Covered in Speckles

I woke up covered in speckles from head to toe on Wednesday morning. I noticed them on my legs first, then my arms, and then my belly. At first I brushed it off; I guess it was just easier not to think about it. We were planning to leave for our trip to Togo and Benin that afternoon and getting sick would just complicate everything. I walked over to the ISEP office that afternoon to pick up my passport, but Susan wasn’t back with it yet and called to tell me she would drop it off at our dorm. I walked back to our dorm hoping for a quick nap before Susan came with my passport and we left. I was so weak by the time I made it back to ISH. It was so hard to get out of bed to meet everyone downstairs. I finally lost it. I broke down and started crying. Susan was running late with my passport, everyone was waiting on me, and I was covered in speckles. We made a new plan to leave the next morning in order to give me time to see how I felt. There is a group of Canadian nurses that are staying in ISH and one of them came and looked at my rash. He said he was pretty sure it was just heat rash. The only thing that doesn’t make sense about that is the night it showed up it had stormed and was really cold. It helped ease my mind a little bit, but I was still scared. My skin was really hot and I had a temp of 99.5 at that point. I went upstairs to take a cold shower and lay down for a little while. I didn’t take my temperature again that night, but I wish I would have. My skin was on fire, yet I was still really cold. I laid in bed in a sweatshirt and wrapped in my blanket. I decided to take one more cold shower to help with the temperature before I went to bed. It was a really short shower because I ended up shaking uncontrollably and was so cold. I went right to sleep and woke up at about 1am and my fever had broken. I woke up in the morning to a text message from Emma saying that Kelly got sick in the middle of the night and they went to the hospital. Kelly had tonsillitis and wouldn’t be going to Togo/ Benin. I finally decided I wouldn’t go either, and so we decided to reschedule the trip for another weekend. I decided to go to the Doctor on Thursday afternoon. She prescribed me with cream and allergy pills for an allergic reaction. She also gave me her phone number for over the weekend, which made me wonder if she was a little concerned about it. She also told me I would need to come back in on Tuesday, when they opened after the Easter weekend, if it hadn’t gone away.  I’m not sure if going to the Doctor made me feel better or worse. Either way, it started to go away on Friday morning, and it is nearly nonexistent now- whatever it was. If it was an allergic reaction, I have no idea to what. I’m just glad it’s gone. All and all, once the rash started to disappear, it ended up being a relaxing weekend. I needed a little retail therapy, so we did a little shopping in Accra and I work on my souvenir list. I’m glad Jamie will be here in less than a week, Ghana and all of its excitement is getting to me. I need a little bit of home, for my sanity. My sanity probably took the biggest hit this weekend. Coming from experience, it’s a little scary to be covered in speckles in a developing country where serious illnesses aren’t uncommon.

A few of my favorite moments at Mawuvio's

I’ve been volunteering at Mawuvio’s Outreach Programme for over two months now. It takes up most of my time; I go there about three days a week for over four hours. It has been one of the most rewarding experiences I have ever had and I wanted to share some of my favorite moments with you.

One of my first days at Mawuvio’s working with Reuben and Randolf I remember trying to explain when I would be back next. We hadn’t gone over the days of the week, and I could tell they had no idea what I was saying when I said I would be back on Thursday. As I walked off with Renee, Reuben got my attention and asked how many days until I would be back. It made me so happy because I knew that he wanted me to come back.

Another one of my favorite moments was when they were showing me their artwork. They are both great artists and have many drawings. Randolf pulled out a picture of two boys he had drawn, and it was clear that it was him and his brother Reuben. He was so proud of that picture too, more proud than he was of any of the others.

We took a walk one day just around the school. At this point I was still trying to figure out where their signing abilities were. I would point to things and sign them; eventually they started to do the same. We pointed out colors, flowers, trees, bicycles, and many other things. We came to a tree that had flowers in it and Reuben picked one for me with a big smile on his face. I put it in my hair with delight.

One day I had my camera with and really wanted a picture with them. I had my friend, Kelly, take a few pictures. We did a smiley one, and then a silly one. They are such funny boys. But then, later, when we were working on some math problems Randolf taps me on my shoulder and points to my bag. He signed camera, with a big smile on his face; some goats were passing in front of the school. I handed him me camera and he took off after them snapping pictures. It was cute, but it didn’t stop there. I had such a hard time trying to get him to sit back down and look through books with me. It’s just so hard to get mad at them—I have such a soft spot. By the end of the day I probably had 20 pictures of random things like chickens, goats, and trees.

They also make me laugh a lot—One day we were looking through a book and there was a picture of a boy with his bottom showing, something similar to the coppertone babies. Well, Randolf starts giggling and writes Reuban’s name next to the picture of the boy in the book. Reuben starts laughing too trying to erase his name and write Randolf’s.

There are so good together.. Reuben is the smiley, happy go-lucky one. While Randolf is the more serious, but still has a great sense of humor, older brother. They have such character and really are great kids. I wish I could give them the world.

STRIKE!- YIKES!

I haven’t had class yet this week… Want to know why? The professors at the University of Ghana are on strike! When we first arrived the technicians were on strike, which meant none of the professors had microphones. That strike only lasted a week, so hopefully this one doesn’t last too long. Not having class is nice, but I don't like the idea of the strike lasting too long.  From what I hear if it lasts 21 days they end the semester and we could potentially go home with no credit. If it last for a few weeks we may have to stay longer to make up the time. Neither of these situations would make me happy. I’ve been told this happened three years ago and lasted for almost 21 days. The semester was going to last longer than expected, but international students were able to take their finals early and head home on time. Here is a news article about it… from the sounds of everything they are striking to get higher wages because it is an election year.

http://www.africanews.com/site/Ghana_University_lecturers_to_strike/list_messages/34630

My 21st Birthday!

I’ve never been one to have a birthday week, usually a day is enough for me, but this year I got one. My birthday festivities began on Wednesday night the 14^th. We went out to dinner to an Indian Restaurant to celebrate before my friend Emma left for Rome. We ended up having a rather large group go with and luckily, but maybe not so luckily, caught a trotro to Osu. It was lucky in a sense because that never happens, trotros going to Osu are almost always full, and there were almost ten of us. But it was unlucky in the sense that it may have been a better idea to take a taxi because we didn’t really know where we were going and spent at least 45 minutes walking around searching for the restaurant. But we saved a cedi or so per person by taking the trotro, so that’s a plus. Once we got to the restaurant, we waited forever, which wasn’t anything new but after searching so long to find the restaurant I was starving. Patience is a virtue that I am defiantly being taught by Ghana. The food was amazing though and was almost worth the wait. On the way home we took a taxi out of Osu. Osu is a rich tourist area of Accra and this is why the road leaving Osu is lined with prostitutes. A car in front of our taxi had stopped and was talking to a couple of the women. Our taxi driver honked his horn for them to get out of the way and the car kept driving. The women screamed and cursed at our taxi driver.

On Friday night we went to a theatre production on campus that my friend Patrick preformed in. It was really interesting to watch a Ghanaian play. The play was called “The Father” and was about a man that wasn’t certain if his child was actually his or not. It was filled with sexist comments. In addition the comments by the audience at numerous points throughout the play caught me by surprise. It was an experience in itself. Afterwards we went to Jerry’s a small bar located close to campus. There was no green beer, but I did get my birthday shot at midnight.

On Saturday morning we left for Kokrobite. We got there around noon and checked into our room at Big Milly’s. I had rented the house which sleeps 10/12 people. It was so charming. It had a loft that had bunk beds and a balcony going outside. The downstairs had more bunk beds and a master sweet. It had African murals painted on the walls, I just loved it. We had lunch at the restaurant which is right on the beach. While we were eating the sky got very dark and it looked like it was going to rain, but never did. Which I’m learning is fairly common in Ghana. It did stay fairly cloudy though. We spent a little while sitting on the beach and relaxing before dinner. We had dinner at this great Italian Restaurant. And you know the best part, I got chocolate cake! It was to die for too, very gooey with chocolate syrup and bananas. After dinner we had a few drinks on our balcony and went to Reggae night. Big Milly’s has a live band every Saturday night. It was fun and entertaining. I also spent some time standing in the ocean watching the tide come in; which was the best part of my birthday. I had one of the moments that I have from time to time here, where I can’t believe I’m in Africa.

The next day we got breakfast and then spent the rest of the day on the beach. I bought a few souvenirs at the shops along the shore. I got my tan on and spent some more time just standing in the ocean watching the tide come in. We headed back to campus later in the afternoon. We caught one of the most crowed trotros I’ve been ever been on during the ride home. There were at least thirty people on it. It was a lot bigger than the normal trotros you see in Accra, but we were still packed in like sardines. Only in Ghana.

All in all, I have to say, it was a good birthday. Part of me wishes I could have been in the states getting IDed and drinking green beer. But the other part of me is happy to say I spent my 21^st birthday on the beach in Africa.

Oburni gets braids.

I’ve wanted to get my hair braided since I got here; when in Africa do as the Africans do right? But at the same time I was a little bit nervous. I’ve heard stories about how much it hurts and that it ruins your hair. I’ve also heard that it can pull your hair line back if they braid them too tight. But I’ve learned people are over dramatic half the time, and these were all just stories. I was also a little worried I would look… weird. I thought that maybe I would look bald because you would be able to see so much of my scalp. But with all those worries, I still went for it. I saw a few white international students who had it done, and I thought, hey if they can do I can do it.  

Afia, my roommate, took Kelly and me to a place in Madina. Kelly got just her natural hair braided with no added hair. I just went for it; I wanted the whole look of it all. They picked a color of hair that was surprisingly almost identical to my natural hair color. They mixed together a light brown and a dark brown. It was really interesting to watch them mix the hair. They just pull it apart and put it back together, but they do it so fast and with so much class it’s just fun to watch. I ended up getting what look like twists instead of actual braids, but the look is still very similar and the process is identical. There were three women braiding my hair at all times.  At a couple points within the process there were more, sometimes up to five. 

They put my hair in a pony tail on the top of my head and pulled small amounts of hair out at a time to braid. A very small amount of my natural hair went into each individual braid with the fake hair. That is why it ended up being so thick and full. There are so many braids! It took a very long time; I was at the place for about five hours. Even though they braid so fast, which was really interesting to watch, they spent four of those five hours just braiding. The fake hair begins at my scalp, so anyone, no matter how long their natural hair is, would end up with braids just as long as mine. 

It was a very painful process though. The women told me that they had to pull tighter because my hair is so silky in comparison to what they are use to, this is why it hurt so much. There was a slight constant pain of the tightness of the braids, but then there were the sharp pains when they would pull my hair out of the pony tail and start a new braid. Once they had finished braiding they cut all the frizzys off of the braids with scissors. They then put the braids in boiling water; I think that helps keep the braids from unraveling. Nothing was put at the ends; they are just so tight they don’t come undone. Once they were done, my hair was put in a pony tail. It was so heavy while it was wet!

My scalp was slightly tender all of last night and into this morning. It was a little hard to find a comfortable position to sleep in because of the massive amount of hair on my head and the tenderness of my scalp. I woke up with a slight head ache but took some ibuprophen and now I’m fine. It’s been a little scratchy too, but I was told that is normal for the first few days and then goes away.

A little about my weekend.

One thing that is a little unsettling about Ghana is all of the trash everywhere. Ghana has a trash disposal system, but it isn’t efficient. There are very few trash bins in public. When you do see them, they are very small. I’m also going to take a wild guess and say there isn’t a law against littering. This is why it made me so happy to learn about the NGO called Trashy Bags that takes shasay water bags and sews them into reusable bags. I would say of all the trash, shasay water bags are what you see the most of. It’s something similar to the amount of plastic water bottles that are used in the U.S., but worse. You need to add in the fact that you can’t drink water from the facet here, so every time you are thirsty you drink a shasay. Also factor in that you have to drink the whole 500ml (that’s 8oz for Americans) or just dump it out because there is no cap to screw back on so you can throw it in your bag for later. They don’t only use shaysay water bags though; they also use fan ice, and other similar plastic castings. They make more than just reuseable bags too. They make things like wallets, hats, and laptop cases. Here is a link to their website, I feel like they can do a lot better job explaining the process than I can..

http://www.trashybags.org/

I also had an interesting experience at a bead workshop put on by a friend of Theresa, our resident director. We were able to make our own necklaces using beautiful glass beads. We learned all about the culture of beads in Ghana. When a child is born they are given beads that are attached around their waist. It serves multiple purposes. They given by family members to show the community that the child has someone who loves them. Also, because the bead is attached around their waist it shows if they are growing or losing weight. It was interesting to find out that when Obama was in Ghana his wife and children did this same exact workshop. The woman who runs it is known around the world for her collection and knowledge of beads.

We went to Makola Market, a large market in downtown Accra. It was my first time going, but I've been told it is always crowded with people and chaotic. Well, we went on Sunday morning at about 10am. There was hardly any booths, and nearly no people walking around. I think it shows just how religious Ghana is. It was nice to walk around the market leisurely but I want to go back and experience the chaos. Because the chaos is what makes Ghana… Ghana.

I witnessed my first Ghanaian car accident this weekend. A moped crossed an intersection without stopping or looking both ways and was hit by a trotro. The man on the moped was tossed at least 10 ft in the air. His helmet went flying off; I’m amusing it wasn’t strapped on. When he landed, he laid there for a second, and then jumped right back up. I think he was affected by the shock because then he fell back down. I’m not sure what happened after that because a large group of people surrounded him. It made me really wish I was going to school to be a Doctor. An ambulance never came. Neither did the police. I am pretty sure the man was taken away in a taxi. I’ve always gotten a little queasy when driving by car accidents on the interstate back home, but for some reasons this made me a lot queasier. I’m not sure if it was because I actually watched it happen, or if it was because I’m learning how Ghana works and have seen the hospital.

Kumasi

I had a wonderful weekend in Kumasi. Sometimes you just need a break from Accra. We left early Friday morning and it took us about five hours to get there. The bus ride was very bumpy and through lots of winding roads. It made me carsick and I was really happy when we finally made it to Kumasi.

Our first stop was at the Manyhia Palace Museum. We learned about the Ashanti tribe, which is the main tribe throughout Ghana. Of all the things they told us, I seem to only remember information about the women. One of the chief mothers is still alive today and is 112 years old. Also, one of the chief mothers led an army and fought in a war. And who says women aren’t tough?

We then went to the hotel. Kumasi also has a University and we stayed at the Engineering House on campus, which is similar to the Guest Services Center at the campus I attend. It was a really nice hotel. They served us buffet dinner and breakfast. I got a hot shower! It was so nice. It was only hot for about the first minute or so, but it defiantly showed me just how much I am going to appreciate hot showers when I get home. Oh how I miss them.

On Saturday morning after breakfast we went to the Kente Village. This is where they weave fabrics. I was shown how to do it and even got a chance to try it. There were lots of very beautiful fabrics and it is very clear lots of time and effort go into making them. 

After the Kente Village, we went to a village where they stamp the Ghanaian symbols onto fabrics. We learned about the process of creating the ink from tree bark. It is quite the process. We got to help pound on the bark to soften it. We also were given the chance to pick out a few of our favorite Ghanian symbols and stamp them onto a piece of Kente cloth. 

After the craft villages we went to the wood carving market. There were tons of stands full of beautiful wood carvings. I got to work on my bargaining skills here. I got lots of souvenirs and feel like I did a fairly good job at bargaining. I got to a point where I felt comfortable, I was the one with the money and felt like I had control. Even though these individuals still pestered you, it was different than it is in Accra. They were more polite and wouldn’t grab and pull on your arms.

We then had lunch and I had the best fish I think I’ve ever had. It was really good. When it first was brought out to me I was a little skeptical because it look like a dead fish on my plate, eyeballs and all. But it was delicious. 

After lunch, we didn’t have a lot of time but we were able to see a little of the main market in Kumasi. It was almost identical to the markets in Accra. I was able to get some fabric for a dress.

Before we headed back for the hotel we stopped at the Cultural Center, which has a few stores and were able to do a little more shopping. There were tons of beautiful paintings; I now wish I would have bought one. Hopefully I will get a chance to go back.