We're now officially volunteers!

• Jasonrebecca's Profile
• About this blog
• Entry from Come

Trip Start Sep 22, 2003 Previous
Entry Trip End Dec 13, 2005 Next
Entry

  Come, Benin
Saturday, December 13, 2003

Hey everyone! Yes, we're officailly Peace Corps Volunteers! We just had the swear in ceremony, and it was fun. All of the families were invited to come to the cerimony that was held at the ambasador's house. It was really nice. The ambasador was unfortunately out of the country so his second in command was there to swear us in as well as Benin's directors of the environment, health, and business. Everyone gave a short speach and then a few from our group got up and gave speaches in the languages they'll be speaking at post. This was really nice because all of the families really appreciated the effort and there were lots of laughs because of the funny speaches as well as the pronuciations. The three groups (env, business, and health) all had selected their own group fabric and everyone looked really good. Rebecca had one of the teachers tie her extra piece of fabric into a really cool/authentic looking turbin. Very Beninois looking. Jason's group all bought funky looking straw hats that people typically wear in the fields. So everything went really well and everyone was really excited about going to post and about finally being done with our training.

After the cerimony we had a big party back in Comé where all the people in our group as well as any other PCV could come and dance and just have a lot of fun. It was a really great time because everyone was dacing a lot and they were playing a lot of fun songs from the 80s and 90s. I don't know how many people know the song by Toto that has the line about the rains in africa. Well they played that and everybody was singing along and it was just a lot of fun. In addition to just the normal fun, the health group some how got together and had this amazingly coreographed danced routine which lasted over 5 mins and had everything from syncrinized swiming moves to the electric slide, macarana, break dancing and the grand finale was the lift sceen in "dirty dancing". It was really amazing and everyone in the group did really well and you could tell that they really worked hard. Jason wasn't allowed to see it until everyone so he was just as blown away as everyone else. So it was just a really great night spent with all the people we've gotten really close to over the past 3 months.

We have also been packing and buying stuff for post. The other day we got a cheap twin mattras that will act as our couch and guest bed. Jason was carrying it on his head (just like everyone else here carries everything) and we were getting lots of funny looks. About half the way home the Zimmy john (motor scotter driver) that has carried Jason back and forth to Segbouhue shows up out of no where and states that he is going to take the mattras to the house for us. We weren't sure if he was joking or not but when he grabs it from Jason and proceedes to place it on his seat we realize that he's actually going to go through with it. So he ends up sitting on the mattras with the long ends sticking out on either side of him and then just takes off. We were so in awe of what had just happened and at the sight of the little moped that could, that we didn't even get a chance to thank him. But we both thought that this is an example of the best part of Benin. The people here are so nice and if you know them they will really go out of thier way to help you out. By the time we got home the mattras was sitting by our door in our compound and the driver was long gone.

Well we have packed up everything in a taxi tonight and will probably be leaving for post at 6 am tomorrow. it will probably be a 10-12 hr drive so we stocked up on books and food for our journey. Tongight we are having a little party with the family. We'll give them the gifts that we brought and hopefully we won't get anythgin really big from them.

We'll we'd better run. We hope to write everyone before x-mas but if not we wish everyone a very merry, safe and happy holidays where ever you spend it.

Lots of Love,
Jason and Rebecca

Print this entry Share Cotonou hotels

Previous Entry Next Entry