After passing through customs and receiving more vaccinations against various diseases, I set of from Lomé to the region of Agou in southern Togo—which served as the Peace Corps training site (stage is the local french word for "training")—along with the other Peace Corps newbies that I arrived with.
Driving down the road, a couple of hours outside of Lomé, our van was suddenly enveloped by a crowd of people. We turned down a small dirt road and parked. From within the crowd, a man continuously yelled “WELCOME! WELCOME! WELCOME!” from a megaphone as others tapped on bells and blew into wooden horns. We hesitantly got out of the van and crowded together with our backs to each other. The senior volunteer guiding us that week approached me and said that I would be girl to receive the flowers--the queen of the day. She led me to the front our group and instructed me to follow the man next to me.
Always surrounded by the noisy crowd that followed our van into town, our group walked less then 10 meters before I was met with a teenage girl, standing under a large mango tree and holding flowers. As she handed me the flowers, she strained a long speech in English--using every muscle in her mouth. I nodded as though I understand every word--through the chants and screaming instruments of the crowd. I turned slightly, a man began spilling shots of gin on the ground and repeating local prayers. After several prayers, I shook hands with the chief who stood behind the priest and then greeted several other village notables.
At the welcoming ceremony, we watched a series of speeches and a series of musical performances. Afterwards, we met our new host families that we would stay with for next three months. My family cried out my name and hugged me as soon as I met them. They carried all of my luggage for me to their house and then fed me as much food as I could eat.
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angela is the queen of small, rural village in Togo. She is never to return.
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