Because email is hard.
After nearly one year here in Benin I find myself giving into the blog. After sending 17+ dispatch emails I have grown tired of the unreliable and cumbersome nature of mass mailing. In an effort to put an end to these problems, I have created this space to post to directly. I hope you will check in often, even if there is a lull in posts from time to time. After all, internet access is never guaranteed here in Benin. You can also subscribe if you still want it to come to you.
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2 years in Benin, West Africa's Collines
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed here in no way reflect those of the U.S. Govenment nor Peace Corps.
The Author
- M. Banbury
- After a first career in part-time, M.Banbury is currently serving in Peace Corps Benin as a TEFL volunteer. These are the writings, rants, observations, critiques, and affairs of a sane man struggling to remain so in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Glossary
- APCD- a PCV's boss. They are the heads of the various PC divisions.
- Cyber- (see bear)- internet cafe.
- Glazoue (glaz way)- my own heaven, 12k from Ouedeme, I can use the email and eat a croissant.
- H.C.N.- Host Country National or local.
- Igname (yam)- tuber grown throughout West Africa, a dietary cornerstone.
- Igname Pile (yam peelaye)- pounded igname dish, think mashed potatoes, served with either sesame or peanut sauce.
- Marche- (marsh ay)- market, of the open air variety.
- Ouedeme (Way dai mai)- home sweethome, all the well water I can drink and no annoying electricity. Situated in the department of the Collines. Largely an agricultural village.
- Palu (paloo)- Malaria.
- Pate (pot)- comes in three flavors: white (medium gross), black (extra gross), and red (almost palatable). No, its not so bad, some is even really tasty with the right sauce. Red and white are corn-based and the black is made from igname.
- PCV- Peace Corps Volunteer
- Snot Sauce- a gumbo-based sauce often combined with a palmoil based sauce and served with pate (see entry).
- Villageois (villazhwah)- durrogatory term used to imply the inferior quality in a person, place, thing, or idea.
- Yovo- white person. Often sung, chanted, or screamed at white people usually combined with a demand for a gift.
- Zemidjan (Zem ee jon) or Zem- a moped/motorcycle taxi common to West Africa.
8 comments:
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You are now linked to Exechobo. I like your writing.
I get the title now, hillbilly and colline. So the hills are a major feature there?
Yes, so much so that they provide the name of my department. Thanks for the link, its an honor.
you are so much better at this communication with the first world than i am! i would start a blog too...but i fear that after all these years i have no choice but to succumb to your indisputable superiority. i am the lesser child.
I LOVE the glossary feature. It is real cool. I want to start using these words to confound my compatriots.
hi matt,
glad to see your alive and well. will check in often!
love,
uncle mike
How can you get this post to stay at the top? And can you select the order of your posts?
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