Headed out to the Fruit mkt and Dantokpa (the largest mkt in W. Africa). Very vibrant with a palpable entrepreneurial energy — the kind you find in growing places.

🏖️ The beach resorts here are more rudimentary than Ghana. The security guard approached me to demand a mandatory "protection fee".

💂 Rather ironic to be extorted by the person tasked with ensuring customers' security.

💱 They use the same currency (W. Africa franc) as in Togo here. It's shared across 8 countries + pegged to the euro. Hard not to compare it with the eurozone — incl the monetary w/o fiscal union tension.

🏨 The hotel has two room prices — with and w/o aircon. Reminded me of growing up in HK, when not every home had A/C and we'd go to the public library more for the cool air than to read. That differentiation doesn't happen much in HK nowadays. Perhaps it also existed for heating in cold places in the past?