Less than a WEEK

I will be flying to Ghana in four days! I am so excited, but it still feels like I am not actually GOING TO ACCRA, GHANA! I had a long talk with two of my friends last night trying to visualize and prepare myself for the extreme changes that I will be going through. I will have limited internet access and when I do its very unreliable. I will be taking showers with freezing water and taking a bucket of water and a cup and try to rinse myself. I think I will get frustrated about that at first because I rather just not shower than endure that complicated of a process. I am also fascinated about hand washing my own clothes. As previous students that studied in Ghana told me, I will stop after a month. I am still excited to see what happens with that. I also am worried a bit about malaria. It is scary to think I could get malaria and if I ignore it I COULD DIE! I feel like I will be a bit crazy about that checking up on my self very frequently. One of the things I want to experience SO BADLY is a fully embraced interaction with kids. I want to hang with them, teach them, and for them to teach me. I am ready! I wish I could full prepare myself for this adventure, but I guess that is the beautiful thing about life, you can't prepare yourself. Many people refer to me as a happy go lucky type and I am excited to see how that will be applied to going to Ghana. I am curious how recreating a support system will turn out. I now practically everyone else is on the same boat; they will be wanting to have a support system too. I have also been told that I will have a lot more time than I think I will have. I want to use that time to embrace the culture. I also dream to have a meal in a Ghanaian household, which is apparently few and far between because Ghanaians hold their personal lives close to their hearts.

Goals for going abroad:
* Embrace everything with enjoyment and really understand why I am there, to learn, not to save the world.
* Connect with at least one Ghanaian on a deeper level
* Learn how the education system works in Ghana.
* Learn how the political system works in Ghana.
* Learn what stereotypes I have developed about AFRICA and how most of the DO NOT APPLY TO GHANA.
* Fill my time with people. I am an EXTREME EXTROVERT and people help me discover who I am in the situation and what it means to me.
* Learn not to judge situations in Ghana and understand TIA: This is Africa, a completely different world.
* Understand what a third world country and what makes it that way and maybe they are living life better than we are. In Cuba I think their overall well-being, besides being trapped in the country, is happy and a community. Every corner we turned people knew each other and basked in that ideology.
* How does Cuba compare to Ghana?
* What does education mean to Ghanaians?

I have so many questions. I hope to discover this new world and help me discover myself!