Ghana in Review

In only 10 days I will be stepping on U.S. soil for the first time in 4 months.

After reminiscing last night about all the great times I have had (this while I should have been studying for the exam I have today), I have tried to categorize my trip abroad a little bit.

Each category, I have narrowed down to 3 items. Enjoy.

Likes:
1. Rural villages
2. Markets
3. Tro Tros

Dislikes:
1. Poor customer service/or lack there of
2. People constantly trying to overcharge/cheat obrunis
3. Pick pockets

Favorite Ghanaian foods:
1. Akple and Ochre Stew
2. Plantain chips
3. FanYogo

Foods I have missed most:
1. Gum
2. Pretzels
3. Ranch Dressing

Foods I want when I get home:
1. ANY of Mom's cooking
2. Mexican food
3. Cold food

Things I wish I would have brought:
1. My computer
2. Pictures of family and friends
3. More books and magazines

Things I never used:
1. Curling iron
2. Video camera
3. Sweater

Favorite Adventures:
1. Village Stay
2. Mole Trip
3. Leadership Conference in Niger

Favorite Moments:
1. Singing endless church and children's songs with the village kids
2. The many times I have been overcome with gratefulness for having this opportunity
3. Attempting to carry food on my head and sell it in the village with three 13 year old girls

Things I wasn't expecting:
1. This experience was more challenging than I expected.
2. There WAS a language barrier! Even when we were all speaking "English".
3. I never realized how much/to what extent Ghanaians speak their tribal languages.

Things I'm excited to do when I get home:
1. Drive my car! And get in and go any time I want.
2. Call my friends and catch up!
3. Upload pictures.

Ghanaian words/phrases I have adopted into my vocabulary:
1. Saying "uh huh" like a Ghanaian in every situation possible, even when it is completely out of context.
2. Adding "o" to the end of words: "Sorry-O." "I'm fine-o."
3. Questioning: "Oh Chale, Why?" (Oh Friend, Why?)

Things I took for granted and never realized:
1. Fast Internet access/computer knowledge
2. Interstates, stop lights, roads without potholes everywhere
3. Public restrooms

When I get back I really want to:
1. Make the effort to talk to/help/be friends with the international students on campus
2. Learn a foreign language
3. Learn how to play the piano

Things I will miss:
1. Living the life of a retired person :)
2. Being called "Obruni"
3. Grabbing fruit off a woman's head for lunch, out of the tro tro window

Things I realized weren't as bad as they seemed:

1. Hand washing clothes
2. Cold showers
3. Life without Dt. Mt. Dew

Favorite Name Pronunciations:

1. Militia
2. Malaysia
3. Morlessa

Things I have traded/bartered to get a good deal:
1. Shampoo
2. My red polka dot shirt (The lady loved it! She put it on right then, gave me a high five, and couldn't stop smiling! So precious!)
3. My "phone number"

Minor meltdowns:
1. When I left my journal on a bus
2. When my camera card and flash drive got a virus
3. The day I yelled at 4 people in a span of 4 hours
-- A Ghanaian Immigration Officer
-- A tro tro mate who tried to cheat me money
-- The Internet guy who let a Ghanaian go ahead of me
-- The security guard at the bookstore who was obviously having a power trip.

These are all great stories! I will have to fill you in later!

Studying abroad has:
1. Made me question/analyze non-profit and aid organizations
2. Made me analyze/review my own priorities and motivations in life
3. Has helped me realize that just because something is different doesn't mean it's wrong or needs to be changed.
Just because I/we/Americans think something needs to be or could be improved doesn't mean that's what is best for the society and community.
Just because something seems more "primitive" from my perspective doesnt' mean it needs to be modernized; that may not be best for the people.

I am grateful for this experience because:
1. It really has been a saving grace; an essential break
2. It has taught me a lot about myself
3. It has allowed me to reflect on the past and helped me not to worry so much about the future.


Ok, well I will see you all soon! I love you!

Mel

Monkeys. Mountains. Memories.

Monkey See. Monkey Do.

Following a dirt path deeper into the forest, our guide made the infamous kissing noise that Ghanaians do so well. In a matter of time at least 10 monkeys were swinging through the trees, coming to us.

This past weekend a friend and I made a trip, once again, to the Volta Region. The Tafi Atome Monkey Sanctuary was the first stop.

Armed with a bag full of bananas, we were ready. The mona monkeys were eating out of our hands! Their tiny human-like hands would peel the banana and then tear off a piece before stuffing it in their mouth. If you didn't hold on tight, they would snatch the banana from your hand and swing higher into the tree to eat it at their own leisure. They would then throw the peels to the ground once they were finished, with surprisingly good aim. It seemed like they were trying to hit us!

I really wanted to take one and stuff him in my bag and take him home. I wasn't sure how I would get him through customs though, so I refrained.

We Fell on We Falls

Next we went to Wli Falls (pronounced Vlee), which is the highest waterfall in West Africa.

Early Sunday morning Delia and I hiked an easy path through the forest to the lower falls.

There however was another waterfall, the upper falls, which the guidebook mentioned as being a slightly more strenuous hike up a mountain.

We were up for the challenge. Little did we know, the guidebook was being modest! It was a much more strenuous hike!

More difficult than climbing Mt. Afadjato a few weeks earlier, which is the highest mountain in Ghana. It may not have helped that it poured the night before so the steep inclines were slippery... at least this was our consolation!

After finally making our way to the waterfall after a three hour hike, we enjoyed the sight for a little while, and prepared for our return trip.

On the way down, I can pretty accurately say that we fell down this mountain, literally. LOL.
At the beginning we were taking it in stride. Laughing it off. Even capturing the moment on film. But after at least the fifth time, it really wasn't necessary to take any more pictures of our graceful falls to the ground, as it started to look exactly like the previous fall.

It wasn't long before we started singing songs as we descended the mountain, my favorite being, "She'll be comin' round the mountain when she comes." And don't you worry, we appropriately changed the lyrics to "She'll be fallin down that mountain when she comes." In our slap-happy state, we though it was absolutely hilarious to make a pun out of the mountain name, saying: "We fell on We Falls." and "We Falls.. Literally".

Along the way down we met a group of Ghanaians coming up the mountain and they thought it was hard too! So that made me feel better. Haha. I'm sure their pace was a lot faster, and the women were wearing dresses, but still! One of the guys even had a baby on his back and amazingly, the baby was asleep! One of the Ghanaians apologized for our travels. Haha. He was sorry that we had to go through such a difficult hike.

Unexpected Passenger

After a great weekend, we took a tro tro back to Accra on Sunday evening. On this tro tro I had both a "first" and an "Only in Africa" moment.

Delia and I were sitting in the back seat. At one point, I felt something wet on the back of my leg. I didn't think much of it. It must be a wet rag or something.

A little later I hear a whimper that sounded like a baby. I didn't realize there was a young baby on board, but I guess it was in the front somewhere.

Then. I hear a full out "Maaaaah" sound. There was a GOAT riding in our tro tro. Underneath our seat! Alive. But not for too much longer because it was going to be someone's dinner!

Needless to say, Delia and I both screamed when we heard this! Haha. And everyone in the tro tro turned around to look at us. The guy beside us started laughing and asked if we were scared. Haha.

All I want to know is, Did the goat have to pay the full price? I hope he got a discount since he was stuffed underneath a seat for the 4 hour trip! Oh wow! Only in Africa!