By the time I got to Benin, I was sleep deprived, had been wearing the same clothes for 24 hours, had not pooped in 2 whole days, and hadn't eaten anything remotely filling or healthy. Despite that, there is no feeling to describe the way I felt as we wove through traffic in a van full of 29 people--made for 15, arriving to the St. Jean Eudes compound to dozens of current volunteers screaming our names.
No traffic lights, no turn signals, no stop signs, yield signs, lane merges right or left signs, one way signs, or stay on your side of the road lines. No crashes.
Benin is AMAZING. Cotonou, a major city, is huge and dirty and polluted and crowded and absolutely beautiful.
Women carrying baskets of bread on their heads. Women and men with tiny babies strapped to their backs. Men selling huge glass vases of gasoline on the side of the street. Tons of street-side shops selling everything; bread, avacodo, rosaries, dried bananas, dried meat, even cell phone sim cards.
The trees are amazing and to top it off, the ground is all sand--no dirt. It's humid but by no means terrible. I spend my days in a sheen of liquid and my nights relaxing to fans and crickets, sleeping under a mosquito net.
The friends I have made, are definitely making this journey trés beaucoup better! Erin, Jennifer, Dave, and our little nugget Jamie are such amazing people.
No diarrhea despite new and strange food exposed to insects. No malaria despite tons of mosquito bites. No feelings of regret despite the fact that I miss Roberto so much.
Benin is where I should be.
I miss all of you very much.
2 comments:
I love you babe. So glad to hear things are settling nicely!
yay! i'm so glad you like it! My favorite thing about cotonou was probably the crazy zemidjans. But they were so much fun to ride! I remember one time seeing one with the driver, a woman, 2 children, and a goat. Benin is incredible. i still crave west african food a lot. you may get tired of the rice and chicken, but it is some of the best food you'll ever have!
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