The beginnings...
Trip Start
Feb 02, 2007
1
18
Trip End
Mar 30, 2007
Cotonou,
Benin
Monday, February 5, 2007
The group:
All of us.
The group we will be travelling with to Benin consists of 11, their names are:
Oxfam; Club 2:3: Katerine, Alexandre, Genevieve, Olivier
Yci: Lindsay, Bronwen, Alison, Emma
Ymca: Us !!
We're all a little different, different ages, backgrounds, Anglophone and francophone; but we all get along very well. We've got a great group dynamic.
Stop over in Casablanca:
Casablanca
The flight to Casablanca on Royal Air maroc was mostly on time. Nobody's head sets functioned and a few tray tables were broken! Safe landing - what a feeling to be in Africa. We had a twelve hour layover of which we were shuttled to a hotel. Although tired, eight of us hired two cabs for a tour of the city, which was about a half an hour drive. Casablanca is the capital of morocco, the majority of its infrastructure is economically based. Two of the highlights were the mosque hassan and the local beach.
Arriving in Benin:
As we exited the plane in Benin all we felt was a wall of heat. Even at 4am the humidity was intense and the temperature was 27 °C. We all wondered how hot the day was going to be. Getting through customs wasn't as easy as we are accustomed to. At customs we were greeted with silence and a serioius face, followed by a vaccination check. Fortunately all our luggage arrived safe and unharmed. The luggage checkpoint wasn't so good; Every bag and pocket was checked, and customs officials found a few presents for themselves. Although a long process, everyone made it through successfully. In Benin we were greeted by Isabelle our Oxfam representative. Her warm demeanor immediately made us feel welcomed and safe.
Accomodation (feb 4-8):
Codiam is our temporary home where we have shared accommodations, complete with shared bathrooms. So as you can imagine setting up oučr mosquito nets by flashlight after travelling 24hrs was a bit of a challenge.
In Benin, power is conserved by rotating electricity shifts every 8 hrs. When we arrived the power was off!
Day 1:
Our day started @ 12:00, but none of us were able to get much rest due to the heat and unfamiliar sounds: motorcycles, the loud snoring of others, morning prayers, unknown insects, the Touterelle bird that sounds like a jetsons engine! Luckily for us our big plans consisted of an afternoon at the beach. Being Sunday we had limited access to things including calling home. The day was just right, sunny/breezy and beautiful. We all anticipated a good nights rest.
Comments
to our friends in Africa
Hello to Sam, Cindy and Dana!
Thought I would be the first to enter a comment! Sounds like you are having an amazing time! I am so excited for all of you!
You will be glad you aren't back in Ontario, as its been terrible weather the past few days! Everyone back home is looking forward to hearing more about your experiences! Thanks for the updates!
take care,
Rachel H
Keisha & Charlotte From Senegal
Hi Guys,
Glad to hear yuou arrived safe and that you are adjusting nicely to your new home for 2 months. This are really great in Senegal, it took a few days fro us to get use to everything, the people, food and just like you the very strange noices at night. We will be heading on a 15 hour boat ride to another city in Senegal for the week. We have done so much and learned so much thus far. Glad to see you smiling face Cindy! Take Care of each other and be safe! Our blog site is kcsenegalymca.blogspot.com, if you want to check it out.
YMCA ->Benin
Great to hear that you arrived safely and that you are getting settled. I'm sure that the rest of this week will be something of a blurr once you move onto your next stop.
Continue to enjoy and stay healthy!!!!!
It is freezing here so you are not missing anything.
Take care Joanne R
YGAP struggles to survive during Dana loss
Hello Dana, Cindy and Sam. So glad to hear you made it. Pictures are awesome! We are in a cold snap with
-30 0 celsius and lots of white-outs on the 401. I just wanted to make Dana feel homesick!!
All are well here and YGAP is surviving well and thinking of you very often. Please stay in touch and keep us informed of your progress. You are near to the cradle of civilization in Africa and I hope you have a deep and lasting experience of the awesome power of the continent and the people.
Take care! Mike Dodds
YGAP attempts month end without Dana
Well, it has not been the same without you here Dana. Every time I sit down and see your empty desk in front of me I think of how much fun you must be having. France has stepped up to the plate BIG TIME and after a few attempts, I finally tackled the month end program counts....struggled a little without you sitting beside me.
It sounds like you are all having a wonderful experience so far and I am glad you are there safe and sound and feeling connected with such a great team. The pictures look amazing and I can't wait to see more.
Your plant looks a little sad here, but after a little water and some TLC I am sure it will be fine.
Talk soon
Hey Guys,
Anthony Here. Hope all of are doing well.
Sam, the entire staff team says hello and wishes you a safe trip.
Things are good here, we just tipped 12,400 members, so you can imagine how busy we are....
The site looks great, hope to see more pics soon.
What an experience!
Hey Sam, Dana and Cindy:
So glad to hear that you've all arrived safely and with most of your stuff (minus the treats for the customs officials).
Others have commented on the weather - yes it's still cold here, although no more snow in the Toronto area, so that's okay.
The pictures are great - looks like a good group to spend the next two months. Hopefully you're catching up on your sleep and getting ready to launch into your work project.
Enjoy the experience and keep us posted on your updates. Best wishes to you all. Dan
lorraine-in mississauga
hi guys,
cindy how u doing girl!! it's cold and miserable here. i'm in the middle of a night shift :( the other nurses and i had a look @ your pic and wish we were in weather that called for short and t-shirts. u all take care of yourselves. take care lorraine
Interesting Read
I have found your writings very interesting and will follow your day to day accounts of your experiances. Looks like a fun group and am glad our daughter is part of it. Take care of yourselves and enjoy the program as busy as it must be. Looking forward to more news and pictures.
Brian
Nice to hear from you
Samuel
Nice to see the three pictures and know that you are safe and sound. I hope everything is going well for the group and you are having an amazing experience. We miss you all here! - Sue
Y activity
Hi Sam Barbara at the Y today. Came home complaining about some youngster that was making a nuisance of himself with a parent that was not very cooperative, Just one of those days. Will have to check with Anthony tomorrow. Sure enjoying, and will enjoy your reports.
Cheers from Barb and Moff
Lorraine!
hey lorraine! tell D to send me your email or jaz to forward off the emails to you.
Cindy
Re: Keisha & Charlotte From Senegal
Its nice to know you are having the same adjustment issues including french keyboard issues! Cool to know other ymca people are close by, hope your having fun on your week boat ride, im sure we wont be doing anything as luxerious! can't wait to check out your site.
Cindy and Dana
Hey Dana (et al)
Wow and wow! What a terrific learning experience...and all this from the comfort of my own home. Thanks guys for ingesting the world and regurgitating for the rest of us. I would love more info on any environmental issues that you note. The idea of rotating power on and off is 'powerful' and who knows when this could happen in Canada. FYI. There was a fire at an Esso plant here in the city and some gas stations are literally running out of gas. Great wake up call for us here!
Be safe! Steph
Sam
Well Sam counting down the days until you are back with us!! We miss you tons! I am glad to see the pictures. Keep well and we will see you soon
Chrissy
Samuel (or is it Sam)
Hey buddy, hope all is well and you're hanging in there. Just over a week and you'll be back in the city life. The first day of spring was just yesterday, and of course it's pouring rain today. Leafs in close race to make playoffs but Raptors should be in. Look forward to catching up when you get back. Oh yeh, Can you cover my 6:30 am Barbell class on April 2nd? Just Joshin'
Adios
Joshua