The Halfway Point

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Hello Everyone,
I cannot believe that I have hit the halfway point here in Ghana. These last two months have absolutley flown by. Looking back on what the first few days were like when I first got here, I can't believe how far I've come. In those first few weeks, it seemed that when into the future there was only the dark abyss of time and the unknown. Now looking into the future, I can see the end of the tunnel. I have to register this week for classes for next semester at home, and that has made me realize that I really will be leaving here in a few short months.
It seems that everyone in my program has changed and grown at unbelievable rates. Some people have gained weight, some have lost weight, some have changed clothes styles, some have broadened perspectives, some like food now that they never thought they'd ever be able to tollerate, and some have just simply learned to take life a little slower.
I myself have changed enormously as I have said in my previous blog entries, and I'm sure you've been able to tell as you track my writing. My moods have been like a roller-coaster lately, but I think I'm finally out of that low point funk and I've bounced back into the happy-go-lucky state. The other day I was walking home from campus and all of a sudden, things just clicked. Everything seemed right. It was the feeling that I really belonged somewhere. I finally realized why my parents kept going back to Africa all those years when they could have been living with convenience in America. Sure the dirt, bugs, lack of culinary variety, constant sweating, the longing for familiarity, and the unaviodable standing out can get to a person; but once you get over all of that, you realize that you just have to live. You have to enjoy life and take it for what it's worth. I believe that I've finally learned that lesson. As my hair grows longer, so does my patience. I've learned to not worry so much about the little things, and to just go with the flow...which was pretty much the objective of this adventure.
As for what I've been up to lately...

Monday:
We had our first massive thunderstorm on Monday. I was sitting in the CIEE office doing some administrative work and the sky was a serene blue. The next minute I looked up from what I was doing and the sky was a menacing gray/purple/black. All of a sudden there was a bolt of lightening, a loud clatter of thunder and then the heavens opened up and it poured like I've never seen before. Trees were being thrown around in the wind, birds were being tossed in the rain, and it seemed that Zeus was having a hey-day with his thunder-bolts. Finally after about 45 minutes of the power shutting on and off, the rain let up. It was most defintely the first domino to fall for the rainy season, seeing as how we've been having thunderstorms now every other day this past week. Although the good thing is that the dust now settles and the weather has been much much cooler lately...I actually slept with sweat pants on last night!

Tuesday:
The local gas station near campus contains a pseudo-pizza place, an ice cream shop, as well as a chicken sandwich joint. And starting this April, the pizza place is implementing "Terrific Tuesdays" which is where you can get two pizza's for the price of one. Being the cheap college students that we our, everyone in our house is extatic about this turn of events. So on Tuesday, everyone in the house went to the gas station for dinner and feasted on cheap pizza with something that resembled pepperoni.

Wednesday:
Not much to report for Wednesday I'm afraid...

Thursday:
Ah, this was a good day. At Today's Choices, we decided it was high time to have an art day. Lizzy, my housemate, is an art education major and so we decided to use her skills to teach the girls at the school how to do beading. We bought tons of little beads, string, and fasteners, and let them have a ball. The girls went nuts when they realized that they could have creative freedom and keep whatever they made. For four hours, Jordan, Stephanie, Lizzy, and I ran around to different groups teaching, supervising, fixing, and finishing bracelets, necklaces, and waistbeads for the girls. It was amazing to see their faces light up with excitement, and how happy they were to show off what they had made.
That night it happened to also be Brendan's, another one of my housemates, 21st birthday. His last name being O'Hara, and because of his extremely Irish heritage, we decided to venture to the only Irish pub we could find in Accra, "Ryan's Irish Pub." After an adventure in a scrunched taxi, and getting lost three times in a district called Osu, we finally got there to find out that from 5pm-9pm drinks and appetizers were half off. Needless to say, we had a ball.
Althoug it was a very interesting environment. The surroundings were all that you would find in an American bar that is trying to immitate an Irish pub, however, all the servers and bartenders were Ghanaian. It was a very mixed up feeling. Sometimes you felt as though you were in an Irish pub with a Ghanaian flare, and sometimes felt as if you were in a Ghanaian pub with an Irish flare...even so, the cocktails were good enough for me.

Friday:
This day was very special for me becasue I finally received a package that my mother had sent me three weeks prior. It was full of easter candy!! Ignoring the fact that Easter was long gone, I was extremely happy to get my package of Oreos, Jelly Beans, M&M's, and Cadbury Eggs. It couldn't have come at a better time. The taste of American chocolate on my palate was soul-shattering...me being addicted to sugar and all. And the Oreos had never tasted so good in my life. Of course I shared all...okay most...alright some of it with my housemates and they were overjoyed as well. It was a special treat that will keep me soaring in the clouds for at least another week and a half.

Saturday and Sunday:
With some of our housemates gone for the weekend, Stephanie, Suni, Jessie, Lizzy, and I decided to have a girls weekend. Yesterday we decided to go shopping at the local art market. We found ourselves in a massive labyrinth of beads, jewelry, wood carvings, paintings, fabric, clothes, and every other touristy thing you could possibly imagine...of course we had a great time picking and choosing gifts for family and friends, and of course a few little things for ourselves. I myself found a beautiful batik tapestry that was hewn with oranges, reds, and yellows and was a map of Africa. When I saw it, I immediately knew exactly where I would put it in my apartment next year and had to have it. The seller wanted way too mcuch for it, however, I bartered as if my life depended on it and got him down to a price substantially less that what he was asking. After our shopping adventure, we decided to rent a girly movie and go over to one of our friends house to have a girly night. Jack Black and Jude Law did the trick in the "Holiday" (one of my favorites) as we all swooned over the amazing cheesiness of it.
And this morning we decided that it was high time to make pancakes. And so we created our own cinnamon syrup (for lack of maple) and set the table with plates and silverware and had ourselves a nice little breakfast.

Next week I have two midterms and so now I must actually get going to do some studying. Again I can't believe that now I'm on the down slope. I have a feeling that these last few months are going to fly by too fast for my liking and so I am going to try to soak up as much of Ghana as possible! As always thank you for reading, and I hope all is well with you.

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Photos

a guest speaker preaching to the girls
he was very animated, and while I didn't care for his very loud style of preaching, I could tell that the girls enjoyed him very much

Lizzy fastening someone's necklace
she was an absolute angel that day, she is going to make a great art teacher in the future

Me after I had taken my Twi test
I got an A thank you very much!