It is June 12th, and I can’t believe I’ve already spent over two weeks in this beautiful country. It is truly a world away from everything I am accustomed to, yet it has been one of the most eye-opening and defining experiences of my life. I could write for days about my experiences so far, but here a few tidbits from my life in Ghana so far:
5/29/12
A few things I will never take for granted after today…some obvious, some not so much:
• Showers
• Flush-able toilets
• Water from the tap (or any other source other than a bag)
• Fresh air
• Non-corrupt police
Today has been the first of many adventures in Ghana. We woke up this morning to a beautiful view of the ocean and a delicious breakfast cooked by the women at the Rising Phoenix. Their kitchen is very small, so they brought one meal out a time, but the food was delicious.
The drive through Accra was unlike anything I have experienced before. The city is one of extreme poverty with trash-filled streets, reckless drivers, and tiny shack dwellings packed together. While we sat in traffic, listening to the sounds of constant horns, venders were crowding at our windows with bags of water, candy, and other strange food items. It was definitely a strange experience, but then again, I’m sure a van full of Americans isn’t something they see everyday either. When we finally got out of the city, we were met with fresh air and lush greenery on either side of the road.
After getting settled at Asuansi, we took a walk into the nearest town, called Yamadam, to buy some bread, fruit, and nuts to have at the house. The kids were just getting out of school, and most were astonished to see white people in their village. Everyone was extremely friendly though, and I definitely felt more at ease than in Accra. The town is tiny and also extremely poor, but the people seem genuinely happy. It was such a breath of fresh air from the often materialistic US.
6/1/12
The past two days have been extremely productive on the research front! After a quick bucket shower and breakfast, we headed to Yamadam to catch a Tro Tro to the district office in Abura Dunkwa. After a long wait and two Indiana Jones style rides, we arrived in Abura Dunkwa, and I was immediately taken aback by the striking district office building. It was quite a change from the tiny hut-like homes and broken down buildings that make up most of the villages, and everyone was dressed in sharp business attire. We met with the District Head of Education and each wrote up an outline our individual research for him to read. He was extremely helpful and told us to come back the next day so he could look over our summaries and figure out how to best assist us.
We then headed over to the Asuansi Technical Institute, which is a little ways down the road, and it is a beautiful school. It is a three-year trade college set on a huge piece of property, and we ran into a herd of goats that were absolutely hilarious to watch. We wandered around for a while until we found the principle and asked if we could talk with him. He was also extremely helpful and told us we could come to the school anytime and he would help with whatever we needed. Although some Ghanaians seem to be irritated by the presence of Americans in their country, most are incredibly generous and show a genuine interest in our work. We met Kwe-que, a mechanical engineering professor from Cape Coast, and he was fascinating. He was very proficient in English, and he walked back to the farm with us so he could tell us about Ghana’s economic status.
Once we got back, we attempted to visit the headmaster at the farm school again, but she had gone home for the day, so we spent the afternoon working on research. Lawrence gave us the key to his conference room (which has fans!), so we’ve all been sitting in there typing away.
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