COS Conference

Almost seven hours later, we arrived in Yaoundé to begin a week of talking about our experiences of the last two years, and preparing to return to the "Greatest Country on Earth", as its become known among most volunteers. We arrived at the Hotel Jouvence 2000, the exact hotel where we arrived two years before on a bus on a rainy night coming from the Yaoundé airport. The same people (minus some who had to go home for various reasons) all together again for one last time before going our separate ways. In some ways it was poetic, in others, just sad.

Since a good number of us were exhausted, we headed up to the room, showered off the dust and sweat from the road and rested for an hour or so before leaving for the Director's house for the big farewell dinner. Joe and I decided a while back we'd be roommates for the week, since we were good friends in training, lived almost across the street from each other, in fact, but haven't really seen much of each other in the last two years. It seemed like a good opportunity to catch up.

Dinner at the Director's was a good time, but it sorta made the rest of the week a bit anti-climatic, since everyone was there all dressed up and all together. With the exception of the sessions during the following days, it was the last time we were all together (the 'Last Supper', so to speak). Both the US Ambassador to Cameroon and the Assistant Secretary for Primary Education were there to lend a bit of importance to the evening.

The director read out our "Aspiration Statements", what we had written during the application process well over two years ago about what we expected and wanted to achieve during our time here. It was quite interesting to see whose were right on target and whose were proven to be a bit delusional. Regardless, we all made it to the end.

A rather abrupt end was brought to the evening by a deputy director who stood up and said that we all looked tired, but that protocol dictated we could not leave until the Ambassador left. A little shocked, the Ambassador stood up and took the not so subtle cue that he should leave (we were all embarrassed, but nothing really shocks us anymore). Moments after he left, we started piling in Peace Corps cars for the ride back to the hotel.

The sessions were a mix of the helpful, the administrative, and the downright boring. Overall, it was well done though, except for the food. Previous groups had ended their service at the Hilton hotel eating omlettes and bacon every morning. We were served bread and jam (with real butter though, which was the only "highlight").

After the sessions each day, we separated into the "cliques" that had been formed in training and throughout the past couple of years. As a result, some went to restaurants and bars afterwards and others went to the case de passage at Peace Corps headquarters to do laundry. I generally chose the former route, using the opportunity to celebrate with friends and eat good food (and drink entirely too much beer- a frequent occurence when two or more volunteers get together- which reminds me that I haven't told the joke about Peace Corps volunteers: The story is that volunteers in central/south america return as revolutionaries, the ones in Asia return married, and the one in Africa return as alcoholics- I don't think I've gone that far, but I'd be happy to challenge someone in a six-pack of any american beer when I get back).

The last night of the conference, before we were supposed to return the next day, about ten of us went to a night club in Yaoundé. The one that was chosen is the newest and best- perhaps the best in the country- and right up there with any club in the US outside of New York and LA. We didn't have to pay to get in, but quickly found out that the drinks were 10.000 fcfa each ($20), which is a week's salary for most folks. We were told that for 40.000 fcfa ($80), we could get a whole bottle of whiskey and bottles of soda for mixers- this was the "BIG DEAL". We didn't want to leave, so all of us pitched in for the bottle. It was at this point that I discovered I like J&B whiskey.

Since it was a Wednesday night, there weren't a whole lot of other folks there (a few heavy hitters and foreign nationals and their "girlfriends") so we took a good chunk of the dance floor and took turns going to the DJ to request music. Somewhere just before dawn, we returned to the hotel for a couple hours of sleep.