This last week was an amazing adventure into a completely different African country and gaining a new perspective on life. Burkina Faso has the dubious honor of being in the Top 5 poorest countries in the world. The people however are the friendliest and most accommodating I have ever met. You might even say they are loyal and friendly to a fault. It actually got frustrating after a while with how there were several guys who would just walk around with us showing us things when we wanted to just explore things on our own. This process could have been made easier if I knew any French. Ghana is surrounded by francophone countries so any country I would have visited there would have been the same issues. Although the people were friendly to a fault it is by far preferred than to feeling unwanted and just a target. To get to Ouagadougou I took a bus from Accra which took a total of about 27 hours including the ridiculous 6 hours we had to spend outside the border because it wasn’t open yet. Once we got to Ouaga we took a bus directly to a village called Dori. This took another 4 hours. Needless to say, I was not anxious to get back on a bus any time soon. When we arrived in Dori, there were several people at the bus stop including donkey. In rural Burkina, taxis are either in the form of donkey and cart, or the back of motorcycles. Trying to find a hotel was interesting as all of the numbers in the guidebook did not work, but we found someone who showed us one. I made friends with a man named Ibrahim who I asked if he knew where to find someone who could take us on a camel trek. He told me that he could! I set up for the next morning that we would go for two days into the Sahel. We left the next morning after I bought my very own Sahelian turban to wear in the sun. I looked pretty awesome if I say so myself. Riding the camels the first day was a rather uncomfortable but debatably fun experience. We stopped in a tiny village that I couldn’t pronounce for what we thought was a short break but turned into nap time, lunch, tea time, dinner, fire, and bed time. There were a few highlights of this village and Burkina. The tea that we were served about 3 times a day was amazingly delicious and at night the stars were easily the most numerous and brilliant than I have ever seen them. The two planets, Venus and Mars (??) were both right next to the moon and we saw countless shooting stars and one huge meteor which we saw hit the atmosphere, bounce and break up in a visible fire. That night I slept on a “bed” which left me with bruises in the morning as it was essentially sticks. The next day the camels seemed much more comfortable and it was a great ride to two different villages where we got to play with some kids and drink more tea. There was a development garden run by the Peace Corp that we stopped at and it was an interesting co-op of foreign workers and local women who were learning how to gain better yields in the very arid climate. Back in Dori that night we wandered around to look at the market and to just see how the town was set up. We met a few guys who wanted to show us around which led to some interesting places as their English was “small small” and our French was “petit.” One of my favorite sights in the town was this little old man who was a silversmith. He was sitting on the ground pounding on silver wearing a pair of ridiculous glasses that were the size of his face and about an inch thick.
One of the facets of Burkina which was amusing was the use of concrete bags for wrapping almost everything. The men would roll desert tobacco using concrete paper while market women would wrap vegetables or millet cakes in concrete paper. I just had to ignore the health implications and just go with it. The tobacco that they had was simply in piles everywhere and you could buy a lot for about $1. Virtually all of the men in Burkina smoke and I had to try one of their rolled concrete cigarettes. Definitely an interesting experience and I figured that I was in the middle of the desert, why not just leave everything behind and just do as the locals do for a few days??
The next morning we let Dori for Ouaga and spent the rest of the day in Ouaga just being lazy and eating. While the entire trip was extremely fun and a great learning experience it was very physically and emotionally draining. While it hurts to see anyone suffer from hunger and need, the kids are the ones that tear your heart out the most. When every ten minutes you are confronted with kids begging for food you have to make some very hard choices. Realistically I simply could not give all my money away as I still had to get home but the times I wanted so badly to give them money there were so many kids that it is impossible to give them all a little. I had to make the decision countless times to give nothing rather than leave most of the kids with nothing. By the end of the trip I was just exhausted because its crazy how having kids break your heart constantly is so physically draining. There was one beautiful instance at the Ghana- Burkina Faso border than was so amazing it was completely pathetic. There were two small boys that asked us for food and we had some bread, we gave them a loaf of it and instead of the two boys fighting over the bread they calmly and in a mature manner split up the bread, not only into two pieces but into about 8 and gave pieces to the other small boys in the area. The way these kids looked eating these small pieces of bread made me feel so happy but on the verge of tears because of the extreme reality of the situation.
All of this poverty made me wonder why the Burkinabe stay in Burkina when there is so much drought and poverty and inability to find clean water. I think it all comes down to the ancient and personal ties to home. Regardless of how hard life is if you have nothing, you have to have pride in where you are and defend it even though it is a losing battle with no rewards. Their land and identity is seemingly all they have left so why not hold on tight. The trip home was much faster as we were able to cross the border early without waiting. Getting back into Ghana was in itself a shocking experience as it seemed incredibly lush and green when we got into the south and Accra seemed like an extremely western city even though it really isn’t.
Apologies for such a long and disjointed entry. I’m sure I am still leaving out so much but it was such a perception altering experience. Please leave comments and especially questions if you have any. See all of you soon!! (I leave Ghana this Saturday for the states)
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Your burning questions answered.
Today is the day that I finally answer all of those burning questions you all have sent me in your comments. I shall first list the questions and then answer them. Most of these are from my brother or from Wes. Thanks guys!
So what are you going to do for the rest of your time there? after all, doesn't farewell usually mean goodbyes?
So other than a little bit of the entomology of acid bugs what are you learning?
is there anyone outside of the raymond clan and the senior citizens who might have gotten your song reference?
After you moved from your homestay, how much interaction do you have with "locals?" Basically, do you get into the community, or is your involvement mainly with the university and other exchange students?
For the rest of my time I will be "studying" taking two exams, picking up my suit I'm having tailored and wandering around Accra visiting people and looking at things. In the middle of the next couple weeks I will be going to Burkina Faso to ride some camels in the Sahara and hanging out in a Benedictine Monastery. (The bus ride from Accra to Ouagadougou is about 30 hours) AHHHH!!!! The Farewell dinner means Goodbyes for many people but it's true not all. There are most people leaving this Saturday for trips in and around Ghana, including myself and we won't see each other again or at least until we meet up in the States or something.
I am supposedly learning Modern European Drama and Play Analysis. I already supposedly learned some voice, drumming and dance, but I feel like I really learned the dance the best. I'm also learning how to be a better procrastinator than before. Not an easy task.
In terms of the song reference, I honestly could not tell you if anyone else understood the song reference. Technically anyone who watched Bend It Like Beckham should know the song as it is in the credits with the actors singing along, but you never know.
My interaction with the "locals" really just depends on the day. I feel like I interact with everyday Ghanaians everyday, but in terms of being at someone's house or meeting their families or having conversations I would say about once a week. Most of the students in my dorm are Ghanaian, Nigerian, or other internationals.
I apologize for the lack of insightful ruminations today!! It is just really hot and it kills the brain waves. I will be leaving this Saturday for Burkina Faso and will probably return to Accra around the 7th or 8th of December so feel free to leave plenty of comments or questions about things. Hope you all have a great week and a half!!!!
So what are you going to do for the rest of your time there? after all, doesn't farewell usually mean goodbyes?
So other than a little bit of the entomology of acid bugs what are you learning?
is there anyone outside of the raymond clan and the senior citizens who might have gotten your song reference?
After you moved from your homestay, how much interaction do you have with "locals?" Basically, do you get into the community, or is your involvement mainly with the university and other exchange students?
For the rest of my time I will be "studying" taking two exams, picking up my suit I'm having tailored and wandering around Accra visiting people and looking at things. In the middle of the next couple weeks I will be going to Burkina Faso to ride some camels in the Sahara and hanging out in a Benedictine Monastery. (The bus ride from Accra to Ouagadougou is about 30 hours) AHHHH!!!! The Farewell dinner means Goodbyes for many people but it's true not all. There are most people leaving this Saturday for trips in and around Ghana, including myself and we won't see each other again or at least until we meet up in the States or something.
I am supposedly learning Modern European Drama and Play Analysis. I already supposedly learned some voice, drumming and dance, but I feel like I really learned the dance the best. I'm also learning how to be a better procrastinator than before. Not an easy task.
In terms of the song reference, I honestly could not tell you if anyone else understood the song reference. Technically anyone who watched Bend It Like Beckham should know the song as it is in the credits with the actors singing along, but you never know.
My interaction with the "locals" really just depends on the day. I feel like I interact with everyday Ghanaians everyday, but in terms of being at someone's house or meeting their families or having conversations I would say about once a week. Most of the students in my dorm are Ghanaian, Nigerian, or other internationals.
I apologize for the lack of insightful ruminations today!! It is just really hot and it kills the brain waves. I will be leaving this Saturday for Burkina Faso and will probably return to Accra around the 7th or 8th of December so feel free to leave plenty of comments or questions about things. Hope you all have a great week and a half!!!!
Friday, November 21, 2008
Kpetoe and Babies/Puppies
Yesterday I went on a one day trek to a little village outside of Ho just to get some kente cloth. Total travel time= 8ish
Total time in village= 45 min
Sort of seems ridiculous but honestly...what else was I gonna do? Might as well. I ended up buying more than I wanted of course, but I came away with a ridiculously beautiful blue and green kente blanket. On the way to the village there was a man with basket on his lap in the tro tro. I assumed that this was a basket with a few chickens..but it turned out that it was a basket of about five really cute puppies. This gave me something to look at. On the return trip I was treated to several treats. At the tro station, we were waiting to leave sitting next to a tro which had a large sheep tied to the roof. It was still alive and standing. On the way to Ho from Kpetoe we found out that there was a goat in the boot of our tro. It sounded like a baby at first but then it started to get more goatlike. Every time we hit a bumbp. Meeeeehhh!! It was hilarious. On the ride back to Accra i sat next to a little baby girl who has a good time licking her palms and rubbing them all over me. We play some games like "make ugly faces" "play wth the white man's hands" and "fall asleep and drool on his shirt" it was a great time and made the trip pass by very quickly. Tonight is the Farewill dinner and I am going to be "dressed to kill." I have a great outfit all picked out and I just can't wait. hahaha. I'm pretty much a baller, what can I say? Have a great day!!
Total time in village= 45 min
Sort of seems ridiculous but honestly...what else was I gonna do? Might as well. I ended up buying more than I wanted of course, but I came away with a ridiculously beautiful blue and green kente blanket. On the way to the village there was a man with basket on his lap in the tro tro. I assumed that this was a basket with a few chickens..but it turned out that it was a basket of about five really cute puppies. This gave me something to look at. On the return trip I was treated to several treats. At the tro station, we were waiting to leave sitting next to a tro which had a large sheep tied to the roof. It was still alive and standing. On the way to Ho from Kpetoe we found out that there was a goat in the boot of our tro. It sounded like a baby at first but then it started to get more goatlike. Every time we hit a bumbp. Meeeeehhh!! It was hilarious. On the ride back to Accra i sat next to a little baby girl who has a good time licking her palms and rubbing them all over me. We play some games like "make ugly faces" "play wth the white man's hands" and "fall asleep and drool on his shirt" it was a great time and made the trip pass by very quickly. Tonight is the Farewill dinner and I am going to be "dressed to kill." I have a great outfit all picked out and I just can't wait. hahaha. I'm pretty much a baller, what can I say? Have a great day!!
Monday, November 17, 2008
Baby Turtles, Bangers and Mash, and leaky canoes.
This last weekend I traveled to the Western region and did some "exploring." We took an STC bus from Accra to Takoradi which is the biggest city closest to Cote d'Ivoire. We then took a 2 hour tro tro ride to Beyin which is a small village. We stayed the night there at a small little resort on the coast that is actually run by a young British woman. Part of the resort is the sea turtle conservation that they do and we got woken up early in the morning to see clutch of sea turtles hatch and wriggle their way to the ocean. It was a very cute and funny but kinda scary cause the little turtles get bashed around by the waves, stop, and then keep going until they finally make it into the ocean. The night before we ate some over-priced under served but still delicious bangers and mash. This is basically mashed potatoes and sausage. It was quite good just small. We then took a ride to a stilt village called Nzulezo. It was an interesting combination of a good trip to see something new and the feeling that we were getting ripped off for a tourist trap. The canoe ride which was supposed to be included in the fee was an extra charge and we were expected to row it ourselves and bail it out as it started to fill up with water. Once we got to the village it did look interesting but it was incredibly small and the only thing that happened was that we were met by the chief's son who mumbled his way quietly through the history of the village and then we were asked to pay more money to help pay the teacher's salaries. Once we bailed our way back to Beyin we took a tro back to Takoradi which promptly blew out a tire. We made it back to Takoradi too late to go to Kakum or to Cape Coast so we found a cheap hotel overlooking the big circular market in the center of Takoradi. At night we went out to eat for Elliot's 21st birthday at what ended up being a really fancy looking restaurant. All of us guys ordered cheeseburgers which were amazingly good and for some reason tasted like gyros. We asked the waiter if Elliot got a free piece of cake for his birthday but he said no. After a few minutes however he came out with a bowl of ice cream and cake and made us sing happy birthday and he sang along. He then brought out a bottle of sparkling apple juice. We were a little nervous that these would show up on the bill but they did not. At this nice restaurant with main courses and drinks the total was only 42 cedi for five people. Because this guy was so great we tipped him well despite the fact that people here never tip at all. I started to get more sick as we stayed there so I definitely was just in the mood to get back to Accra. While on the way home we had to give way for a political rally which was fun. The political rally was great because all of the parties have various songs and dances that are pretty funny. While in Beyin we tried to get some CPP Convention People's Party t-shirts but they were all out. Hopefully I can get some t-shirts soon. This week I have very few plans but hopefully will get some more Kente cloth from the Volta region and will explore Accra a little. Our farewell dinner is this Friday so things are definitely winding down even though there is basically a month left. My plan over the next few weeks besides a big trip to Burkina Faso and Mole are to "study" very hard by sleeping, eating, watching movies. Hope everyone enjoys the increasing cold while I "enjoy" the increasing heat. Have a great day!!
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
HOT HOT HOT!!
How you feelin'?
For my response see above blog title.
The last week has been an interesting combination of extremely lazy, hot, frustrating, and relaxing days. Yesterday I FINALLY took my dance final and eventually took my drumming final. Both went fairly well but it was a stressful day getting them actually done. TIA. At some point this week I have to do my voice final which should be interesting considering because of being sick and the instructor being sick, I've had about 5 lessons and don't have one of the songs memorized at all. Working on it Mom!! This last weekend Jack, Elliot and I decided to go on our adventure for bushmeat and it didn't quite work out. The bushmeat was "finished." Finished means that something is out of stock. We ended up eating at the chop bar anyway and having goat meat and banku. It was quite delicious. We then went to Elliot's homestay and sat in the shade outside eating Fanchoco and just doing nothing except some sporadic conversation. We then did some hard work and applied our extensive fruit experience and examined the mango tree in his yard to guess when some of them would be ripe.
On Sunday some friends and I went to Bojo Beach to relax and have a fun day playing in the sun. Sort of ironic since I spend the rest of my days trying to avoid being in the sun, but whatever.
Bojo Beach is a small resort where the beach is on a little island about 30 yards off the main shore. It was more expensive for a day trip but it was extremely relaxing and the beach was the cleanest I have encountered so far.
The TIA moment of the week so far has been the burn marks that several people, including yours truly have been getting. It turns out that some bugs are coming into season that leave a trail of acid where they walk. When they walk on your skin they burn you and if you smash them on your skin, you get a huge mess of acid on your body and hand. Exciting huh?!?!?!
I just have a few on my arms but they aren't exactly fun. Tomorrow is my last day of official class and depending on when my voice final takes place, I will be done with everything except for two written exams later. This weekend I will be going to Nzulezo and back to Kakum National Park to sleep on a tree canopy hut. I will let you know how that trip went and more exciting stories later. Have a great week!!
For my response see above blog title.
The last week has been an interesting combination of extremely lazy, hot, frustrating, and relaxing days. Yesterday I FINALLY took my dance final and eventually took my drumming final. Both went fairly well but it was a stressful day getting them actually done. TIA. At some point this week I have to do my voice final which should be interesting considering because of being sick and the instructor being sick, I've had about 5 lessons and don't have one of the songs memorized at all. Working on it Mom!! This last weekend Jack, Elliot and I decided to go on our adventure for bushmeat and it didn't quite work out. The bushmeat was "finished." Finished means that something is out of stock. We ended up eating at the chop bar anyway and having goat meat and banku. It was quite delicious. We then went to Elliot's homestay and sat in the shade outside eating Fanchoco and just doing nothing except some sporadic conversation. We then did some hard work and applied our extensive fruit experience and examined the mango tree in his yard to guess when some of them would be ripe.
On Sunday some friends and I went to Bojo Beach to relax and have a fun day playing in the sun. Sort of ironic since I spend the rest of my days trying to avoid being in the sun, but whatever.
Bojo Beach is a small resort where the beach is on a little island about 30 yards off the main shore. It was more expensive for a day trip but it was extremely relaxing and the beach was the cleanest I have encountered so far.
The TIA moment of the week so far has been the burn marks that several people, including yours truly have been getting. It turns out that some bugs are coming into season that leave a trail of acid where they walk. When they walk on your skin they burn you and if you smash them on your skin, you get a huge mess of acid on your body and hand. Exciting huh?!?!?!
I just have a few on my arms but they aren't exactly fun. Tomorrow is my last day of official class and depending on when my voice final takes place, I will be done with everything except for two written exams later. This weekend I will be going to Nzulezo and back to Kakum National Park to sleep on a tree canopy hut. I will let you know how that trip went and more exciting stories later. Have a great week!!
Saturday, November 1, 2008
I'll trade you!!!
Hello Everyone!!
Today I went to a woodcarving village/market near Aburi outside of Accra. This trip led me to see three things. A bunch of really cool carvings, the advantages of the barter system, and a cow on top of a pile of dirt munching on leaves and three blades of grass. The carvings and products at this market were amazingly beautiful and there were just soo many things that it was hard to find things that stood out because there was sooooo much. The hardest thing was finding things that were small enough to fit in a suitcase. Many of the really intricate masks and carvings were the size of a small child. The beauty of the barter system is that I was able to trade my watch that I bought from target for a mahogony rhinoceros the size of my head. It was a pretty fun day overall. Yesterday I was able to go to Cocoa Beach and have a semi-relaxing day at the beach just taking it easy. I ended up getting into a pretty physical soccer match that was really fun. I tweaked my foot a little and had to spot but it was great to have a ball at my feet. The beauty of beach soccer is that it really tests your ball skills and endurance.
TWO WEEKS OF CLASS LEFT!!!!!!!!!
I guess that about sums up my feelings on that.
My dance final is monday, my drumming final two thursdays from now, my voice final......whenever i schedule and memorize my songs, other finals are on the 27th nov and 13th december. I suppose this might be the moment to start doing my reading and studying. Well, i suppose I won't be too hasty with that.
That's about all the fresh news for now from Ghana. I hope everyone had a great Halloween/alternative Halloween festivities. Talk to you later.
Today I went to a woodcarving village/market near Aburi outside of Accra. This trip led me to see three things. A bunch of really cool carvings, the advantages of the barter system, and a cow on top of a pile of dirt munching on leaves and three blades of grass. The carvings and products at this market were amazingly beautiful and there were just soo many things that it was hard to find things that stood out because there was sooooo much. The hardest thing was finding things that were small enough to fit in a suitcase. Many of the really intricate masks and carvings were the size of a small child. The beauty of the barter system is that I was able to trade my watch that I bought from target for a mahogony rhinoceros the size of my head. It was a pretty fun day overall. Yesterday I was able to go to Cocoa Beach and have a semi-relaxing day at the beach just taking it easy. I ended up getting into a pretty physical soccer match that was really fun. I tweaked my foot a little and had to spot but it was great to have a ball at my feet. The beauty of beach soccer is that it really tests your ball skills and endurance.
TWO WEEKS OF CLASS LEFT!!!!!!!!!
I guess that about sums up my feelings on that.
My dance final is monday, my drumming final two thursdays from now, my voice final......whenever i schedule and memorize my songs, other finals are on the 27th nov and 13th december. I suppose this might be the moment to start doing my reading and studying. Well, i suppose I won't be too hasty with that.
That's about all the fresh news for now from Ghana. I hope everyone had a great Halloween/alternative Halloween festivities. Talk to you later.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Bushmeat and a Snail named Steve
Akwaaba! So many events like elections and Halloween and finals are fast approaching. I have decided to be Michael Essien on Friday for Halloween. i will wear my Ghana jersey and put on a knee brace (he just tore his acl) and carry around a FanYogo. (he is the face on the ads)
This last weekend I had a great trip back to the Volta Region and climbed Mt. Adaklu. This mountain is the second highest "peak" in Ghana and is located by the small village of Helekpe near a bigger town of Ho. The trip to Ho was fairly uneventful once we got under way. We first had to go to a main tro station in Accra where the mates engaged in their usual fighting and shoving matches over getting the white people into their tro tro. It is rather overwhelming but if you just stay calm and wait things settle down and you just look for the tro who actually has other people in it. The ride to Ho was about 3 hours and on the way I saw one of the funniest things in my life. There were little boys running up and down the side of the road holding up squirrels for purchase. This bushmeat was tempting I must say but I was unable to stop and buy a dead squirrel.
When we got to Ho we had to ask around about how to get to Helekpe. We were taken to the Adaklu station by a crazy taxi driver who told us all about how the Volta Region would be it's own country in the next year because it's really owned by Germany and that the Queen was going to sign the papers that would make the Volta it's own country. We just smiled and nodded.
The "tro tro" to Helekpe traveled for about an hour on a dirt "road." The reason for my sarcasm is that the tro was a small truck with a cage on the back with benches and essentially 16 people got crammed in the back and then the truck went down the path of rivers and holes the size of hippos. After surviving this we arrived in the small village and introduced ourselves and found the guest house to sleep in. There were six of us on the trip and the guest house consisted of one room and two and a half beds. Two were on one bed three on the other and I was on the small mat on the dusty floor. The next morning we went with our guide, Bright who led us up the mountain. Bright was a delightful man who lived in a nearby village who climbed the mountain in a pair of broke flip flops. This hike was a beautiful but difficult climb with several places where there were ropes to climb with. The view from the top of this mountain was one of the best I have ever seen for just being a vast expanse of African bush and the feeling that the world is so immensely vast and isolated. We saw at one point some monkeys jumping through the trees about 30 feet below us. On the way down the mountain Bright decided to climb a tree to give us oranges. These were quite delicious and a great snack on an increasingly hot day. Also on the way down, we saw signs of several large snails. Bright got very excited and hunted three of them down to give to us and his friend. We wanted to get the one cooked to try it but somehow it never happened. We named him Steve and he climbed up the walls of the guest house. One of the joys of Helekpe were the abundance of goats. While the baby goats are cute, the goat population in general is very loud and at all hours of day and night. The first night we had a goat directly outside the window scratching himself and bleating at about three in the morning. The place we stayed was sponsored by an NGO who was trying to build up the tourism industry in the village. We only had to pay 2 cedi a night for the room and meals were on 2 cedi each. We decided as a group though that we would add a donation of about 5 cedi each towards the village in use for development. The entire village was great with many kids and nice people wanting to play and talk to us. One man even chased us down and gave us a gift of two bunches of delicious bananas. While in Helekpe we were encouraged to try the local gin called akpeteshi. (ahpetehshay) This is an interesting and incredibly strong drink but surprisingly good.
The next day we started the journey back to campus and it went by really fast. The only delay was when we got stopped at a police customs checkpoint. None of us had our passports with us but we had our student ids which worked fine. I thought that I would have my dance final yesterday, but surprise surprise it got delayed until next week. I did find out however that our class will be performing in a dance recital this weekend so that should be really fun. It will be great to perform as well as see the advanced classes because the students in them are amazingly talented. The internet keeps failing today so I should try to post this soon since it will take a while. Hope everyone has a great week and is sweating less than I am.
This last weekend I had a great trip back to the Volta Region and climbed Mt. Adaklu. This mountain is the second highest "peak" in Ghana and is located by the small village of Helekpe near a bigger town of Ho. The trip to Ho was fairly uneventful once we got under way. We first had to go to a main tro station in Accra where the mates engaged in their usual fighting and shoving matches over getting the white people into their tro tro. It is rather overwhelming but if you just stay calm and wait things settle down and you just look for the tro who actually has other people in it. The ride to Ho was about 3 hours and on the way I saw one of the funniest things in my life. There were little boys running up and down the side of the road holding up squirrels for purchase. This bushmeat was tempting I must say but I was unable to stop and buy a dead squirrel.
When we got to Ho we had to ask around about how to get to Helekpe. We were taken to the Adaklu station by a crazy taxi driver who told us all about how the Volta Region would be it's own country in the next year because it's really owned by Germany and that the Queen was going to sign the papers that would make the Volta it's own country. We just smiled and nodded.
The "tro tro" to Helekpe traveled for about an hour on a dirt "road." The reason for my sarcasm is that the tro was a small truck with a cage on the back with benches and essentially 16 people got crammed in the back and then the truck went down the path of rivers and holes the size of hippos. After surviving this we arrived in the small village and introduced ourselves and found the guest house to sleep in. There were six of us on the trip and the guest house consisted of one room and two and a half beds. Two were on one bed three on the other and I was on the small mat on the dusty floor. The next morning we went with our guide, Bright who led us up the mountain. Bright was a delightful man who lived in a nearby village who climbed the mountain in a pair of broke flip flops. This hike was a beautiful but difficult climb with several places where there were ropes to climb with. The view from the top of this mountain was one of the best I have ever seen for just being a vast expanse of African bush and the feeling that the world is so immensely vast and isolated. We saw at one point some monkeys jumping through the trees about 30 feet below us. On the way down the mountain Bright decided to climb a tree to give us oranges. These were quite delicious and a great snack on an increasingly hot day. Also on the way down, we saw signs of several large snails. Bright got very excited and hunted three of them down to give to us and his friend. We wanted to get the one cooked to try it but somehow it never happened. We named him Steve and he climbed up the walls of the guest house. One of the joys of Helekpe were the abundance of goats. While the baby goats are cute, the goat population in general is very loud and at all hours of day and night. The first night we had a goat directly outside the window scratching himself and bleating at about three in the morning. The place we stayed was sponsored by an NGO who was trying to build up the tourism industry in the village. We only had to pay 2 cedi a night for the room and meals were on 2 cedi each. We decided as a group though that we would add a donation of about 5 cedi each towards the village in use for development. The entire village was great with many kids and nice people wanting to play and talk to us. One man even chased us down and gave us a gift of two bunches of delicious bananas. While in Helekpe we were encouraged to try the local gin called akpeteshi. (ahpetehshay) This is an interesting and incredibly strong drink but surprisingly good.
The next day we started the journey back to campus and it went by really fast. The only delay was when we got stopped at a police customs checkpoint. None of us had our passports with us but we had our student ids which worked fine. I thought that I would have my dance final yesterday, but surprise surprise it got delayed until next week. I did find out however that our class will be performing in a dance recital this weekend so that should be really fun. It will be great to perform as well as see the advanced classes because the students in them are amazingly talented. The internet keeps failing today so I should try to post this soon since it will take a while. Hope everyone has a great week and is sweating less than I am.
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