A Great Day

9.12.10
Today was a great day, and since I keep writing miserable-sounding updates, I thought maybe I’d write one to show that sometimes life in Benin is really awesome.


The highlights of my excellent day in Porto Novo:
- Slept in, ate breakfast, and then took a nap just because I could.
- Argued a price successfully for a zem (in French!), and learned that flirting with your zem driver often leads to getting what you want. Will apply this tactic in the future.
- Successfully yelled at another zem driver when he tried to charge me more than we agreed on. He laughed and then conceded – I won an argument! In French!
- Ate a real chicken sandwich, with grilled onions, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. Mmmm…
- Had a fun conversation with a boy at the marche, wherein Elyse and I got him to agree that we were Beninese. He then informed us that for a Beninese person, every single day is a party… life is one huge fete. That is a lifestyle I could get used to.
- Told a kid that my name is Madonna. He later yelled “Madonna!” and waved at me from across the street.
- Played with kittens! One of whom will be mine in a couple of weeks – yay!
- Made a friend with a 22-year-old Beninese girl who’s a biomedical analyst. Smart, unmarried, gainfully employed AND my age – whoa. Mind blown. We exchanged contact info, so maybe we’ll hang out in the future.

I also chatted with Maman, talked on the phone to my real Mom, and made lists. The world is a wonderful place right now.