Birthdays, Lizards and Barack Obama

---

Term 3 began two weeks ago and I started properly in my new school in Simiw. I had arrived before the end of the last term but time was taken up with revision and exams. With JHS3 no longer in school, (they sit their final exams after the second term) I’ve been left with Form 1 and 2 for their final term. I’ll be able to see out the best part of the term as we’re flying home two days before term ends. As it happens we recently got an email stating that our flight times have changed and we’ve now got longer stop-overs tacking about three hours onto our flight. Fantastic.

Being the first Ahoto volunteer in Simiw - and the first white teacher in the school - there is a great buzz around the village. I walked through it last week and calls of “teacher, teacher” replaced the usual “Hey, white man!” The younger staff in the school compared to my first school make it a far nicer atmosphere to work in and communication much easier. Debates about the Ronaldo - Messi battle break out daily; something which would never have happened in my first school. This, added to the fact that the headmaster is an absolute hero of a man, makes Simiw an altogether more enjoyable school to work in.

Another interesting point of Simiw is a second Irish connection. Fr Pat Seaver, currently residing in Limerick, has twinned Simiw with a Limerick primary school that do a lot of charity work on behalf of the school. Money collected so far has been used to purchase a computer for the school (rarely found in Ghana schools despite there being an ICT module on the curriculum); stationary for the 700 odd students in KG, primary and JHS; and recently a printer. Fr Pat and Mark Mantey recently arrived back in Ghana and Pat will celebrate his 70th birthday here, funnily enough, on the same date as my birthday. I’ll save all the news and scandal of their return, and the week we spent with them, for the next post.

Speaking of milestones, Sister Monica of Ahotokurom celebrated her 60th birthday two weeks ago. Sister Monica has been in Ghana for over 30 years now and has experienced much of the political trouble and economic strife which has plagued its progress. It was celebrated in the sister’s house in Ahoto with all the children from the childcare centre attending as well as all the sisters and novices working in Ahoto. The younger sisters (and the braver childcare residents) gave us some stunning demonstrations of West African dance on the night.

To change the subject slightly, two things happen to taxis once it gets dark. (a) They decrease significantly in number, (b) they double, triple and even quadruple in price. Due to this we’re usually home before it gets too late; it’s not worth the hassle of being stranded two hours walk from home and no sign of a taxi. One exception to this rule, however, is Elmina. A largely fishing town during the day, Elmina transforms at night - as do many towns - the streets lining with Chop Bars selling an assortment of cooked Ghanaian meals. From rice, chicken and Ghanaian stew to ginger plantain and kebabs you can find the best of local cuisine after the sun goes down. With no street lighting each table uses a small gas candle to provide light. This creates a great view from the end of the street, your eyes guided down by the dozens of small orange lights dotting either side. It’s a sad thought that a dish of jallof rice may have been the reason that most the house was ill for about a week and a half. Myself and Eoin even had to be taken to hospital to be tested for malaria as a precaution. The doctor was less than helpful with his diagnosis, “Even if we don’t find malaria, it doesn’t mean you don’t have malaria.”... They didn’t find malaria; we may or may not have it. All the same we were put on a cocktail of tablets for the next week and we’re all well again.

Annie is currently working on a project very close to home; she’s funding the building of a chicken shed for our neighbor Auntie Bee. Bee is one of the friendliest people you could meet in your life and has an absolute heart of gold. Anyway, Annie had a rather interesting chat with the block layer (apparently he likes a few drinks while on the job) the other night. It was clear to see how his work had deteriorated during the course of the day he was working on the shed. The first wall was perfectly straight and even, but, as work went on, things went a bit downhill. By time he had made it to the last wall it was a full block lower than the first and looked ready to fall at the first hint of a breeze. We suspect that some of the locally distilled gin is to blame. I went along to give Annie some male support - tends to help in some situations around here - not that she needed it. It’s probably a good thing he didn’t understand much English with the lashing she gave him over the job. Clearly he got the gist of what was being said anyway, he was back the next morning to sort it.

You get used to the reptiles around here pretty quickly. It’s common to see a snake or two (watch out for the black ones) on the way to work and there’s always a few lizards hanging around. I don’t, however, like lizards in the house. They manage to sneak in every once in a while and prove incredibly elusive. I know they keep mosquitoes away but I don’t like the fact that they could be crawling on me at night and I sure as hell don’t like that they are so fast. Gimme a snake I can outrun any day. Kev has taken on the title of lizard catcher evicting two from the kitchen the other day. He’s careful not to hurt them of course! You can barely get within five feet of them and they’re in a hide but he managed to catch two in as many minutes. If they’re still looking for a Steve Irwin replacement, I think I’ve found him.

One last thing. Barack Obama is making Ghana his first official African visit and rumor has it he’s gonna be visiting Cape Coast and Elmina Castles... Now how cool is that?

---