6/9/07 through 6/12/07

6/9/07

Let me tell you that I have arrived safely in Lomé. The trip was very long, but not too difficult. We left Washington D.C. an hour and a half late because of a thunder storm so we just sat in the plane - it was rather boring and hot and stuffy. We only had an hour and a half to catch our connecting flight from Paris to Lome, so needless to say we were very late, but we didn't miss it because they held the plane for us and had people meet us at the gate and usher us to the next flight. I didn't have a chance to look for the note that my Dad left me in Paris because seriously, we just got off one plane and onto the other.



When we arrived in Lomé it was already dark even though it was only about 6:30. As soon as we got off the plane we were put on a bus specifically for the Peace Corps Volunteers and taken to a special room. We met the country director and another staff member and they took our passports and got us through customs and got our bags without us ever leaving the couches where we were sitting. I never expected that sort of VIP treatment. I expected to have to go through customs like everyone else. Then they met us at the Peace Corps hostel with food and drinks - many staff members and also current PCVs (Peace Corps Volunteers) were present to greet us.

6/10/07

So far, I see a lot of things in Togo that remind me of Niger and all those things that I recognize make me feel a bit more at home. There are some things that I recognize from Latin America as well, like the Bonbon chocolates and the brand Leader Price.



After taking a shower last night, I slept well. It isn't too too hot (around 26 degrees Celsius), but it is extremely humid.



Today we have not accomplished much so far. We just got some more money (yay!) and we had a little meeting and then we all had to wait to take turns meeting with the medical officers and getting our shots (two more!) I got a tetanus and a meningitis shot. In the meantime, we got to talk to the PCVs and ask questions. Now, we have just finished eating lunch and in a few minutes we have a meeting on safety. Then in the afternoon we have French placement "tests" - just oral conversations with the trainers to see how our French is.



Later in the day . . .



We had our French tests. I don't think I did very well, but I don't think it matters too too much. If I get to training and I am bored in my French class, I can easily ask to be moved up a level to be more challenged. We also got fitted for our bikes - they are really nice and some of them actually have quite nice seats on them, but none as nice as mine =0) and we got helmets.



Other things from today - I jotted down things to write to you about. Things that remind me of Niger - I will start with them, because that is what I am noticing most right now: the sound of the Fan milk (like a milkshake in a bag) man honking his horn, the smell of the frying dough balls that they eat with a spicy powder, the little seeds with a thin green skin that fall off a certain kind of tree. These things make me feel more at home and comfortable because I recognize them. The new things I have seen: some beautiful little birds - I snagged my parents' little pair of binoculars, so I will get to look a little better once I am with a host family and can get all unpacked, tiny (1 inch long) whole dried little fishies - YUCK! (piled on a plate to be sold in the street). For lunch I also tried a new kind of cheese called Wagash which is apparently made by the Fulani (a nomadic tribe that are cattle herders and also live in Niger (there are fewer of them in Togo).



There are going to be elections in Togo on August 5th, unless they can't get themselves organized by then - hopefully we will still be in training for the elections - that way we will be a bit more cared for. If we are at our sites, we just aren't allowed to leave in case of political unrest.



Oh, and a U.S. Embassy guy came and talked to us and he actually said that in third world countries if only 1-5 people die at the time of an election it was a good election. I just thought that you might appreciate that tidbit, so I jotted it down.



6/11/07

After eating breakfast we went to the health unit. We had an information session on malaria. A couple interesting things: the PCMO (that stands for Peace Corps Medical Officer a.k.a. the "nurse," "doctor," whatever) said that Americans have the most expensive urine in the world because of all the vitamins they take, most of which just passes right through them. She also said that here, anytime anyone is sick people assume that they have malaria. Oh, he's vomiting? He must have malaria. Oh, he has a fever? He must have malaria. Apparently they get a form of recurring malaria that isn't as dangerous to them because they have built up antibodies over the centuries. We also got a demonstration on how to make a slide of our blood to send to the lab if we think that we might have malaria. I was kind of hoping that we would get to make one ourselves with our own blood, but we didn't. According to the PCMO, since Mefloquine (Larium) started being used by PCVs in Togo, no volunteer has gotten malaria. Rumors present a different story, but I guess, if you're careful, take your meds and wear insect repellent and all the other things that you told me that day - light colored clothing, no perfumes, long pants and long sleeves after dusk and before dawn, etc, the likelihood of getting malaria is quite small. Most of the volunteers I have talked with here have not gotten really seriously ill except for the occasional bout of vomiting and diarrhea from having eaten something that doesn't sit well with their stomach or having drank unfiltered water.



Other things I wanted to tell you is that the women here are very beautiful - their hair, their clothing, the way they carry themselves - I admire it very much and think that they are gorgeous. I also wanted to say that it really isn't as hot as I was expecting. Again it is very humid, but there is usually a breeze. I don't feel as though I am suffering too too much from the heat, but it is also the rainy (cooler) season.



After lunch we had a session about our host families - it was really interesting and I learned a lot. First of all, I learned that they pick our families based on whether they have an available room (we all are guaranteed our own room and we are also supposed to have our own latrine and our own shower), someone who speaks French, cleared by the medical staff, screened doors and windows and whitewashed rooms. Peace Corps even builds extra showers and latrines for us, screens the windows (to keep out bugs and mosquitoes) and whitewashes the rooms. So they have been very very carefully chosen and even told not to give us certain foods, especially the first day, not to go into our rooms (privacy), to allow us to burn our garbage, sweep out our rooms, do our own laundry, learn to cook. Apparently the entire village is very excited to receive us because it is the first time that the training will take place in their village.



We learned to greet people that we know by shaking their hands (no kisses, yay!) and people we don't know, but who live in our village by just saying "Bon jour" or "Bon soir" - good morning or good evening. I also learned today that they start saying Bon soir (good evening) at NOON! I was quite surprised at that.



Our trainers put on a skit about how our host families might try to feed us lots and lots of food and also how they might offer us the local palm wine. We also got demonstrations on how to take a bucket bath =0), how to do laundry by hand, how to connect and light a little two burner gas stove that they give us, and how to light a lantern that they also give us.



I learned that there is the belief that putting batteries around your house keeps out the snakes and I thought that was kind of interesting. These cultural sessions are going to be my favorite I think and although I know that going to our training site will mean even less frequent communication I am super excited about it because that is where the Togo experience really begins. Until now I feel as though we have just been being spoiled a bit in terms of the special treatment we have been getting.



6/12/07

Yesterday I had a moment in which I thought "wow I am so lucky because I am living a dream that I have had since I was a little girl. I am actually going to be a Peace Corps volunteer." It was a very special moment and I hope to have a lot more moments just like that so I keep on appreciating my experience.



I am very well. Today was another good day. Other people are feeling a bit sick to their stomachs, but I feel great, I feel happy even though I am missing you all very much. I am excited to go to our training site and to meet my host family and to start really getting to know Togo a bit. That is very very exciting for me. Other people are very nervous. I am not so nervous because I know that my French is good enough to communicate and because I know that I will inevitably make some mistakes and do things I shouldn't do, but I hope that I can have a sense of humor and take full advantage of the experience and learn as much as I can.



Today I got two more shots - Hepatitis A and the first of a series of Rabies shots. Yay. They both hurt a little, but I was brave =0). Then we had a health session on diarrhea. We learned that it is only considered diarrhea if you have four or more really liquid-y poops in less than 24 hours. We also learned how to make a preserved poop sample so that we can send our poop to the medical unit in Lomé to get it tested for parasites. We also learned how to assemble the water filters that we each get. We have to either boil and filter our water or filter and then add 2 drops of bleach for every liter.



We also got our medical kits. They have all sorts of cool stuff in them - only little bottles of sunscreen though. I can't believe I brought shampoo and didn't bring sunscreen. Stupid really. But I will be ok, because I can ask for more whenever I run out - I feel like that will be at least every two weeks.



After the health session we had lunch and then we gave our valuables (I just gave all my American money) to a woman to keep in the Peace Corps office and then we had meetings with the person in charge of the Health volunteers - he just told us the history of the Peace Corps health program in Togo.



The last session for the day was a diversity session and I learned a couple of interesting things - I learned that ethnicity, language and age are very important in Togo. I also learned that when someone is crying in Togo, you try to get them to stop, rather then just letting them cry to "get it all out". I also learned that smiling for no reason can be interpreted as mockery, so I will have to work on that because I probably smile too much. I also learned that you should always greet your host family and show respect and that it is disrespectful to call someone older than you by their name. All interesting things.



I hope my host family has lots of women and children.



After the sessions a group of us took a quick walk to the beach because we hadn't seen it yet and it is only about 5 blocks away. We only saw it briefly and then left, we didn't even get to go down to the water, because it was starting to get dark and the beach becomes a very dangerous place after dark. It is beautiful though - there were lots of kids on the beach playing soccer and we could see the border with Ghana from where we were standing.