pictures

this is a view from underneath the canopy walk in Kakum National Park, near Cape Coast, Ghana.


women getting water from a river.


Peuhl/Fulani women. the Peuhl/Fulani are the nomadic cow herdsmen that are found all over West Africa.


Cotton! its the main money making product of Bènin. grown in the northern part of the country and is like 3/4 of the country's income (i'm forgetting the big word for it, :p)


kids L-o-V-E putting on our helmets. it's entertaining. and yes, all kids are this cute!


here men are shoveling up cement to contruct a multi-story building. it's fascinating to watch. they sing while they work...there's a video floating around. i'll see if i cn get ahold of it. PS every person has a body like the men on ground level. haha, even the children.


an overloaded truck. very typical...doesn't matter what they're transporting.


mangoes! (btw, these are the little, juicy, stringy variation, still very tasty). this is how fruit is transported to markets from surrounding villages. you could substitute oranges, grafted mangoes, plantains, etc...


another overloaded truck. a common thing to see on the highways.


a typical street food stand. delicious!


not exactly sure what each of these things are used for, but i know it's voodoo stuff.


plastics! colorful and they make life easier.


dead yovo clothes for sale. thee is essentially no department stores here. especially NOT outside Cotonou. though i guess there are prêt a porter stores, but it's not the same :(


chickens for sale! (heading to be sold at the market)


definitely not a Nordstrom shoe store. ha, can you imagine buying shoes like this back home?


women sweeping the market


zemidjans can carry anything you want them to. amazing!!


this is what we like to call "walking wal-marts" because they essentially have every basic household item you need.


people are trained fro a very young ae to carry things on their heads. as you can see, they start small and work their balance to bigger, heavier things.


another example of children training to carry things. i think iwas foolish to imaginei could master this by the time i leave!


pit stop! we might have as stations with little markets, but Bènin has marchè mamans! they RUN right up to the car and shove their porducts through the window and into your face.


a lizard on the wall. these guys are ALL over! and they do push-ups :)


a slogan we have on t-shirts

***note*** i can't take credit for these pictures. i found them on the workstation computer.