Blogs from Ghana, Africa - page 9

June 11, 2014 I haven’t had my orientation yet, but I have been to some classes. Yesterday I went to one of the schools (Faith) and the fishing village project. Today I went to the new orphanage. The children are so warm and friendly. I have never had so many people fascinated with my hair and skin before. I haven’t taken pictures yet but I will. Faith is a very rustic school. The school is so basically built that the classrooms are almost like big barn stalls with benches and desks. The fishing village is really cool. It’s a school set up in an alley right by the ocean for any of the children who wants to go to class. It starts at 4:30 P.M. and goes till dark, which is just after 6 P.M. in ... read more

I'm getting ready to spend a year in Ghana. I'm getting packed for my adventures while simultaneously packing up and moving out of my apartment. The first leg of my trip is to Hanover, NH to visit with my Grandmother. Then on June 7 I will be flying across the Atlantic changing planes in Istanbul before making my way down to Accra, Ghana. So what am I doing in Ghana? I've signed up to be volunteer teacher with the Dream Africa Care Foundation. I will be lead teacher and because I have a degree in Early Childhood Education they told me I was guaranteed to have a preschool or early elementary class. In case you're wondering, English is the primary language spoken in Ghana. It's the only former British colony in Western Africa. However, there are ... read more

It’s taken me to five days to recover, but here it is; my first observations of this wonderful place. I arrived in Accra, Ghana after a 27 hour trip from Australia via Dubai with few hitches beyond the usual travel niggles. United Arab Emirates Airlines were great as usual. Kotoka International Airport could not be more different to any I have experienced before – either in Africa or in Western world. For a start, my fingerprints were taken as part of the customs and immigration clearing process. Joseph was professional and most polite about his job, but I still found it an affront to my personal identity. It was a great way however to start my adventure however. Driving in Johannesburg is scary, but driving in Accra is like progressing from the usual rollercoaster ride to ... read more

In my first blog I forgot to write about the language. English is widely spoken, since Ghana was a British colony. Besides, the country has MANY different languages but the most spoken language is "Akan". I left Accra and went to Cape Coast. Getting there was an ordeal! Benjamin went with me so I could take the tro-tro (local small bus) to the Cape Coast station and from there continue to Cape Coast. First the buses wouldn’t pass, or they were full. And it was warm! Then I finally got into the tro-tro to the station. Here I needed to walk just a little bit to go where the buses depart from. The station is as chaotic as it gets, pffff! Once I found the Cape Coast bus, I bought a ticket, paid extra for my ... read more

The goal of today was to finally accomplish Frank’s two goals for this trip: do paperwork for the kids and finalize the land purchase. You know what they say about the best laid plans. We called it our “Terrible, Horrible, Almost Very Bad Day.” We got out of the house later than planned, and the kids couldn’t come with us because they didn’t get their chores done. Frank, Rosemary, and I headed for the Ministry of Social Welfare. We waited for a while, then they told us to wait more. Then the man got mad at us for not coming earlier and told us to wait. All of the waiting took place in the hallway. There were a few mismatched (but all uncomfortable) chairs along the walls. I felt like we were in a hospital from ... read more