Cote d' Ivoire (for English "Ivory Coast" ) at about 30 km from Abidjan , the "real "capital (the official capital is Yamoussoukro, but International Airport, Ambassadors and even main government offices are all in Abidjan )

More exactly i am in the middle of the way between Grand Bassam that has some amazing beach and Bonua...i should put a mark on google earth...

basically with the exception of a couple of priests responsible of the local catholic church i am the only white man of the neighbor

i didn't make much photo yet...i don't like be know as " the white man with the pricey big camera"...so i bring the camera outside very seldom

Makes me think of chocolate and that makes me twice as jealous but then I think of how that chocolate is made and that makes me sad.

What do you find saddening about how chocolate is made?

i have no idea how chocolate is made

here there is a lot of cacao plants, and cacao was one of main export of this country (now the whole country is in a sort of hibernate mode..all are waiting for the election, but waiting for the election here is hopeless as waiting for Godot ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waiting_for_Godot )

if you want cacao here all shops try to sell some "Nestle" *******...i will deeper the matter as now is a mystery, a lot of cacao here but apparently is all for Nestle, nothing for end users

what people could do with real cacao in Africa seems a well keeped secret..i know that in south America cacao was mainly used not for sweet drink but as spice (as example for chicken meat plates)...but no idea about here, for what i know cacao plants were imported here by french colonizers and it originally belong to other country and continents

Sorry I was talking about chocolate from non-fair trade places. Where people aren't getting paid enough and working conditions are bad and/or child labour is used etc. My English isn't good enough to know all the correct words for it. But you know what I mean.

not just chocolate...coffee too.

*I'm in a slump, hopefully when I get back from work tonight, I will be inspired to work on a project.

luckily not slavery around here
somebody earn well, other much less, but most here are self employed (there are more little shops then houses)... i am talking of villages close to the Coast in the Capital is not so nice...But here even if you get no any money you may still grab some coconouts and fishes, and even with no csh for rent a proper house you may find some place to sleep

In other word people here may be very poor but even if poors here almost everybody seems to have 1 portable phone, wife childrens and even a girlfriend (that , i suppose should be also somebody else wife, since all women more then 18 seems to be married )

Cote d' Ivoire was the richest Country of the area... now economy is stuck for political reasons but still cacao, mango, manioca, chickens,crabs and fishes grow and mutiplicated as in their nature

so except for the Capital there is not much desperation and without desperation could not be slavery... and close by there are even several fair trade
and microcredits activities

Only in Abidjan the big city i saw places close to a Hell, but i don't think that for homeless without money New York or London would be better

Only real bad problem no free medical care, if you are sick and pennyless you may just die...exactly as in the USA ( EU knows better )

WOW, Are you sure you like living there? lol

Actually, in the U.S., if you get to a hospital they must treat you, money or insurance or none. I am not sure if this is true for all hospitals, but it is true for many. That extra cost is built in to those who pay, and that is one reason health costs are so high.
It is sad, in big cities, to see the destitute trying to stay alive. When I travel to New York or Chicago, I am always keeping my purse full of dollar bills so I can hand them out, especially to those who try to earn a bit of money singing or playing an instrument in the subways...at least they are doing something and not robbing anyone. Yeah, I know many of the panhandlers are alcoholics/druggies, but I feel sorry for them nevertheless.