Much Ado About Cotonou

Bonjour de Afrique! We landed safely late Friday night, and we had a fantastic welcome from our present PCVs. After a day of training in Philadelphia and almost 24 hours of flying (waiting, flying, waiting), I have arrived in my home for the next two years. I and 55 of my fellow stagiers (trainees) are living in a compound outside of center city, and we are learning little by little what we should come to expect out of the next two years.

Classes thus far have consisted of safety training, wellness exercises, French training, technical training, and small orientations, but most of them have included an ice breaker or two. My fellow volunteers seem to be selfless and respectable people, so I'm quite sure that having them will make the next two years that much easier. In two days we will be heading to our homestays in Porto Novo, where we will live until September 25 (when we will be sworn in, inshallah). Thus, class meetings will be smaller and focused more on my individual sector (TEFL, or Teaching English as a Foreign Language), so I'm quite sure that the "grind" has not yet begun.

You'd be surprised how much you can do here! We will have cell phones, internet access (if we want to pay $200.00 for a special satellite card), and possibly electricity and running water, so the living may not be as tough as some may think. Then again, there are posts that have none of the above, so I'll be sure to keep my hopes securely grounded. Malaria? Haven't even been bitten by a mosquito. Diarrhea? Not even close. Homesickness? Un petit peu. But c'est la vie.

All in all, I can't really say what the next two months will bring, much less the next two years. Just rest assured, things are quite exciting. I do believe Benin will be one of the best decisions of my life. Thank you everyone for all of your support. You've always got a place to stay next time you're in Africa!

This pic is of a few of my new friends here. We keep it light.