Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Togo and Benin
This was the first time in subsahara Africa for both of us. Along with Iran, it was the area where we truly did not know what to expect, and it has also left an amazing impression.
After all the recent places on our itinerary, it was interesting to see a country with a majority of people practicing their own indigenous religion. We stayed in Togo, and started with a fetish market, where one can purchase... ok, we would like to take a pause here and have you email your ideas of what it is you can buy in a fetish market. In the interest of the blog, however, we will tell you that in Africa, the fetish market is where you can purchase items necessary for vodoo practice, and after that stop, we then went onto an actual ceremony. We were struck by the intensity of the trances, and also noted that the service was not so different than what one might find in some churches in the U.S. As you can see from the pictures, we again focused on the children, and the extremely warm welcome that we received. Our experience confirmed our growing thesis that people the world over may have different customs and practices, but they care about the same things, their children, feeding and taking care of their families, and their local community.
On our second day, we got back on the trip jet for a short flight to the northern part of the country. We were only able to do that due to one of their recent President’s decision that he needed an airport for himself; it only gets used about once a week and the waste only added to his unpopularity. In one of the lectures, we heard about many of the challenges facing Africa, among them being that when the colonial powers left, they did not leave strong political structures behind, resulting in many of the dictatorships we see today. In Togo at least the President had the sense to play off both sides in the Cold War, regularly changing sides based on who was paying more.
From the airport, we drove through villages and were amazed at seeing how the people lived, from their mud houses with little spaces for sleeping in tiny spaces on the roof, to the dances we witnessed (and Jane participated in). We drove a long way through fascinating countryside on unpaved roads to lunch in the neighboring country of Benin. At lunch we had more dancing and also saw some incredible artisans at work, and before we knew it we were back on the bus for the ride back to the airport. Of course, making a wrong turn in Benin and getting a little lost added to the adventure. It is interesting getting lost in a place where not only are there no people to ask, but also where there are no signs!
The most interesting part of the day, however, was the time with the guides on our bus. The young men were from Benin, and amazed us with their warmth and desire to share with us their life stories. They are both teachers, who also on the side, because they saw a need, opened an orphanage. One of them had been to the United Sates this year and was very impressed by the work ethic he saw. When asked what we could learn from his country, he shared that the traditions of both family and community were paramount in his country, and he felt that while developed countries have many qualities that his country wants to adopt, he thought it important that developed countries not lose their sense of identity. In terms of who might help shape his country’s future, he let on that he hopes to one day be Benin’s president. We would not be at all surprised to learn that he accomplishes this someday
After all the recent places on our itinerary, it was interesting to see a country with a majority of people practicing their own indigenous religion. We stayed in Togo, and started with a fetish market, where one can purchase... ok, we would like to take a pause here and have you email your ideas of what it is you can buy in a fetish market. In the interest of the blog, however, we will tell you that in Africa, the fetish market is where you can purchase items necessary for vodoo practice, and after that stop, we then went onto an actual ceremony. We were struck by the intensity of the trances, and also noted that the service was not so different than what one might find in some churches in the U.S. As you can see from the pictures, we again focused on the children, and the extremely warm welcome that we received. Our experience confirmed our growing thesis that people the world over may have different customs and practices, but they care about the same things, their children, feeding and taking care of their families, and their local community.
On our second day, we got back on the trip jet for a short flight to the northern part of the country. We were only able to do that due to one of their recent President’s decision that he needed an airport for himself; it only gets used about once a week and the waste only added to his unpopularity. In one of the lectures, we heard about many of the challenges facing Africa, among them being that when the colonial powers left, they did not leave strong political structures behind, resulting in many of the dictatorships we see today. In Togo at least the President had the sense to play off both sides in the Cold War, regularly changing sides based on who was paying more.
From the airport, we drove through villages and were amazed at seeing how the people lived, from their mud houses with little spaces for sleeping in tiny spaces on the roof, to the dances we witnessed (and Jane participated in). We drove a long way through fascinating countryside on unpaved roads to lunch in the neighboring country of Benin. At lunch we had more dancing and also saw some incredible artisans at work, and before we knew it we were back on the bus for the ride back to the airport. Of course, making a wrong turn in Benin and getting a little lost added to the adventure. It is interesting getting lost in a place where not only are there no people to ask, but also where there are no signs!
The most interesting part of the day, however, was the time with the guides on our bus. The young men were from Benin, and amazed us with their warmth and desire to share with us their life stories. They are both teachers, who also on the side, because they saw a need, opened an orphanage. One of them had been to the United Sates this year and was very impressed by the work ethic he saw. When asked what we could learn from his country, he shared that the traditions of both family and community were paramount in his country, and he felt that while developed countries have many qualities that his country wants to adopt, he thought it important that developed countries not lose their sense of identity. In terms of who might help shape his country’s future, he let on that he hopes to one day be Benin’s president. We would not be at all surprised to learn that he accomplishes this someday
Monday, November 12, 2007
Morocco
At its most northern point, Morocco is located only 12 miles from Spain, and we were again exposed to the vast differences one Islam society can have from another. As we landed in the newer section of the city established by the French, we would have been hard pressed to tell you that we were not actually in France, from the architecture, to the layout of the parks and roads, to the dress and the language. As we drove further, we arrived in the section of Fes which contains one of the world’s oldest surviving Muslim cities, also called a medina. Our first stop was a Jewish Cemetery and Synagogue, and Morocco does still have a significant amount of Jewish people, unlike Iran and Egypt where only a handful have remained. Historically, until the 20th century, Muslims and Christians and Jews had no issues living together in any of these countries, so we can only hope we are in a temporary anomaly. And it is also true, that during the Inquisition, a Jewish family was much safer in Morocco than Spain.
As we sat down to dinner the first night and a gorgeous and sensuous belly dancer appeared, two of our party said at the same time that "I don’t think that we’re in Iran anymore". The people were friendly on the outside, but this was the first time that we were warned about safeguarding our valuables as we walked on the very narrow streets. Now, let us qualify the term "streets," as these streets would allow a donkey laden with a load through, but with only inches to spare for humans up against the walls on the side. No cars are allowed in this medina, but there was not a lack of people. It was fascinating winding our way between the structures, having many opportunities to peek inside the homes and do business with the vendors. Walmart does not have anything on the wide variety of food and other things for sale, tempting all senses. The high point, both literally and figuratively, was the leather tanning that we saw from a roof top. Men brought in the hides by donkey (yes, the same donkeys that passed by us within inches) and tanned them in a multitude of clay vats, many of them brightly colored, which overwhelmed the senses, as this was all accomplished by men stomping on the hides initially in vats of pigeon poop! Let us just say that they gave us sprigs of mint to smell, to counter the smell...
Now, as we told you in our last entry, Neal was a little under the weather, and he decided to skip this portion of our trip, and while he played the role of the typical American, enjoying the views of the women in their bikinis by the pool, he felt so poor that he did not even notice the bathing beauties! We are happy to report that he is on the mend now, and even enjoyed the incredible dinner that we were treated to, back in the medina in a courtyard that made us feel like royalty, with bountiful food (just in case you were worried that were are wasting away), more indigenous music and dancing, and topped off by yet another belly dancer.
As we sat down to dinner the first night and a gorgeous and sensuous belly dancer appeared, two of our party said at the same time that "I don’t think that we’re in Iran anymore". The people were friendly on the outside, but this was the first time that we were warned about safeguarding our valuables as we walked on the very narrow streets. Now, let us qualify the term "streets," as these streets would allow a donkey laden with a load through, but with only inches to spare for humans up against the walls on the side. No cars are allowed in this medina, but there was not a lack of people. It was fascinating winding our way between the structures, having many opportunities to peek inside the homes and do business with the vendors. Walmart does not have anything on the wide variety of food and other things for sale, tempting all senses. The high point, both literally and figuratively, was the leather tanning that we saw from a roof top. Men brought in the hides by donkey (yes, the same donkeys that passed by us within inches) and tanned them in a multitude of clay vats, many of them brightly colored, which overwhelmed the senses, as this was all accomplished by men stomping on the hides initially in vats of pigeon poop! Let us just say that they gave us sprigs of mint to smell, to counter the smell...
Now, as we told you in our last entry, Neal was a little under the weather, and he decided to skip this portion of our trip, and while he played the role of the typical American, enjoying the views of the women in their bikinis by the pool, he felt so poor that he did not even notice the bathing beauties! We are happy to report that he is on the mend now, and even enjoyed the incredible dinner that we were treated to, back in the medina in a courtyard that made us feel like royalty, with bountiful food (just in case you were worried that were are wasting away), more indigenous music and dancing, and topped off by yet another belly dancer.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
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