These past few weeks have been ridiculously busy. I feel like I have been all over Benin going to trainings. A couple of weeks ago I went up north with my post mate and our Amour et Vie team (our team of peer educators who teach youth HIV/AIDS education and prevention) for remedial training. The formations were so long and somewhat boring for me because after an hour or so of being presented to in French, I just zone out. However I got to stay in an air conditioned hotel room and got a chance to meet up with my friend and fellow SED volunteer Doug, who lives up north. After a few days, Doug and I went down to support our friend Rich who was doing a fundraiser for an orphanage he is trying to build. It was really fun and he raised a lot of money. After that we all went down to Porto Novo for an in-service training for my sector (Small Enterprise Development). The trainings were so boring but we accomplished a lot and are preparing for the new group of trainees in July.
After a week in Porto Novo I went to Cotonou to interview for the position of Peace Corps Volunteer Leader. Benin has 4 PCVLs who manage a work station/house for volunteers in a specific region of the country. They also support volunteers with projects and are liasons between PC Admin in Cotonou and the volunteers. So anyway my interview was daunting as it was a panel of people asking me really hard questions, some of them in French. When I get nervous I can't even speak correctly in English so needless to say I sounded like a preschooler in French. At the end of the day they brought me back in to tell me that I got the position in the northern part of the country. It is a remote region in Benin and takes about 10 hours by bus from Cotonou but it is so pretty up there and the people are very nice. I will also get to learn Bariba and Dendi.
I love the friends that I have made in Bohicon and the work that I am doing but decided to go for PCVL because things really have been hard for me here. The south is so much more different and there are a lot of people who are really abrasive. In Bohicon I am harassed almost every day on the streets. When I go out I have to mentally prepare myself for lots of "yovo" calling and attempts to rip me off. It is such an ordeal to get on a moto taxi because I have to argue relentlessly with the driver to get the correct price. Most people think I am a rich tourist or NGO worker and I can't explain to 200,000 people that I am not and that no one pays me to be here. Honestly I think that a change like this will be very good for me and I am very excited! I should be up there in August/September.
