Les étolies sont similar dans tout le monde, quand j’ai visité au Togo et au Benin

Les étolies sont similar dans tout le monde. (the stars are similar in the whole world)

Quand j’ai visité au Togo et au Benin… (When I visited Togo and Benin)

I noticed while I was traveling around Togo, Benin, and Ghana the stars are the same anywhere in the world.  No matter how lost or confused I feel we are all enduring the world…with the stars above us.  This week at MOP we played a sort of family feud where the students played against each other.  3 of the 5 groups had their name related to stars: Morning Star, Star Shine, and Golden Star.  At that moment I realized, no matter the differences between me and another culture, some things stay the same. Fascination with the stars is a world thing…something I can look up at night and know I am alive and experiencing something new…but I will always find something in common…even if it is just the stars.

This visit to Togo and Benin had been adjusted several times.  My friend Katie and I got sick right before the last planned visited so we had to postpone it.  Our original plan was to go up to north Benin to see a safari and be able to compare northern Benin with northern Ghana.  Sadly, with this new date, we did not have enough time for this visit up north, but staying in south Togo and Benin was indeed an adventure…something Ghana, Togo, and Benin all have in common: TIA—indeed this is Africa.

Voyage au Togo (voyage to Togo)

We started off heading to Tema station (which is called “Accra…Accra…Accra” by tro tro drivers and mates).  We waited about an hour and a half for the tro tro to Aflao (the border city to Togo) to fill up.  We finally headed through Eastern Ghana, through the beautiful and lush Volta Region (covered in tropical rainforests and hills filling the scenery).  Shortly into the ride, we realized our choice in tro tro was a bit of a mistake…IT WAS EXTREMELY SLOW.  The journey took over 4 hours…which it should ONLY TAKE 3 hours.  We did a scenic route going through Keta, a beautiful town boarding Volta Lake, a Lagoon, and the ocean.  The tro tro ended at Keta forcing us to try to find more transportation, which the driver ended up just finding us a taxi (which he paid for) to go to Aflao.  Once we made it to Aflao we were overcrowded by locals, tro tro drivers, moto drivers, and taxi drivers asking constantly where we were going.  Luckily, since I had been to Lomé before I lead the group to the border (frontere).  It was a fairly quick process with Ghana scaning the passport and Togo lacking the technology for such an action.  We entered Lomé and I got on MY VERY FIRST MOTO RIDE! (this is motocycle taxi ride) IT WAS EPIC!!!!!!!!  The wind blowing through my hair and the excitement on how fast the driver was going.  I was loving it.

Lomé: begets and markets

We checked into our hotel (the same one I stayed in last time) and then were determined to go to the market and try the local food.  We walked to the Grande Marche where we looked around at the crafts and got begets and an avocado (with tomatoes, onions, and salt mixed in).  I felt very French like eating on the beach and absorbing the French influence.  I am not saying colonization was good…but I do like French food (there is a reason why I took so many years of French…for the food).  We got back to the hotel and played cards while eating French deserts…YUMMY!

Voyage au Benin (voyage to Benin) trop longtemp (to long of time)…TO GET THERE

So, we found the minibus station that was going to Continou….we were not sure if it was correct…but we hoped the name would give it the obvious affect ‘Gare Continou”.  We hopped on the minibus and waited for it to fill while we stuffed our faces full of French bread.  We, yet again, picked the wrong minibus because it took us 5 hours to get there. On the way three 30 year old men got to chatting with Emma and I (because we were the two that spoke French).  They proposed to us several times and told us about their journey from Accra to Continou for a computer part.  THAT IS A 8 HOUR TRIP..that all three men went on.  This was pretty ridiculous…but SUCH an African thing to do.  I tried fried cheese on the way…interesting…but not the same tasting cheese as in the US.  See a different part of Togo and the new country of Benin along the way was wonderful.  Togo is WAY MORE NIDUSTRIAL that Ghana is.  There is off shore drilling with MANY oil factors all around Lome.  Outside of Lome farming is HUGE.  I did not notice farming as such a HUGE thing in Ghana.  ONE OF THE BIGGEST differences between the two were the mode of transportation.  Motos are HUGE IN TOGO AND BENIN and fairly minor in Ghana…does this have to do with the country that colonized it?  I did notice many French vs. British influence in these three countries.

Continou (a bigger city than the capital)

Once we arrived to Continou we were set on trying to find our hotel.  We were staying in a German house that was recommended through our guide book.  The moto taxis ended up taking us to the German Embassy…BAHAHAHAHAHA…yep they sure did.  Then we had to explain it was a hotel NOT the Embassy.  Finally we made it to the hotel and go a room for the four of us (Avery, Katie, Emma, and I).  We went downstairs and talked to the owner about where he recommended we go for the rest of the day….Grande Marche it is then (the market that is KNOWN for the voodoo).

Fetish market (voodoo)

We spend 10-15 minutes talking to motos to try to find people that knew the French word for voodoo or fetish…it was not easy, but we found someone that FINALLY knew what we were talking about.  We hopped on and they took us to the biggest market in Benin (Continou is not that capital but is bigger than the capital).  Then the nice moto driver walked us ALL the way through the market to the fetish section (and then the jewelry section).  It was CRAZY TO SEE VOODOO IN ACTION.  It was gross to see dead monkey parts, caged birds, bagged snakes, and many other animal parts I could not label…OHHH and an elephant skull…questionable where they got that.  The moto driver was really into shoving live snakes and turtles into our faces.  The smell was a mix between rotten meat and vomit.  It clenched my stomach from the sights and smells.  I find voodoo culture fascinating…but some of the things are not easy to swallow.

Hamburgers, crepes, and pasteries from my dreams

After our trip to this curious market we found a restaurant near our hotel THAT HAD CHEESEBURGERS.  This was the first time I had a hamburger in 3 months so OF COURSE I DESTROYED IT and after Emma and I basket in the glory of French desserts having crepes and pastries. I feel asleep knowing my stomach was a good 3 times larger from that meal: content.  If you know me…you know I think through my stomach very often…probably WAY too often…but hey…It is indeed me.

Hotel du lac et la visité au Ganvie (Lake Hotel and the visit to Ganvie, a town ON STILTS)

The day before, we talked to the owner and he recommended this AMAZING TRIP to a stilt village.  We hopped on motos after another French pastry meal ready for an adventure.  We arrive at this VERY FANSY HOTEL…something WAY out of my budget range…AND waited for the rest of the tour group to arrive.  We were then led back to the back of the hotel that was connected to the river…which leads to the ocean.  This river connects a lake to the ocean and the stilt village, Ganvie, is in this lake.  We were taken by boat through the river to the lake and then all the way to the village.  The view was memorizing. I felt lost in a dream.  The locals have a huge assortment of traps for fish and shrimp.  They use wood to confuse and trap the fish over time.  It was the most creative way of fish that I have ever seen.  Once we started approaching the village I got an odd feeling that I was not suppose to be there.  Young kids would reach out there hands begging for bonbons and older people gave dirty looks not content with us there.  I felt like I was breaking into a house in the middle of the night waking up the rightful owners.  The town seemed very dependent on tourism, yet hated tourists.  I could understand that looking at a city near me—Estes Park, they rely on tourism, yet the hate it non-the-less.  Although I was invading this place is was beautiful to see.  Everyone got around by boat.  There were small four year old girls pulling themselves in wood canoes.  I have always wanted to go to a water based village (on my bucket list, and I have now).  But, I do wish I could see the village in a light was not so negatively geared towards us.  I would like to someday be embraced and introduced like I have been treated by many Ghanaians that I have made friendships with.  I see myself as a traveler, not a tourist…but I did not have enough time to show that to these people…another day…maybe I can show that to another group.

Coming back to Accra

After this eventful trip, we caught a taxi back to Lome and the a tro tro in Aflao all the way home.  We travel for 7 hours straight…let’s us say there was some heavy sleeping that night!  Traveling back in the dark, I looked up and realized…these stars…are similar everywhere…just like we all have something in common.  Akwaaba (I will go and come)…and it circles around connecting all of us.

PICTURES DURING THE WEEK WITH MY SISTER

It Takes Two: Twins Edition

Adventures with my sister, Mollie Rappe (who is 3 years older than me and is currently getting her PH. D, at Johns Hopkins NO BIG DEAL ☺).

So, while I was traveling Ghana with this girl that looks like me (my sister, Mollie), we were asked by EVERYONE if we were twins. This is why I picked “It Takes Two: Twins Edition.   Mollie and I are four years apart and have gone through stages where we look VERY similar and then other stages where we look COMPLETELY different.  To many Ghanaians we are alike.  This made Mollie and I laugh through out the ENTIRE adventure of her 6 days in Ghana.

My sister’s favorite Ghanaian song is “I Love My Life” by DeMarco…I recommend you tubing it.  It has similar lyrics to OneRepublic’s “Good Life” (which I adore…twins much?).

Our wonderful adventure truly made me LOVE MY LIFE.  Thank you Mollie for coming to visit.    I ate more than I ever have in the past three months…GLORIOUS!  She also picked up Twi VERY FAST.  She practically knew everything I knew by the end.  She was very friendly to ALL the Ghanaians I met.

Friday April 13 (I did not realize it was bad luck until now):

Airport pick up
So my whole day was focused on making sure I got to the airport on time to pick up my older (but littler) sister.  I went to the airport by taxi and wait anxiously for an hour and a half.  When I saw my sister come out of the security area, I sprinted towards her hugging her contently.  Boy do I love my sister.  It was so great to see someone I knew from before this experience.  She was very jittery as well.  Her smile was from ear to ear, happy that she made it to the continent of AFRICA.  We got a taxi back to ISH, I checked her in and then we made it all the way up to the fourth floor (where I live).  She unpacked and showed me the glory of her luggage…food, toilet paper, a tent and tarp, and donations for MOP…what more could a girl need.  Thank you Mollie and Carla (Mom) for getting all of this together. It was AMAZING to receive all these glorious gifts.

Guest House Haven
After this cheerful exchange my sister and I journeyed over to the Guest Center at the University of Ghana.  Where we checked in and then savored some fabulous A/C.  We were hungry and had a pineapple banana fruit salad and then some Ghanaian fried rice and chicken…SOOOOOOOOOOO GOOD ☺  I hadn’t had chicken since this last Easter Sunday.  I be LOVIN’ MEAT!  I think my sister was a little startled how I dominated that food…but hey sometimes you got to eat A LOT.  I happily dozed off knowing my sister was by my side.  She did not have the most successful sleep…but it was better than my first night here.
Saturday April 14
We woke up and ate a huge breakfast at the guest center…of eggs, toast, tea, and oats.  YUMMY!  And we started Mollie’s first day in Ghana.

Money Exchange: MOLLIE’S FIRST TRO-TRO RIDE
Mollie was up for a tro-tro ride (mini-buses that cram A LOT OF PEOPLE in a small space).  So we walked down to the bus station near my dorm and caught a tro-tro to the Accra Mall.  We went inside and waited a half hour for the exchange place to open (which was suppose to open at 9, we showed up at 9:30, and it did not open up until 10:00, WHAT A TIA MOMENT…perfect for my sister to experience).  We then caught a tro-tro back.  My sister thought they were very similar to the min-buses used in Turkey so it was not hard for her to adjust to.  SHE WAS SUCH A TROOPER!

Susan’s Wedding
We then prepared for Miss (now Mrs.) Susana’s Wedding.  My sister, on her first day her, got to experience a Ghanaian Wedding. ☺  She threw on a dress she made in junior high…and it still fit her…crazy.  And I put on the dress that Susana’s seamstress made.  It was BEAUTIFUL.  Emma, Katie, and I got our dresses made from her.  I AM SO PROUD OF MY CUSTOM MADE DRESS AND GHANAIAN FABRIC!  We hopped on a bus that ISEP provided for the wedding.  We made it to the church and enter.  It was beautiful.  Her color plan is orange, brown, and white.  The decorations were fabulous!  Susana looked BEAUTIFUL IN HER DRESS.  She lit up the ENTIRE ROOM!  As an amazing person that she is, this wedding was fitting, PERFECT.  There was music, singing, sermon, and all the other wedding traditions.  Then, at the reception, there was CAKE!  It was absolutely BEAUTIFUL!  I think everyone from ISEP enjoyed themselves.  Thank you Susana…SO MUCH FOR INVITING US TO THE WEDDING!  It was fabulous!

Indian Food Galore
After a glorious wedding, my sister, some of the ISEP peeps, and I went to Heritage the amazing and FABULOUS Indian restaurant.  We ate until we could not eat any more.  ☺  The butter chicken, basimati rice, and naan was to DIE FOR!  Although it was not Ghanaian…Indian food always is worth going for…no matter who is in town!  My sister and I happily fell asleep at the Guest Center excited for the next day of traveling.

Sunday April 15
Cape Coast Bound
So, my sister (Mollie), Katie, her boyfriend (Jamie), and I set off for Cape Coast early in the morning.  We took a tro tro to Kanishie where we found an air-conditioned van to Cape Coast.  It was a fairly easy process because we really lucked out in finding the van right away (it usually does not happen so easily…usually I search for a little while through the chaos of a tro tro station).  This van zipped on through and got us to Cape Coast in 2 hours.  SOOOO USUALLY IT TAKES 3 to 5 hours…and this guy made it in 2…Jamie and Mollie received a HUGE TREAT!

Sea lunch
We decided to have a lunch by Cape Coast Castle, right along the ocean.  While we were enjoying our meal, a little boy was walking along the beach and put an old palm tree log up.  He climbed up the log and did a flip off of it.  Of course the Americans that we are, we applauded loudly and cheered for him.  He ate this up like there was no tomorrow.  He then told us to watch and he did several flip tricks and disappeared.  Several minutes later, he reappeared with several of his friends.  They performed for a little while showing their gymnastics moves.  Now what they did took me YEARS TO DO…and they did it with ease on a beach.  They were adorable and a fantastic show.  I talked to them afterwards to double check they were still going to school…because as a future teacher…that is VERY IMPORTANT! ☺

Elmina Castle
We hopped into a taxi and went to a nearby city to see the first castle EVER BUILT in West Africa.  It was spectacular!  It was fun to explore something that created history with my sister.  The view of the city was wonderful and made me feel like a bird over the whole of Ghana.

Crocodile Dinner
We then caught a tro tro to a botel that was right next to a crocodile pond.  While on this tro tro we were asked for the first time if my sister and I were twins…HOW CUTE! ☺  We ate a lunch while watching the crocodiles laze around under the sun.  After our meal we ran into a lady that feeds the crocodiles.  She said we could touch the baby crocodile.  I thought…NO WAY!  But we did….besides my sister.  By the time my sister came to touch the crocodile it had moved into the water.  The crocodile lady was convinced to have my sister touch one that we went over to the HUGE crocodile.  This was probably the biggest crocodile I have ever seen.  My sister approached it and touched it.  I was shouting nervously the entire time convinced she would get attacked and we would end up in the hospital…but she was fine.  So in the end all four of us touched a wild crocodile. ☺

Kakum night
After that, we got a taxi to Kakum National Park, where we stayed the night.  My sister and I brought a tent (she brought it all the way from America) so we could go camping in the forest.  It turns out that it is more expensive to camp then stay in the hotel…ODD!  So we decided to stay in the hotel since my sister was experiencing some Ghana tummy.  We sat outside while the darkness took over us.  We saw tropical lightening bugs and the forest sounds encircled us.  We slept in the tropical heat, getting ready for an adventurous next day.

Monday April 16
Canopy Walk- one of four in the world…and the ONLY IN AFRICA
We woke up and chomped down on a granola bar. We then voyaged up to the National Park area where the canopy walk was.  We waited for an hour while the guide prepared for the tour.  We then hiked up to the site.  Katie and I had already been there once with ISEP, but this canopy walk is sometime I could do daily!  IT IS BREATH TAKING!  My sister and I climbed on through gasping at the sights the entire way.  My sister constantly said, “I am in the rain forest!” She indeed was.    I did not want the canopy walk to end…it was too BEAUTIFUL TO END!

Mrs. Doolittle: Monkey Forest Resort
After the breath-taking walk we stopped on by a monkey reserve.  This reserve is run by a Dutch couple who take care of animals that are hurt or injured until they are ready to go back into the wild.  The animals were adorable.  There were several species of cats, an antelope, an anaconda, many species of monkeys, turtles, crocodile babies, and a beautiful view at the top of the reserve.  The couple was very friendly and it made me hopeful for the future wildlife in the central region of Ghana.

Krokobite
After this cute animal experience, we took the same taxi ALL the way to Krokobite.  He met us at the crocodile botel and was our driver the entire way.  He was very friendly and nice.  He enjoyed my Twi, but was not afraid to take advantage of the price to get everywhere.  We had a blissful ride and savored the carefree breeze.  When we finally made it Krokobite, we ate at the FAMOUS Italian restaurant.  I had an ENTIRE pizza to my self…hehehehehehehe.  We then moved over to Big Milly’s where my sister and I booked a reservation.  Their conditions were HORRIBLE for the dorms…so we headed back to the Italian place for the night.  Their accommodations and food are BY FAR THE BEST I HAVE HAD IN AFRICA!  The owners were very friendly…and they also made amazing smoothies. :D  My sister and I explored the beach and had a relaxing night reading and sleeping.

Tuesday April 17
Rain Adventures
The next morning my sister and I ate at Big Milly’s because the Italian restaurant was closed for the day.  After a big meal of pancakes and oatmeal, my sister and I decided to walk along the beach.  Little did we know, a storm was coming.  This storm pushed us into a little shop where we talked to the owners for a little while.  It got so bad that we went to their “house” (a not finished house).  After talking with them for an hour we decided we should probably go to Big Milly’s and get some hot chocolate (Milo, Ghanaian hot chocolate)…this was indeed the start of the rainy season.  This was the first time I was genuinely cold.  My sister spent an hour sipping hot coco and smiling…ohhhh Africa.  We watched about 6 children play in the lake of rain…it reminded me of the blissfulness of childhood.  The beach changed colors throughout the morning, from bright blue, to gray, to brown and dark blue.  Oh the beach…it changes so much.  There were peace corps volunteers that just got evacuated from Mali there.  I was able to chat with them and ask any questions I had.  They really helped me decide…I will apply for the Peace Corps. ☺  Then, the rain stopped and my sister and I headed back to the Italian place.  We packed up and caught a tro tro back to Accra.

Travel Back to Accra: coconuts and ALL
The tro tro took a very different way back to Accra.  We followed to coast for about an hour.  We saw a truck stuck in the mud and smelled the freshness of rain in Ghana. ☺  We got dropped at Kinishe and pushed on through the market…stepping in very gross mud along the way.  Who knows what was in this mud that smelled like poo.  We got a coconut for my sister to try…and SHE LOVED IT! ☺ And got a tro tro that dropped us at the university.  Along the way, several people asked us if we were twins…nope just sisters.

Dinner and Savanna Dry ☺
We went to ISH and repacked for another night at Guest Services.  While we passed the night market, we were asked if we were twins by two little girls…maybe we are twins?  We picked up Savanna Dries (Ghanaian hard cider) and ate a fruitful meal at Guest Services.   It was a very wonderful meal and sadly the last night with my sister.  I savored every moment in the A/C…knowing my next time is in 6 weeks.

Wednesday April 18
Durbar Breakfast
My sister and I woke up knowing…this was her last day in Ghana…sad bear ☹…but luckily there was a conference at the guest center so her and I had a buffet breakfast…FREE ☺ Yum Yum Yum.  She even got to try the local coco (a grounded cassava porridge).

Medina Market
We hopped on a tro tro and went to the closest market.  We got fabric, chocolate, and a necklace for my sister.  I think she enjoyed the hectic vibes of Medina…it is always intense.

MOP: Hot Potato, Flute Lesson and Gift Giving
After our market trip, we hopped on over to MOP and spent two hours there.  We played hot potato, which the kids LOVED!  My sister enjoyed interacting with these ADORABLE KIDS.  Then, Mollie gave the class a flute lesson and taught them how to blow into a flute…ADORABLE!  They were so focused and serious about it.  And then, my sister and I gave a gift to almost everyone (the other people got candy) and they showed it off with pride.  These kids have made my experience in Africa…the best experience of my life and showing my sister this was the BEST!

Fly away home
Then, I took my sister to the airport…sad and down that she was leaving.  I only get to see her 10 days out of the year…so each moment is VERY special!


Food and Drinks She Tried:
Tiger Nuts (they taste like a mix between almonds and coconuts)
Red-Red (fried plantains and bean stew, the sauce in the stew is from palm oil)
Chicken and fried rice with shito (spicey sauce)
Many different glace bottled sodas
Blue Sky (the BEST DRINK IN GHANA, fresh pineapple and other fruit juices…better than naked juice!)
Pineapple, banana, and coconut freshly blended smoothie (we cut up the fruit and blended it together)
Plantain Chips (fried plantain cut just like potato chips)
Fandango (Bagged fruit juice)
FanYogo (Bagged yogurt)
Groundnut Soup with rice (like peanut soup)
Bean stew and gari (gari is grounded cassava)
Coco (gari porridge)
Milo (Ghanaian hot chocolate)
Ghanaian Chocolate
Savanna Dry (Ghanaian Hard Cider)
(I may have forgotten some…sorry Mollie)

After my sister left…I went on a bit of an adventure…this IS NOT RECOMMENDED BY ANY MEANS!  I got over charged (30 CD) for a taxi and was really angry…so I turned away from the driver and went down to the first bus stop.  The only problem with this was…it was indeed crunch time (aka rush hour) so getting any transportation was rare.  Then, I decided to go to the next bus stop…and it was super busy there as well…and then the next as well.  So then I realized…every bus stop is going to be too crazy…I might as well walk home…as a girl…by myself…at dark….YA THIS IS NOT A GOOD IDEA…WHAT WAS I THINKING?  Well, I made it back in one piece and did not have anything stolen from me.  I, in fact, made friends with 3 different Ghanaian guys that gave me their numbers and proposed to me…even though I told them I had a boy friend back home…BAHAHAHAHAHAHA…it is really funny when 3 different people do the same thing within 10 minutes of meeting another person.  At one point…I was about to cross a very busy street and I turned to the guy next to me and said, “We are not going to be able to cross…are we?” And he said, “We will make it happen.”  Ya this is a BAD SIGN…NEVER FOLLOW SOMEONE THAT SAYS THAT! Well, we did cross…but we almost got hit by a car that was rushing at us. It was beautiful once we got to the other side because we turned to each other and just laughed our butts off…we may not come from the same country or speak each other’s languages well…but every human has a connection…one way or another.  I may have been down after saying good-bye to my sister…but Ghanaian brought me up: with their spirit and unique behaviors.  Thank you Ghana for a wonderful…and never dull experience…thus far.

We will ARISE

There is a song that the MOP kids sing on Friday that goes by “we will arise” and it makes me think it is perfect for the second part of my four-day weekend. Another song fitting for this occasion is “Raise It Up” by the IMPACT Repertory Theatre and Jamia Simone Nash from the motion picture August Rush. This song just gives a glimpse into the service I experienced. 

Easter Sunday with Anita, my AMAZING ROOMMATE

So my wonderful roommate invited me along to her church service. I have been to her church once before for a wedding, but this indeed was a new experience. Before we set off, I got myself a VERY fruitful breakfast of bottled strawberry yogurt and some Kashi Go Lean Crunch (from wonderful Michael’s package…thank you Michael ). It was indeed a very nice Easter treat.

After this breakfast, we headed to the church, attempting for a tro tro and then ended up just going for a cab. The church was not packed at all when we got there. There were about 50 people (when the church can fit a couple thousand). They were ALL wearing white. I would have felt VERY out of place, if it weren’t for my roommate and her friend wearing other colors. I decided to wear one of my Ghanaian dresses, proudly showing how I am embracing the culture.

The service started with some singing that was half in Twi and half in English. I actually enjoyed the Twi more because I had an excuse to sit back and listen to everyone sing. Ghanaians can truly sing AMAZINGLY. It is breathtaking absorbing their power and beautiful voices. By the time we finished the music the room had filled up very quickly. There were about 500 people at the end of this singing section.

Then, the service broke in to a sermon with the story of Easter. It was interesting seeing how Ghanaians emphasize different parts of the Bible than some churches I have been to at home. Their conviction and passion was clearly evident, though. As I look back to the congregation (we were in the very front, which made for a VERY LOUD service) it had seemed to grow REALLY FAST. There were about 3000 people shoved into the church.

Then my FAVORITE PART OF THE SERVICE…which Anita said, “brought light to my face instantly”…was the children’s part of the service. The children’s choir performed two songs. It was EXACTLY like the children’s choir back in Fort Collins at First United Methodist Church. The little kids had no clue what was happening so they danced around and waved at their parents. The older kids had access to the microphones and shouted out the lyrics. The only difference between these kids and the kids from home is these kids in Ghana had AMAZING VOICES! It was indeed adorable. I had a Ghana moment, where I realized I am indeed in Ghana, Africa, listening to a beautiful children’s choir.

After the choir, a group of 6th or 7th graders put on a play. They had a Jesus and some disciples. It was really an interpretive dance where they wore all white and danced around Jesus who was sitting in a chair. It was very endearing with the blissful joy and pride of these kids performing, shinning through. Once these little performers ended, two other kids took the stage and did a little bit of Bible reading. One of the two, memorize a Bible verse, which he shakily said, but was completely successful, which aroused a large applause from the audience.

After the gleeful children’s section, the pastor took the stage and gave a very long sermon, but his conviction, authority, and passion gave me goose bumps. I felt like I was in one of those services on television (where many people flip on through thinking, wow that is really intense). There was another round of singing, which I actually ended up knowing some of the songs…VERY EXCITING! After this singing, there was another song performed, a birthday song. Apparently every week people are wished happy birthday from the church and one of the birthdays was Anita’s mother.

Then, the children were brought onto stage and each given an egg, for what Christ had done for them. Imagine a child in the United States just getting an egg for Easter…what greed and materialism has our country turned into. I indeed enjoyed this escape from materialism, but also dreaded the idea of returning to it. The real and sincere joy that was put on the children’s faces, made me realize how wonderful this Easter is. I looked down at my watch; we began at 9 am and now it was 1pm…no wonder I was STARVING.

I met Anita’s mother after church. This lady ran a school in her house and raised a wonderful and caring daughter. She was joyous and full of energy. She gave Anita some money and told us to go out for a lunch. AND SO WE DID!  We went to this nice place that had great chicken and fried rice (Ghanaian fried rice…very different than Chinese fried rice). I ate hungrily gleeful taking in protein for the first time in a while.

The rest of the day I just relaxed and skyped my family and boy friend. Happy late Easter! 


Reading…the entertainment of Ghana: over the semester I have learned what to fill with my time. There are times when I have too many things to do and others where I am not sure what to fill it with. When I do have that time, I tend to fill it with naps, reading, and watching movies. My top 6 favorite books thus far this semester are:

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, a great read about a family divided by a lie and how the lie unfolds. For people interested in Downs Syndrome , this is a very great read.

Water for Elephants, a book donated to me by the wonderful Mrs. Gardner, I read VERY quickly. I was hesitant at first; already seeing the movie, but indeed it was a fabulous read.

The Three Hunger Games, A GREAT SERIES! I loved each one and it seemed to be the perfect series to keep me hooked while there were little lows throughout the weeks. I am really bummed there are only three though. I CAN’T wait to see the movie in theatres…that is on my to do list when I get back.

AND NOW MY MOTHER’S BOOK Lesserblood Lies by Ainsley Davidson…something my parents gave me on audio before I left. I avoided it at first…not wanting my view to change of my mother. I decided to just go for it…and it was A WONDERFUL CHOICE. I truly RECOMMEND THIS BOOK! My mother, Carla Casewit, is an amazing author and writer and I will forever be proud of her writing after this book.

The MOP building site: if Sunday was not enough to cheer me up, Monday, Katie, Emma and I went to the Mavuwio’s Outreach Program building site. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera so I did not get to record the adventure, but it was AMAZING! Many of the students will be moving to the Eastern Region for a new school in September. The construction looked amazing and this school seems to be the PERFECT THING. Less distractions and more focus on academics is what they need. I am ever so proud of Kuami and Renee for getting this place build…VERY PROUD! This remote location, will allow for the rural area to have their kids go to school as well. There was a pond next to the school…clearly the perfect calling. Hehehehe 

My first U of G internal exam, paper, and dance critique: as this semester gears toward the last couple of weeks, I got several assignments. I had an internal exam last Monday in my Africa 1500-1800 course. I wrote a paper about the colonization of South Africa. This paper was very simple and it felt odd to not analyze…but indeed that is what the professor wanted. I then had a paper due a couple days ago for my Introduction to Resource Analysis geography class. This paper was hard to write. I had no motivation to write it…but I finished it in time. All my friends who have had papers all got mixed results (A through D)…so I wonder how this paper will go. And lastly, we had a dance critique to write for my dance class. This was a breeze to right…besides the fact I did not go to the dance performance because I was told about the paper AFTER the performance was over…hahahaha typical Ghanaian moment.

On the subject of classes, I am enjoying my classes, but I am lost or bored in several of them. For example, my Islam in Ghana class we learn about 20 new names and terms each week…so it is really confusing! I find my two history classes interesting…but pretty simple. My dance class is WONDERFUL! We have started working on our third dance…and it is my favorite BY FAR! I really would love to start some African dancing back at school…because it is something everyone should experience.

Water out and first bucket shower…as I come back from dance class yesterday all sweaty and soaked…of course the water is out in my dorm. See, every time it happens I never need to shower, so I have never bucket showered…but indeed I took my first one last night. It was not bad at all. I did not mind it. It was fun to use the last of the water and dump it over my head.  There is a first for everything isn’t there?

The Ghanaian Diet

My preference and diet has changed throughout the course of the semester. When I first got here, the sauces and meals were not that appealing for me. The first week of food provided…was okay at the time…but would have been GLORIOUS if I had those things now. I would eat like that…if I wanted to lose all my money.

I enjoy all the sauces, stews , and some of the Ghanaian dishes I thought I would never enjoy. I love fufu now (which is pounded cassava…but not fermented). I still don’t like kenke or banku…but maybe by the end of semester I will. Red-red (as Kathrine and Rachel told me, shout out to both of you ) is my favorite dish. This is fried plantain and a bean stew. I learned how to make it…so we shall see…maybe I’ll make it back at school someday. I LOVE sausage here and found a new wonderful creation of sausage and Ramin Noodles (Ramin like thing). Homemade pasta sauce with pasta is a usual. (We make the pasta sauce with tomatoes, onions, garlic, tomato paste, and CHEESE (which Lisa has let us use so many times.)) Jolif and Watche was once something I had all the time the first two months…but not something I have anymore…sometimes you can just have too much of something.

Once in a while I will go out and eat somewhere nice with some of my friends…which is always the highlight of a week. While traveling, the food is always up in the air…making my stomach very strong in the last couple months. I was a very needy individual before Ghana with food…and now I have learned to adjust without it at times.  (Don’t worry I am NOT starving myself hahahaha…BELIEVE ME I AM EATING MORE THAN ENOUGH). But, as Rachel warned me…I indeed have one very large meal every day and smaller meals throughout the day. Egg sandwiches (with “cheese” it is something that Heather Newell would consider real cheese, it is this non-refrigerated cheese), bananas, ground nuts, and WONDERFUL REAL SUGARED SODA happens daily.

WITH EVERY HIGH, THERE IS A LOW

Early this week, once I came back from the Western Region, there seemed to be a bit of a problem with my stools. There were white chunks in them (sorry for the graffic description…I promise it will be over soon). So out of fear I went to a clinic to just get checked out. The odd thing was, I did not fee sick at all…at this point. So the doctor gave me some antibiotics and sent me on my way. I felt VERY PROUD because I did the ENTIRE HOSPITAL VISIT…ALL BY MYSELF. I took the pills reluctantly because I had to take two pills four times a day (six am, noon, six pm, and midnight). I was hopefully I would heal with easy because Katie, Emma, Avery, and I have been planning a trip to Togo and Benin for quiet some time. Other things seemed to delay our leaving…making it a Thursday instead of a Wednesday…but Thursday morning at 1:30 in the morning…I woke up in a rage of heat. I feverishly found my thermometer hidden in my dresser and took my temperature only to find that my temperature ranged from 100.2 to 100.5. Not able to make sense of my temperature, I called my parents back in the states asking them to make sense of these numbers through my painful sobs of heat confusion. My mom told me to go to the hospital tonight. I reluctantly woke up Emma, who was an AMAZING TROPPER! She held my hand the entire way. (THANK YOU EMMA!)

So the adventure that started around 1:00am ended at 5:00am…goodness! Oddly the hospital was faster in the dead of night…BECAUSE NOBODY IS THERE. I diagnosed with tonsillitis and a bacteria infection. BOOOOOOOO. I have never been this sick in the United States (sick 3 times in the course of two months). I added more antibiotics to my diet and for the next couple of days went in and out of sleeping eating, and trying to acknowledge other people’s existence.

If I have ever had a low…this was it. I found myself in tears over silly things…from not being able to eat solid food or wanting to just go home and have any type of food at my fingertips. Making it through made me realize how sensitive and fragile all our lives our. I am truly grateful for my support system in Ghana, in the United States, and across the world.

On a happy note, I will be seeing my sister in exactly 6 days! ☺ So hopefully my healing up is successful! ☺

WESTERN REGION...A NEW FOUND HAVEN

Journey to the Western Region: this is honestly one of the best trips I have done so far in Ghana. Before this trip I had a nasty adventure at the post office trying to get a package and I ended up getting red listed…I am not sure what this means…but hopefully my next package will go through. The person I went to the post office will yelled at the workers…and they vengefully tried to get me back by having me apologize for a half hour and then convince them that I do respect them. oHHH GHANA…so this weekend was the EXACT PICK ME UP I NEEDED.

Tro-tro to Takoradi: So we left a little late from our destination (ISH), and ended up at Takoradi at 9:30pm at night. Luckily our hotel was RIGHT NEXT TO THE STOP…so we did not have to worry about wandering an unknown city.

Dinner at North Sea Restaurant: We (Katie, Avery. Lisa, Emma, and I were all on the trip) DISCOVERED A restaurant right next to the hotel that served PIZZA! Yes, any opportunity I have to eat pizza…I do…BECAUSE IT IS AMAZING! ;) AND I MISS CHEESE LIKE CRAZY (I understand your pain Heather…just a little bit). The owner was from somewhere in Europe and gave us a student discount…WE SAVED 4 CD ON THE MEAL…SCORE!

Night at Mosden Hotel LTD. So we check into the hotel for the night and the main man said we could not stay the night claiming that five people in a room is a violation. We convinced him we are only staying one night and we promise never to do it again…so stay the night with two beds we did. ☺ Wonderful Lisa slept on the floor using sofa cushions as a bed and the rest of us shared the two twin beds. It was a rough night. I forgot how rocky sometimes you sleep when you travel. We dragged ourselves out of bed the next mornings looking for food and bus tickets.

Morning rise for STC tickets and a GLORIOUS BREAKFAST: We found the STC bus station and bought tickets for the next day so we would get back to Accra with speedy efficiency. After writing down all our names and finally getting the tickets we found a Ghanaian lady that made egg sandwiches AND MILO (this is the hot chocolate of Ghana but is way more creamier and super yummy). The egg sandwich bread was to DIE FOR, she put so many veggies on the egg sandwich, AND HER MILO WAS HEAVENLY CREAMY! This was fo show an omen that this weekend was going to be a great one. ☺

Journey to Agona: So we found the tro-tro station, only a couple blocks from the hotel, and got in a tro-tro to Agona. This small town is the main transporter to all the small villages that we had hopped to travel to. We sat in the tro-tro for about n hour waiting for it to fill up. One thing I have noticed that has changed about me, is the patience I have acquired with waiting here. An hour seems like nothing here, but in the United States it seems like SO MUCH. Anyways…when the tro-tro is finally loaded we hop on our way to Agona.

Journey to Butre: from Agona we get another tro-tro to Butre (one of the small towns on the Western coast of Ghana). The journey there is on a bit of a rough road, but very beautiful rain forest/beach foliage. We arrive to the small town and are hearded to the tourist booth. You see, when someone arrives in this small town and they are clearly a foreigner they will be brought to the tourist venue. We paid 5 CD to see the local fort. The view of the ocean from the village was breath-taking…but the view from the top of the fort was even better.

Old Greg (SHOUT OUT TO MY DAD ANTHONY RAPPE….sorry I had to do it)…not really but Fort Batenstein. The hike up this hill, the highest point in the area, was liberating. Our view seemed like it should be in a guidebook as a must see destination. I felt like I was on one of those travel channels showing the beauty within. I was COMPLETELY SPEACHLESS AT THE BEAUTY…and so was the rest of the group. We had two young men give us a tour of the place…giving us no history but honestly there for pictures. So we of course took advantage of the situation and got some pretty spectacular pictures. The great thing about paying to see this fort is the money goes directly to the community for them to benefit. Since it is such a rural area I know they will enjoy the benefits.

Walk to Busua: we had a debate as a group whether to wait for a tro-tro or go out and walk on a mysterious footpath to Busua, the next town westward. Knowing me, I was pushing for the walking…always up for a little hike. ☺ We decided to go for it and walked about 2 km to the next town. We hiked up the next major hill and found ourselves hiking through a BEAUTIFUL forest, with butterflies and all. ☺ This defines my happiness of the weekend. I dearly miss nature when I am in a big city and this, my friends, COMPLETED ME. ☺ Although the heat and humid was strong…the nature out powered all these concerns.

Lunch at Okorye Tree: We made it Busua and were DETERMINED to find the EPIC BURRITO JOINT. We have heard from MANY people that this join is the best decision ever….we intersected with the juice man of the town. He made us fresh pineapple, orange, ad mango juice. So most of us bought burritos and drank glorious juice. This was a real natural haven. What could be better? My mother always used the saying…”drinking mint juleps”, when she was very busy with something…but I really did feel like I was on a BEAUTIFUL VACATION. Granted, this vacation required a lot of roughing it…but the sights we saw were wonderful. There was a PRECIOUS CAT at this restaurant that we obsessed over. The problem with dogs here is we avoid petting them…just in case they have rabies…you can never know. And since most of us did not get the rabies shots…we did not want to endure the terror that is rabies. Anyways, so seeing a cat was refreshing and we LOVED IT!

Walk to Delightful Dixcove: After our bellies were wonderfully full we decided to walk to our next destination to Dixcove. We crossed a bridge over a stream that connects fresh water with ocean water. These rivers fascinate me…being land locked my entire life. This was another delightful walk up another hill and to a bit larger of a village, rather a small town. Their port was breathtaking. Something so simple in the eyes of a native is something so capturing I just wanted to say and consume the organic qualities.

Fort Metal Cross: we find the fort by looking for the highest point. This fort is very different than the other one in Butre with it updated with a layer of white paint constantly. The other fort was falling to pieces and was clearly never treated to. This fort had kids playing around up in it…playing their typical African game of football (American soccer). The vivid whiteness with the surrounding green (plants) and blue (ocean) makes for another mind-blowing view. We decided not to go inside this fort because the money did not seem to go to the locals that needed, but rather the local elite…which is something I firmly disagree with…but VERY prevalent in Ghana.

Green Turtle Lodge: sadly the walk to our next destination was not appropriate to our time schedule…it was a 10 km walk…which is honestly not that bad…but we needed to get to the lodge before it was dark. So we hopped into a cab and had him guide us to this raved about hotel. This lodge’s commitment to the environment is truly refreshing. This Green Turtle Lodge run by am English couple is all solar power and pays local fisherman to save the sea turtles they catch in their nets. The lodge was a very decorative place, but a bit of a reference to camping. In my opinion, this place was the best of both worlds. We fell asleep to the sounds of the ocean crashing. Our view of the ocean felt like it was out of a world traveler book…nothing real…just imaginative. Yet, here I was, a college student wanting an adventure for a semester…experiencing this blissful beauty.

Akwidaa and the Mangrove Lagoon: The next morning we rise early hoping for another adventure: canoeing down a lagoon. We were told by one of the Green Turtle Lodge employees to walk to the next town, which was 1km away from the lodge and meet up with a man on the beach. I was thinking…how are we going to find this Ghanaian? Ya, what was I thinking…of course he was just looking for the Obrunis out of place walking towards the town. Of course the first Ghanaian guy we see we try to walk away from because we receive so many taunts from Ghanaians that they should not be easily trusted, specially with five girls. But, indeed he was the tour guide. We walk to the river and find a canoe ready for us. We hop in and he begins the tour. We go out for 45 minutes and 45 minutes back. He points out all different kinds of birds, fish, crabs and plants (specifically the plentiful amount of mangroves). This was yet again an AMAZING SITE. The water, the sky, the trees, and the animals made for a spectacular canoe trip. As discussed with everyone in the group, I honestly can’t describe the experience and give it the needed justice…but indeed IT WAS ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL. I felt like I was in a dream…hoping it would never end. Saddly, it did…and with it ending required the journey back to Accra.

Long Journey back to Accra with a friend from BOULDER along the way: So it took about 9 hours to get completely back to our “home city”. Granted we had a two-hour wait in Takoradi bus station. At this bus station I had a pleasant conversation with a man from Poland thinking about spending 5 more years in Ghana (he has been here for about 4 months)…DANG TALK ABOUT A LONG TIME. I think the PC (Peace Corps) is a long time…then I got to reconsider…hahahaha ☺

On the way back to Accra we stopped in Cape Coast and picked up more people. I ended up sitting next to a man from Boulder…NO JOKE! For non-Coloradoans…this is a city in Colorado about an hour away from my hometown, Fort Collins. He was in Ghana for 10 days working with a school for Autism in Ghana. He has started a Non-profit school in Denver…and working on starting one in Boulder. I believe they are called the Josuha Tree schools…sorry if I spelled it wrong. But before this, he worked in the public school system. Needless to say…we TALKED THE ENTIRE TIME. Me being a future teacher and pretty liberal…we connected greatly. I hope to tour this school sometime in the future because awareness and understanding of different students is critical in becoming a teacher. This trip was FABULOUS ALL AROUND! ☺

On a bit more of a startling light…there is a cholera outbreak on our school’s campus…YES A CHOLERA OUTBREAK! There are signs posted everywhere warning people to be very smart about where and what they eat. After being sick twice already in Ghana I plan on trying to avoid this outbreak. It is scary though…this sickness hits you fast…and long hospital hours while needing to rush to the bathroom all the time…IS NOT A GOOD IDEA.

Pictures from Western Region