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Blogs from Ashanti, Ghana, Africa - page 5
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September 15th 2010
Day 3 - Today I was on time for school and got a surprise when I got there. On Wednesdays all the children stand in line to sing and dance to spirituals (church songs). They are very religious. I did not want to go to a line so a teacher came up to me and asked me where I should I be I said I don't know and he took me and put me in a line. After the singing we went to our class and it was another long day of sitting in a small hard desk. ... read more
September 14th 2010
Day 2 - At the school they have 2 different uniforms that they have to wear. This is what they both look like. Today I got to school late and had to sweep the walk ways and the teacher made me say thank you for doing work. There were about 12 other people that were late also so we all did the sweeping. It is better than getting caned. When you get in trouble you get whipped with cane by the head teachers. You can get up to 12 lashes for your punishment. I take my lunch because they have venders that sale food for lunch but I am not sure what is in it and I am afraid to eat it. It might make me sick or something. I only drink bottled water and beverages. ... read more
September 14th 2010
Day 4 - Today I walked around the university area close to Maria's office. The campus it too big to walk to all of the place so I am going to try and do it in small pieces. The culture is very different, there are little shops everywhere and street venders that sell any and everything. The food is spicy and always comes with vegetables. I only drink botled beverages.... read more
September 13th 2010
Monday 9/13/2010 - Day 1 - Today was my first real day in Kumasi, Ghana. It was the first day of school for all the kids and I am attending school for 1 week. The school is really different. The students are mostly African but some international students attend but they are all black. There are about 40 students in my class and about 465 8th graders in all. In 7th, 8th and 9th grade there are about 1400 students total. The uniforms are really colorful as you can see mine is lime green. KNUST stands for Kwame Nkrumah University Of Science and Technology. The school is supposed to be very elite. The chairs are all small and wooden. They hurt your butt and you stay in one classroom all day and the teachers come to ... read more
September 13th 2010
Day 3 Well today Malik started school with the rest of the Ghanaian middle schoolers. I know he does not appreciate the experience now but I hope he will in the future. The school is very different from what we are privileged to have in America. The uniforms are very colorful as you can see. I toured Maria's office not much to look at but the people and students are GREAT. I could not access their internet with my computer, so I was bored for a few hours. I will tour some of the school tomorrow with a guide.... read more
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September 11th 2010
Day 2 - A travel day. Saturday we flew to Amsterdam from Minneapolis where we had a 3 hour layover. I thought the shopping was going to be great but it was all very expensive stuff even the chocolate we bought was $15 dollars for a box of Kit Kat minis and a box of Toblerone. The second flight to Accra, Ghana was about 7 hours and also had a great selection of movies. When we got to Accra we had no problem getting through customs, but they were mean to some people. We stayed the night at the University guest house in Accra. The Sunday breakfast was really good veggie omelet with toast and fresh cut pineapples. Malik's fried eggs came with baked beans which was different, he did not eat them but he tried ... read more
September 10th 2010
Day 1 & 2 (lost a day in travel) - Left Minnesota on September 10th and flew from Minneapolis to Amsterdam. The flight was good, Malik and I watched movies, they had 20-30 to choose from and we each got to chose our own personal movie. Malik stayed up for over 24 hours on the first leg of the trip on the second he crashed hard and is still sleeping 2 days later. Grandma enrolled him in a middle school here so he starts school with the rest of the Ghanaian children on the 13th. ... read more
August 5th 2010
Today Praise and I will go to our home in the village of Apebouso. The community has begun the process of registering the Child of Excellence Primary School. This is something that has been put on the back burner again and again. I am happy that the first steps have finally been taken. Due to my involvement with the school, the Director of the Ministry of Education invited me to his office. During our meeting I came to realize some unpleasant truths. If the community continues with the registration some changes will take place. “Change” is often times a painful transition. Mostly due to age and lack of continued education (high school and teachers training) Hannah will not be added to the new payroll Ebo, our long time friend and ministry partner, was present with ... read more
July 27th 2010
Saturday was an event I had been waiting for. A walk in the “Rainforest” took place. The only word for this is WOW! Talk about variety we saw giant trees, cool plants and even little biting red ants - Ouch! This is one of the best times to have a camera. I also saw how charcoal is made. Yesterday was “The Excursion” (school field trip). There was a loud applause when this word was spoken! At 8:00am, 30 people squeezed into a “Lorry” bus about the size of an American suburban type van. Again, these talented children sang most of the way. The zoo was very fun for them and they brought paper and pencils to write down the names of every thing they saw. Near the end of the tour they got to see quite ... read more
July 25th 2010
7/25/10 The only reason I know today’s date is because we’re leaving 1 a.m. tomorrow. This time last month was a whole other lifetime ago. I cannot believe how much I’ve experienced in such a short period of time. If my checking account allows I will one day come back here. I’m serious about wanting to live and work here for a year (or more). Sure, Ghana could use the resources I have access to, but, more selfishly, I could use the lessons Ghana still has to teach me. I’m officially hungry for more. I am also a Western soul who misses home. Besides my family, friends and pets (Good God Badger is going to drop dead of a happy heart attack when he sees me, or so I’ve been told), these are the things I ... read more
