(Picture: My roommate and I in our room at the catholic compound. The blue thing is the mosquito net that we sleep inside)Right now I am sitting in the Peace Corps Compound in downtown Cotonou, Benin. They like to call it a bureau, but when you are behind 20ft walls with spikes on top, I cant think of anything else other than a compound. Today we completed our Zemidjan training, which are scooter taxis. They will be our primary means of transport when our destination is too far away for our new Trek bikes, but dont worry we have to wear a helmet and we are not allowed to ever operate one. As I was riding along on the back of this scooter, locals were yelling, "Yovo, Yovo!" in a friendly manner. It is Fon for foreigner or white person.
The streets here are nuts! Traffic laws are nearly nonexistant and I just watch in amazement as we weave through vehicles and scooters w/o hitting anything. Yet, I would be willing to bet that the accident rate is lower here than in the states. Since everything is out of control on the streets, one's attention must be focused on driving; otherwise would be suicide.
Although Peace Corps has been in Benin since 1968, the local Beninese find us as quite a spectacle. We are starred at by nearly every person we pass, which is understandable giving the demographics down here. Just about every local person knows of Peace Corps so if someone asks (mainly kids) we just say "Je suis Peace Corps" and they understand. My french is quickly improving, since the training is purely conversational and I have to use it. When i move in with my host family, I will be only able to speak french...so I will learn very fast then :).
The day after we flew in to Cotonou, we started training. Right now they are focusing on language, safety, and Peace Corps Policy. This Wednesday, we move in with our host family in Porto Novo, which is fairly close to Cotonou. Currently I am living in a dormitory-like building in a different compound. The living arrangements are quite comfortable currently. I have a single bed w/ mosquito net, running water (but no hot water, only frigidly cold water; makes for quick showers), flushing toilets (but for some reason they dont have toilet seats), and meals are cooked for us.
One of the conversations we had yesterday was called gender discussion, where we split by sex and talked about what is was like to be a man or woman in Benin, Africa. The guys conversation actually focused primarily on the social conditions the women in Benin must deal with. Learning about what Beninese women must live through and also what the women in Peace Corps have to adapt to, really makes one appreciate the conditions in the USA. Despite its faults, the US is light years ahead of Benin. For example, when you talk about the gender gap in the US you might talk about wage gaps or CEOs being mostly men. Here, the gender gap can be described as Beninese women hardly have the right to say 'no' and sexual harassment is equivalent to rape; sexual assault doesnt exist. In fact, 'no' equals 'yes.' This does not mean that men take advantage of women often; men are just very persistent and hope the woman gives in. Furthermore, only about 10% of women who start school will finish high school and many will actually sleep with their teachers in return for grades, protection, and money.
The female volunteers have to become accustomed to constant unwanted attention in the form of men hitting on them. Male volunteers are there for support when necessary, but the good thing is when American women talk back to Beninese men they will back off. They are in more danger of getting robbed than anything else. It will definitely be much more stressful for them. Beyond that, the guys talked about the prevalence of prostitutes in Benin, their tactics, and that you can receive just about anything for less than 2 US dollars. Every volunteer is required to start projects that will build up the value of women within themselves. That is pretty much all we can do, but we are only ~80 volunteers in Benin trying to fight millions of years of oppression.
Sorry to end this blog post on such a low note. Maybe it will help put things in perspective for you living in the states; I know it has for me, and I have only been here 3-days.
