Another thing that is hot is the politics. Things are heating up with the many protesters trying to get rid of the current president. We knew that protests were supposed to be happening this week, but they have said that this whole month and we never have seen any, so we weren’t about to let that stop our work. However, weirdly this Wednesday when we started walking there was no one outside, it was super weird. No cars on the road, no one was selling anything, just like a ghost town. We did finally see a mama selling food and asked her what happened. Turns out we just missed a huge protest and the police came and blocked all the roads and sent everyone back home so that’s why no one was outside. Well we didn’t see anything, so we just did our work. However, Thursday was really bad. We saw the results of those protests, a bunch of people dressed in all red would stand on the road and throw big rocks at passing cars of people going to work to try to get them angry at the government. Also because according to them if someone is going to work on a day there are protests that means they are for the government. So we saw the smashed car parts in the road and the marks where the boulders were thrown in the streets. We were already well into our day in our last lesson when the pres called us telling us not to go out that day. But it was too late we already did. My son was scared out of his mind that day because he happened to choose a red tie and that is the color of the opposition.
The third thing that was super hot this week was the food. I don’t know if I mentioned it before but Togo, Benin and Ivory Coast all love lots of hot pepper in their food, so that it is super spicy. I have learned to like a little spice in my food, however this week I had a sauce that toped them all. Kouadio and I went to a place to have ingame pele with peanut sauce, but the sauce was so spicy it made me cry and my nose start to run. People make fun of me normally because of my race, but that day everyone in the restaurant was laughing that the “yovo” was suffering at the heat of the food, so yeah I had tears running down my face but I ate all the sauce but I’m sure I was drinking the devils sauce.
We worked really hard this week, which was kind of tiring but I didn’t know how tired my son (Kouadio) was until one day we took a short sitting break and my son fell asleep on the wall. (picture below)
We got to baptize our 11 year old buddy Em___ he is cool. He talks a lot tho. It was cool to have another baptism. When Elder Wride came to do his baptism interview he said he responded better to the questions then most adults he has done interviews with, He is very smart.
I will finish my email with some of the ideas people have about the US. Not everyone believes the same thing but I will list real things that at least one or more people actually believe about the United States of America.
There are no black people.
Trash doesn’t exist.
You don’t have to work because everyone is already rich.
There is no suffering.
Everyone gets an iPhone for free.
No one is ever hungry because food is free.
Trees talk.
These are some of the beliefs and I’ve heard even crazier, I’m sure. They are not all coming to my head right now but in later weeks I’ll tell you more. Even when I try to explain that US is not heaven on earth they say I’m lying. But it’s all good, I still love them all.
Kouadio falls asleep in the sector
Authentic Togo food
Em__ Baptism
Me with the many articles of clothing I have in pine
