Settling in: My new home in Togo

My first 3 months in Togo, I lived with a host family in the mountainous region of Agou for Peace Corps training. The area was beautiful and my host family was very welcoming, but I was anxious to get to my official post—where I would spend the next 2 years of my life, here in Togo.

Kãboli (alternatively spelled, Kambolé) is a moderately-large village for Togo, with a population of around 10,000. The village is less than 10 km from the border of Benin and then 80 km from the region's capital, Sokodé (the second largest city in Togo). The primary language spoken is Ana, a dialect of Yoruba, which finds its roots in Nigeria. Being a border-town with strong ties, the secondary languages spoken in Kãboli are both French and English. Most of the locals speak French because they went through the Togolese school system, but certain notables and frequent visitors from Nigeria only speak Ana and English. The public religions practiced here include an even mixture of Muslims and Christians (mostly Catholic, but some are members of the Assembly of God). Yet, all carry latent beliefs in the indigenous or animist religion. My friends and neighbors are very welcoming and I feel very much at home in my new village.

My new house has three rooms, a long front room and two back rooms. The front door leads out to the terrace, which then leads to the private, walled courtyard at the side of my house. Found in the courtyard are a latrine/shower area, a paillotte (similar to a gazebo), and the door leading to my compound. The compound is interspersed with mango trees and lined with two-room and one-room houses. My house not only stands out as the largest in the compound, but it is also the only painted house. It's a very conspicuous lifestyle—the only person with white skin living in village and the nicest house on the block. The compound is on the outskirts of the village, though, so the house serves as nice retreat from the eyes of village.

To assist me with my work and getting to know my new community, my official counterpart is named Foumalayo (one who goes searching for joy). She is a member of the local credit union and serves on their control committee. Working with the credit union will be my primary project. However, as a volunteer (and therefore not paid by them), I also have the opportunity to work more or less like a consultant with other organizations and people in the village who are interested in my help. For instance, I am looking forward to working with the newly-formed butcher association and possibly expanding the youth club at the local schools.