AS if qualifying for the African Cup of Nations wasn't exciting enough, our preparation has been more than we could have hoped for.

I've been in Brazil with the rest of the Benin squad since January 3 and we've been really well looked after by the officials at Botafogo - one of the biggest clubs in Brazil.

Along with Flamengo, Fluminense and Vasco it is one of the four major football clubs in Rio de Janeiro.

Training has been hard, but we have very good staff to make sure we are all in the best condition, and it's been a great way to prepare for the tournament in Ghana on January 20.

We were invited here by the President of Brazil after meeting the President of the Republic of Benin, and the set-up at Botafogo is excellent.

They play in Serie A - the top division in Brazil - and everything here is very professional, the stadium - which has a capacity of 45,000 - is excellent, and we have everything that we could possibly need.

We have played two games here - both against Serie A sides - and although we haven't won them both, the good thing is we are going into the Cup of Nations with a fully fit squad.

Brazil is a beautiful country and we have been very well looked after in Rio. We had the opportunity to look around when our manager gave us the afternoon off a few days ago.

First we went to Copacabana beach for some rest and relaxation, and it was very nice there.

After that we did some shopping and had enough time to do some sightseeing afterwards, including the giant statue of Jesus, known as Christ the Redeemer, on top of the Corcovado Mountain.

We leave Brazil for Ghana tomorrow afternoon.

Not long to go now!