Blogs from Ashanti, Ghana, Africa - page 6

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

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

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

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

I'm ready to pass out into a food coma. Charity cooked us an amazing meal tonight. But, the Internet is working, and I promised more pictures. The past few days we've been to the university in Kumasi to listen to lectures on slavery and the history of music. The music class was awesome. When we pulled up to the cultural center, there were drummers and dancers waiting for us outside. In a nutshell, we learned that dance and music (mostly drumming) is connected to the soul of Ghana. It's how they tell their stories and keep their rhythms going. There's much more to it all, but I'm tired and need to hurry and post this. The slavery lectures were also very interesting, and I got some insight into the African perspective. I'll share later. We also ... read more