Feet on the Ground in Togo

Remember that incessant ad in movie theatres that reminds theatre-goers to silence their phones because “silence is golden”? Well, that saying feels like my life in Togo right now. I have been here for two months, and even with my improving French and beginner’s level Ewe (the local language), I still find most of my time spent in silence. Right now, I write to you in silence, in my two-room home (with electricity and internet!) in my site for my next two years. I have been assigned to a small village in the Plateaux region of Togo, the second southernmost region. I am here now because, as Peace Corps trainees, we have a two-week site visit before we swear-in as volunteers in August. The silence I am experiencing at my site and I had experienced with my host family is not necessarily due to the language barrier but is rather intentional. The silence I experience is not the lonely kind but a social silence. This silence is something that Peace Corps Togo has pushed us to discover—a ...

The most delicious beignets from the local market The friendly neighborhood sheep loitering around my outdoor French class This Togolese moth is about five inches across A Peace Corps jeep on the way to our host families! Baker's oven with the most amazing smelling bread View of Lomé from the roof of Peace Corps headquarters 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. Sundays are for laundry. The only washing machines they have here are the people themselves, so we must handwash all laundry, and it’s incredibly difficult Togolese soda that tastes like bubblegum This is my youngest host brother Edoh. Just under two years old, he is a true adventurer. He loves chasing around the chickens. It’s hard to be mad at him when he tries to ...