This is to be a random post. I finally have a little bit of time to write about some of the random things that have been building up that I've been wanting to share. Well, one thing, that is.... I ran out of time again. Here it goes!
-Fante: Some things about this language are really great, and some things are not. For instance, some words mean the same thing. Wo means at/to and you plural and the sentence Wowoo me wo (woahwoah may woah) Minnesota means I was born in Minnesota- neat, huh? Then, sometimes there are phrases that the difference is so subtle that it makes me afraid to utter them. For instance, to say "I know" one says mi nyim, and "I don't know" is mi nnyim. Tricky, right? Well, it gets worse. Minim means throat and Mi nyem means I'm pregnant. Akoko means chicken and koko means chest and also red. The word for yellow directly translated is "the fat of the chicken".
We had our Fante Final today, and I thankfully didn't have to order any chicken or say I didn't know something only to have it be mistaken for a shocking parternity questioning plot twist for our imaginary characters. Yeesh.
-What's Next: This weekend we leave for Accra for a four day stay. The capital of Ghana is a very busy place, but I have a guilty confession. I can't wait to get there so I can order some pizza... I know, it's shameful. I really do like Ghanaian food, but the thought of a greasy slice of cheese pizza is so tantalizingly familiar. Plus, cheese (and almost all dairy, actually) is not in the Ghanaian diet. As soon as I get home I'm having a cheese and cracker spread like it's nobody's business.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
Krazy Komenda
I wasn't kidding, earlier, there really is no "c" in Fante. The word for school is the slightly warped English word "skuul". Anyway, I just thought I should explain that.
Komenda Homestay: You know you're in for an interesting time when you meet your 28 year old host sister and in the first ten minutes tells you three times how fat you are and then mentions to your friend and (thank goodness) homestay partner for the week, Anna, that, because she is a twin, her father should come here and have sex with said host sister in order for her to have twins, too. The homestay in Komenda was stressful and these are the positive things I can say about it:
-I was with Anna all week, so we were together through it all
-Our family didn't seem all that into hosting us, so interactions were limited to meal times and the occasional times they locked us out of the house
-Anna and I ate by ourselves in a corner of the family owned bar surrounded by some pretty cute kittens
-The family will never host again
I know that most of those positives include negatives, but I'm just so relieved to be back in Cape Coast with the Kums that I am being a trifle harsh. I promise most of the rest of Komenda was good. See below!
Health Research: In Komenda I was assigned to inquire about the health of the community. I paper I turned in today was a look at the three main places Komenda residents go to for their health needs- the Health Clinic, a Family Planning Clinic, and the Zion Prayer Center. The last one was definitely most interesting. It is a prayer center that an evangelist healer set up to, well, evangelize and heal. His wife has a health center set up cirectly behind the center that she uses to sell traditional herbal rememdies that are generally used in conjunction with prayers from the preacher. All three places recognized the legitmacy of spiritual as well as hpysical ailments, which was incredibly interesting. There is a spring in the middle of town called Poopoo (the name of the woman who helped establish it... but still, a bit unfortunate) that was walled off in 1948 in order to form easier access to the fresh water. So close to the sea, it is the only fresh water source for many families in KOmenda. Because it never runs dry, and comes back when it does, it is said that a "small god" has taken up residence there. But the doctor in town says it is an unhygenic stagnant pool of water and, when the water has been sitting there for a while, can cause typhoid and worms and other diseases. Still, people use it to drink and bathe and some even carry it with them while traveling for protection. Tres interesante, non?
Uncle Ebo's: the program coordinator opened his home to all 7 of us, 24/7 while we were there. We took advantage of this completely and, when not interviewing various prominent members of the community, could be found lounging in his living room, eating groundnut paste and jelly sandwiches, drinking milo (a vitamin fortified instant hot choclate), reading various novels (jurassic park, anne of green gables, the poisonwood bible, and a good old reliable James Herriot adventure), and playing uno. Also, we bonded intensely with Uncle Ebo's wife, Ama, and I will be sure to write more about him and her in my post when I finally get around to describing the cast of characters in charge of our well being whilst here.
Kids: Where ever a group of us go the chanting of young voices follow us, "Bronyi! How are you! I'm fine! Thank you!"
Bronyi means white man and most of the little ones don't even know what they're saying. When we reply, "Good, and you?" they giggle madly and run away. \Sometimes interactions are more random, like the time I got offered a tomato by an adolescent girl and then the procedded to laugh hysterically about it before I could even answer.
Out of time (rats rats rats!!), more tomorrow.
EMily
Komenda Homestay: You know you're in for an interesting time when you meet your 28 year old host sister and in the first ten minutes tells you three times how fat you are and then mentions to your friend and (thank goodness) homestay partner for the week, Anna, that, because she is a twin, her father should come here and have sex with said host sister in order for her to have twins, too. The homestay in Komenda was stressful and these are the positive things I can say about it:
-I was with Anna all week, so we were together through it all
-Our family didn't seem all that into hosting us, so interactions were limited to meal times and the occasional times they locked us out of the house
-Anna and I ate by ourselves in a corner of the family owned bar surrounded by some pretty cute kittens
-The family will never host again
I know that most of those positives include negatives, but I'm just so relieved to be back in Cape Coast with the Kums that I am being a trifle harsh. I promise most of the rest of Komenda was good. See below!
Health Research: In Komenda I was assigned to inquire about the health of the community. I paper I turned in today was a look at the three main places Komenda residents go to for their health needs- the Health Clinic, a Family Planning Clinic, and the Zion Prayer Center. The last one was definitely most interesting. It is a prayer center that an evangelist healer set up to, well, evangelize and heal. His wife has a health center set up cirectly behind the center that she uses to sell traditional herbal rememdies that are generally used in conjunction with prayers from the preacher. All three places recognized the legitmacy of spiritual as well as hpysical ailments, which was incredibly interesting. There is a spring in the middle of town called Poopoo (the name of the woman who helped establish it... but still, a bit unfortunate) that was walled off in 1948 in order to form easier access to the fresh water. So close to the sea, it is the only fresh water source for many families in KOmenda. Because it never runs dry, and comes back when it does, it is said that a "small god" has taken up residence there. But the doctor in town says it is an unhygenic stagnant pool of water and, when the water has been sitting there for a while, can cause typhoid and worms and other diseases. Still, people use it to drink and bathe and some even carry it with them while traveling for protection. Tres interesante, non?
Uncle Ebo's: the program coordinator opened his home to all 7 of us, 24/7 while we were there. We took advantage of this completely and, when not interviewing various prominent members of the community, could be found lounging in his living room, eating groundnut paste and jelly sandwiches, drinking milo (a vitamin fortified instant hot choclate), reading various novels (jurassic park, anne of green gables, the poisonwood bible, and a good old reliable James Herriot adventure), and playing uno. Also, we bonded intensely with Uncle Ebo's wife, Ama, and I will be sure to write more about him and her in my post when I finally get around to describing the cast of characters in charge of our well being whilst here.
Kids: Where ever a group of us go the chanting of young voices follow us, "Bronyi! How are you! I'm fine! Thank you!"
Bronyi means white man and most of the little ones don't even know what they're saying. When we reply, "Good, and you?" they giggle madly and run away. \Sometimes interactions are more random, like the time I got offered a tomato by an adolescent girl and then the procedded to laugh hysterically about it before I could even answer.
Out of time (rats rats rats!!), more tomorrow.
EMily
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Komenda
In 40 minutes I'm leaving to go to Komenda, a fishing village a half an hour away, for a week. I will not have internet access, so please be patient about e-mails and messages.
I'm finding that I have a strong desire to maintain this blog faithfully but, short of moving into an internet cafe and risking not experiencing the things I want to write about, I am finding it extremely difficult.
I think I'll move back to bullet points as a way to efficiently give summaries of my doings, but right now I have a bus to catch.
In preparation for our trip, we were told that here it is taboo for women to fish on the sea- they can fish on lakes, just not on the ocean. Our Fante teachers said that the tradition came about because it was too dangerous and with women taking care of small children it was impractical to have them in so much danger and also gone so much of the day and week. The myth about the tradition, though, is that women used to fish in the sea but they were so good at it that they fished all of the fish out of the sea (our teachers made an analogy to shopping- "Oh, this fish is so pretty, let's catch it!"). God agreed to fill up the ocean with fish again, with the condition that women were not allowed to fish there because they had failed to show restraint.
Hmm... I'll let you decide what to think about that tale.
Look for a post probably a week from tomorrow.
Hugs and kisses!
I'm finding that I have a strong desire to maintain this blog faithfully but, short of moving into an internet cafe and risking not experiencing the things I want to write about, I am finding it extremely difficult.
I think I'll move back to bullet points as a way to efficiently give summaries of my doings, but right now I have a bus to catch.
In preparation for our trip, we were told that here it is taboo for women to fish on the sea- they can fish on lakes, just not on the ocean. Our Fante teachers said that the tradition came about because it was too dangerous and with women taking care of small children it was impractical to have them in so much danger and also gone so much of the day and week. The myth about the tradition, though, is that women used to fish in the sea but they were so good at it that they fished all of the fish out of the sea (our teachers made an analogy to shopping- "Oh, this fish is so pretty, let's catch it!"). God agreed to fill up the ocean with fish again, with the condition that women were not allowed to fish there because they had failed to show restraint.
Hmm... I'll let you decide what to think about that tale.
Look for a post probably a week from tomorrow.
Hugs and kisses!
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
There's No "C" in Fante
Well, life certainly has its way with us, doesn't it? I've been slightly incapacitated the past couple of days because of a boil that developed on my bum. I'll leave it at that- long story short, I'm better now. When I get back if you're at all curious about the events surrounding this issue, I encourage you to ask. It's an interesting story, but there's too much else to write about and I would like those of you who are not curious about my boil to enjoy this blog as well. I digress...
I still haven't had time to figure out my pictures. I want an uninterrupted couple of hours to figure it out in case something doesn't go quite as planned, but I swear it will happen some time before I head home. I hope that's reassuring.
OK, Urban Drop Off. I was dropped in the middle of town at 9:30 am with a girl named Anna. We were charged with finding Palm Nuts, Barclay's Bank, and then getting back to the SIT building by noon. We watched the bus drive away and, with a few nervous chuckles and statements like "Well, here we are. In Ghana. On the street. Just walkin' around..." w
e began our search. We came upon a stand that looked like it may palm nuts, so we approached. The woman in the stall was incredibly helpful. Although she did not have any palm nuts, she was a wealth of knowledge. We were shown an example of what they looked like fresh (right), cooked, and explained how they were used. The palm tree itself is referred to as the King of Trees because it is so useful, even after its death, and the palm nut is only one part of this bountiful flora. Palm Nut soup is derived from palm nuts. Oil can be collected both from the fleshy outer part and the seed inside and then put to a number of uses. The Fante word for Palm Nut is AbE (pronounced ah-BAY). After learning all of this we thanked her, Meda ase, and found a seller half a block down the road. Not, however, before we were stopped by two young Ghanaian men that were exceedingly curious about us. Anna I chatted for a couple minutes about what we were doing here, how long we were staying, etc. The conversation ended when we insisted that we had to find Palm Nuts, but we were only released once we agreed to give them our e-mail addresses (traveler's trick- print illegibly or incorrectly if you don't want them to have your actual contact info). That finished, we made our way to check off the first item on our list. As we were leaving the stand, abE in hand, the same guys approached us again and asked us where we were going. Anna explained about the scavenger hunt, and they agreed to take us to the bank. What followed was an incredibly interesting walk through busy downtown Cape Coast. My conversation with Jeffrey ranged from the differences between American and Ghanaian education to both our countries' recent elections. Jeffrey was bursting with happiness about Obama, saying "He was my choice for President." It is one thing to know that America is the most powerful country in the world, but it is another to hear how invested people in other countries can be in our elections (to be fair, as Jeffrey himself said, this one was historical). Anna and I were successfully dropped off at the bank (we weren't even asked by our "guides" for money!) and then made our way back to our home base. Success! (p.s. Mom and Dad- I saw a sign in town for a local branch of Global Mamas, will be sure to check it out)
Curses, out of time again! One of these days I'll catch up on it all. Until then, stay safe and warm (I can't believe how much I have been sweating here... ick)!
love love love!
I still haven't had time to figure out my pictures. I want an uninterrupted couple of hours to figure it out in case something doesn't go quite as planned, but I swear it will happen some time before I head home. I hope that's reassuring.
OK, Urban Drop Off. I was dropped in the middle of town at 9:30 am with a girl named Anna. We were charged with finding Palm Nuts, Barclay's Bank, and then getting back to the SIT building by noon. We watched the bus drive away and, with a few nervous chuckles and statements like "Well, here we are. In Ghana. On the street. Just walkin' around..." w
e began our search. We came upon a stand that looked like it may palm nuts, so we approached. The woman in the stall was incredibly helpful. Although she did not have any palm nuts, she was a wealth of knowledge. We were shown an example of what they looked like fresh (right), cooked, and explained how they were used. The palm tree itself is referred to as the King of Trees because it is so useful, even after its death, and the palm nut is only one part of this bountiful flora. Palm Nut soup is derived from palm nuts. Oil can be collected both from the fleshy outer part and the seed inside and then put to a number of uses. The Fante word for Palm Nut is AbE (pronounced ah-BAY). After learning all of this we thanked her, Meda ase, and found a seller half a block down the road. Not, however, before we were stopped by two young Ghanaian men that were exceedingly curious about us. Anna I chatted for a couple minutes about what we were doing here, how long we were staying, etc. The conversation ended when we insisted that we had to find Palm Nuts, but we were only released once we agreed to give them our e-mail addresses (traveler's trick- print illegibly or incorrectly if you don't want them to have your actual contact info). That finished, we made our way to check off the first item on our list. As we were leaving the stand, abE in hand, the same guys approached us again and asked us where we were going. Anna explained about the scavenger hunt, and they agreed to take us to the bank. What followed was an incredibly interesting walk through busy downtown Cape Coast. My conversation with Jeffrey ranged from the differences between American and Ghanaian education to both our countries' recent elections. Jeffrey was bursting with happiness about Obama, saying "He was my choice for President." It is one thing to know that America is the most powerful country in the world, but it is another to hear how invested people in other countries can be in our elections (to be fair, as Jeffrey himself said, this one was historical). Anna and I were successfully dropped off at the bank (we weren't even asked by our "guides" for money!) and then made our way back to our home base. Success! (p.s. Mom and Dad- I saw a sign in town for a local branch of Global Mamas, will be sure to check it out)Curses, out of time again! One of these days I'll catch up on it all. Until then, stay safe and warm (I can't believe how much I have been sweating here... ick)!
love love love!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Second
Mema wo aha, nyanko! (trans: good afternoon, friend(s)!)
Fante is quite an interesting language. We started lessons yesterday and I'm doing my best to "pick it up". Yesterday afternoon my host father asked me if I was ready to stop speaking English at home. I started to chuckle, thinking he would join me in a second, but he just stared at me in the direct way that I am starting to realize is used here in abundance. I responded wryly, "I mean, it would be pretty quiet around here," and that time he did join me in laughing. But, from that conversation, I know it is only a matter of time before I will be forced to abandon my native tongue, at least at my residence, in deference to this stumbling mash-up of syllables of which I only have the basest of knowledge.
Today is my third day living with my homestay. I live with four people- Daddy Kum, Mommy Kum, and two of their grandchildren, Magdeline and Anita, who are about my age. They're incredibly kind and keep insisting that I should make sure to feel at home. Easier said than done. It's very interesting because they have the TV on, in almost every home I've been to, all the time. Even when no one is watching they have it running, like someone may just stroll by, glance at the screen, and decide to devote their afternoon to the Ghanaian version of American Idol, Mentor. Oddly enough the thing that has made me feel most at home is sitting in the evening in the living room, working on my Fante homework with my sisters, and watching re-runs of American Idol Season 6 (I don't know if they're aware, but Jordin Sparks eventually wins, soo... I'll look forward to Blake's beat boxing, Sanjaya's wild hair styles and the crying girl episode with anticipation). I also take walks with Daddy Kum most afternoons. They were kind enough to lend me a cell phone while I'm here, so if you're lucky (and I have enough time and phone credits) I may just drop you a line some day (if you would really like a call please e-mail me your phone number so I can have it at hand- this means you, Sam).
In other news, I've been pretty healthy thus far, but I did throw up once. Not to go into nasty details, but I'm 90 percent sure that it was the gruel-like porridge made from maize that I ate for breakfast. It tasted ok, but I made a point to let them know I was not a fan. Speaking of health, it is important here (as I was repeatedly and lovingly warned by my mother) to avoid getting malaria. No duh, right? Well, this involved the purchase of a mosquito net prior to my departure, and I, stupidly, did not try it out before I shoved it into my oversized duffle bag. The first night I pulled it out and assembled it, I discovered, much to my surprise, that it was about the size of a New York hotel room (see below). The Bug Hut is a recurring joke among me and my friends. I am mercilessly reamed about it, but I am probably the best protected SIT student on the trip, soo... rest easy, Mom.
The other night our group had a meeting with the Queen Mother of the Efutu region. She is the cheif's mom, and she spent an hour and a half explaining her duties. Traditional government works really interestingly with the national government here. The Akan, the most populous tribe in Ghana, are matrilineal. This, along with their extensive family system, has lead to some really interesting aspects of their society. Men, however, are still considered the 'breadwinner' and both husband and wife are held to the responsibilities designated for their sex- and held to those obligations by family pressure and a strong sense of tradition. Homosexuality is illegal here, and it is making more sense the longer I am here. I do not agree on any level, but they value family and children so much here that if one does not get married (men or women) they are not viewed as a responsible person. Homosexuality is seen as selfish and goes against almost every aspect of their culture (valuing fertility, Christian marriage, etc.). It has certainly challenged some of my perceptions, though.
(sorry, sam, but I had to use an example for the sizing... :) )
The other morning we had something called the Urban Drop-off. I will write more about that in my next blog, but the concept was this: give pairs a list of items to buy or find, drive them to the middle of the city, drop them on the "sidewalk", and tell them to be home by noon. Needless to say I did not mention this plan in my loving e-mail to parents... it went, well, though and I will fill you in the details in a few days, along with my perceptions of the slave castle visit (happening tomorrow), Ghanaian church (Saturday), and what happened on our trip to the beach, as well as a full description of my fellow students and program staff. Bye for now!
Fante is quite an interesting language. We started lessons yesterday and I'm doing my best to "pick it up". Yesterday afternoon my host father asked me if I was ready to stop speaking English at home. I started to chuckle, thinking he would join me in a second, but he just stared at me in the direct way that I am starting to realize is used here in abundance. I responded wryly, "I mean, it would be pretty quiet around here," and that time he did join me in laughing. But, from that conversation, I know it is only a matter of time before I will be forced to abandon my native tongue, at least at my residence, in deference to this stumbling mash-up of syllables of which I only have the basest of knowledge.
Today is my third day living with my homestay. I live with four people- Daddy Kum, Mommy Kum, and two of their grandchildren, Magdeline and Anita, who are about my age. They're incredibly kind and keep insisting that I should make sure to feel at home. Easier said than done. It's very interesting because they have the TV on, in almost every home I've been to, all the time. Even when no one is watching they have it running, like someone may just stroll by, glance at the screen, and decide to devote their afternoon to the Ghanaian version of American Idol, Mentor. Oddly enough the thing that has made me feel most at home is sitting in the evening in the living room, working on my Fante homework with my sisters, and watching re-runs of American Idol Season 6 (I don't know if they're aware, but Jordin Sparks eventually wins, soo... I'll look forward to Blake's beat boxing, Sanjaya's wild hair styles and the crying girl episode with anticipation). I also take walks with Daddy Kum most afternoons. They were kind enough to lend me a cell phone while I'm here, so if you're lucky (and I have enough time and phone credits) I may just drop you a line some day (if you would really like a call please e-mail me your phone number so I can have it at hand- this means you, Sam).
In other news, I've been pretty healthy thus far, but I did throw up once. Not to go into nasty details, but I'm 90 percent sure that it was the gruel-like porridge made from maize that I ate for breakfast. It tasted ok, but I made a point to let them know I was not a fan. Speaking of health, it is important here (as I was repeatedly and lovingly warned by my mother) to avoid getting malaria. No duh, right? Well, this involved the purchase of a mosquito net prior to my departure, and I, stupidly, did not try it out before I shoved it into my oversized duffle bag. The first night I pulled it out and assembled it, I discovered, much to my surprise, that it was about the size of a New York hotel room (see below). The Bug Hut is a recurring joke among me and my friends. I am mercilessly reamed about it, but I am probably the best protected SIT student on the trip, soo... rest easy, Mom.
The other night our group had a meeting with the Queen Mother of the Efutu region. She is the cheif's mom, and she spent an hour and a half explaining her duties. Traditional government works really interestingly with the national government here. The Akan, the most populous tribe in Ghana, are matrilineal. This, along with their extensive family system, has lead to some really interesting aspects of their society. Men, however, are still considered the 'breadwinner' and both husband and wife are held to the responsibilities designated for their sex- and held to those obligations by family pressure and a strong sense of tradition. Homosexuality is illegal here, and it is making more sense the longer I am here. I do not agree on any level, but they value family and children so much here that if one does not get married (men or women) they are not viewed as a responsible person. Homosexuality is seen as selfish and goes against almost every aspect of their culture (valuing fertility, Christian marriage, etc.). It has certainly challenged some of my perceptions, though.
(sorry, sam, but I had to use an example for the sizing... :) )The other morning we had something called the Urban Drop-off. I will write more about that in my next blog, but the concept was this: give pairs a list of items to buy or find, drive them to the middle of the city, drop them on the "sidewalk", and tell them to be home by noon. Needless to say I did not mention this plan in my loving e-mail to parents... it went, well, though and I will fill you in the details in a few days, along with my perceptions of the slave castle visit (happening tomorrow), Ghanaian church (Saturday), and what happened on our trip to the beach, as well as a full description of my fellow students and program staff. Bye for now!
Sunday, February 1, 2009
First
Dear friends, family, friends that feel like family, family that feel like friends, and whoever the aforementioned decided to share this with-
Hello from Ghana!
I feel like there is so much to tell, and I have less than an hour to 'whip this up', figure out my pictures, and send my parents a loving e-mail. I prepared to write this with bullet points, so I think that it only makes orgainizational sense to follow said points... plus, I like making lists when I blog. It's only fair to warn you now.
- Flights: I arrived in Ghana after a 30 hour travel bit that had me on my toes. One delayed and changed flight, the possibility of arriving in Africa without my luggage, and the general clumping of 25 uninformed and sleep deprived SIT students were what filled in the gaps between my otherwise uneventful travels. Note: Flying over the Sahara desert is pretty sweet, especially as the sun sets.
-Africa!: True or false: This statement is ridiculous- I live in Africa.
True. SO TRUE!
-Girls: After traveling for a bit with 25 students, the History and Cultures of the African Diaspora group slimmed down to our 7 girls (the rest continued on their Arts and Culture program). These women come from all over the U.S. and, oddly enough, I'm the only History major among them. Collectively our travels span the globe, from an exchange year in Ecuador during high school to Indonesia for Balinese dancing to living the first seven years of life in Jamaica. We collectively decided to drop all the awkward "getting to know you" attitudes and promptly began making fun of/supporting/challenging each other. For instance, I am now referred to periodically as Lady GaGa after a couple people heard me listening loudly to that catchy tune "Just Dance".
-Gaston: My friend Emma gave me a tiny alpaca llama from Argentina, and we have been taking pictures with him (ala Flat Stanley) almost everywhere we've been. He's now our scape-llama for everything from hot weather to traffic.
-Faux Pas- My first cultural faux pas was loudly laughing about the fact that the entire James Blunt CD was being played during our first lunch in Cape Coast. The second (or third... ) time I brought it up, the music switched over mid sentence. We ate there again today and James Blunt was on again. I have no idea if they love James Blunt that much or if the entire music program is on a loop. I'll investigate further and let you know.
-Canopy walk: This morning we went on one of only three rainforrest canopy walks in the world. It was astounding! Yay for being 15-30 meters above the ground on swinging walk ways! As soon as I have time to get some pictures up here, I promise they'll take your breath away.
-Food: The food great, although we've had basically the same thing so far for every lunch and dinner- chicken, a red slightly spicy sauce, rice, some form of plantain or startch, and vegetables. Oh, and PINEAPPLE. The pineapple is so good here, I could probably live on it and it alone. It tastes so sweet and fresh and... well, let's just say I'll never be able to eat pineapple from Commons again. I'm basically addicted.
-People: The people are so friendly, it's been very easy to feel comfortable. I move into my homestay in two days, so that will be an adventure.
That's all the time I have right now, but I love and miss you all. I'll be able to update some time next week, and that time look for pictures.
Keep me in your prayers, that I remain healthy and hydrated and sane (which has been going well, but really been in question before I ever decided to go to Africa).
Bye for now!
Hello from Ghana!
I feel like there is so much to tell, and I have less than an hour to 'whip this up', figure out my pictures, and send my parents a loving e-mail. I prepared to write this with bullet points, so I think that it only makes orgainizational sense to follow said points... plus, I like making lists when I blog. It's only fair to warn you now.
- Flights: I arrived in Ghana after a 30 hour travel bit that had me on my toes. One delayed and changed flight, the possibility of arriving in Africa without my luggage, and the general clumping of 25 uninformed and sleep deprived SIT students were what filled in the gaps between my otherwise uneventful travels. Note: Flying over the Sahara desert is pretty sweet, especially as the sun sets.
-Africa!: True or false: This statement is ridiculous- I live in Africa.
True. SO TRUE!
-Girls: After traveling for a bit with 25 students, the History and Cultures of the African Diaspora group slimmed down to our 7 girls (the rest continued on their Arts and Culture program). These women come from all over the U.S. and, oddly enough, I'm the only History major among them. Collectively our travels span the globe, from an exchange year in Ecuador during high school to Indonesia for Balinese dancing to living the first seven years of life in Jamaica. We collectively decided to drop all the awkward "getting to know you" attitudes and promptly began making fun of/supporting/challenging each other. For instance, I am now referred to periodically as Lady GaGa after a couple people heard me listening loudly to that catchy tune "Just Dance".
-Gaston: My friend Emma gave me a tiny alpaca llama from Argentina, and we have been taking pictures with him (ala Flat Stanley) almost everywhere we've been. He's now our scape-llama for everything from hot weather to traffic.
-Faux Pas- My first cultural faux pas was loudly laughing about the fact that the entire James Blunt CD was being played during our first lunch in Cape Coast. The second (or third... ) time I brought it up, the music switched over mid sentence. We ate there again today and James Blunt was on again. I have no idea if they love James Blunt that much or if the entire music program is on a loop. I'll investigate further and let you know.
-Canopy walk: This morning we went on one of only three rainforrest canopy walks in the world. It was astounding! Yay for being 15-30 meters above the ground on swinging walk ways! As soon as I have time to get some pictures up here, I promise they'll take your breath away.
-Food: The food great, although we've had basically the same thing so far for every lunch and dinner- chicken, a red slightly spicy sauce, rice, some form of plantain or startch, and vegetables. Oh, and PINEAPPLE. The pineapple is so good here, I could probably live on it and it alone. It tastes so sweet and fresh and... well, let's just say I'll never be able to eat pineapple from Commons again. I'm basically addicted.
-People: The people are so friendly, it's been very easy to feel comfortable. I move into my homestay in two days, so that will be an adventure.
That's all the time I have right now, but I love and miss you all. I'll be able to update some time next week, and that time look for pictures.
Keep me in your prayers, that I remain healthy and hydrated and sane (which has been going well, but really been in question before I ever decided to go to Africa).
Bye for now!
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