Blogs from Cotonou, South, Benin, Africa - page 2

Step 1: Disassemble plans. They hadn’t really meant anything, anyway. Don’t be silly. I left Athiémé as early as possible Friday morning to arrive on time to apply for a visa for Ghana. I made it to Cotonou by noon, and happened to find a volunteer-friend (she volunteered to be my friend) at the office. She gave me two critical pieces of information because she is a good volunteer: 1) that I needed my passport to have the visa stamped in, but because I am kinda stupid, my passport was still in Athiémé, and 2) that Ghana was on holiday, so the embassy wasn’t even open. Step 2: Eat good food that differs from the usual good food. Instead of getting frustrated, I got lunch. I like to economize my time. Step 3: Hang out with ... read more

November 11: We crept into Benin at twilight, after hours of frustrating travel to the East frontier of Ghana and across Togo. The country appeared unremarkable at first sight: a plain of grassy earth punctuated by a few modest mud structures and tall palm trees ending, rather abruptly, at the deep blue waters of the Gulf of Guinea. The chartered taxi that we were traveling in dropped us in the nondescript 'burbs of Cotonou, the tiny francophone country's largest city. Here, hundreds of zemijohns (motorcycle taxis in various degrees of upkeep) thundered down the streets shrouded by a brown haze of exhaust and dust. We quickly found a few willing drivers and sped off through the congestion and chaos to the Jonquet district of Cotonou. After finding a spartan but tidy room at a nearby pension ... read more

Crossing the border from Ghana into Togo felt like getting back to genuine Africa. Away from modern conveniences and into overcrowded bush-taxis, driving like there’s no tomorrow (which more than once got close to true). We had entered the hilly Danyi Plateau and were travelling on twisting roads through jungle-covered hills, to get to the Benedictine monastery outside the small village of Dzogbégan. The monks at the monastery are famous for their huge orchard, attracting people from faraway to come and enjoy their produce. Things like carambola-jam, home-processed cheese, honey vinegar and freshly baked baguettes are just a few of the products they sell. The call of the sirens for me was the homegrown coffee, served at breakfast with the full board offered at the monastery. As we arrived all the rooms were taken, but the ... read more