7/11/10 Today some of us drove around 4 hours to get to a monkey sanctuary (some took the day off and some went to Duku’s shrine), but of course our little sanctuary was much more than that. It’s a village that worships its monkeys. The story goes like this: there was a hunter who found a shrine surrounded by monkeys. He went about his business, but liked the shrine so much he took it to his people, but his people decided it was a sign that the monkeys were sacred. And while some tribes in Ghana eat monkeys, these people decided to move their village and the shrine closer to the monkeys not to hunt them, but to protect and honor them. They found the right person to become the monkey priest, who would then find ... read more

July 9, 2010 Kumasi is the cultural capital of Ghana. It is also the capital of the Asanti region. I love it here sooooo much more than Accra. It’s about a 5 hour drive from Accra --- not because of distance but because of construction and traffic --- and it feels like a different country. Accra is all hustle and bustle --- except when you’re waiting for something to get fixed. It’s concrete and wide-open street gutters and lots and lots of traffic. That exists in Kumasi too, but it’s a nicer hustle. We drove through beautiful countryside to get here --- plantations, mountains, narrow villages with palm nuts roasting in the sun and freshly-baked bread loaves waiting to be sold. The city is within a rainforest, so there’s a lot of green and more livestock. ... read more

On Sunday we went to an Akomfo ceremony, which took place at a village shrine in the mountains (beautiful countryside). The people came to watch priests (men and women) and drummers connect with the gods, or maybe a better way to write it is for the gods to connect with the people through the dancers and drummers. There is no way I can adequately describe what took place --- just know it was an amazing experience. It is incredibly rare for outsiders to get a glimpse into ancient spiritual practices --- especially since traditional religions are being replaced by Christianity and Islam. To quote one of the graduate students, “there was definitely a vibe.” What might look like a bunch of jumping and hooting around on TV, is an intricate give and take between the drummers ... read more

It’s been a very long day, considering the day started 5 a.m. Monday morning and it is now 10:30 p.m. Tuesday night Ghana time (3:30 a.m. Phoenix time), but I’m still too wound up to fall asleep just yet, so while my roommate sleeps in our full-not-queen size bed (yes there is only one bed, and yes we’re both quite healthy BUT we’re luckier than the men in our trip because all four of them got stuck in one room with one bed - although it’s allegedly for only one night). I’m going to give you the quick low down on the day’s events. *All is actually really quite cool and organized at Ghana’s airport. I expected a swarm of folk asking for money, but it was more like an ant colony stratgizing the attack. The ... read more

June 12, 2010 Last night I couldn't sleep thinking of all that needs to get done before the big trip. Plus, tomorrow I put my sons on a plane to Virginia so they can be with their dad --- Good God have to get their laundry finished and packed (although I should send it over crumpled and dirty, which is the way it always comes back). My big to dos right now are to get a voltage adapter for my laptop, so that I don't blow the darn thing up while I'm in Ghana, get my malaria pills (will need to start taking them next week), book my shuttle for New Orleans this weekend, and blah, blah, blah. I'm boring myself, so I'll stop. I'm also using this post as a test --- I want to ... read more