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Published: November 23rd 2006
Thursday 22nd November
Time is running away too fast as it always does at the end of something so special. We can’t complain too much though because we have experienced so much and had so much fun, but it is a bit like Christmas day that you don’t want it to ever end. One of the other drawbacks is that the next part of our adventures become a reality and we are starting to plan for the next stages, which is why I am wide awake at 0500 and writing to you.
Our last and best adventure so far was a very exciting journey to the far north of Ghana to Weichau to see hippos and what a time we had………
Thursday 16th November
There were times when we wondered if our great adventure would get away. We had been planning this trip for quite a while but things kept going not quite right. We were very lucky to have Jet with us, a delightful Dutch volunteer who worked at the children’s home occasionally and the children got on famously with. She was a fantastic resource and managed to find us our own personal tro-tro for the trip. That was great until our two other travellers had to pull out. Poor Simone had not been well for about 10 days and the trip was just a bit too much for her so her and Regina reluctantly had to pull out. We frantically searched for new recruits and at times we were up to 4 extras but eventually ended up with 1 other person, Kathleen, another Dutch volunteer who was the perfect replacement. This meant the cost was a bit higher than we had all hoped but we were determined to go on our trip.
Jet stayed with us on Wednesday night and we were all in high stages of excitement. I awoke at about 0300 on Thursday with the most incredibly itching hands and feet, then my tongue started tingling and I knew that something was wrong. I woke Richard and I was scratching madly. Then I felt my lip swelling and my eyelids started itching and feeling very heavy as did my hands and feet, which were also swelling. I realised I was having a pretty severe allergic reaction to something and Richard jumped up and started searching for the antihistamines we bought with us. I managed to swallow one but hives were now breaking out all over my trunk and working their way down my body. We woke Jet to ask her about a decent hospital in Tamale in case the tablet didn’t work. We sat in the lounge, Richard ready to run and get a taxi and me trying to stay calm. Luckily within 20mins I started feeling things settling down and the swelling stopped. We were very relieved, I took an extra tablet and we went back to bed. We did fall back to sleep but the alarm came very soon and our big adventure started.
The tro tro arrived promptly at 0600 and we loaded all our luggage and everything it seemed apart form the kitchen sink into the back. We felt very spoiled, as the tro-tro was a 25 seater with just the 7 of us, what luxury compared to how we normally travel in Ghana. Richard sat up front with the driver and the rest of us spread ourselves throughout the tro-tro.
The Road was surfaced for about an hour and then we hit unsurfaced road. I have driven on plenty of unsurfaced roads before but this was the bumpiest, most jolting, brain-rattling ride I had ever been on. These roads are not just unsurfaced they are uncared for unkempt and holes the size of an elephant are not infrequent. Fuseini, our driver was a wonderful driver but it was his mission to arrive at his destination in the shortest time possible. Huw, Marc and I were in the back of the tro-tro and we were shaken around like rag dolls. Our heads were wobbling like apples on a string and our teeth were chattering so hard I thought I might lose a few. My poor brain was shaken severely and I feared damage and concussion at the least. Add to that the amount of delightful red dust that just flowed through the air it was a pretty amazing trip.
It was a little hard to appreciate the scenery but the landscape was always breathtaking. The countryside became drier and drier and villages small and infrequent. The further north we travelled the less fresh food we saw and past Wa there was not a piece of fruit or fresh vegetable to be seen. We arrived at Wa at about 1300 which is pretty amazing and we found a fantastically big tree under which we parked to rest and have our lunch. We had a fantastic picnic out of the back of the tro-tro but we felt like the animals in the zoo as a good crowd of about 20 or more children gathered and just stood watching us, no one spoke or smiled just stood watching. Luckily for us one of the mothers took pity on us and shooed the children away. Sian and Huw tried their hand at pumping at the local pump and the ladies were very indulgent and showed Sian how to do it. The pump is quite a meeting place where the women get to have a few moments peace while they wait their turn at the pump and have the chance to chat with other women.
After lunch we visited the Wa Naa Palace. This is ruins of the palace and seems to have been shown very little respect in recent years. The most recent Wa Naa died on the same day we flew to Ghana, 3rd September and the new one is due to be interred next year. On the outside the Palace is very impressive with turrets, paintings on the walls and an impressive sized building. Once you enter the palace you see that it is a total shell with all the rooms having been vandalised to some extent. Rubbish is everywhere and walls have been graffiti’d and children were roaming around inside and showing no respect. We did not really learn much from our little guide but he did tell us that the palace was going to be renovated for the new Wa Naa. We found this a little hard to believe and thought that if that were the case the new Wa Naa would have to wait a little more than a year before he moved in to his new palace.
We were all eager to get to Weichau so we returned to the tro-tro and continued on our way. The roads were even worse here but we knew that our destination was close so the bumps became less painful. The road to Weichau was open and the land was very dry with very little vegetation. We could not help noticing that there were electric poles lining the road to Wa but there was no electric wires running through them, a project in progress. Consequently Wa was a small township with no electricity and no running water. The headquarters of the hippo sanctuary were situated across from the local pump so once again we became the focus of attention. The office was soon opened and we were ushered inside, given folders to choose what we wanted in terms of accommodation and tours and then someone was dispatched to go and get us our guide. It was quite an unreal experience with no one really telling us much but just giving us folders, we then had to wait outside as our guide was not ready and there was a special meeting of the hippo sanctuary executives and we were not invited.. The children wandered into the township in search of minerals (which is what the locals call soft drinks) and of course sweets. I was sceptical that they would find either but they found both. Our guide arrived, his name was Abba and we set off for the lodge accommodation at the sanctuary.
The drive was not long and it took us further into natural country with no amenities and it felt like a real expedition into the real Africa. Our first view of the lodge was breathtaking. It is a locally built construction of mud and sticks and it looked really exciting and welcoming. We couldn’t wait to get out of the tro-tro and start exploring but we had to wait a while as the caretaker was not around and we could not get into the lodges. It turned out that the caretaker was at a funeral and no one else had a key so eventually we had to break in to the lodges. Our rooms were allocated, me and Richard, Marc, Huw and Fuseini and Sian, Jet and Kathleen. The rooms were delightful. Mud walls, the floors were concrete and the ceiling was made of interlocking branches from local trees. I tried not to think of how many spiders might be living in there!!!!
Once we had unloaded our stuff into our rooms we decided we had better make a start on the evening meal. Marc and Huw were in charge of the fire and they wimped out and used the DEET insect repellent as their igniter, without our knowledge. I told them they were very poor Bushmen if they had to rely on artificial lighter fuel when they were in the bush surrounded by twigs and dead leaves and branches, anyway……
Once again we had an audience as we set about making our little camp. There was a large hut that could be used as a dining area. It was mud about 3 feet high then it was mesh and wood to give the impression of being outside. There were tables and chairs inside. We decided to use this as our stores area and carried the tables and chairs outside. Our meal was simple pasta and fruit but it tasted like the best food in the world. We sat outside under a magnificent African sky with the sounds of Africa all around us eating a delicious meal. How lucky can you get. Even the washing up was fun and while we did that the boys set about making a little bonfire for us and it was truly magical. The darkness sets in so quickly at about 6pm every night, sundown is about 5.30 and darkness at 6. So by 8pm we were enveloped in total darkness, no moon, and we all felt the effects of the long trip and the early morning so we all hit the hay. Even if we did not manage to see a hippo, the experience of sleeping in total vastness with nature sounds all around us would be worth all the hassle of the trip!!!!
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Papa
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That's an impossible act to follow !!!!
Hi everyone I have just re read all your blogs - more engrossing than a John Grisham novel. So kids there's no way I can take you anywhere that I can think of to even remotely challenge the adventures you have had over the past couple of months. How about a pony ride???? But then I guess that doesn't rate with a crocodile ride. Susie you have made Ghana come alive for me (never even knew exactly where it was!). There are so many emotions I have felt when reading your blogs. Sadness, happiness, pride, frustration, hope, anger, even envy. But what made the deepest impression on me was that little kids suffer and die needlessly because of a lack of basic needs. I will do more - the World should. Love you all, your little ole Daddy and Papa.