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Published: July 20th 2006
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Chocolate? Not yet!
So, this isn't chocolate quite yet, but heck, it's still a nice sweet treat!:) Cocoa is everywhere here---it is one of the main exports and since we have a cocoa tree in our yard, I can always get some:) And I am also holding a very tiny orange...oranges here are more green and yellow than orange. The fruit here is better than I have ever tasted it! Hi, family and friends! Congrats on making it through another week😊 My sister and her pal Silvestre are flying in tonight from Israel...they will be staying in Ghana for a week and I'm sooooo excited to see them!😊 (and I am thankful she will be out of Israel, which seems to be getting more dangerous and war-torn these days)
I went to a Karaoke bar called Champs the other night and have never seen so many obrunis since the U.S.!! I know some of my pictures make it seem that there are gazillions of white folks here, but in reality, the only white folks I know tend to be friends I've met at the clinic. So, it was quite a shocker to go to this American hang-out place and be surrounded by tourists....kinda surreal actually. Dad, one guy reminded me soo much of you as he sang "Twist and Shout" and danced around just like you...I really think you could be a hit together!😊
So, several folks who are hoping to come to Ghana have contacted me with specific questions regarding travelling here, so I thought I'd put together a few thoughts regarding what is needed to travel to
Hair
There is a reason that white folks do not usually do their hair in twists and braids...it tangles into one big mess! ha:) We spent a long time helping my friend untangle this mess--but we definitely had some laughs doing so:) Overall, I am so amazed by the amount of time African women spend here on their hair...definitely a dedication that low-maintenance gals like myself do not have!:) Ghana....(if you never plan on coming here, you can disregard😊...
Things needed to travel to Ghana:
1) A sense of humor and ability to not take yourself too seriously....some tourists I have met take "akwaaba, obruni" (hello, white person) very personally and are offended....even though I could see how folks might get annoyed after hearing it 50 million times a day, it really is a greeting used by people who want to say hello but do not know your name. In reality, if this is understood, you will feel like the most popular person around! One of my friends here was a Chinese American named Liz, and everyone here yelled out, "Hello, China!" Wow...sometimes all you can do is laugh about it...which she definitely was able to do!
2) A little courage for being a minority and for sticking out...A LOT😊 It is impossible to go anywhere without lots of stares, waves, and greetings...I thought people here would start getting used to seeing me but in reality each day it seems they are still in awe that I am still as white today as I was yesterday--haha😊 Random people will come up to me and say, "You
Positive Living Association
Members of the Positive Living Association making their beads and clothing to sell in order to pay for their anti-retroviral treatments and transportation costs to the hospital. are running late for work" or on the trotro, "You get off at this stop, right?"...it's quite a funny phenomenon! Everyday I pass a man who yells out to me, "Welcome to Ghana!"....as though he hasn't said it everyday for the last month--haha😊 So, if you ever come, just be prepared to be exhausted at the end of the day...my friends and I would laugh at the fact that we definitely have no desire to be famous back home---being recognized everywhere is exhausting! Ghana is known to the be the friendliest country and the people here are definitely living up to this standard...which is, overall, a beautiful aspect to this country!😊
3) A low maintenance, patient, and laid back attitude....of course, some of this depends on living conditions---there are tourists and people here who live a Western standard of living, who have their Hummers, big houses, running water, etc., but due to the wide gap of rich and poor, the majority do not live like this. Therefore, if one plans to live like most of the Ghanaians, one must be laid back and able to handle (or at least cope with) the lack of running water (or very spuradic
Walking in the wildlife reserve
It was so nice to take a break from the dustiness of Accra's dirt-roads to this beautiful greenery!:) running water...and if you are lucky to have running water, you will definitely always have cold showers), chaotic traffic, hot weather, and the inevitable mishaps such as trotros breaking down or busses taking off 3 hours after departure time. The key, I believe, is to try to abandon our Western expectations, acquire the Ghanaian way of "going with the flow," and to see everything as a sort of adventure that with a bit of creativity, can actually be fun😊 Heck, I may never be here again so in order to enjoy it as much as possible, things such as electricity outages must be seen as an opportunity to sit and chat with the neighbors rather than something to whine about!
4) If you hope to go abroad, research your little heart out....talk to as many people as you can to learn about the country, and you can never read enough. Despite my previous whining last semester, I am now actually thankful I did that humongo paper on child labor in Accra---all of that research better equipped me to handle seeing it here on a daily basis and it helps me to more fully understand the complexity of this issue. Also, if you plan on coming with a volunteer program, ask around first about the program...if I have learned one thing from my fellow volunteers, it is that some of the volunteer programs based in the U.S. are very sketchy and unorganized. Since I did not come through a program, I can't say I know a ton about this, but all I know is that some programs forgot to pick people up at the airport, have not given any sort of guidance while here, and some programs cannot explain where the money is going that the participants pay (some volunteers are asked to write checks to specific individuals rather than the organization..sketch!). On the other hand, I'm sure there are good programs---it just takes a little research, talking with folks, and asking lots of questions.
5) A belief that you can do it, a willingness to challenge yourself, and a trust that things will work out....people may try to talk you out of going but if you know in your gut that you want to or need to go then by all means go with your instinct, make it happen, do your research, and then trust that things will work out for the best. Of course there will be challenges and you will be forced, at times, to feel uncomfortable. People will question why you want to go to a developing nation to live since you will go without many of the comforts of a western life....however, I do not believe the point of life is mere comfort....there is far too much work to be done, too much to see and learn in this world! By no means am I suggesting that everyone should jump on a plane and come here....certainly there are sooo many ways people can learn and support third world countries from their very hometown. But since many folks who are thinking about it have contacted me, I want them to know that coming here is a great chance to see the culture and people firsthand and to grow as a person!
Sorry for the length....but if you have more questions regarding Ghana, feel free to contact me--I will try to address them😊 Have a great day, everyone!
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Linda
non-member comment
Excellent Advice
Hi Katie, You did a nice job of explaining how people should prepare for a trip to Ghana. Your go with the flow attitude is exactly what a person needs. As I was visiting with friends in Kumais, one of the ladies drug me all around her neighbor hood saying I was her obruni visitor, as if it made her really important! That was so funny. The odd thing is that so many of her friends said they had children in the us, one lady even told me her son was in Minnesota, but that was all she knew. I have friends from Ghana here where I work, so they really did an excellent job of preparing me, which was great. After a few days, I really got into the relaxed Ghanaian attitude and enjoyed it so much except for the day I went to the bus station in Accra to go to HO at 6 a.m. which they told us not to be late for, and three hours later the bus decided to leave! It was an experience that I would not have missed for anything and right now to show you how excited I am about going back I have 316 Days, or 7584 Hours, or 455040 Minutes, or 27302400 Seconds until I leave for Ghana! hahahaha! Take care and contue to have fun and write such blogs! I am really enjoying them Take care Linda