Days 8-13: Northern Benin

After we dropped of my brother at the airport in Niger to return home just in time for Spring semester, my boyfriend, his brother and I proceeded to Benin for one more week of adventure.

The second week differed from our first week in that we were no longer traveling long distances.  My boyfriend had been a Peace Corps volunteer in Benin so we spent the majority of the time based in his town.

Nevertheless, it was very exciting…mostly because my boyfriend is a rockstar.  The amount of attention showered on him was unbelievable.  Everyone knew his name.  Everyone wanted to give him a present.  Everyone wanted to conduct a public speech on how much he helped them.  By the third day, his brother and I were endearingly rolling our eyes at him as another person came by to bow down to him.  By the time the mayor inaugurated an orchard my boyfriend had planted five years ago to be named, “The Forest of [his name],” his brother and I nearly lost it, but loved it.

I learned another very important thing about my boyfriend here….he is a liar   My boyfriend and I met through a mutual friend in Chicago three years ago and hit it off immediately because we had both just finished Peace Corps service in West Africa.  For the last three years, we have argued over “Who had it more difficult” a number of times.

It is OBVIOUS to all now, that this discussion was a joke.    CLEARLY I had it more difficult.  My boyfriend lived in a town with electricity, bars, restaurants, an INTERNET CAFE, plus…he lived with the KING of a tribe! and the KING had a car.  Even though I lived in a mud hut with a thatched roof, in a village with no running water or vegetables, my boyfriend still thinks that because I had a cell phone that only worked in cities 4 hours from my village, the argument is still on….even though I found out there is a landline in his Peace Corps house….with a connection to internet.

Ok, but despite this, really he kicked butt and built a basketball court for the high school (a court still functioning), planted a gazillion trees, and obviously affected the lives of a hundred others.  It was wonderful to see how much they love him and how much he loves them.

Here are some pictures of us around town.

Greeting the King with the Prince of the Dendi people

Visiting the school my BF worked with

My BF kicking butt during the B-Ball game the town had in his honor on the court he built

Leaving the village