December 5: Tanzania is among the most beautiful countries I have visitied, and for good reason: Kilimanjaro, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Lake Manyara, and Zanzibar Island are only a few of the featured attractions of this East African treasure. My words fall short of realizing her ineffable beauty, but it is my hope that these images will provide a window into the paradise that is Tanzania. [View Full Entry]

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December 1: After departing Accra (and via two layovers in Lome, Togo and Abuja, Nigeria) Patrick and I made the most of our short time in the Ethiopian capitol of Addis Ababa. With enough qat and coffee in our systems to fuel a rocket, we escaped the evening chill by relaxing in the coffee houses and nightclubs of this interesting East African city. The soothing rhythms of the band and the dim, intimate light of the lounge in which we relaxed was a welcomed lull before our mad dash to Tanzania. [View Full Entry]

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I apologize for not posting this blog sooner, but finals, travels, and the common cold have kept me occupied in the last few days. Last weekend I set off to Benin, a small country with a history steeped in the practice of voodoo, the slave trade, and grand empires. We crept into Benin at twilight, after hours of frustrating travel to the East frontier of Ghana and across Togo. The country appeared unremarkable at first sight: flat, grassy earth punctuated by a few modest mud structures and tall palm trees ending, rather abruptly, at the deep blue waters of the Gulf [View Full Entry]

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After hours of discussion and a reluctant agreement, two fellow Americans, Ian and Lindsay, and I headed to the chaotic Kaneshie station to find transportation to the West of Ghana en route to our ultimate destination: Cote d'Ivoire. Once one of the more stable countries in West Africa, Cote d'Ivoire boasted a prosperous economy and a considerable community of European expats. The capitol, Abidjan, was coined the "Paris of Africa," and dazzled the visitor with glitzy highrise buildings, expensive French restaraunts, and wide-lane highways. Cote d'Ivoire is, unfortunately, a shadow of its fo [View Full Entry]

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For the first time, I have stepped off Ghanaian soil and ventured into the confusing yet utterly charming borders of Francophone Africa. Crossing the border from Aflao (in Ghana), my travel companions and I were greeted with the same bustle and cocaphony we had come to know in Ghana, but with a decidedly different twang. Mototaxi drivers courted us with eloquent French, and aside from the fish and texiles that crowned the heads of women in Ghana, baguettes and snails waded above the crowded streets of Lome, the capitol of tiny Togo. We quickly settled on our accommodation for the eve [View Full Entry]

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The past two weeks have been notably low-key, in stark contrast to previous "action-packed" weekend excursions and the mad dashes around the university to sort out class scheduling and paper work. I haven't picked my way through any jungles to view magnificent waterfalls, and I certainly haven't seen any elephants or antelope. In fact, I have become quite comfortable lounging around the dorms joking with my Ghanaian friends and searching through the nearby markets for the ripest and juiciest pineapples. Lectures have been interesting, and I have taken my first midterm test for my Ashanti Tw [View Full Entry]

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Finally, I have found the time to use a quality computer with a working disc drive! The following pictures correspond with my previous travelblogs detailing my adventures to Tafi Atome (monkey sanctuary), Wli Falls, Tamale, Larabanga, Mole National Park, and others. Enjoy! News: I'll be traveling to Togo and Benin with my Beninese friend in mid-October. Francophone Africa awaits. [View Full Entry]

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Last Thursday, I departed for my cross-country tour of Ghana! I began by visiting Kumasi, the capital and heart of the Ashanti people and the site of the largest market in West Africa. I did my buying elsewhere, however, and bargained in Twi (I'm learning fast!) with the kente sellers in Bonwire. I couldn't discern whether they asked me to repeat "wobegye sen?" (roughly translated as how much do you want for this) out of sheer astonishment that an obruni was speaking Twi or because I spoke with a heavy accent. Nonetheless, I purchased a couple of fine pieces of Kente [View Full Entry]

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First off, Happy birthday, Dad! So as I had mentioned in my last post, I decided to return to the Volta last weekend to further explore the villages, jungles, and waterfalls of the region. It was not a dissappointment. When I arrived in Tafi Atome, the only accomodation in the village was occupied by a small group of Danish volunteers, so I had the opportunity to stay in a local's home for the evening! I will not even attempt to spell her name, it was very peculiar, but she was incredibly hospitable and I immediately felt at home in her small [View Full Entry]

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Finally, I have discovered a computer with a working disc drive. For the moment, the power is also stable, so I will use this opportunity to post a few of the pictures I have taken thus far. Please enjoy, and know that more will follow! Oh, and as for this weekend, I will be traveling back to the Volta region to spend quality time with a few primates and buy kente cloth at a local market in Tafiabuipe. [View Full Entry]

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