Mostly just getting ready for my trip today, not much insight to report in terms of rights and development. Getting ready to go to Benin is a challenge in packing, but not for the obvious reasons. The question of what to bring is balanced by the knowledge that I can, of course, get most stuff I need there, if I don't remember to bring it. I find packing more about comfort than anything else: what tokens of home will help me on a six-month excursion? Bringing the luxuries actually becomes more important than bringing the basics.

When I was in my 20s I lived a year in Bangladesh, and tried to stay out of the expat zones as much as I could. I looked at the embassy and USAID people, living in relatively luxurious situations and hanging out at the expat clubs, and thought "how can they really know what is going on, if they live that way?" But, as I get older, not unexpectedly I see things differently. I want a bit of comfort, and if I'm to be away from home for a long time I want the trappings of a "normal" life. This is not  less judgmental than I used to be, towards those who want to be comfortable.