A Whole New World—A Whole New Life
Bonjour, Togo! After a grueling 24 hours of travel, I have finally touched ground in Togo. My 27-month adventure begins just north of Lomé—the capital of Togo. I am currently living with a host family in a village in the Maritime region where I will stay for three months. (I am not allowed to disclose my exact location or village on my blog for security reasons, but if you are absolutely dying to know where I am, feel free to shoot me an email!) After three months of intense cultural training, health training, and French language training, I will be assigned a village in Togo where I will live for the following 24 months. But which region and village will you be assigned to? It depends. And will you have electricity? It depends. What about internet? It depends. Running water? It depends, but most likely not. Catching a theme here? This is the theme of service in the Peace Corps and life in Togo.
It depends—two words that will push the boundaries of my Type A personality, but also two words that will (and already have) forced me out of my comfort zone and adapt a flexible and open-minded perspective. Just as my site placement and the amenities I might have there all depend, so do many of the things I have currently in Togo, they all depend on factors that are out of my control. Even in just the few weeks I’ve been in Togo, I have encountered (and struggled with) needing to just let things go—through both changing my perspective and just allowing things to be exactly as they are.
The host family I am living with for the next three months has been great so far. I have a host mom, a host dad, and three younger host brothers—two 8-year-old twins and a 19-month-old. I know only a little about my host family because there is quite a large language barrier between myself and them. I speak English and have only a beginner’s level of French while my host family speaks mostly in the local language, Ewe (pronounced ehv-ay), and they also speak French. It was completely out of my control as to whether or not my host family spoke English, even just a little. That all depended on factors that were out my control. The language barrier presents a challenge, but it also presents opportunity. I have learned a lot about patience and enjoying simple silence. My motivation to learn and study the French language has only grown more. This motivation also translates into my desire to learn how to ask my host mom for more mangos and less bread. Speaking of, my host mom has been way over feeding me, and the beignets are so delicious it’s dangerous.
I have electricity in my house but get along without internet or running water. I hand wash my clothes every Sunday, which takes about one to two hours, all depending on how dirty my clothes are—again it all depends. The Togolese like to shower at least two times a day, sometimes three, and so I, as have been nudged on by host mom, take a bucket shower twice a day. And yes, a bucket shower is just as it sounds. My toilet is a bucket flush toilet which is just like any modern toilet at home, but instead of pressing a handle to flush the toilet, I dump a bucket of water in it to get it to flush. Both my toilet and shower are inside my house and have a light for when it gets dark. And when the sun sets at 6pm in Togo, it gets pitch black dark. So, when I shower at night, I hope to shower with the light on, but sometimes I’ve showered in the dark…it all depends. The electricity goes on and off frequently which is another aspect of my new life that all depends on situations that are out of my control.
My life in Togo is new to me, and I am still navigating the inconsistency of many things I take for granted in the States. I’ve learned already to look at my watch much less and just get on Togo-time—a task that, if you know me, is incredibly difficult. Each moment, big or small, where I feel comfortable and content, I embrace and chalk-up as a small win, so as not to allow the little challenges drag me down. Each day will present new challenges—new situations that just depend on circumstances out of my control, and I can depend on my own resilience to overcome the unexpected.
...Please bear with me. WiFi is spotty, so when I can I will post more photos.
It depends—two words that will push the boundaries of my Type A personality, but also two words that will (and already have) forced me out of my comfort zone and adapt a flexible and open-minded perspective. Just as my site placement and the amenities I might have there all depend, so do many of the things I have currently in Togo, they all depend on factors that are out of my control. Even in just the few weeks I’ve been in Togo, I have encountered (and struggled with) needing to just let things go—through both changing my perspective and just allowing things to be exactly as they are.
The host family I am living with for the next three months has been great so far. I have a host mom, a host dad, and three younger host brothers—two 8-year-old twins and a 19-month-old. I know only a little about my host family because there is quite a large language barrier between myself and them. I speak English and have only a beginner’s level of French while my host family speaks mostly in the local language, Ewe (pronounced ehv-ay), and they also speak French. It was completely out of my control as to whether or not my host family spoke English, even just a little. That all depended on factors that were out my control. The language barrier presents a challenge, but it also presents opportunity. I have learned a lot about patience and enjoying simple silence. My motivation to learn and study the French language has only grown more. This motivation also translates into my desire to learn how to ask my host mom for more mangos and less bread. Speaking of, my host mom has been way over feeding me, and the beignets are so delicious it’s dangerous.
I have electricity in my house but get along without internet or running water. I hand wash my clothes every Sunday, which takes about one to two hours, all depending on how dirty my clothes are—again it all depends. The Togolese like to shower at least two times a day, sometimes three, and so I, as have been nudged on by host mom, take a bucket shower twice a day. And yes, a bucket shower is just as it sounds. My toilet is a bucket flush toilet which is just like any modern toilet at home, but instead of pressing a handle to flush the toilet, I dump a bucket of water in it to get it to flush. Both my toilet and shower are inside my house and have a light for when it gets dark. And when the sun sets at 6pm in Togo, it gets pitch black dark. So, when I shower at night, I hope to shower with the light on, but sometimes I’ve showered in the dark…it all depends. The electricity goes on and off frequently which is another aspect of my new life that all depends on situations that are out of my control.
My life in Togo is new to me, and I am still navigating the inconsistency of many things I take for granted in the States. I’ve learned already to look at my watch much less and just get on Togo-time—a task that, if you know me, is incredibly difficult. Each moment, big or small, where I feel comfortable and content, I embrace and chalk-up as a small win, so as not to allow the little challenges drag me down. Each day will present new challenges—new situations that just depend on circumstances out of my control, and I can depend on my own resilience to overcome the unexpected.
...Please bear with me. WiFi is spotty, so when I can I will post more photos.
The most delicious beignets from the local market.
A sample of the many varieties of pagne offered at the local market. Pagne is the beautiful fabric that is worn in Togo. Just buy the fabric and then bring it a tailor to make a custom-made suit, dress, skirt etc. for about $7 total.
Thanks for posting this Sofia. Makes me think when I've had bucket plumbing and all the simple comforts we take for granted. Adieu.
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