My new haircut!!!

I finally got my hair cur for the first time since being here. It's rather shorter than I am used to but it's great since it's so hot. The pricing for a hair cut in ghana is 1 cedi for a haircut and 2 cedi for "white man hair." So for a two cedi haircut I was quite happy. Other than that it's been hot and I have had a good time saying "Charlie why?" Basically if you don't know someone's name or are being informal you can just call them charlie. except you have to say it charlay. By the way, the instrument that I have to carry on is a djembe. A drum. I think most of campus now thinks my name is mr. mayhew. After the play I have had really random people call this out at me or stop me and talk to me about things and assume I should know who they are since they were in the audience. It's been kind of fun though being known for something in particular rather than just being stared at cause i'm an obruni. It's crazy that my dance final is already next week. My regular lecture class finals aren't until the end of nov/beginning of dec. but I still only have about 5 classes left, Thank god!! The classes are interesting just most of the time interesting does not have anything to do with the content. It's more fun being in a class where the students are more "vocal and interactive" hard to explain but it makes for lively classes. I'm looking forward to this weekend climbing some mountains and exploring the town of Ho more than I was able to a few weeks ago. Have a good day!!

FREEDOM!!!!

Apologies for taking so long to update all of you eager followers of my adventure. It has been a long couple weeks but the time has flown by quite fast. The last two weekends were the performances of the play I was in. The first weekend went great and the audience really loved it. The second weekend started out really rough but it got much better by last night. On saturday there was a brownout all day which meant I had no fan to keep me from dripping sweat. That night however, it meant that there were no lights on campus which obviously meant it was very dark. Once a generator was procured, the show went on (40 min late) and ended up being a good show. It was quite interesting trying to get changed and find props in the pitch black. All of the Ghanaians thought it was hilarious that I couldn't find anything backstage. The study abroad crew went to Kumase this weekend so I was lonely without them but it sounds like they had a fantastic time. Can't wait till I get to go. The most exciting thing I get to look forward to is that with all my free time I can finally go out and play football everyday and be more active. On Saturday I went with my friend Bernard to a restaurant in the Airport Residential area where he grew up for what he claims is the best waakye in accra. It was a good relaxing day just walking around the city and the meal was quite good. I remembered yesterday that I am actually in school so I should study at some point soon. Crazy Idea I know!!! I'm excited for the Coe Luther soccer game in a few days because a friend here goes to Luther so we'll probably have a bet going on the game. (ssshhh don't tell NCAA it won't involve money or steroids)
I woke up today and realized that it was an extremely beautiful day and there are really no big cares in the world. And this thought just sparked a memory from the other day which is completely unrelated. On Saturday I was in a taxi going back to the hostel when I saw a really random super skinny horse in a field and there was a large white bird just sitting in it's back asleep. I really wish I had my camera because it's one of the funniest things I've seen in a long while. Hopefully after this weekend of climbing some mountains i will have more stories to tell. If anyone reading this has any information about the regulations of musical instruments as carryons for airplanes, they should let me know. Have a good day!

Volta Region

This last weekend the Study Abroad crew heading out to the Volta Region and more specifically Ho, Hohoe, Wli Falls, and the Tafi Atome Monkey Sanctuary. Ho is located to the northwest of the Greater Accra region. Leaving in the morning on Saturday, we loaded up three coaches and traveled through a beautiful region which consists of a more mountainous landscape than the coast and there are palm tree forests along with cocoa and banana trees. It is great leaving Accra to really get the picture of how the actual majority of Ghanaians live out their lives. The city is quite modernized and Western in a sense but it is only in the outlying towns that one really gets the sense of the culture and the history that the peoples of this region have. After arriving at the hotel, most of us put on shoes for the first time in several weeks in order to hike to the Wli Falls. In pictures I have seen of the Falls and other large waterfalls it is always a serene picture of gently cascading water into a blue calm pool. The Wli Falls absolutely smashed these images in a fantastic manner of spray being hurled about 100 yards away from the waterfall and a wave pool style water at the base. The entire scene was incredibly beautiful with jungle surrounding the huge cliffs with hundreds of large brown bats. Many of us decided to get into the pool to try to reach the water fall. Not only was the bottom of the river quite rocky, once you enter the water it seems as if the water is being hurled at you like hail. You can't even face the waterfall to see how close you are and you must crouch in the water to avoid the spray. It was an amazing primeval experience of trying to battle nature in attempting to reach the actual falls and stand under them. After leaving the Falls somewhat battered, a completely random jungle party started with a few army guys, locals, and our group starting to mix traditional dance and "popular" dancing styles to some intense local and Nigerian hip-hop. One very popular artist here is called PSquared. That night we went back to the hotel and sat around outside eating dinner and enjoying the relaxing air. The next day was the trip to the Monkey Sanctuary and then home. The monkey sanctuary was an incredibly fun experience feeding Mona monkeys. The majority of the Mona's are about the size of a cat and have very funny faces. The tour guide gave us each a banana to feed the monkeys. These things are incredibly intelligent coming out of the trees and taking the banana in their hands and peeling the banana themselves and pulling of a chunk to sit there and eat. The monkey sanctuary was my first place I 've actually gotten a touristy t-shirt. It's fantastic with a monkey sitting with a banana saying Ghana and Tafi Atome Monkey sanctuary. One observation I made on the way back is that it's an interesting experience being white in this country. Besides some obvious reasons, when one passes police barriers and checkpoints many times vehicles get stopped for overloading or bribes or other things. But whenever our group bus goes through or if I am on a tro-tro, whenever the police see a white face it's like an automatic pass. I feel like I am a commodity sometimes. It's great! This upcoming weekend the play opens but also means that I am missing out on the Black Stars World/Africa Cup qualifier against Lesotho in Sekondi. Not exactly happy about the situation but these things happen. Also, with the show performing next weekend I will miss the trip to Kumasi, but I should be able to get there in a few weeks. I am quite nervous/ excited for the play since the entire experience has been so much different than I am used to. This semester has been flying by and will continue to do so. My dance class only meets for two more weeks and then we start our final exam. Crazy stuff!!! I was reading a book the other day on reverse culture shock and it's funny to realize how long I've been here and the things I have gotten used to and grown to love. Things at home are definitely missed in the forms of people and some foods. But such a vibrant culture and friendly people will certainly be missed and craved. I have an informal football match tonight with my hall and other so I gotta run. hope everyone has a good wednesday and a good rest of the week.

Rhode Island and sweating

I have officially decided that my new Ghanaian name is Rhode Island. not sure if it will stick but we will work on it. Many of the Ghanaian guys that live on my floor go by nicknames completely different than their given names. Examples include Franchize and Montana. This is why I went with another state name. Sometimes we just get bored.
Whether we are bored or not, the absolute constant sweating is starting to increase. The sun is starting to get quite intense and my clothes are starting to cry out for an actual washer and dryer when I get home. Yesterday was the celebration of the end of Ramadan. This was celebrated by all classes being canceled and the Islamic community gathering in all areas of the country. Huge celebrations took place all over Accra and many places were closed down. I took advantage of the holiday in order to go to Busy Internet which is the sweetest place ever. It seems to be the one magical place where the internet is fast enough to upload a few photos. Hooray!!! They are as present on facebook but I am working to put some on this site. Tonight I am craving fan yogo and banku with either okro stew or groundnut soup. Big decisions tonight. In other news, I have about one week until my play opens and the disappointment is that the National theatre part fell through. At max, there will only be one or two performances there with 6 or 7 at the drama studio at the University.
That's all from Rhode Island for now! Have a good beginning of October and enjoy your fall.

Ada Foah

This last week has held many exciting adventures like a journey to Rum Island and battles with jellyfish!! Now that I have built up some intrigue I will get the boring stuff out of the way quickly. I have been sick for about two weeks and finally was made to go to the hospital in case I had malaria, but I just have bronchitis which is great!! I'm pretty much all better now thanks to the free and easily obtained pharmaceuticals found in Ghana. I also decided not to participate in "Our husband has gone mad again." The rehearsal schedule just interfered too much with wanting to travel. Now to the good stuff!!
This weekend I went to paradise. A little town called Ada Foah which consists of a little village and then many islands around where the Volta River meet the Atlantic Ocean. To get to this village a friend and I took a tro from Accra to Tema. This trip took around an hour and cost 50 pesewas. (50 cents) We then walked around Tema for about 40 minutes trying to find anyone who knew what we were talking about when we asked for a tro to Ada. After finally wandering through a sleepy market we stumbled across the tro station where we paid 2.20 for a 3 hour trip to Big Ada and then Ada Foah. Then came in the beauty of the bargaining system. We tried to find where to catch a canoe to take us to an island. A taxi driver tried to get us to go with him for 4 cedi up the road maybe 10 minutes and then we could catch a boat. After refusing this outrageous price we stared around in a daze trying to figure out what to do. After a minute a glorious sound of marching band filled the air and my friend exclaimed, Hooray a Parade! which we then quickly realized was a funeral. After viewing the procession a young man named Kwame approached us an offered to take us to the island for 4 cedi in his canoe. We thought he was a little sketchy but figured he was our best option. After a little journey involving a few goats and huge ducks we arrived at his little canoe and he proceeded to paddle us upriver for about 45 minutes for only 4 bucks. We were very grateful and pleased with the trip so we paid him 5. The island paradise we arrived at was amazing!! This place is a skinny island with half of the island being a river bank and the other side being an ocean beach. The accommodations were only 10 cedi a night and consisted of a "bed" (a little short) with a mosquito net and a sand floor surrounded by a thatched hut that sort of keeps the rain out. My friend Mike and I shared this fun little sleeping hut. Our activities on the island consisted of eating, drinking water, sitting on the beach, sleeping on the beach, walking on the beach, and body surfing!! The waves were incredibly fun and big which made for some intense times. On Saturday morning the fishermen were out pulling in the nets which were full of fish, shrimp, jellyfish, and one giant "thing." Literally have never seen this thing before in my life. When it was curled up it looked like a brain on the half shell. Then it unfurled and was a weird wiggling grey slug monster with a tiny shell for a face. The irony of the trip is that this was the first time that I had liberally applied sunscreen, and the first time I have been burned in Africa. That night we ate shrimp which we bought from the fishermen that morning. We probably got about five pounds of shrimp for 10 cedi. Needless to say ten of us could not finish them and we had to just give them to a couple other people on the island to enjoy. The next morning after taking my bath in the river, we started the journey home by first going to Rum Island. Rum Island is a hidden little family island that was been owned by this particular family for about 100 years and has been producing white moonshine rum for about as long. We got a tour of the "facility" and we showed how the rum is made and the sugar cane fields that they use to make the rum with. This rum probably could clean engines but is actually very smooth. The family sells this rum in 1.5 liter water bottles for 6 cedi each. Apparently they have quite a business with affluent Accra hotels making trips to the island in order to stock up and then sell this authentic Ghanaian rum which is very very cheap at very expensive prices. We then took a boat from Rum Island back to the main town and caught a tro to Accra.
Overall, this trip was one of the best times since I've been here in terms of relaxing and just being able to play in the ocean without crowds and see the sunset over palm trees and sand. Other fun things from the trip involve burying Mike under about four feet of sand and playing the hermit crabs and the little sand crabs which run around the beach.
It was actually a weird feeling after the weekend arriving back on campus and feeling like "home sweet home." Even though campus life is so different than the states, it has grown familiar and has developed a routine.
Tonight I have my rehearsal for Witness for the Prosecution and I have to be off book. AHH!! Other than than, my Twi class is almost over!! just this week left!! In a few days we will actually be half way done with the semester which is incredibly fast.
Hope everyone has an excellent day and a good week.

Cape Coast, Elmina, and Kakum National Park

This weekend the study abroad program participants went on a two day trip to Cape Coast and it's surrounding "attractions." The first part of the trip was the uplifting visit to the former slave castle called Elmina. Although I had studied the castle in African History. It was an entirely different experience to be in the location and see the incredible juxtaposition of the beauty of the land and the beach with the legacy of the trafficking of human beings. What struck me the most about the castle was how small it was in comparison to how many humans were being held inside at any given time. With our group of around 40, there were places where we felt cramped and then were told that easily five to 7 times our number were placed in these rooms. The history of the castle being originated as a Portuguese mission and being taken over by the Dutch and English for the slave trade made for an interesting history and the fact that there was a church inside the castle be an interesting hypocrisy of those who lived there. The town of Cape Coast is a fascinating place with very close built European style architecture mixed with Ghanaian markets and the tradition of painting fishing boats in incredibly bright and varied colors.
The next day we took an extreme departure from the emotionally draining Elmina Castle and traveled to Kakum National Park which is home to things such as monkeys, cobras, antelope thingys with big horns, and really tall trees. One of the most fascinating trees in the rain forest is one that can be used as a mosquito repellent, aphrodisiac, and hair growth stimulant. Quite the tree!! Another intersting flora fact were two trees we came upon fused together, where one of the trees is the wood to make the fufu pounding stick and the other is the wood used to make the bowl used to hold the materials used in fufu. The park has a pretty fun canopy walk which at some points is about 300 ft. above the ground. The one person wide rope bridges stretch from tree to tree through the forest. This adventure was a great escape from the city and huge crowds of people and to be able to appreciate the intense nature that Ghana has to offer. In this forest I also had my first cocoa in his natural form. It is actually a huge pod that contains seeds which you suck on and taste kind of sour and nothing like cocoa. I also came upon a spitting cobra who was actually quite small but was not too interested at the time in eating my face.
After the forest we ate lunch at a "Crocodile Ranch." This meaning, there was a restaurant situated over a lake which contained a good two dozen large crocodiles. These were fed using chicken on long sticks and they were pretty fun to watch attack the chicken. I actually went and touched a few of them and they are surprisingly soft and squishy.
This weekend I actually had my first warm water "bath" at the hotel we stayed at. It was really weird to feel warm water.
My major quest at this point in my life is to find some way to ever put pictures online so that you can see what I 've been writing about. Unless I find faster internet somewhere it may take about 2 or 3 weeks to mail a cd with pictures home to be put up. As usual, have a good day and lets continue the malaria free streak!!!

Answers to Some questions and other such things...

Thanks for the questions friends. I think I will address the pretty girls questions first. In all seriousness it's not unlike anywhere else in the world, there are pretty girls and there are ordinary and there are somewhat unfortunate, just seems to be the way the world works.
My absolute most favorite experiences so far have actually been just sitting someplace that is high up and being able to look over the city and just see the variety of life. It makes me never want to live in a development where all of the houses are pre-designed. Every house here is custom with a variety of colors. Some things that I am looking forward to the most involve traveling. This weekend I am going to Cape Coast, but excited for going to Kakum national park. There is a rope skywaylk over the forest that is supposed to be incredible and monkeys everywhere that play with you and steal your bananas. I am also looking forward to going to Ho, Mole National Park, and to a place called Adafoe?? Nobody we can find has a similar pronunciation for it. It is the closest place on land to the center of the world. (where the equator and prime meridian meet) It is also supposed to be ridiculously beautiful with a skinny peninsula sticking out towards the center.
Regarding Obama and the reaction here if he does not win. The attitude here is mostly that they cannot view any other result than Obama winning. When myself or others mention that it will be very close people either don't believe us or still have incredible faith. One girl I was talking with told me that she doesn't even know what McCain looks like and that his speeches are never televised here. All of Obama's speeches are televised live and then again during prime time. IF Obama loses, I really have no idea how people will react, I'm not sure if people will then dislike Americans or just think we are ridiculously dumb or what.
I have been really excited for Coe's team and how well they are doing. It really makes me miss being there for it. But I have gotten the chance to play quite a bit. Once the play rehearsals are over in mid Oct. I will probably play every day, but for now I usually play once or twice a week. My Twi class is scheduled for 4-6 mon-thur so that also kills a lot of chances. But that will be finished in a week and a half. I have to head off to drumming class now, so everyone have another great day of fall. That's actually one of the things I miss the most. actually skipping Fall will be very weird and makes me a little sad.