been here for 5 weeks and has been helping me tremendously with getting settled in and showing me Ouidah. He is working in an NGO that is opening new orphanages in Ouidah. I will go to the orphanage on Monday (Orphelinat D'espoir) and I couldn't be more excited! Brownie told me that the children are so excited too- especially because of the fact that she told them I have long hair that they can braid!
I have been keeping a journal here so that I can write down all of my thoughts and impressions so that I can later share them when I have internet on my blog.
My first night was tough, the humidity and heat is ridiculous and I woke up several times drenched in sweat. There are roosters cocka-doodle-doing at 4 am. I woke up took a shower and unpacked. I later met my French teacher who only speaks French. This will surely force me to learn the language quickly...
I drank from the tap! Mathew and Brownie both told me that the water is clean and had has a nice taste, the both drink from the tap and never had any problems. So far so good for me too. I wasn't expecting to be able to do that!
In the afternoon Matt took me around Ouidah. Most of the roads are dirt roads except for one that is paved. I rode on a moto-taxi (motorcycle taxi) It was SO FUN! Ouidah is amazing, women walk around carrying huge amounts on their heads (goods, food, furniture!) but people don't have anything. People are so friendly, they all say bonsoir when you walk by and they expect you to greet them back. Matt told me that one time a man said hello to him and he didn't hear him and the man followed him asking pourqoui tu ne dit bonsoir? pourquoi?
Four little boys came up to me when we stopped for lunch at one of the most popular restaurants in Ouidah. They were laughing and playing and they wanted me to take pictures of them! They didn't have shoes, they were filthy and their clothes were ripped but they didn't have a care in the world. They were so boisterous and cute. It really shows how money can't buy happiness. It makes me think about how sad it is when people in first world countries have everything and still aren't happy and people who comparatively have nothing are full of joy and happiness. It really makes you question what is truly important in our lives.
Matt introduced me to the owner of the restaurant we had lunch in. She is used to volunteers coming to sit with her. I had a delicious sandwich (their version of a shawarma) and I had a beer, it was so refreshing in the heavy heat. I also met Raymond, another restaurant owner. Everyone is so pleasant and kind. They loved looking at my camera and the pictures I took. (I'm sure it was possibly the first time they saw what they looked like in a digital photo). Everyone is so chilled and relaxed, their #1 saying is "dousement" which means slow down, in essence, relax, chill. It's such a contrast to western life where "time is money" and life is scheduled down to the last minute. It is quite a culture shock, expectations are so different. Some locals asked me to pay them if I took a picture of their shop or the outside of their house. Some locals yelled out "why are you taking a picture of THAT?" To them its an old house or broken down car but to me its new, beautiful and so different.
The town has so much character. I saw tiny huts that could fit maybe one person at a time. Matt told me they are the prayer huts for the Voodoo religion. Gomez, one of Matt's local friends who had dinner with us last night, explained that there are 45 Voodoo spirits and each individual is assigned one the must worship. They bring clackers with them when they pray so that they can awaken their spirit. Gomez works in one of the five orphanages in Ouidah (it is sad how in such a small town there is a need for that many orphanages). He teaches them how to draw and dance. After dinner he was giving me and Matt a lesson on the drums (jambez). He played and sang a 'welcome to Benin' song, which was so nice. Roukeya, (the housekeeper) made us a delicious dinner of rice, plantain, and chicken in an amazing spicy sauce. Everyone here only speaks French or the local langauge Fon. I feel very lost but hopefully my French will improve substantially in the next few weeks. (It has to.)
Last night I was feeling a bit homesick and sad. I knew it was going to be a difficult adjustment, but last night I saw just how difficult it would be. I also had the biggest scare of my life. I saw a creature speeding across the floor of my room. I didn't know what it was and then I couldn't see it. I was freaked out because I thought it was a rat. Then on the pale blue walls of my room I saw what this huge black creature was, it was the biggest spider I have ever seen in my life. It was the size of my hand when it is fully out-stretched. I couldn't breath, I felt like my lungs were collapsing. I took my RAID spray and sprayed it and it disappeared. I went CRAZY I almost pissed myself with fear. THANKFULLY Matt took a glass and captured it and threw it out the balcony (he's clearly used to this horrific sight). I quite honestly would have preferred to smash it. Naturally I barely slept, how could I knowing that a creature like this could be sharing my bed! Blaghh!!!
Today I am going to have lunch at Brownie's house. That is all I have to say for now!
I will write soon,
A Bientot!
Here are a few pictures I have taken so far:
I love your blog, it's so exciting to read about your experiences. I love the photos! Can't wait for the next one
ReplyDeleteI look forward to seeing more of your updates as I am headed to Ouidah to volunteer in June!
ReplyDeleteJulia thats great to hear! If you have any questions feel free to ask!
ReplyDeleteI do actually...haha, what types of clothing do you recommend bringing? How is the weather? How much space did you save in your bags for gifts for the locals and kids you are interacting with?
ReplyDeleteI am sure I can come up with many more, but I imagine you are not only very busy, but super tired!
Thanks!
Hey, yeah I am pretty busy but I don't mind answering any questions! I recommend you bring very loose clothing, bring long shorts and skirts and loose long sleeve and short sleeve shirts. I also recommend bring a thin shall that you can wrap around over your clothing, it makes you blend in a little more hahah. Well I had 5 bags of things for the orphanage that I brought with me but that was my fundraiser and my own thing. I also brought 5 dresses for girls that I may meet like Roukeya the house keeper. I already gave her two and she loves them. Also bring extra pads for her, she really appreciates that. If you are traveling Air France than you are allowed two suitcases so bring one with your stuff and one with gifts if you like. The weather is extremely humid and hot so no need for anything warm, it may be cooler in June though because Benin is in the southern hemisphere so it will most likely be the winter time here. Hope this helps!
ReplyDelete