狂瀾怒涛: raging rough seas; maelstrom (any violent or turbulent situation)

Ouagadougou (the capital of Burkina Faso)

dead end, road closure, cul-de-sac

a dwarf (being from folklore, underground dwelling nature spirit)

peephole (hole in a door through which to look)

JR ticket counter

(figuratively, idiomatic) to make one's preparations after events have already begun: to put the cart before the horse, to start something in the eleventh hour

sunscreen

clearing out of mud from a ditch

developmental dictatorship, a type of dictatorship that prioritizes economic and social development than political participation and human rights of citizens