| <![CDATA[ `Dad, Andrea, & Matt-
Here's a picture of the Collines (hills) in Save'. Oh and me
at the very top! There are four major hills that give a pretty
decent hike. My postmate (Matt, the English prof here in Save'
... he actually reminds me a lot of you, Matt!), Felicia (a
volunteer in Bonicon) and I went hiking for the 1st of 2004.
Its breathtaking. Well, once you get to the top.
We started at the base of steep granite where we spotted some
kids playing (they turned a slippery part of the rock into a
slide). Or should I say they spotted us with screams "Oyebo,
cadeau!" over and over until we got close enough to talk to them.
But we couldn't even get that far without passing through the
public toilet - on the base of the hills. Instead of building
latrines or using the public latrines, they defecate on the
rocks. It's terrible.
Anyway, we met up with our future tour guides, a group of 10 or
so energetic kids. One little girl walked alongside me, hand
in hand. They led us up the steep rock until we mounted the
first hill. We stopped on top of what (literally) looks like
Pride Rock in the Lion King and took a breath to turn around
and see the entire city of Save' on one side and a fertile valley
appearing between the hills on the other.
Continuing on, the kids didn't make it much farther. They
gradually slowed down, waiting for one of us to go ahead and
make sure it was safe and following in step. We finally got to
the point where they refused to go any further, swearing on the
animal of the Collines (hills) that will cut off our heads! So
if I'm going to go, it might as well be by an animal like that!
Now on our own, we split up at times, finding the best route
through the trees, the burnt brush, no trails (next time we're
bringing a machete to ease the forcing through dried brush/trees).
We kept climbing, not exactly sure where we were until we came
into a clearing. We had made it to the backside of the hills.
The north side of Save' All you can see is the hospital, a
winding paved road, smaller dirt roads leading to nowhere and
endless land with palm trees, huge mango trees, and much, much
more green.
At this point it was time to start rock-climbing. So Matt tried
and said it was too steep at one point. I didn't believe him,
so he spotted me and I headed up (thanks to some practice I've
had in the past with Kurt Williams in Austin!). Grabbing onto
brush and tree roots that sporadically appeared from cracks in
the rock, I made it past the hard part, belly to the rock,
carefully placing my hands and feet and using my legs to push
myself to the next bush. One root and one foot at a time, I
reached the top of the largest hill (the `Mamalles') BEAUTIFUL!
It was so peaceful with a breeze that sweeps across the town,
reaching the top of the hills and continuing on north out of town.
I could clearly hear the blaring music from a tiny, wood shack
that sells cassettes and CDs. I could see the one colored
building - a red bar that was a Coca Cola advertisement.
My house in the marche' way off in the distance. The countless
cement buildings, all with tin roofs and earth tones. Granite.
Light brown dusty dirt roads.
Life moving the inverse of a million miles a minute. For that
moment, I could relax and be in this easy going world. I let
go of the Type A and could just be.
Our walk home was funny - explaining how I had become Beninoise
because I was covered in soot. And after being up on top, I
discovered a flag pole (random) so I'm making a huge Beninois
flag to post at the top. :) I'll be sure to take pictures!
Hope you enjoy taking a hike with me - this will have to do
until our next campout (which I'm looking forward to!!).
I love you and miss you a lot.
Always,
Sara Ellyn
Here's a random sample of my life - cold drinks are my savior and
with only a couple of choices, this way too sugary grapefruit
juice is often my pick! Top left: `Tunisia 2004 - Together with
the squirrels! Our mascot for soccer - a squirrel!?! We lost in
the Africa Cup, but it was the 1st time to make ti so that's
pretty good!']]>
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