Fon is Fun Guest book entries 76-100

Fon is Fun... Really! Guest Book

Entries # 76-100

Guest book Home

		09/18/02 04:26:09 PM
What is your name?		wim
Where are you from? (Optional)		netherlands
Do you have any comments?		Hi, interesting web site!! bye, wim
		Website

		09/11/02 04:22:25 AM
What is your name?		keniha
Where are you from? (Optional)		france
Do you have any comments?		J'aime beaucoup votre site, même si je suis arrivée dedans par hasard, mais je pense que je reviendrai, c'est très sypathique

		09/08/02 11:24:49 PM
What is your name?		Karen (Kaka)
Where are you from? (Optional)		The Netherlands
Do you have any comments?		Hi! I really liked your site! I've been in Benin for three months in 1998. I was one of the partcipants of an exchange programme, organized by Holland World Youth. I've been living in a family for three months in Bohicon and I've been working two days a week in a pharmacie. Because my mum there only could speak Fon, the men at the pharmacie learned me a lot of Fon. Especially words like: Hi there, i like your face, you're beautiful, would you marry me etc. Really funny. We also gave presentations about the Netherlands at school in Cotonou, Bohicon, Abohmey etc. It was such a great experience. The girl I was staying with, has been living for three months in my family, after i returned back to the Netherlands. After being togheter for 6 months, i gave presentations at school in the Netherlands about Benin and it's culture. In this way we tried to gave the students a more realistic view of Benin. It's so great to see your pictures and to read your experiences. it's a wonderfull site, it's makes me homesick to Benin! thanks, Kaka ( my name they gave me in Benin, which i'm still using!)
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		09/08/02 10:47:08 PM
What is your name?		Greg Nietubicz
Where are you from? (Optional)		Michigan, USA
Do you have any comments?		I received an e-mail from a person in Benin who wants to buy a car I'm selling over the internet. I thought I knew my geography, but I had to dig up info on Benin and where it was located in Africa.I'm fascinated that my beloved Mustang will be driven in not just another country (I've been to Canada many times), but in Africa! Too cool.I found your site to be presented well, informational and "Fon". Best of Luck, Mr. N
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		08/26/02 01:16:44 AM
What is your name?		Frédérique
Where are you from? (Optional)		Benin and France
Do you have any comments?		Hi cris, May i congratulate for site website. really funny. i born in benin in 1969 and living in france. my native language is mina but i understand a little fon and i was great pleasure for me to find your site. I will show it to my family. Have a nice day. FDM
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		08/07/02 11:45:23 AM
What is your name?		Néolida
Where are you from? (Optional)		BENIN
Do you have any comments?		Thank you
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		08/04/02 02:30:46 PM
What is your name?		Jeannie Boehner
Where are you from? (Optional)		Simsbury, CT
Do you have any comments?		Dear Chris - My daughter Nicole is in Segbana, Benin. Her dad and I are going to visit her 9/21. She just returned from Agadez and a 3 day camel trek among other adventures with two other PCVs. I accessed your site and printed off the Agadez story and the Bush Taxi one for Ed to read. Thanks so much for the descriptive, humorous accounts. I am going to send copies to Nicole - I am sure she will get a kick out of reading about shared experiences. I intend to print off the rest of your stories to share with family and friends who love to read Nicole's letters and will enjoy your accounts as well. Jeannie Boehner, Simsbury, CT

		07/25/02 07:26:38 PM
What is your name?		jenny coneff
Do you have any comments?		Great website! I'm leaving for my SED assignment on Sept. 12, so I guess I'll be spending some time in Allada. I'm absolutely aching to leave, but I know I'll be a step or two behind myself the second I get on the damn plane! I have to tell you that your analysis in the piece on the Market in Allada was fantastic. It's richly descriptive and self-aware, which enables you to avoid being judgemental. I especially appreciated the way you looked at nicknames and "Yovo" within that context. Just my thoughts and appreciation, jenny coneff
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		07/24/02 12:49:44 PM
What is your name?		Sola Agunbiade
Where are you from? (Optional)		Boston ( originally from Nigeria)
Do you have any comments?		I stumbled across your web page while surfing the web and was drawn to it by your sense of humor and your ability to capture Africa. I particularly loved your "chicken dinner that refused to die story". It was hilarious. I am mostly impressed by your sincerity in re-enacting your experience in Benin with such vivid details that allows your readers almost get engulfed into your experience. You depict this impoverished african country as a livable place and you emphasize that the value of life does not necessarily lie in material wealth but in the way we live it. A friend of mine is presently travelling around the continent of Africa volunteering in several countries for the peace corp. I hope that her experience proves just as rewarding as yours for her and those she serves over there. Hearts like yours are much needed in our world today and very critical in educating America of today where poverty is extinct.
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		07/10/02 08:34:04 PM
What is your name?		Noah
Where are you from? (Optional)		Ghana / Virginia
Do you have any comments?		Hi, I have found your site on fon very helpful. Actually I am an African from Ghana but I didn't know there was a site like this around. I was in Benin last year with my brother, but we had a very difficult time communicating with the town folks as neither of us spoke french nor fon. If I had known about your site, it definitely would have been a different story and a much easier one as far as communication was concerned.
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		07/10/02 01:26:04 PM
What is your name?		Jennifer Blue
Where are you from? (Optional)		Athens, GA/Fayetteville, NC
Do you have any comments?		I just wanted to say that this site has been a great source of information for me as I prepare for my departure to Benin. I am leaving in September to serve as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Environmental Action program. I am trying to get a head's up by learning some basic Fon before I arrive in Benin, and this site has been a huge help. If anyone has any advice for a soon-to-be Peace Corps Volunteer, please feel free to email me! Thanks again Chris! ~Jennifer
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		07/08/02 01:26:54 PM
What is your name?		Jackie
Do you have any comments?		Good Job on your site . I enjoyed reading some of the words in Fon. I lived many years in Benin. PS: You mispelled Niamey (my country)
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		07/07/02 08:47:42 AM
What is your name?		MICHEL
Do you have any comments?		Eh oui, c'est ça l'étourderie; mon URL n'était pas complet, donc je m'exécute!
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		07/02/02 01:52:46 PM
What is your name?		MICHEL
Where are you from? (Optional)		Ambierle (France)
Do you have any comments?		Hello ! Je suis embarrassé de ne pouvoir vous écrire en anglais. Mais je tiens à vous féliciter pour votre site d'initiation à la langue fon. C'est une réussite. Une partie de mon site est consacrée au Bénin car je suis marié avec une béninoise. M'autorisez- vous à mettre un lien vers votre site pour le faire connaître davantage? Encore bravo! Bernard MICHEL
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		06/14/02 01:00:58 AM
What is your name?		daniel Georget
Where are you from? (Optional)		Lille (FRANCE)
Do you have any comments?		Ce site est merveilleux par sa simplicité et son approche, si vraies l'une et l'autre ... Bien que je possède déjà quelques mots, ... je vais me mettre au Fon, vraiment ... sérieusement ... Pardon à mes amis américains ou britaniques ... ou autres, je suis trop mauvais en anglais ... presq'autant qu'en Fon ... Daniel Georget
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		06/13/02 06:49:07 AM
What is your name?		laura hollowell
Where are you from? (Optional)		north carolina
Do you have any comments?		I was a Peace Corps volunteer in Benin from '98 to '00. I am still lamenting having to be away from Benin even 2 years later. I loved my time spent there...I truly fell in love with the people and the culture. I am soon going to start grad school in International Development Studies with a focus on population development in W. Africa. I can only anticipate and look forward to the day that my work takes me back to where I truly feel in my heart is my "home." Thanks for creating this web site for those of us who feel too disconnected and far away. I served in Bello Tounga...en brouse relatively near Malanville. I spoke Dendi fluently when I left there and would love to speak it with anyone who might know it and wish to brush up...757-638-5578. I am always willing and wanting to talk to fellow converted Beninese. Laura Hollowell
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		06/11/02 06:55:54 PM
What is your name?		Ruth Dater
Do you have any comments?		Re Essay: A Stranger in My Old Life I enjoyed reading about your readjustment to life in the United States. Back in the 60's when I returned home from Nigeria Peace Corps duty, I flew first to Rome and felt that Rome was just like America. The smell of peaches and apples (which I had not had for two years) made me rapturous. The cars, the roads, it was just like at home--all in comparison to life in Africa. Now --about forty years later--I still have this strong desire to go to and live in a developing country. When I go to Mexico, I get that old Peace Corps feeling that these people know how to be a community, how to value family and friends, how to live without making possessions and money the center of their lives. Some of these feelings will always be with me and are a result of how being in the Peace Corps changed me. I don't want to lose that perspective and that certainly is a part of my life. My son is now in Benin teaching and it will be interesting to talk to him about this when he returns to the States. As my children have grown up in affluent America, I have always worried that they would become materialistic and judge lives by how much the person earns and how "successful" they are as if life is a competition. Peace Corps is a great opportunity to see oneself and others from afar--the good and the bad. Thanks for your essay. Ruth

		06/11/02 06:52:35 PM
What is your name?		Cyndi Bartel
Do you have any comments?		Essay: A Stranger in My Old Life and Others My friend, Matthew Kopac, just began his two year period of service in Benin (sworn in on 1/4/02). I find your stories not only very entertaining, but also extremely descriptive and vivid. I know of several people who have been to your site. I will only visit him - I certainly will never be able to truly identify with this experience. I think your stories give everyone insight into the Peace Corps experience - they are a wonderful means of support. See Matt's Website at http://www.kopac.org/links.htm Cyndi
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		06/11/02 10:34:14 AM
What is your name?		Bradley Hodges
Where are you from? (Optional)		North Carolina
Do you have any comments?		I am a former newspaper reporter in North Carolina who will report for Peace Corps service in Gabon on June 27. From my research, Gabon appears abundant in natural resources and thus more industrialized than Benin. French - a language with which I became fairly comfortable during a summer in Paris - seems more widely spoken and read in Gabon. Nevertheless, I related to and appreciated your conclusion about the differences between West African marchés and North American hypermarchés in your essay "Market Day in Allada." I look forward to overcoming the same cultural challenges you faced and - just as importantly - sharing them with others back home. Thanks for posting the essay!
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		06/04/02 05:57:56 PM
What is your name?		Wendy Kaplan
Where are you from? (Optional)		Marin County, CA
Do you have any comments?		Hi there, I was thrilled to find your site. I was a PC volunteer in Benin from 1989 - 1991 and your wave files brought back such memories, I can't even begin to tell you! Hearing the Yovo song again after all these years, it was amazing! I am planning a visit back there for December, but it's hard going. It's not easy to find affordable flights, or even flights that don't take three days when traveling from California! Anyway, thanks for making me laugh and stirring up my happy memories. Going to Benin was one of the best things I ever did, and I truly loved it there. ~Wendy
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		06/03/02 04:33:33 PM
What is your name?		Gina Doumaté
Where are you from? (Optional)		CA, USA
Do you have any comments?		FYI - Emmanuel Akognon is my pastor. I lived in Aklampa from Sept 1999 through Feb 2001 as a missionary. I started a church in the village that continues to grow. I learned some Fon but your website has made it possible to keep up on the language and learn new phrases. Thanks a bunch, God bless, Gina Doumaté
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		06/01/02 09:21:14 PM
What is your name?		Sarah Hinton
Where are you from? (Optional)		Wisconsin, USA
Do you have any comments?		Hi Chris, I really like your Benin site. I'm a French teacher at a middle school in Wisconsin. Last summer I got to go to Benin with other teachers through Fulbright. I absolutely loved it and this year my 8th graders studied Benin. They even learned some fon! Your site was most helpful! I've created a sited from my trip last summer and also documenting what my students have done this year. If you're interested it is at: http://www.mononagrove.org/locations/winnequah/teacher_pages/french/benin.htm So, thanks for your site and the updates too! Sarah Hinton, French Teacher
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		06/01/02 07:45:41 PM
What is your name?		David Cohn
Where are you from? (Optional)		New York
Do you have any comments?		We met at the AK concert a few weeks ago. I have been listening to her stuff ever since. I also like your website very much. Cheers, David
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		05/31/02 04:31:38 PM
What is your name?		Elizabeth Conklin
Where are you from? (Optional)		Chicago
Do you have any comments?		I was very moved by these stories. My brother is a volunteer in Gabon. He has been gone for one year, and we miss him very much. These essays were so easy to read, I felt like I was there, and experiencing what my brother must be enduring and enjoying. I printed four of them, and put them in the mail to Jim. I know he will value your shared experience. Thank you!

		05/29/02 08:34:48 PM
What is your name?		Emmanuel Akognon
Where are you from? (Optional)		Marin County, CA- USA
Do you have any comments?		Hi Chris: I am now a US citizen. I became a citizen in 1986. I came to the US in 1977 from Canada (BC). I enrolled in Seminary in 1977. I pastor a Baptist church in Marin City, California. I have been pastor for 21 years now. I also founded a Bible College here in Marin County. I am the president and academic dean for the school. My father was born in Aklampa. He was buried there three years ago when he died at the ripe old age of 96. My mother lives in Lagos, where I was born, but she goes to Benin every year. She is always there in Benin whenever I visit. I built a house in Aklampa so I go back at least every two years. My church is also building a hospital in the Village. We are going back this August to officially open it for the people. I am sending you pictures of the hospital in another email. My parents taught us Fon as we were growing up. I speak Yoruba well. I spoke Fon while I was at home. Being away for so many years, I find it difficult to speak Fon fluently. I am just getting back to speaking Fon since I have been going back to Benin every year in the past three years. I hope we can, through your website, create interest in forming a "club" of Beninois "Diaspora". Think about it. You are literally a Beninois yourself! Let's keep the communication line open. Again, thank you for the great job you are doing. Mawu na so mi daga! Edabo Emmanuel
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