“I don’t think this is the same pork we bought last time.” “No, it’s not, I’m almost sure. I saw what was written on the package…” “Me too! But I wasn’t going to say anything…”

“What are you guys talking about? What kind of meat is this?” I was lost. We were nearing the end of a delicious chili dinner, made with pork we bought from nuns in a village near Mango, and as I had been washing dishes, I didn’t watch much of the preparation.

My PCV friends looked at each other. “The package said ‘Pâté de Tête.’ ” Pig head meat. “Are you kidding! And we ate it!” I was thoroughly grossed out. But both my friends defended the pork. “Oh, it’s all the same! Like, what do you think is in sausage? That’s meat from who knows where on the animal. And maybe it’s just regular meat with some brain in it.” “I ATE PIG BRAIN?? And you think that’s reassuring!” I couldn’t believe it. Two Americans, one of whom had been a vegetarian for eight years prior to coming to Togo, were trying to convince me that pig head meat and/or brain was not only ok, but that I was the weird one for freaking out. Indeed, we have come a long way.

Before leaving for Togo, I heard from lots of people that Peace Corps changes you. I didn’t really understand at the time… “Change how? Do I need changing?” I thought. I couldn’t think what about me could change… I’d traveled before. I’d seen things. And now, with my friends and family coming to visit really soon (YES!), I’ve been thinking about it again. Has Peace Corps changed me? Apparently not in the same way as my friends, who don’t think twice about what kind of meat they eat as long as it tastes good. But I’m pretty sure I’ve changed in one way or another. Life is just… well it’s different here.

Here are some events from this past week:

-I was cooking dinner  one night with Toby and Jabenjezu (my neighbor’s dog) curled up on the kitchen floor. Then my neighbor’s cat wandered in. Then a mama duck and her 8 baby ducks wandered in. “Hey duck family, get out! All the animals, out out!” I shooed them out, and kept cooking. Ducks in my kitchen. Surprising, but not unbelievable. I’d been the one to leave my door open to a courtyard full of ducks, guinea fowl, cats, dogs, and chickens. And two weeks ago, we’d also had 2 giant bulls staying with us that my neighbor had rented to plow his field. As my friend from Mango has helped me to discover, I talk to animals a lot more now. I was telling her a story that started with the line, "So as I told Toby the other day..." and she burst out laughing and said, "Please, you don't even need to finish that sentence."

-On Friday, I stopped through a village on my way to Mango to talk to the director of the middle school there and invite him to the opening ceremony for camp. “Oh sure, I’ll be there, that’d be great!” he says. “And by the way, of the three girls you thought were coming from this village, only one is coming. And she’s bringing her baby, is that ok? The other two left… I think they’re in Lomé.” Camp starts in four days. I went to talk to the parents of one of the girls. “I heard the camp was called off! That’s what my sister told me. (What! Who is her sister?? Where are we getting this information?) My daughter’s in Sokodé… I don’t know when she’ll be back. Sorry.” So we scrambled and found two replacement girls. Fingers crossed, camp looks like it’s going to go really well, and we’ve now verified with the rest of the girls that they’re coming, so hopefully no more snags. Well, who am I kidding, there will be snags, but here’s hoping they’ll be small.

-Yesterday, in an effort to remind all of our participants that camp is YES, still happening, my PCV friend in Mango and I went on the radio to talk about the camp. It was really cool… I don’t think I’ve been that nervous in a while! Everyone in even the tiniest of villages listens to this radio station all day, and I knew it would be on in my compound at least. We talked about the goals of camp, who was going to participate, what we were going to do, and how we hoped it would help the girls and the community. The radio had a guy translate what we said from French to Anufo and Gangam, back to back. I will admit, that must be tricky work, but I was still miffed to hear him open each translation with “The Peace Corps ooboumpié says” or “The Peace Corps batouli says,” meaning “The PC white lady” in Gangam and Anoufo, respectively. C’mon! We were so close! Just stop after Peace Corps… but honestly, calling me ooboumpié probably helps all the peeps out in Mogou and beyond recognize who’s talking better than saying Corps de la Paix.

NOTE: Starting today, Togo is changing it’s phone numbering system to 8 instead of 7 digits. If you’re trying to call me, my new numbers are:

Togocel (doesn’t work in village, but is my main phone when I’m out of village):

92.22.63.12 [used to be 722.63.12]

Moov (works in village):

99.40.31.03 [used to be 940.63.12]

LOVE to you all! xoxox