Back from Benin

Saturday, November 4^th

I couldn’t have got a more miserable night of sleep. Last night, the four of us – Kevin, Will, Theo (who goes to Santa Clara) and I decided that we would be out of here around 7. My alarm was set for 6, having still needed to pack. I fell asleep around 2, and I probably could have functioned on four hours of sleep, except some lunatic started blowing a whistle at 4:30. This was going to be a miserable day.

I was out of it, in one way or another, for the tro-tro ride to Aflao. I was either asleep or totally dazed and confused. Once we reached the border – and were greeted with baguette and avocado – things got better. I had hoped to go straight through to Benin, but I really wasn’t up for another four-hour drive, so I decided to hang in Lomé for the night.

Lomé is spectacular. If I had to live in one West African city for the rest of my life, I would choose Lomé. It has a really nice small-town feel to it. The four of us took motos to the hotel and then walked from the hotel down to the beach. I didn’t bring a bathing suit, so I just put my feet in. The tides were really pulling and, being so tired, I don’t know if I could deal with them.

After some quality time on the beach, and watching the sun set over Ghana from the pier, We made our way back to the hotel, and the delicious croissanterie with the outrageously good sandwiches. Following dinner, we all got pastries. Theo and Kevin decide to go out; Will and I passed out by 7:30.

Sunday, November 5^th

The trip across Togo is really easy – fast and scenic. Togo is only about 50 kilometers – 30 miles – wide. It takes no more than hour to get to Aneho, the city that sits on the border of Togo and Benin. Kevin, Theo and Will stayed in Togo for the rest of the weekend, and I made my way to Benin.

I was dropped off by the taxi at the closest station to the border, where I told them I wanted to go to Cotonou, which is on the opposite end – the east coast – of Benin, close to Nigeria. They told me to give them my bag, then walk across the border, and the taxi would pick us up. I was a little skeptical of this, so I grabbed my valuables and irreplaceables, leaving behind my clothes. I crossed the border with little trouble, and about 10 minutes later, the taxi rolled up to the station on the opposite side of the border.

We packed ten people into a car that should have fit seven, and made our way across Benin to Cotonou, and then onward to Porto Novo, the smallish capital of Benin. Once in Porto Novo, I got a quick bite to eat and started wandering around through the town. There were two things I immediately noticed about Porto Novo: the city had a distinct Muslim feel; and a lot of people didn’t want their picture taken, which was fine.

Porto Novo is a lovely city. For a capital city, it seemed small, but it was very comfortable. I roamed the streets, just checking out the city, when I came across three spectacular mosques.

I weaseled my way into the third mosque, telling the people there that I was Muslim. I told them I wouldn’t take any pictures, but let me say that the inside is a beautiful as the outside, painted predominately in pink and green.

From the third mosque, I caught a zemidjan (zemi-john) – a moto – to the Musée Ethnographique. I asked if there was anybody who could do the tour in English – the only person who could was the person who ran the place. Kindly, he shut down the store so he could give me the tour. I gave him a small tip after to show my appreciation.

The tour was really interesting. Going into the trip, I knew very little about Benin, so this first museum was a good chance to learn. Much of the tour revolved around the fetish/voodoo culture, like what people do prior to a child’s birth or after a parent’s death. There were also a series of masks – both older and newer – which were worn by the local people. There were also a series of drums, various divination items, and weapons used by the people. I wasn’t supposed to take any pictures, but I took some anyway.

Having done what I wanted to do in Porto Novo, I checked my Lonely Planet book for a hotel, and headed to the Hotel Deténte. Exhausted and really thirsty, I got a massive soda, which hit the spot. I took a small nap before sunset, which as the Lonely Planet book said, was beautiful. What the book didn’t say was there was a very cool, little stilt village right off the back of the hotel. A stilt village isn’t a village where people walk around on stilts. It is called a stilt village because the houses are built on stilts over a lagoon. They are pretty common in Benin, but not exclusive to Benin

During my dinner, a couple of people approached me, and we had some lovely conversation. The first person brought up John Kerry’s comments about people not going to school ending up in the war, which I found interesting. The second was just a man who, after rambling in French to me (and after telling him that I don’t speak French), just had a nice conversation. He was studying English in school and was happy to have the opportunity to speak English, as was I.

Having these types of conversations is one of the upsides of traveling alone. The other major upsides are that I am not bound by other peoples’ schedules and I get the whole bed to myself. The downside though, is that you have no one to have constant conversation with, no one to help out, and no one to enjoy the really cool moments with me. I’ve learned to like both.

After one last soda, I made my way into my room, did a little reading and fell asleep.

Monday, November 6^th.

Another miserable night of sleep. I could never get comfortable, and once I did, I had horrible dreams. Being somewhat tired, I made the decision to cut the trek to Abomey out of my trip and head to Ouidah (wee-dah), the voodoo center of Benin. The drive took a couple hours and the taxi driver absolutely shafted me, but it wasn’t a big deal. I took a zemidjan to the History Museum of Ouidah. The tour was entirely in French, but the truth is that a guide was really unnecessary. Everything could be taken just from the pictures. Not only is Ouidah the voodoo center, but it is also the major port in Benin where slaves were taken. Much of the museum revolved around slave trade, and the exchange of culture between Ouidah, the Portuguese, and the Brazilians. It was a downer of an experience, but one that was necessary to really understand the culture.

From the museum, I took a zemi down the Route des Esclaves, the path connecting the museum to the beach, and the Point of No Return.

The street is lined with a bunch of fetish statues. The statu The guy explained to me in French – and I understood – that I had to pay 500 CFA per picture. I pled ignorant, took the pictures, and didn’t pay for them.

Getting from Ouidah back to Lomé was a bit of an adventure, but that’s all part of traveling. A taxi, a zemi, a taxi to border and a taxi from the border got me close to Ghana. I spent the night in Lomé, enjoying my sandwich and my pastry. I killed a little time at this little casino, which sadly did not have any blackjack, or any card game for the matter. I lost 10 dollars over half an hour playing roulette. Whatever. It was time well spent.

I walked back from the casino – about a 20 minute walk – without asking for directions. That is how comfortable I feel in Lomé. I got back to the hotel and enjoyed the whole bed to myself. I didn’t get completely destroyed by mosquitoes this time because I tried something new, which I would like to dub “the burrito method” (by the way, can someone please ship me some decent Mexican food? Haha). I basically wrapped myself in the blanket, folding the end over my feet. It helped keep the mosquitoes out, and the ones who got in, well, they earned it.

Tuesday, November 7^th

The ride from Aflao to Accra was easy. I only had my passport checked twice after getting through the border – ridiculous. I snagged four baguettes before getting out of Aflao, one of which was eaten on the ride, the others during the afternoon.

As always, Tuesday meant pizza. I bought the beer, Duncan bought the pizza, and we had a perfect dinner. I was not looking forward to the night though. My registration for classes at San Diego was slated from 7PM Pacific time – 3 in the morning here. I did not want to wake up.

Wednesday, November 8^th

I cant believe I’m awake. But waking up early was well worth it, especially when I got on Yahoo and saw that the Democrats took the House! Woo! I signed up for classes, going a different route than I’ve taken in prior quarters: American Politics. For the most part I’ve done International Relations, but there was nothing so intriguing (winter quarter is always a down quarter). So I signed up for four classes: Race and Ethnicity in American Politics, the Polarization of American Politics, The Supreme Court and the Constitution, and one history class – Fascism and Communism, 1919 – 1945. Should be an interesting quarter.

I returned to the room, where Francis proudly displayed his new scale. I decided to see just exact how much weight I’ve lost in the last 15 weeks. “How much?” you ask. Well, that’s up to you to guess. For the next 72 hours, post your guesses in the comment area. The winning answer will get something, to be determined soon. (Those who I’ve told already can’t win – sorry boys).

Class started way late today, and once again, the patients ran the asylum. The professor gave the option of meeting this week or next week. Of course, everyone chose next week, but the hitch was that there would be some in-class writing. Uhh, shit. I’ll be in Egypt. I explained to the professor that I would not be in class, and if there was anything I could do to make up the writing. With a smile, he responded, “Don’t worry about it, you’re doing fine.” Getting the top grade in the class has its upside.

I’m eagerly awaiting the results of the last two Senate races. Hopefully, they will be up soon.

Counting down until Egypt. Speaking of which, I should mention that I am eternally grateful to my grandparents, Bernice (Bubbie), Bob and Ben, who are paying for my plane ticket as a Hanukkah present. I truly can’t express how grateful I am for this gift, and I assure you, as you already know, that it will be an incredible week.

I’ll post once or twice more before I leave.

Okay, I promise that there will be pictures soon. I couldn’t upload today due to internet difficulties. They’ll be up ASAP. Until then…

LDG