change of scenery...

I recently went from living on about $5 a day to staying in probably the most expensive city in the world, and it has completely blown my mind. Not to mention everything else that seems strange, absurd, and/or exciting. I don’t really know how to describe what I’ve done and how I’ve felt since arriving in London 4 days ago, so I think I’ll just give you a short list of things I have observed.

-there is way too much stuff
-a burger can cost $12
-I am mesmerized by shiny things
-I haven’t warmed up since I got off the plane
-I blend in
-there is an enormous amount of selection, especially with food
-there are trash bins
-the newspaper is all about the latest robberies, murders, and car wrecks
-the internet is REALLY fast
-the food is extremely flavourful
-the toilet paper goes in the toilet, not the trash bin
-there are nice people here too
-the buildings are really tall
-cheese is delicious
-I have a very hard time making small decisions
-strangers are more respectful of your personal space
-it’s not very sunny
-I wake up earlier than most of the city
-the streets are clean

There are tons more I know, but that’s a start. It has been really great to hang out with Robin again- we realized it has been 2 _ years since we have seen each other (we studied together in Melbourne, Australia in 2005). He has done a great job in helping me to adjust, by taking me to the most shocking places so the rest doesn’t seem so strange anymore. The first day I was here, we went to Camden- a crazy market type place with every genre of style and person represented, and on Friday night, we attended an all-night psy-trance rave where we danced for about 7 straight hours and stepped outside again after the sun came up. It was more like being on another planet than anything. The rest of the time we have spent relaxing, staying warm, and catching up.

Here is us being silly (hooray for other people with digital cameras!)


Tomorrow I head to Holland to see Mo! I have a feel it’s going to be equally shocking and even colder…

Saying Goodbye

I left Tafi Atome last Thursday morning with a smile on my face and tears in my eyes. I spent the last week there making sure I had everyone's information, feeding the monkeys at every opportunity, and playing with the kids as much as I could. As I left, I really felt like I had tied up all the loose ends, and was ready to take the next step, but it was still hard!

The hardest moment of all was when I said goodbye to my sweet little girl Patience. She is 6 years old, full of life, and extremely smart. She is a single child, with a single mother who runs a shop. She rarely goes to play with the other children; she must tend to the shop and help her mom by going to the market and fetching water (yes, at 6 years old). Just about every day, I would spend at least an hour sitting and talking with her in front of the shop. Though she spoke very little English, we were able to communicate easily enough, mostly through games and laughing, and she quickly memorized any English word I gave her. She was always smiling and excited to see me.

When I went to say goodbye to her on Thursday morning, she was sitting in a corner, looking very sad. I made a funny face at her and told her to come to me. She did, but did not smile and run to me like she usually did. I picked her up and hugged her, and I could tell she was trying not to cry. I told her not to worry, that I would come back, and she just hugged me again. Though we do not speak the same language, 'goodbyes' are universal, and this one was really tough!

I could really tell the community appreciated my being there with their graciousness when I left. The orphanage gave me a going away 'party' with soda and crackers for the children, and personalized kente cloth and a necklace symbolizing unity for me. The committee gave me an outfit hand made out of 'Tafi Atome' cloth. The community gave me my fare to Accra and poured libations (basically that means they said a prayer then passed the gin bottle) for my safe travel and return home. Patrick's mother made necklaces for myself and Mama Jack (Patrick is the student my Grandmother is sponsoring through University). Sylvester gave me beautiful fabric, and Foster gave me a kente bag. I was completely overwhelmed. And now my suitcase is certainly full!!

Next time I write to you, I will be in the land of bright lights and expensive beer.

Happy "July 4th" in Ghana

The 6th of March is Independence day in Ghana and they do this celebration right. There was no school, but the school children put on their uniforms anyway and at about 9:30 each class of each school marched down to the football pitch where most of the community was waiting, including the chiefs in dress (wearing traditional outfits). After the national anthem, pledge, prayer, and flag raising, a few of the older students gave speeches in English about the importance of education, urging all of the parents to send their children (male and female) to school.

Then the assembly man and some other important people stood in front of the flag and each class marched all the way around in the field in turn, stopping to give a salute in front of the important people, chiefs and elders. For the salute, each class tried to outdo the one before it with impressively choreographed stunts, chants, dances, and moves. It was brilliant to see. Then it got silly, as a group of grown women marched and attempted an improvised salute, and the best--the guides marched and as their salute, 3 of them pulled out bananas and 'called the monkeys' while the rest got on the ground and ate them out of their hands. We even had a few guys attempt to ride bikes over a 'ramp' (a plank of wood on either side of a school desk) which was very funny and mostly disastrous.

After all of that (which lasted until almost 2:00 pm), the football matches began. The first one was the JSS girls against the "community youth girls", which seemed to be any un-married female in the village. Then a few, more serious, boys teams played, and the last match was the teachers against anyone in the community. Everyone played barefoot and had a great time. All day, there were women selling fruit, water, biscuits, rice, and other goodies (Mo, they even had groundnut cake!).

It was a great day to live in a small village in Eastern Ghana. Two new things I observed about Ghanians: they make marching look like dancing, and their applause has a definite rhythm to it. Rhythm and dance are in their blood here, and there is nothing in the world that compares to it.

Sadly, I will leave village life next Thursday, which is very quickly approaching! Though I know I made the choice to leave early, as my time in Tafi Atome comes to an end, I have more and more sentimental moments and I find myself wishing I could stay longer. But that is how I know I made the right decision; I will leave craving more, which will leave me with a good taste and bring me back as soon as I can come.