Zemi, zemi

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  Cotonou, Benin
Tuesday, July 25, 2006

Well, this was our big day! I am now officially allowed to ride on zemis in Cotonou. Zemi is short for zemidjian - sort of a mini motorcycle that provide transportation between cities. It should be noted that Peace Corps Benin is the only Peace Corps site where zemi riding is still allowed. At all other sites, other modes of transportation are preferred but do to the nature of our work here and the other possible transport, zemis are a must for us in Benin. We got our training today to learn how to complete this intricate process and become seasoned zemi riders. In case you're interested, for the next time you are in Cotonou, it goes a little something like this:

First, you must hail a zemi. To do this, you simply raise your hand and motion moving your fingers down to your palm (much like I wave "Hi" in the states, but don't do that here because that means you want someone to come). You may make a "psssst" noise to get their attention also. You can also call the word "kekenu" which is Fon (another West African language) for zemi driver. While you're doing this, you must make sure that you are summoning a legitimate zemi driver. In Cotonou, they will be wearing a yellow shirt with some numbers printed on the back. The color varies from city to city and town to town, but it is basically to show that the driver is part of a union.

Once you have accomplished this, you may approach the zemi driver. It's polite to say a little greeting like "Hi, how are you?" and then tell them where you want to go. Once you are sure that they understand where it is you wish to go and it seems like they actually know where that is, you must ask them a price. They will tell you something like 300 to which you must bargain down to 100 because that's the price for just riding around Cotonou. Make sure that you have firmly agreed upon the price. You don't want to end up in a misunderstanding and having to overpay. 100 CFA is about 20 cents. This may seem like a little, but we only have 1500 CFA per day while we are training. We are given enough money to live at the same level as the others in our areas. This is only fair. Anyway, once you have determined the price you want and have asked if they have change (if you only have large bills) you may get on the zemi.

Sounds easy, right? Get on the zemi. Well, this is a whole other process in itself. First, you must put on your zemi helmet (just a motorcycle helmet that is pretty sweet) making sure that the chin strap is fastened tightly. Peace Corps people are the only ones in Benin to wear a helmet, but it is a strict policy because the riding can be dangerous. If you are caught without a helmet, that is immediate grounds for dismissal from the Peace Corps. To board a zemi, you must approach from the left side. If you are wearing a skirt, you must bend down and gather your skirt so that you are holding it in the middle, making a sort of pair of shorts. Then, swing your leg over the back to the right side, paying special attention to put your foot on the foot rest and being careful not to burn your leg on the exhaust pipe. After that, you may say you are ready to go and the zemi driver will take off on a crazy course throughout the city weaving past other cars/zemis and through hectic traffic circles. You pay after the trip (no tip, however) and thank the zemi.

To train, we practiced on a short road and then went around the block a little further. It was really quite fun! We took a zemi back from the cyber café today and it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it could be and I wasn't nearly as afraid as I thought I would be. It sounds like a complicated process, but I'm sure that if you explained the taxi process in the US to a Beninois, they would find it quite confusing. I guess it's just all what you're used to and what you grew up with!

It feels good to have a firm skill under my belt and I look forward (kind of) to negotiating my first zemi ride.

In our walk and ride around Cotonou, I discovered that the city is MUCH busier than it was yesterday on a Sunday. The traffic was just absolutely nuts and it seemed impossible to cross the street. I did get left behind the group twice because I wasn't gutsy enough to run across the road. There were lots of people selling things and we got to fend off the constant flow of people trying to get us to buy their goods. It's all just a part of life here and as an American, and being viewed as wealthy, we get a lot more attention when it comes to shopping and buying.

Perhaps tomorrow I will get to try my hand at some more zemi riding! I want to be as acclimated as possible to the process for the first time when I am on my own and have to do it all by myself.

I will close with this - the song that all the little children on the street sing to us white folk walking by. In Fon, the word "yovo" means foreigner:

Yovo, yovo.
Bonsoir.
Ca va bien.
Merci.

Meaning...(foreigner, foreigner. Goodnight. It's going well. Thank you.)

I like it! And I taught some people the banana nana fo fana, me my mo mana, etc song to do with names. It's silly and fun and they like to laugh at me when I sing it!

Yours truly,
Rebecca

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