Robbed Again....

Me: "What just happened?"
April: "ummm....We just got robbed AGAIN...AMANDA!!!"

Hahaha...i have to laugh because this dialog between April and me happened several times this weekend...and it pretty much sums up our adventure in Togo! That sounds really awful, but besides losing a bunch of money and having to cut our trip short, we had so much fun! I love it there.....

The second we stepped off the Tro-Tro at the Ghana/Togo Border we were greeted by two extremely (overly) nice men- a Togolese who spoke French and English (very helpful) and a Ghanaian. They warned about all the corruption that at the border...."people exchanging your money will try to steal from you...you will get charged more for a visa as an American....if you don't take a car out of the border they will take your passport and make you pay money to get it back"....blah blah blah.... all of these warnings and more. They offered to stay with us while we went through the process to make sure no one took advantage of us or stole from us....stupidly we agreed..and were actually grateful!

Sure enough, the guy on the street that exchanged our money tried to steal from us several times...he was so SNEAKY!!!!! He would count out the money if front of us, but when he handed it to us he would somehow take a bunch without us noticing. Once we counted the money and realized that it was the wrong amount, he would put some bills on top of the pile...and once again, very inconspicuously, he would take even more money out of the pile! It took a long time, and a lot of concentration and careful watching to finally get all of our money exchanged.

When we got our visas....sure enough, they charged us almost twice as much! Our "helpful friends" tried to help us get the price down, but it didn't work. The visa should cost about $20, and despite the fact that we said we were "poor college students that were working with a church group in Togo" we ended up paying about $40. Once that was over, all we had to do was get out of the border without or visas getting "confiscated"....our "friends" convinced us that the only way to do that was to get a car out...so they found us a taxi...how nice of them!

We found a hotel in our guide book that "was within walking distance" from the border, but because we were afraid of our passports being taken we decided to take a taxi there. The taxi wanted the equivalent of 12 dollars to drive us "half a mile"-we might be a little naive, but we aren't stupid (or I guess you can decide that later..) so we talked him down to about 3 bucks. Him and our "friends" took a around about way to the hotel...and in the car our Ghanaian friend told us that we needed to be careful with our money in Togo..he told us to put single cedis (Ghanaian currency) around our cifa (Togolese currency) to protect it- and he even exchanged our 5 for some single cedis! Then he showed us "the best way" to do that...while the money was IN MY HANDS!!!! I kept telling him I could to it but he insisted...I watched him so carefully and never actually saw him take any money...but i knew something was fishy, and I actually whispered to April that he was robbing me! Before I could count my money, we were at the hotel, forced out of the car, and our "friend" and the taxi were gone. I counted my money...and sure enough...people do in fact rob you in Togo...he stole $100 from me and $30 from April.... Did i mention that you can't get money in Togo?...no ATM'S! All the money we needed to stay for the weekend we had to exchange before entering Togo! We realized that we were literally 1 block from the border (and we paid a taxi 3 bucks to take us there!!), so we ran back there to try and find our little thief of a friend...and we were unsuccessful..."oh well" we decided...you live and you learn...at least Jesse and April still had their money to get us through the weekend.

So...we ate dinner and had a beer..and at the bar we met a guy named Francis. He was a student and a very kind person. Feeling sorry about our situation, he asked if we wanted to stay at his mothers house...feeling a little worried about money, we decided to take him up on the offer. Before we went to his house though, we decided to get April a birthday cake (it was her 21st birthday)....and by birthday cake, I mean a cookie and some FanIce (fake ice cream) from the Shell station...classy 21st for April!!!

Staying with Francis's family was so fun...and such a wonderful experience. They were so happy to have us stay in there house! We sang happy birthday to April about a hundred times....and just sat in each others presence- the language barrier made our conversations funny and confusing. By the end of the night, they thought that we were going to take them all back to America! After a night of tough sleeping, Francis made us a delicious Tololese breakfast....bread caked with mayonnaise! yummm....

After leaving Francis' house we took motor taxi's (yeah...motorcycles!!!!) through Lome to the tro tro station. Motor taxi's are soooooo fun! and dangerous....but i am alive! There are so many of them weaving in and out of traffic! Once we got there we were robbed...again. The taxi drivers left without giving us change- no biggy. We bought our tro-tro tickets...and once again they tried keep our change..."no change!!!" Did i mention that somewhere throught our journey to Francis' house April's $100 disappeared?? So yeah...at this point we had lost over $200, and we were being a bit demanding about getting our change...We finally got our money, and we headed to Poleme (i don't know how to spell it!)..

We walked through the market in Poleme then took motor taxi to a village called Kluto on top of a big mountain. It was so beautiful! We met a German man who was married to a Togolese women, and we went to a party they had...played drums and sang! The next morning we took a walk through the rain forest and up a mountain. It was amazing and very educational. Our guide, Apo, knew so much about all the plants....it was really great!

Since we lost so much money in the first 30 minutes, we had to leave the Togo early..what a shame. It was so wonderful- very clean...and it simply had a good feel to it. Hopefully i can go again before I leave. I am back in Legon now trying to finish school, so i can continue my journey through west africa! Only 3 more weeks then finals!!!!!!!!!! So happy....

Peace

Physics.......

Well...I only have two more months here on this continent of Africa! My journey thus far has been a wonderful experience. I hope that I will be able to explore other parts of West Africa before I leave. I am going to Togo this weekend, so that is a good place to start!

My physics midterm is finally over- don't think I did as well as i would have liked, but we will see. It was multiple choice, so I am hoping that my guessing skills were on that day!

Well...still don't have a whole lot going on- just wanted to let everyone know that I am alive and well! I will blog again when a little spice enters my life!

Not much happenin in my life...

Not much has happened this week....I finally found out that my physics exam is going to be on Sunday at noon! I still don't know where it is going to be, but i am getting closer. I have been spending a lot of time studying (more like a lot of time complaining about needing to study while i find little needless things to do!!) so not much is new in the life of Amanda Holt.

I did go to a place close to Accra this weekend called Kokrobite. It was pretty fun...some parts were kind of touristy and busy, but it was still pretty cool. We only stayed for one night at a place called Milly's backyard- you can rent a ten for the night for 6 cedi, a loft with a bunch of beds for 4cedi, or a hut for 10 cedi....we took the loft. It is right on the beach so that was wonderful! At night they have live drumming and dancing so that was fun to see. The only unfortunate happening was the fact that my mosquito net had a huge gaping hole in it...I could not figure out why I was itching SO BAD all night! When I woke up I saw that I had slept with like 200 mosquitoes that feasted on my body all night long! Yummm!!!!!!! Hopefully Malaria is not in my future!

I think I mentioned Jesse's allergic reaction to the mango in Xofa....well she went to a hospital here that, for some reason, gave her an antibiotic....which she happened to be allergic to. When she marched her swollen, rashhed up body back there, they gave her an antiviral!!!!! Knowing that she was having a severe allergic reaction to a few things, we spent a day trying to find a better private hospital- and we did. It was expensive, but they finally gave her a hydrocorisone shot and an antihistamine shot- After a week and a half of hell, she is finally starting to feel better! i have not been sick here at all...and I am praying that i stay healthy! I have been feeling a little lethargic lately, but I think that it is mostly my diet. I hardly get any micronutrients...and I have a very low iron intake! i am working on finding a way to eat better...and I started taking vitamins and iron!

Anyway, that is about all that is going on. I will be in Accra this weekend studying for my first exam...Yay for Physics!!!!! I will let you all know how it goes!

May you find peace and happiness in your heart!

"This is Afrika man...nothing will harm you!"...I finally blog again!

After sitting outside the little café at our dorm for over 3 hours contemplating what to do for the weekend, Jesse and I decided to join our friend Andrea in an adventure to the Volta region. Andrea had met two very nice Rastafarian musicians that wanted to take her to see an eco-village that an uncle had developed a few years back. Traveling with Ghanaians (especially Rastafarian musicians who I later found out were famous in Ghana!)?? …Sign me up!

Our travel there was wonderful. We took a tro-tro to a village called Asikuma (just outside of the eco-village Xofa) where we hung out for a few hours…you know- walked around the village (which was surrounded by mountains) and had a few beers while we played the drums. As dusk approached, we took a taxi up a random dirt road to a path that wondered right into the rainforest. To my surprise, that is where we were dumped and left to walk about 1 mile into the eco-village. The walk was okay minus the fact that we were deep in the jungle at night, and the moths and bug were flocking to my headlamp. Once we got there, we settled down under a homely shelter right in the shore of lake Volta….there we ate the best dinner I have had in Ghana (rice with VEGITABLE stew- that is right…veggies-spinach and tomatoes!!!). Then for the remainder of the evening, we sat in a circle played drums and shared songs…

So…..after a long music session, we decided to turn in. We went into our little hut that had grass mats for a roof and realized that there was only one bed for the 3 of us. Instead of getting cozy, Jesse said she wanted to sleep on the floor (yes…on the floor of a hut in the middle of the Jungle). There were no lights, so we flashed out headlamps around the room to check for any weird, poisonous bugs….it seemed to be all clear! A few minutes later I laid down on the bed and, unfortunately, I still had my headlamp on….and it was shining brightly on the grass rooftop….which happened to also serve as a happy home for the BIGGEST, scariest, egg carrying spiders I HAVE EVER SEEN!!!!!!! I mean…they looked like sea crabs crawling all over the ceiling- they were the size of a baby’s fist, and they carried egg sacks the size of a quarter. AND THERE WERE A LOT OF THEM…..I really don’t even know if I will ever be able to replicate the noise of horror that came out of my mouth as I watched these spiders crawl above me, trying to detach their egg sacks on my head! Needless to say, Jesse decided to take refuge on the bed for the night with Andrea and me. Despite being extremely tired (and I was actually so excited to get a good night sleep…) we were all wide awake with our lights shining on the little critters-we mentally marked where EACH one was and shined our lights on them all night (with the logic that spiders don’t like light…who knows if that is true, but it made us feel a whole lot better). A few times we watched them crawl down the wall, or try to drop their huge eggs sack…we were all scrunched up in our own little 1’ by1’ space- knees tightly held to chest-scared out of our minds…..

You might think that it couldn’t get worse…. at least that is what we thought until we saw a scorpion crawling on the wall (can I remind you that I am in the Jungle in Afrika!). We were literally prisoners to this room…we simply sat on the bed all night long (contemplating ways that it could be worse- maybe if a snake dropped through the roof-we did hear scuttling!) and anxiously waited for daylight. The next morning, we told the boys all that we had been through and they laughed and said, “this is Afrika man,,,nothing will harm you!” Then they pulled snakeskins from the grass roof!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The next day was kind of shot for us…but relaxing. We spend the day lazily lying around by the lake, reading books, and sleeping in hammocks. That night we got to enjoy the yummy veggies again and another music jam….then the boys showed us to our new room that did not have a grass roof with spiders living in it…phew!

Well….you might think that was a relief......BUT the second that I walked in the door something flew right in front of me into the other room. As much as I didn’t want to shine my light around, I couldn’t resist. I entered the room that the, what I thought was a bird, flew into…I shined my light around for a few second before I saw a bat hanging upside down from the top bunk of the bed!!!!! As I scurried out of the room in somewhat of a panic, I ran into a bee hive on the wall…..again here we were…us 3 American girls standing outside in the Jungle contemplating what to do- sleep with spiders and scorpions or bats and bees? Which one could be more dangerous- rabbis or bee stings….or poisonous spider bites or scorpion stings???? Where was the closest hospital? 3 hours away? Okay….it is less likely that the bats have rabbis than it is that the scorpion and spiders are not poisonous….plus scorpions can get in the sheets!!!!

When we asked Kofi and Kodu for advise once again they laughed and said, “this is Afrika man…nothing will harm you!” So all three of us slept on one bed (broken bed at that) with the bats and the bees. Fortunately for you all we survived…I did wake up with a mysterious cut on my arm- I have yet to experience signs of rabbis, so I think I am in the clear!

The next day we took a canoe to an amazing village on an island of lake Volta (did I mention it is the biggest man made lake in the world??). It was great….we watched precious little kids sing and dance, then we took a walk through their farm land.

After walking out of Xofa back to Asikuma, we took a taxi to our friend Rainbow’s shrine. Again we played drums, and before I knew it we were witnessing some sort of religious ceremony. At the end, rainbow gave us all books of prayers- it was a pretty cool experience.

We finally ate lunch, got on a tro-tro and headed back to Accra. We were all tired, but alive and well…kind of. Jesse had an allergic reaction to the mangos we picked (which we also ate)- her hand and throat started to swell- when she went to the hospital, she found out that she also had malaria…so I guess a better way to say it is that we were all alive…and Andrea and I were well. I am still waiting to see if that mysterious cut on my arm is a bat bite- I will let you know if and when I experience signs of rabbis!

I know I have been slacking on the blogs,…I will blog more (or at least I will try!)

God's love and peace!

HYPNOTIQ!!

I found my sanctuary in Ghana....it is a small bar called hypnotiq (what???)- yeah that is right...a bar! This charming little hole in the wall place has an open mic night for poetry and spoken word every Wednesday- generally speaking, I have never immersed myself into poetry....never saw the beauty in it...never appreciated it....and I definitely never considered myself to be a "poet"- in fact, i vividly remember the feeling of dread that overwhelmed me in high school when I was "forced" to write poetry.

Anyway, the feeling i get when i am in this place is one of complete comfort, enjoyment, awe, and understanding. So much talent, wisdom, and insight is shared among all of these souls....and surprisingly, i find myself participating in the flow of spoken word and poetry with ease, comfort, and confidence. I have never felt closer to God (away from worldly madness and into a deeper me) than I have at Hynotiq...where wonder and understanding surround me simultaneously. Sadly, this feeling seems to leave me the second i step out the door...back into the madness of the world.

While I can't recreate the experiences..the poetry...i will try to post some insights that i am left with to ponder....

This is the concept of freedom (and yes i wrote it just now-it was an idea that came up and of course i can't eloquently replicate the beautiful words and conversation around it....but here is a brief summary). And this does not just apply to human souls...i feel like it applies to everything...

All souls are free
Let them go
And you will gain...
For free souls will return to freedom

All souls are free
Do not cling to them
Or you will lose....
For free souls will escape your grasp
and leave to find freedom

"Oh...on our way down there was a big cobra in our path"

The first thing i have to mention.....my dreaded image of people seeing a video of me dancing came much sooner than I ever expected- I was hoping I would no longer be in this country when it surfaced! It was on the 7 o'clock news the other night!!!! I walked into my hostel, and the lady at the front desk yelled, "Amanda, I saw you dancing on TV!!!!" Shortly after, a bunch of Ghanaian guys came up to me and said, "you like like a movie star in Ghana!"...needless to say, I was mortified.

Other than that, everything is going well here in Ghana. We traveled again this weekend- yet another amazing experience! Each trip somehow always seems better than the last. Jesse and I took a long journey through the Eastern region to meet up with our friend April in a quaint village called Amedzofe (which is atop a beautiful Mountain surrounded by lush rain forest!).

On our way, we had the opportunity to cross lake Volta into a village that hardly ever sees Obrunis. It had such a wonderfully different feel to it...it was almost like the people had not experienced enough tourism to develop the idea that all tourist are rich- people were so kind, genuine, and honest. We passed through this wonderful place on the lake to our first destination....Donkrokrom.

A few notes on our journey to Donkrokrom (i don't have time to paint you all picture of how interesting and funny our travels were, so a glimpse will have to do!)......

First, we left Legon at 6am to go to Accra to catch a tro-tro...we waited for 3 hours before our tro-to left. After our departure, as i was drifting into a light sleep and I heard Jesse laughing and telling me not to open my eyes..of course I did, and I realized that we were back in Legon! We could have saved ourselves 3 hours by leaving straight from Legon...

Next, after changing tro tros in Koforidua (where we were swarmed, and a taxi driver got in a fight with our tro-tro driver trying to make a few extra bucks on us), our tro tro started smoking as we slowly chugged up a mountain pass. All 40 of us got out and walked up this mountain! It was hot, but extremely beautiful.

Once we finally got to the top and on our way again, I watched our tro-tro fly 70 mph towards a truck going at least that fast towards us...I was sure we were going to die, but luckily the truck ONLY hit the side mirror! Although glass came flying into the windows, people were relatively unphased and we just kept driving. Before Jesse and could stop laughing, we were pulled over by the police. Apparently there have been a lot of armed robberies in that area lately, so they were just "checking us out."

We finally came to Adwaso...a one hut "village" on Lake Volta- from here we took a ferry across...when we got there, they wouldn't let our tro-tro through, so the driver simply took us on an off-roading detour!

When we finally arrived in Donkrokrom, it was dark and the whole village was outside watching an outdoor Ghanaian movie! Now let me say that this village is far from "developed." It was very strange...we met some strange people, but we made it safely to a guest house there.

The next morning we crossed another river by boat, and went to a village with lots of monkeys....we didn't stay there long- we then hiked up a huge mountain (through the rain forest) to Amedzofe with our friend April...and right before the three of us entered at the trail head April says, "oh yeah...on our way down there was a big Cobra in our path!" Jesse and I just looked at each other and started laughing. We made it up, and it was an amazing hike! Amedzofe is a beautiful place.

On Easter we hiked down the other side of the rain forest to a waterfall....i cannot even explain this experience!

Oh, one more thing- the scariest bugs i have seen yet in Africa happened to reside in our hotel room!

Well I am out of time, but I will blog again shortly...i am sure there is much more i want to say- just no time at the moment!

PHONE NUMBERS

I realized last night that my American cell phone was stolen (poor sucker who stole it....won't work here!), so i don't have anyones number. I have been wanting to call people, so email me your number! Amandanholt@gmail.com

Thank you all!

"Look at the Obruni"....followed by laughter....

So......a documentary on this school is being filmed. They came to film our dance class today....and unfortunately it is the one where I am the only white person- trying to dance traditional African dances!!!! Not only do i glow like a neon light amidst all the Ghanaians, but my body just refuses to flow with the music. Anyway, I was just laughing to myself all class at the thought of people being shown this video- with me, AMANDA HOLT, dancing with all these beautiful, wonderful African dancers...i just imagine them all laughing (as hard as i was as I thought of all this during the filming) and saying, "Watch the Obruni try!!!!"

Stilts and Huts....PEOPLE...Beauty. Comfort. Peace. Insight

Ah....this weekends adventures were so amazing...and much needed! i will try my best to explain the beauty, excitement, and thrill of my weekend, but quite honestly, i don't think words do the experience justice....

So, me and four friends (Jesse, Avra, Jenna and Duncan) left the university at 3am on Friday morning. We knew that it was going to be hard to get a taxi that early, so i arranged one the night before. Unfortunately he didn't show up! i was a little worried (of course) that we were going to miss our 4am bus, but fortunately this is Ghana and the concept of time barely exists. we arrived at the bus station "right on time" (such a loose term here) and we still ended up waiting for over an hour for our bus to leave!

Our first destination was to a small village built on stilts called Nzulezo. Of course none of us really knew how to get there, how long it should take, or even how to say the name of the place we were going....we were relying on a short blurb in the guide book and some broken directions from locals to get us there. We had to get off the bus in a large city called Tokoradi and find a tro-tro to take us the rest of the way....luckily some nice people had sympathy for us five Obruni's wondering aimlessly through the streets- they led us to the tro-tro station and helped us buy our 2 dollar tickets. Since we had been told that there was no tro-tro that went directly to this place, we were a little worried we were headed for some unknown destination. Nonetheless, we put or trust and faith in these people, and braved the tro-tro ride.

The Journey was long and bumpy..the tro-tro ride was 3 hours, but the drive was quite amazing and beautiful. It was so far away from the "city life." We got to pass through so many little villages.....it was so great to watch the people...and see the farm land...and just be surrounded by nature in general (i forget how much I love the country when i am in the city all the time!).

Anyway, after 6 hours of traveling we finally got to a quaint little village called Beyin. From here we walked about a mile through the wetlands-(which was so beautiful and peaceful. I finally felt like i was an in Africa... I fully expected to see and elephant cross in front of me- of course I didn't). We came to a swamp that we had to cross to get to our canoes...we had the choice of wading through it, or paying 50 cents to walk on a bridge (which looked like it could barley hold the weight of an ant). I chose the bridge...and although the branches it was made out of were extremely flexible, it was rather sturdy! We finally got to the canoes...the canoe ride to this village on stilts was SO BEAUTIFUL...quiet...relaxing! Lilly pads parted for us, and the birds sang for us the whole way.

We finally got to the village, and the only word I can think of right now to explain my reaction is awe....the place was not only beautiful, but it felt so comfortable and peaceful. Upon arrival, we met the chief of the village (who was actually the "acting chief" because the real chief was teaching in another village). funny enough...we had to great him with a bottle of gin in order to ask him questions....everything was already explained to us beforehand, so the meeting was brief- and before we parted he asked us for a "donation"....they say "give from your heart," but if you don't give an adequate amount he will ask for more (ah..... life)!

After meeting the chief we were free to roam the village. It was really interesting to compare the lifestyle of the people on this village to the people in other small villages...they seemed much more relaxed. All the little kids were playing in the water and most of the adults were laying outside of their hut sleeping. Some people were working (and when I say people i mean women- i saw very few men doing anything)- mostly preparing food..pounding fufu ect.

The thing about this village that makes it different that other villages, it that it is relatively sustainable. Most people living there make a living by farming (they have farm land in higher ground just outside of the village), or by making rafian wine out of the bark of a certain tree around there. Along with farming, there are a lot of chickens, goats, and tons of fish! The water that they live on is reportedly safe for the locals to drink (although, they do bathe in it and go to the bathroom in it...and it appears that it may also function as a trash can). With all of these resources, this village can survive (almost comfortably) without a lot of money....i think they make most of their money by taking Obruni's there every once in a while- and they don't have crafts or anything to sell! It was so refreshing to be with people and have real conversations without the ulterior motive of selling something.

Anyway, we spent our time there playing soccer with the kids, swimming in the water, and going on night canoing adventures. I spent the next morning listening to the clamor of the village while staring our over the glassy, quiet water...and i was filled with peace!

After our night on stilts, we set out for a new adventure...this time to Butre beach. Jesse and I decided we wanted to try village hopping before the beach, so we broke off from the group for the rest of the day. Our plan was to walk from village to village, but we soon realized that it would takes us weeks to get around that way (since they are so far in the country- and each one is like 20-40 miles apart! what were we thinking??) so we ended up in a few taxis. We really only got to one village called Axim. It was so fun- i encountered some of the most honest people ( and ironically some of the most dishonest people) that have yet to meet in Ghana in this village. during our time here we bought some palm wine (which tastes exactly like the smoked ham we have around Christmas) and we had lunch with a homeless man...and the reaction we got was rather saddening- this man was handicapped and people were making fun of him as he sat with us...they couldn't understand why we would buy him food! we talked with some other friendly people and even went to one woman's house....i would say the experience was great!

We finally got a taxi to take us to Butre beach to meet up with the other 3...and all I can say about this place is that it may be paradise! It is in another wonderful little village...with such wonderful people. the beach is so secluded.....quiet, calming, and beautiful! I spent the afternoon dancing with the little kids in the village, and talking to some people about life there- few people spoke very much English so communication was a little difficult, but it was good to hear from them. the village was full of families and goats...and disease (mostly elephantitis that I noticed). After dark, i went to our outdoor hut on the beach, read my book, and let the sound of the waves and cool breeze put me to sleep!

Before leaving to come back to Accra, I had the opportunity to go to the end of a church service in this village....it was all in fante so i couldn't understand it, but i had a palm branch to wave around! all the kids were so tickled with fascination and laughter with me...the only obruni in there (once again!). After church we took a 5 hour tro-tro ride back to Accra...which was long, hot, and uncomfortable...but i had a lot of time to think about my experiences....and grow from them.

My thought were turbulent...they went in circles from God, to money, to love, to control and back again....i struggled a bit with the fact that i live so comfortably while most of the world lives like the people i saw this weekend. Is is wrong to enjoy luxury? How do we all live well and comfortably...and without guilt or shame? There is something about life for these people that i will never grasp...that i am missing....How does money effect things....and how do we "fix" it?....but wait..that is just it- we are always thinking that we can "fix" things- like we know what is best... and what about the rich (they are people too!).... and oppression...and balance- and seeing people as PEOPLE- not as poor or rich...or as happy or suffering... seeing them on the inside not on the outside (regardless if they have money or not...if they are famished or fat...) and loving them! again...the theme of love- we are all people simply existing together...and we must love one another and share what we have to offer....

and what is the point to all this.....life....why did God put us here? why do we create and cling to meanings...and things that don't really matter....what does really matter? Anything?

All these thoughts.....and many more plague me at the moment, but i am learning a lot from them! No answers, but thinking is good!

I feel like there is so much more i could say about this experience...things that i wish I could explain. All in all though...i can pretty much sum up this experiences as beautiful, peaceful....and full of insights! A HUge growing experience for me..

God's Peace.....

Week Three.... castles, rainforests and praisin souls!

WOW...I know i have been slacking on my posts, so here comes a long one~ i will do my best to share my expereinces with you all, but I don't have alt of time at the moment.

Well, I have been here for three weeks now, and I am finally starting to get into the swing of things. After the first week and a half of euphoria, I started to noctice some cultural differences that I need to get used to- I defintely experienced a little "culture shock," but thanks to my "culture shock" class I was expecting the "culture shock 'W' "...and I am sure I am on my way to the top of the "W" now that I expereinced my low (which quite honestly was pretty mild and short lived!)

The hardest thing for me to adjust to so far is school...it is not so much that it is more difficult, but the teaching style is much different, and the thick Ghanaian accents are really hard to understand. Unfortunately, that makes physics much harder for me ( and those of you close to me know how good I am at physics!) My traditional singing class, drumming class, and all my dance classes are really fun- I think I am starting to blend in a little more...I am learning the African talents the best i can! While everything about school so far is pretty positive, i must say that 6 a.m classes kill me! I have two 6 a.m. classes, and on the other three days I have class at 7:30 a.m. Needless to say, I am pretty tired a lot of the time since it is almost impossible to nap here!

Last weekend was my first travel expereince in Ghana- we went west to Cape Coast...the first day we were there, we went to a slave trade castle and one the second day we did a conopy walk over the rainforest. The castle was a little bittersweet....it was this amazingly beautiful, white castle ( that was ironically build by the enslaved people) that overlooked the ocean. Unfortunately, the tour was very catered to tourists...nonetheless, most of it was still in its origional form- it was a very powerful feeling to be there...such a beautiful place for such a tragic happening. The rickety canopy walk above the rainforest was also pretty amazing, although I expected to see more animals...I only saw one money! To end the weekend, I shaved my head...my previous post is about that.

Aside from school and traveling, I also had the chance to check out a charismatic Ghanainan church. It was quite the experience for me...not just the church service, but the whole day turned into a big adventure.

The worship and the sermon were pretty much how I expected them to be- very lively! I love how much the people love praise here...they all sing and dance so happily- we did that for the first hour and a half! After worship, the pastor gave a very passionate sermon on brotherly love...such a beautiful, wonderful message- love, love, love...return evil with love! Unfortunately, the sermon took a few turns into societal/gernder roles, good and evil/heaven and hell- if you do evil and don't repent you go to hell....if you have God on your side, you will be saved from suffering....ect.. They also took 3 offereings!!! They said things like. "show your brotherly love" and "test God's mercy....give all your money and see how he will get you home!"

The message made me cringe a bit...but it got me thinking about "right" and "wrong" beliefs. Who am I to say they are wrong, and who are they to tell me that I am ging to hell for having a differnt perception?

The whole thing lastede 4 hours, and when it was done, I realized I had not money to get back to the University...needelss to say being stuck in the middle of Accra- hungry and with no money or phone credit- was an adventure! Don't worry, i made it home safely!

Well, my time is up...i will try to post more! If anyone wants to call me, try calling me from Skype

BALD, BEAUTIFUL, and CONFIDENT!!

YES...I did shave my head!

Too often we rely on our outward appearance to feel beautiful….our confidence is largely determined by how comfortable we feel in a given community- how well we fit in with the "norms" (if there really is such a thing)-how accepted we are by those surrounding us. We allow society to dictate our beauty….our confidence. We are all beautiful PEOPLE and we must be confident in that-in ourselves-regardless of how people view us and treat us based on our external appearancces...

My new year's resolution was to make this year about me- put more energy into myself. I am genrally a pretty strong, confident, and beautiful person- but those are charateristics that I want to continue exploring and making stronger! I want to feel comfortable...confident..and beautiful in my own skin regardless of circumstance. I want to learn to stand strong against the things that bring me down- I want to know that I am wonderful and beautiful in the mist of "ugliness" and despite judgement ...and I want to learn to be constructive with anger and frustration.

I shaved my head in order to further discover and strengthen my inner beauty and confidence- To be MYSELF and know that I am beautiful no matter how people treat me- I am not rejecting "social norms", but rather I am embracing what is not "normal" (again, if there is such a thing), and finding beauty and comfort in that. I am guilty of rejecting things and people that are "different" (as I am sure we all are to some extent), and I am hoping that this experience will open my eyes to that….broaden my horizons and teach me more about LOVING ALL PEOPLE…. people who follow the so called "norms," and those who do not. …

I am free of my hair and my inner beauty and confidence is left to shine brighter than ever!

Contact me....mail me~ letters, packages anything...love mail!

If anyone has the inclination to send me anything here in Ghana......

PMB L4
University of Ghana
Legon, Ghana
West Africa

Phone:
027-3939-466~ To call me I think you have to dial: 011-233-273939466

Hope to hear from someone ;)

Laws against homosexulaity....

I realized that it sounded like i was agreeing with laws against homosexualtity in my previous post...that I found it "refreshing". I just want to clarify that i find the openess and tenderness...the loving, and unreserved behavior between men refreshing...and I strongly disagree with the law against homosexuality!

my first week...and i love it!

Well, I have been here over a week now but it seems like a lot longer! Don’t get me wrong...I absolutely love it here, but it really takes some time to adjust- the bugs, the heat (I get all sweaty and the dirt sticks to me! J ), the driving, cultural taboos, and the concept of time!- (Just to name a few things). These are things that I am simply adjusting to and learning to appreciate! Everything is so wonderful- so new and different…...so alive!

There are so many interesting cultural differences that I have noticed so far….

One thing that really gets me is the interaction of people within relationships- here, PDA between couples is a taboo…you never see a boy and a girl holding hands, kissing, or even brushing up against each other for that matter. You never see girls holding hands or anything either…you do, however, always see guys holding hands and being affectionate with each other -simply because they are friends!….I would also like to mention that homosexuality is a major taboo here and in fact, it is against the law! This interaction between men is an interesting observation, but one that I find refreshing. Finally, a place where it is not shameful for men to appear gentle and affectionate/loving towards each other….

What I love the most so far, is how open and free-spirited Ghanaians are…Everyone sings and dances all the time…..even walking alone down the street, people will sing a tune (usually a gospel song praising the Lord) out loud to themselves- Even if they don’t sound great (to our standard- is there really such thing as “good” singers and “bad” singers?) they sing freely and loudly- and some of them will let their bodies flow to the rhythm.

As a white person, I must always be the first to greet a Ghanaian…. But once I do, there faces light up (they have the most beautiful smiles!) and they immediately become your best friend (men more than women)..trying to help you any way they can (they even follow you around at times) and they ALWAYS ask for a phone number- and here that is not strange.

Sometimes I will say things in twi like “medase” (thank you) or “ete sen?” (how are you) and they all think it is so funny! They will laugh and laugh- and yell out “obruni, obruni!” (white person/ foreigner)..then they continue to ask things in twi just to hear me reply in twi- even though they laugh, I think they really appreciate me trying….i will continue trying!

The food here is very different- spicy and gooey! I had my first experience with fufu yesterday- it is a mashed up veggie of some sort that has the consistency of bread dough, and you use your hand (right hand of course!) to dip it in goat soup…it is pretty good but very heavy on the stomach. I mostly eat rice, chicken, and goat soup here with LOTS of spices- and I have not been sick yet!

Something I have to be aware of is using my left hand…it is a taboo! Everything (waving, writing, eating ect…) must be with your right hand. Along those lines, the words pregnancy and menstruation are “dirty”- go figure!

I am sure there are a lot more cultural differences that I will want to share at a later time, but now I want to tell you all about my classes and the registration process.

Classes “started” on Monday, but in reality most of them won’t get rolling for a week or two- and let me tell you, the registration process is quite the task- but definitely an adventure! Nothing is done online here, so for every class I have to go to the department, get a registration slip, take it to where the class is held (which for some reason always seems to be on the other side of campus- miles away!), get it filled out, take it back to the department to get signed….and then for some classes (PHYSICS), I have to take it to a computer lab for a teacher to enter the information. This might just seem like a lot of walking around, but on top of that there are no room numbers, signs….nothing!- I basically had to guess where the classes are held…..and when I would ask people where to go (most of them had no idea) they would give the name of a street or block- where there is like 10 buildings and 40 classrooms! Needless to say, getting my classes in order was a tiring task, and quite the adventure- I met many helpful, friendly Ghanaians in the process!

After all that was said and done I ended up with like 20 credits….Physics (at 7:30 in the morning what???..and I have a hard time understanding my teacher!), two dance classes, a drumming class, a traditional singing class, a history class on African dance, twi (the native language) and intro to Christianity. I am so excited for all of them, but I may have to drop one…probably singing because it is all in traditional African languages, and I am told it will be difficult for me. My dance classes are so fun! I am the ONLY “obruni” in one of them though- and let me tell you….me trying to African dance in a room full of Ghanaians (who all dance so freely and beautifully- it must be a specific gene for them!?!) is quite the site- they all laugh and call me “obruni”, but they are all so friendly and helpful too…I think I will try to stick it out!

There is so mush more I want to say, but I realize this post is already extremely long,…I will post another soon! I hope all is well…God’s Peace!

Traveling......to Ghana

Well everyone, miraculously, I made it to Ghana on time and with all of my luggage! Those of you who know my travel history, know that is truly a miracle.....my friend April , however, did not get both of her bags, so I still spent my first hour in Ghana waiting in the lost luggage line (how is it that one bag makes it and the other does not??). The travel here was so long...and I am still recovering from that...I tried not to sleep much on the plane but I couldn't
help it. There is a 7 hour time difference here...so it is time for me to go to bed , and all of you are probably about to eat lunch! Needless to say, I am suffering jet lag BIG TIME!!!! Other than that, my first day here has been amazing. We did some orientation stuff today....figured out what classes we can take, how to register, and we walked around this HUGE campus for like 4 hours...and still didn't see it all. We have a busy few days getting to know the place.....and we are going to the beach on Sunday. I have a feeling I may be there a lot this semester...it is SO HOT- especially compared to the frigid state of Montana.
Well I don't have a lot of time since the internet is so slow...but i want to share a few of my first impressions with you guys...

the smell of Ghana is indescribable and unforgettable! the best way I can describe the smell that penetrated my nose when I stepped off the plane is sweet and musty!

It is HOT and humid...we arrived around 10:30 pm and it was 85 degrees - my clothes were drenched...partly from my own sweat and partly from the humid air!

The drivers are crazy and Ghanaians are hilarious! Within seconds of getting on the bus, we were almost hit by several cars, and we were honked at the whole way back to the University...and all the while, our bus driver was laughing up a storm! It was so funny...don't worry- no danger. Just fun and games!

I am out of time, but I will continue to update you all...I am having a wonderful time so far, and i am so glad to be here. I miss you all and I hope everything is well. Talk to you soon!

My Journey to Ghana

I am in such a wonderful place in life- a place full of questions and uncertainty- my future holds limitless opportunities....it is wide open- it is for me to choose! I am off to Ghana in a few months, and I have no set plans for when I return.... I am just living day by day....loving that I am so free...loving myself and every moment.... I want to share this journey with all of my friends and family~that being said, I am going to try to update my blog frequently- sort of use it like a journal. I don't know how this will actually work out, but I will try!

LOVE

Love each other or perish- W.H Auden