Life in Benin

Most days consist of training in language, culture, various technical skills and interacting with my host family who have been extremely welcoming every since they took me back to their house. The house is located in the market, which comes every five days. It has two bedrooms, I sleep in one room and the family sleeps in the other. The kitchen is outside along with the shower, and by shower I mean an area with a bucket filled with refreshingly cold water. My host Papa helps me with my french and how to become accostomed to te local alcohol which reminds me of a cross between tequilla and vodka. My Mama has been teaching me the Beninese way of cooking, they put hot peppers in every dish, handwashing my clothes and running a household. Like all Beninese women, she does everything with a baby strapped on her back and makes it look so easy. The little girl is 16 months old and such a cutie. There is also a neighbor who I absolutly adore; he is two and always has the biggest smile when he sees me and runs to greet me, unlike another neighbor who cries everytime she sees me.
During our free time, myself and the other trainees will get together at a local buvette for something cold to drink, which in a luxury in this heat. The weather has been in the 80s and humid, it is also the rain season. We*ve also biked to the next town to visit other trainees. The bike ride was very scenic, we passed beautiful countrysides covered in green. Last weekend a few of us went to go see hippos. We went out on a very small, somewhat questionable canoe, where a guide pushed us along the shallow lake that was isolated except for a few fishermen who fish naked for luck. We didn*t get too close to the hippos, but even from a distance you can tell their vastness from seeing their eyes poke out of the water. The baby was just waking up as we were about to leave, we were informed that his name means danger. It was a remarkable experience. If anyone comes to visit Ill take you to see the hippos, there*s rumor that another baby is on the way.
Overall, life here is pretty great. I often fall asleep to the sound of the market or rain hitting the tin roof and wake up to drums playing in the distance. Not much to complain about, except for maybe the lack of ice cream.