Pictures!

Naureen's 'pre-birthday' surprise - notice how she is using tupperware for bowls, that's right, we're a classy bunch.

The cake. It may look sketch, but it was a hit. We covered it with jam because the M and M's we put in the cake batter made it turn an unsightly green - turned out to be an excellent choice though!

Ajit, Naureen, me

Lindsey and Lindsay

25 big ones

Pre-kindergarden, Kindergarden 1 and Kindergarden 2 classroom at the Liberian Refuge Camp in Accra, Ghana

There isn't enough space for all of the grades to have a separate classroom, so they use these dividers. You really can't get a sense of the size of the space, but it is tiny, and about 35-40 kids sit on each side, with teachers for two grades attempting to co-exist...

Desks donated by UNHCR

Baboons at Shai Hills

Makes it easier when you miss your monkey brothers... ahaha jokes.

And finally... a trip to the hospital

Well actually it was a clinic, but far more dramatic the first way no?

Up until now I strongly opposed the idea of going to a clinic/the hospital for medical treatment. I get sick kind of often, but my body always manages the fight it off. I think I have had the flu three times while being in Ghana (every time someone suggested it might be malaria - but it wasn't), and I have never once gone to the hospital...

I think there is a tendency to freak out about things here, which is definitely justified, but I am still against running to the hospital for a sore throat or headache. I guess I realized that I might not be taking things quite as seriously as I should this weekend. A friend of ours was diagnosed with typhoid, or malaria... not quite sure why they can't figure out which of the two it is, but this is the result provided by the doctor. Hmm, see, in the latter case (malaria), it can be attributed to causes outside of our prevention (I mean aside from the anti-malarials and the disgusting amounts of bug spray...), but the former... now that is scary. Typhoid, as I have found out by reading way too much info on disease this weekend, is spread through sharing food, water, unsanitary conditions etc. Now this is a massive challenge as we quite frequently have no water, which makes being extremely clean extremely difficult.

Anyway, that isn't why I went to the clinic, but I must recount the absolute adventure I had this morning...

I have to start out by saying I was pretty nervous about the whole thing, so I actually asked my friend to accompany me. She works at the Ministry of Health and had recommended a clinic across from the ministry that all of the civil servants use. So, we arrive and pay 2,000 (20 cents) for a health card, and sit down in what I later found out was a queue. My friend had to leave briefly so I remain sat on a bench at the back, wondering how sick the people around me actually were... needless to say, I got pretty freaked out thinking about all of the possible diseases I was probably exposing myself to. That probably sounds like an overreaction, but to give you a little context: employees at a 3/4 star hotel in Accra are tested every six months for TB, people test positive all the time! So back to my adventure... a nurse came to the front of the waiting area and began chatting away in Twi. I considered asking a woman in front of me what was happening, but I refrained, and just watched instead. Luckily I made the right choice, as I later realized that the nurse was conducting a pseudo-service; she looked at me and said: "we are praying." Hmm, okay. At this point, I still hadn't realized I was in a queue, and I think about 5 people ended up in front of me. Thankfully my friend returned and insisted I go to the spot I should have been in. My first stop was to see the nurse, who took my blood pressure, weighed me, and listened to my heart. She also asked if my friend (blonde, British) was my mother or my sister. I told her she was my sister. Hilarious. Then I was instructed to join another queue, this one was for the doctor. I should probably mention that I was the only obruni (aside from my friend) seeking medical attention... I am sure I looked hilarious, as I had a backpack and a plastic bag with weetabix in it (for munching on at work). This line moved quite quickly, although there were a few delays, including a small boy who was (as I overheard it and cringed) 'infectious,' so he was obviously bumped up in the line. Finally I get into see the doctor, who asks me what is wrong, and I explain to her about my stomach problem. She immediately goes to start prescribing meds, (as I had been warned) but I explained to her I needed a test, as I had taken Cipro (a very common drug prescribed for travellers) and it hadn't worked. She (and the nurse) laughed at me, explaining drugs that worked in Canada do not work in Ghana. I spared myself from trying to protest, as she agreed to let me have a test. While I was waiting by the door that was marked 'laboratory,' I was amazed by the way in which people just curled up for a nap on the benches. The lights kept on going on and off, and the fact that there was no running water in the bathroom made me incredibly squemish, especially because it seems like an obvious way to prevent a lot of the diseases they were probably treating. But I guess these things are out of their control, as certain areas in Accra tend to be subject to low water pressure (my office and house for instance), so we often go without water for several days. It is just a shame that the clinic hasn't taken alternative measures like getting a tank... Anyway, after my test I took the result back to the doctor, who totally was entertained by me, and I am pretty sure she thought I was just a small girl, so she was quite smile-y and nice. Her reaction to my results (which I think were not quite what she expected) made me a bit nervous, especially as she said I should come back to see her on Wednesday... In any case she prescribed me a few things (which I googled immediately) and we'll see how things go! All in all, with the test, consult, meds and card fee, I paid 72,000 cedis (about 7.50 USD). Not too bad I guess.

"Your reaction sounds like you saw Justin Timberlake or something" - M. Asdaghi

It's been ages since I've updated this thing, but at least I now have some decent things to report instead of the usual rambling on about the heat, power cuts and the like.

Last weekend was definitely one for the records. It started out innocently enough, we decided to get some work done/check email and job search at Labadi Beach Hotel. The atmosphere is decent, you can bring your laptop and it is relatively quiet... I should probably preface this by saying that earlier that week I was severely disappointed because I had wanted to attend the Inaugural Jubilee Lecture (part of Ghana's festivities to kick of the celebration of 50 years of independence) but was unable to get a ticket despite calling on any possible connections (this will all make a bit more sense in a paragraph or so - I just don't want to give away the exciting part of the story).

So, back to Labadi. We were sitting by the back door which leads outside to the pool and outdoor restaurant, totally minding our own business. Every so often I'd examine who was loitering around the lobby wondering who they were associated with, an airline, the UN, etc. etc. At one point I noticed a very elegant woman wearing a flowing psuedo-African style dress, but didn't really think much of it. Probably about 2 minutes later, Lindsay says: "Laura, laura, LAURA!" So I look up to see what all the fuss is about, and look DIRECTLY at none other than Kofi Annan (pronounced like canon - small piece of random info...) who is walking past us, along with the elegant lady in purple, who is obviously his wife. Those of you who know me well, you can imagine my reaction - this was BETTER than Justin Timberlake! I actually slapped my hand over my mouth in all the excitement and actually scratched my own face (I realized this later). I think we mulled over what to do for about 5 minutes, while attempting to take a picture on a cell phone - as he had sat down in the outdoor restaurant, facing away from everyone. The funny thing was there was literally no one else in the restaurant. This, despite the fact that about 20 people came over to where we were sitting to try and catch a glimpse after he walked through the lobby. [Oh, obviously he was the speaker at the lecture...] Finally at about 10 minutes, we had the genius idea to go and casually (haha) have a drink in the restaurant. We were, I kid you not, 5 feet away from Kofi Annan! While we were deliberating about asking his security guard (only one) if we could say hello, his wife rejoined him, so we decided it would be rude to interupt their conversation. I think pretty much everyone freaked out when they heard we didn't say hi, but honestly, in the moment, it really seemed rude to interupt them, and I can only imagine that they never get left alone... I think if she hadn't come back, we would have definitely asked to say hi. Next time. :)

I have another interesting update about a trip I took to the Liberian Refuge Camp about an hour outside of Accra, but I'll hold off until Monday when I can post some pictures.

Back on the Continent

Well, surprisingly four weeks flew by, and here I am back in Ghana... oddly enough it kind of feels like I didn't really ever leave, but the massive stash of food I've accummulated in the kitchen says otherwise.

The flight itself was rather uneventful. Although I must say it was the noisiest plane ride I have ever experienced, and no one, I mean NO ONE listened to the flight attendants! People were up in the aisles practically before we landed, and trying to take out their luggage from the overhead compartments. Classic. On a better note, among the multitude of languages, the announcements were also done in Twi which was received extremely enthusiatically by virtually everyone on the plane.

While in flight, it occurred to us that it might be our night for no power (which in our case also means no water). That would be a really awesome "Welcome Back to Ghana" now wouldn't it? So, fingers crossed, we picked up some food, tried to ignore our rather aggressive taxi driver (who turned out to be not that bad in the end) and headed home.

Luckily we found our lights on, and aside from a distinctly musty smell which characterizes the place... things were looking good.

Of course then we realized the water was not working. To understand the extent of this obstacle, you have to remember that we had both just been flying for hours, so showering was sort of an imperative. You also have to remember that no water = no toliet. Right, now that you fully get the implications of no water, you can understand we were a bit put off. But I think we handled it well, accepting that it was in fact Ghana, and therefore to be expected... plus after watching Grey's (on my laptop) and polishing off some yummy Indian food, we were pretty darn content.

In other news, my trip to immigration to renew my visa went rather smoothly. This was a pleasant surpise as the last time Shanika got threatened by the officer who called her "small face" and said she was going to "beat her small face." Needless to say, if it had been with anyone other than Shanika it might have been offputting, but we found it hilarious and still can't stop laughing about the whole thing.

True to Ghanaian form, our morning taxi driver told me he loved me and wanted to marry me. It was so hilarious and typical that I just kept telling him no thanks, I needed to go back to my family... to which he replied he would come too... right... anyway after a few minutes and Lindsay's help, we established that I was in fact married, so him moving to Canada was probably pointless. I realized it'd been awhile, as the whole marriage lie felt SO odd!

Last thing of note happened yesterday when we were sitting in Sunshine Cafe, eating sandwiches. A few of us are planning to go to East Africa at the end of March so Lindsay brought the Lonely Planet guide with her so we could start doing a bit of research. Anyway, the long and the short of the story is that we asked for a big, sharp knife to chop/carve the book up into sections so we could both look at it. It really doesn't need any further explanations, but it was absolutely hilarious, and the staff must have thought we were absolutely insane. One person's insane is another's efficient I guess.

My Mixed Post

You know you've been out of Ghana for three weeks when...

• your feet are clean... ??
• you get cold
• you forget to put on deoderant and don't sweat profusely
• you don't sweat profusely period
• you get cold
• you are surprised to hear someone use their car horn
• you get confused by a) sidewalks and b) the fact that garbage is not strewn everywhere
• you miss plantain chips, julie's yams, fried rice for 70 cents, drinking water sachets...
• you eat yogurt/ice cream made by a company OTHER than Fan Yogo
• you get cold
• you feel like you need to approach the random girl in H & M who has Ghanaian kente cloth wrapped around her hair... (for the record, I didn't... but I almost did)
• you can wear clothes more than once and not be disgusted by it
• you actually for a minute assume that the taxi wouldn't possibly be using a machine to track fare, as a pre-negotiation makes a hell of a lot more sense...
• a fair majority of your stories start like this: "Well, in Ghana..."

The other part of this post consists of a list Trish came up with, which is awesome, because it is something I have been meaning to do for some time now, but she has saved me the trouble!

Your Guide to WHY a Taxi is Honking in Ghana:

To tell people they're free for business
To tell people to get the hell out of the way
To change lanes
To let someone else in front know not to change lanes
Turning Corners
Going through an intersection
When reversing out of a parked spot
When another car is reversing out of a parked spot
To say 'hello'
To say 'screw you!'

Thanks TT. :)

Now that I have a regular internet connection...

A few pics... more to follow

Trekking through the field(?) with our brother Joseph

The view from the Eco Lodge... it's the kind of quiet that you just can't get in Accra
My office

Our new place - still transitioning as you'll note the heaps of laundry...

Shanika and Trish - armed with the Bradt guide

Mango Tree!

Dining at Heritage - BEST Indian food in Ghana

Near Atimpoku/Akosombo

En route to Atimpoku

Getting out of Accra...

This weekend Trish, Shanika and I headed northeast of Accra to Ghana’s Volta region. [SEE BLACK LINE ON THE MAP FOR A VISUAL] Unlike our friends who had gone a few weeks back, we were somewhat less prepared. At one point it was actually acknowledged that of the three of us, I was the most organized… right, so you get the general idea then. Interestingly enough though, I think it was our lack of preparation that made the trip fantastic. Our trip began with Shanika receiving a phone call from her boss, informing her that two of the volunteers she looks after (oh that made TPA - Teaching and Projects Abroad - sound like a babysitting service… it's not, sorry-o!) are at the Trust Hospital because they thought they had malaria. On a side note this seems awfully common… people ending up at the hospital because they think they have malaria… I don’t think you could pay me enough to sit in that place and WAIT for six hours while probably exposing yourself to loads of other ACTUAL illnesses, when you probably just have a bad case of the flu, but hey, that’s just me I guess. So Trish and I hung out at the food court, Bradt guide in hand [best guide to Ghana ever, with fabulous commentary], contemplating what we should do, or rather, where we should go.

After some deliberating, Shanika arrived and we set on checking out this “Eco-Lodge,” which was described in the Bradt guide as somewhere you could relax, swim and enjoy the beautiful surroundings… sounded rather perfect actually. We made Shanika call the lodge to make sure there was availability (in retrospect it’s kind of hilarious we did this). They assured us that they could accommodate us, and explained where we should catch the tro from to get there. We headed over to the ‘long-distance’ tro parking lot, elicited loads of intrigued stares and with virtually no problems found our tro, paid our fare (1.90 USD), inquired how long the ride would be (2 hours) and found some seats on the relatively empty tro. Now it is necessary to explain that tros here (short OR long distance) wait until the very last seat is filled before departing (well usually anyway)… this meant we waited for what felt like an hour before we departed. That wouldn’t have been the worst thing, but it was absolutely sweltering outside… so you can imagine how much worse it was on the tro. Let’s just say we’re officially Ghanaian now, because we each have a handkerchief (read: sweat rag). Still aside from being hot and sweaty, it was a decent ride, and I think the fact that this older lady grabbed Trish’s arm when she came on to the tro and said: “You are welcome!” made it that much better… I love the small niceties in Ghana. Sometimes I think they even make up for the hissing and honking! :)

So a few hours later, we realized we didn’t know where we were getting off (this would have never happened to Naureen et al., I’m just saying, ahaha). So with the help of virtually EVERYONE sitting around us and the Bradt guide we determined that what we thought was one town, Anum-Boso, was actually two separate towns. When we pulled up in Anum, we hummed and ha’d for a bit, and decided to get off in the next town, Boso. This was a huge mistake, because Anum, as we found out later, has a regular taxi service, whereas Boso… not so much.

When we got out of the tro in Boso it was very apparent we were no longer in Accra. This was small town Ghana… and we were pretty sure no one had ever seen an Obruni before… let alone three, looking rather lost and toting backpacks. After refusing to pay 40,000 cedis (4 USD) for a taxi to the Eco Lodge (we thought it was 30,000), we wandered down what appeared to be the main road in hope that we might come across another taxi. How wrong we were.

After a few minutes of reveling in the silence of the town, we came upon a porch where a few guys hanging out. We decided to inquire about the taxi situation, since things weren’t looking too promising for us. A lady wearing funeral garb (black and brown/black and red) explained that there was no regular taxis in Boso, only Anum, but that we were welcome to wait on her porch. We were quite taken aback when a few of the guys brought a bench for us to sit on and wait… We began chatting with the lady, who it turned out lived in London, and was in Ghana for two consecutive funerals. She was absolutely lovely and after a few minutes of waiting told us we should go with her driver who would take us to the lodge. You can imagine our surprise… we had just met this woman! We tried to refuse her generous offer, but she insisted, saying that we shouldn’t pay her (when we offered), but we could tip the driver. It was one of those moments that makes you remember Accra is somewhat like many other big cities: cold and impersonal… it doesn’t necessarily reflect Ghana very well at all.

TBC tomorrow…