Blogs from Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana, Africa

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Africa » Ghana » Greater Accra » Accra July 18th 2017

-Maandag 17 Juli- *ik heb 30 min hieraan gewerkt en toen drukte ik op een verkeerde knop en was alles weg. Toen moest alles weer opnieuw terwijl ik heel moe was dus excuses voor de eventuele spelfouten* Afgelopen maandag was het tijd voor de introductie dag. Het begon om 6 uur, maar die nacht had ik echt slecht geslapen vanwege de warmte en viel ik pas in slaap rond 3 uur om vervolgens om 6:30 wakker te worden van de haan en de wekkers van de andere vrijwilligers. Ja ja we staan allemaal rond 6:30/7:00 op om te douchen en te ontbijten en dan rond 08:00 naar de scholen te gaan. Tot nu toe heb ik nog niet her geluk gehad dat er stromes water uit de douche kop kwam, dus doen we het maar gewoon ... read more

Africa » Ghana » Greater Accra » Accra February 10th 2014

"Akwaaba" means "Welcome"! Welcome to Ghana, which was among my top-3 countries I wanted to visit and finally I made it! My visit didn't end very well since I got my notebook stolen (Acer Aspire One) and that's the reason it took me much longer to write the blog. I prefer not to go into the exact details of how it happened as it would make the blog too long. It happened during my last few hours before leaving the country. Thank God I had all my photos somewhere else though, so I didn't lose any picture. The visit to Ghana started in the Netherlands, where I had to arrange my visa in The Hague at the Ghanian Embassy. I flew with TAP Portugal via Lisbon to Accra. During slavery many enslaved Africans in Curaçao came ... read more
Independence Square
Independence Arch at the Independence Square
School kids in James Town

Africa » Ghana » Greater Accra » Accra February 6th 2014

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
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Africa » Ghana » Greater Accra » Accra January 5th 2014

As yesterday was a long day, we took some time to rest. In the afternoon, Frank went to run some errands, meet with an architect and a mason and who knows what. I stayed around and spent some time with the kids. We played all sorts of games. Alex and Rita taught me all sorts of new words in Twi. We had a lot of fun. They are both shy, but they seem to be comfortable with me now. As comfortable as they will be for a while at least. I packed most of my things and started to put Frank’s together. He insisted that he’ll do it tomorrow, but I bet I’m gonna end up doing it a few hours before we leave. Frank got finished with his errands a lot later than expected. This ... read more
Defeat
Pondering
Boys

Africa » Ghana » Greater Accra » Accra January 1st 2014

The tentative plan for today was look at land and go to the beach. Sounds great to me. Rosemary, Frank, and I hit the road. I drove the whole time, including on their version of the freeway! When I was 11, my aunt Helen taught me how to drive a stick in an old Samurai on back farm dirt roads. I use that skill once or twice per year. This is real life practice. Downshifting in traffic, watching for motorbikes to come out from behind you, dodging taxis… Crazy. I think I did okay though. We picked up another guy to guide us to the plots of land that are for sale. I did fine driving until he started being the one giving directions. He would talk to Frank and Rosemary in another language, then tell ... read more
Pretending to Be Scared
More Driving
Land

Africa » Ghana » Greater Accra » Accra December 30th 2013

Frank woke me up early and said the mechanic was here. I said, “I’ll hold down the fort,” and rolled back over to go to sleep. Once I got up, Frank and I went to get cash. On the way, we saw a woman dressed differently from the others. He said she is a refugee from Mali. There are several living here in our part of town. They have been here for a while but still have no permanent anything. From my understanding, refugees are allowed to live here, but no one is really helping them with anything. The mechanics came to the house and fixed the car. It cost about 15 bucks. It turns out the wheel on the spare tire was not the right size, so it was rubbing on the breaks. Even though ... read more
Kantamento Market
The Girls!

Africa » Ghana » Greater Accra » Accra December 29th 2013

In honor of Sunday, we all laid around until about 2 or 3. It was perfect. Napping and resting and not sitting in traffic. Then, Frank and I took off for the beach without the kiddos. I thought we were just going to the beach near the art centre that we saw before. It turns out we were going to a beach resort. Bojo Beach Resort. (He said, “The only difference between a regular beach and a resort beach is here they clean up the poop.”) There was white sand and grass-topped cabana things surrounded by palm trees. It was exactly what you’d expect at a tropical resort. We swam and played in the waves. We splashed each other and dinged around and enjoyed ourselves. I got worn out from the heat and whatnot, so I ... read more

Africa » Ghana » Greater Accra » Accra December 27th 2013

I woke up around 630, I think. I was cold, sort of. The overhead fan was blowing like crazy, and I liked the breeze, but I wanted a barrier between me and the air. (I’m just sleeping on a mattress- no top sheet or blankets.) I covered myself with a towel and laid back down I listened. To Africa. I love that sound. Birds chirped and leaves blew outside as people shuffled around in their flip-flops (slippers). The fan clicked overhead. Chickens clucked, and a dog whined. I smiled and fell back to sleep. A few hours later, it was time to get up for real. Rosemary made Frank and I porridge- roasted cassava, ground up and cooked in water. It was fine, but not my favorite, mostly because it was really hot. Alex and Rita ... read more
Kiddos
Frank and I
Clean Room?

Africa » Ghana » Greater Accra » Accra December 26th 2013

(I am having to write these at night and post the following day. This one isn't finished. I'll try to add more to it when I can.) Logistics: Frank and I went to midnight mass on Tuesday evening, as is tradition for his family. That also meant we were up very late Christmas morning. Tato woke me up with some sort of singing toy and told me it was time to do Christmas. He’s older now, so it’s fewer gifts that are much more expensive. Dad made breakfast, and he and I headed to Frank’s house. Frank wasn’t quite ready, but we got to the airport in time anyway. We sat in the last row of the small plane and went to Seattle. While waiting at the terminal, I asked for a picture of the two ... read more
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Africa » Ghana » Greater Accra » Accra November 9th 2013

This was the fourth trip Kwesi and I did together to Accra. Kwesi has gone each year but I missed a few in between! The plants around Kwesi's mom's house are beautiful. We spent about ten days visiting in Accra with Kwesi's mom and also touching base with Faustina, the director of True Vision Ghana (TVG: www.truevisionghana.org). Fausti and I managed to get a shopping day in to buy crafts that I then help to sell in Canada to raise a bit of money for TVG.... read more
Meghan and Faustina
Baby goats at home
Amazing cactus at home




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