Week One: Takoradi and Busua
After arriving in Ghana on June 4th, we stayed in the capital city of Accra for a few days, catching up with friends and making some preparations for the REACH 4 Ghana team. In Accra we were graciously hosted by the family of Albert Duah - our classmate, REACH 4 Ghana co-leader, and dear friend. We enjoyed plenty of delicious food, comfortable accommodations, and transportation thanks to his Aunt Mary and his multitude of siblings and cousins.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, we had to cancel/postpone our trip to Sierra Leone. We decided to use this unexpected free time to explore a new place try to relax in Ghana! So, on Tuesday, June 7th we set off on an adventure to the best swimming beaches in Ghana - a journey to the Western Region that took us to Busua by way of Takoradi.
Busua was a small fishing community that received more tourist traffic than the other parts of Ghana we have visited. There we had a restful and memorable time. However, we found choosing where to eat or buy souvenirs to be a seriously dramatic affair in such a small community and without a native traveling companion to give us clout. Our decision to eat at a particular restaurant or shop at one booth versus another incited the jealousy of other vendors! After a heart-wrenching day of trying to please everyone, Jeremy declared, “I’m not playing these emotional games anymore!”
We decided to retreat and just eat the hotel food. Unfortunately, that night Jeremy got sick! Vomiting and mild diarrhea only lasted 24 hours, praise God, but I (Alli) think that night was one of longest of my life. We were already scheduled to catch a taxi at 4 am the next day to travel back to Accra. As the hours passed from 11pm, I debated whether or not to take a taxi immediately to be nearer to a clinic or hospital should Jeremy get worse. Jeremy assured me he would be fine, but I continued to pray that I wouldn’t regret not making the move while taxis were still available. He made it and we made it to the bus the following morning to be back in Accra by 10:30 am. Other than some mild GI symptoms here and there, we’ve been in good health. Thanks for your continued prayers!
Week Two: Ashiabre
Week Three: First Week with the REACH 4 Ghana Team
Week Four: More Rural Outreaches and a Trip to Accra
Week Five: Akpafu Todzi and Cape Coast
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Monday, November 22, 2010
Ghana Pictures . . . finally!
So medical school, yeah. We’re busy of course, but we’ve finally put up an album for the Ghana 2010 pictures in Alli’s picasa account. It’s always a joy to go back and be reminded of the relationships we’ve formed and the experiences we’ve had there. Take a look!
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Ghana Update #6
Yes... bitter-sweetly, we are back in the US and getting settled into our new home in Richmond, VA. Today was our first day of medical school orientation - lots of new people to meet and seminars to attend. It's great!
Praise the Lord for a smooth overnight flight leaving at 11:00 pm on Thursday, August 5th, a delicious dinner of Jollof rice and Kontomire served by the attendants of our United Airlines plane, and a safe landing earlier than scheduled at 5:35 am on Friday morning!
We are grateful to be near to family and friends once again, although we miss many attributes of Ghanaian life and of course all the wonderful people we met there. We wanted to share a few final events from our last few days in Ghana (and pictures too!). Perhaps some of you have been waiting in suspense for the revelation of those photos promised in the last email - particularly those of Alli with the large rear. Here we go - memories and photographs...
1) Alli had her hair braided on Tuesday morning...no, afternoon... no, BOTH! It took every bit of FIVE hours for Kwoku, an exceptional hairdresser and friend of a clinic volunteer, to finish the doo. Whew! By zooming in on the wedding photo below you can see the final product. She's aiming to keep the braids through orientation week at least. Ah, the tangible memory of Ghana.
2) Monday night of our last week in Ho, We joined the other American volunteers at their house for a feast of Jollof rice, fried chicken, salad, and fresh pineapple. Linda, the clinic volunteer and cook for their group, is a talented chef and lovely lady. While we watched her whip up a huge pot of Jollof, we learned a new Ewe word: Kanzo, which means "the burnt rice at the bottom of the pot"! Who knew? Alli really likes it.
3) Sunday night, we made a fajita meal for Mami Augusta, Daniel, and the girls in the house. We tried to buy cheese and tortillas at the local supermarket, but all the potential spots to find those items (maybe 2 or 3 locations?) were closed on Sunday, so we made do with what we had and what Mami already had at the house - spiced black-eyed peas (like refried beans . . . sort of), onions, peppers, and chicken with Ghanaian spice, rice, fried plantains, chopped tomatoes and onions (like salsa) and gaucamole (made from avocados - which they call pears - we had bought at the market). They complimented the meal and they helped us greatly in preparing it. It was wonderful to sit down like a family to share the meal!
4) Wednesday afternoon, before catching a Tro-Tro (the least expensive form of public transportation), Reverend Bankas held a farewell ceremony for us at Lilimed clinic. We were honored to receive their thanks for the medication donation and time we spent in Ho. The thanks truly goes to them - those who stay and continue doing great work to meet the needs of under-served villagers and city-dwellers.
5) We arrived in Accra at around 8:00 pm. A kind gentleman Jeremy talked to on the way down got off with us at our stop to be sure we met Paul safely. Paul ran across a major road at night to meet us at the Tro-Tro stop (basically an exit ramp or shoulder of the road - it was dark!) Then we ran back with him to take a taxi to his family's place, where we spent our last night in Ghana.
6) Thursday morning, we attended a wedding in Accra. Paul was the best man, the groom a good friend from Sierra Leone and Bible College, the bride a beautiful woman from Benin. As Paul spoke to the guests after the wedding certificate was signed, "Let's clap for this great couple from the United States of Heaven." Hallelujah for cross-cultural marriage!
So...we were first invited to come to the wedding. Then after the ceremony asked to pop the champagne during the reception. It seems most Africans have this way of making you feel at home. We were surprised to be announced as missionaries and American travelers to Ghana during their wedding celebration.
That's all for new experiences. Here's a bit more explanation of the photos included in this email:
* Clearing the brush in front of the termite mound in Hodzove. We joked with the kids afterward and suggested they charge a small token from anyone who stops to view the mountain of mud - a tourist attraction of sorts. Check out the before and after shots.
* Vodafone Cafe photo below kind of captures the air-conditioned amenities of the cafe providing "the fastest Internet connection in Africa" (or so they claim!) It is the spot where all the Yovus converge! in this photo, John Barber (the coordinator for the Massachusetts volunteers,www.ghanaact.org) is the one sitting on the far left front row of computers.
* Included below are the photos of Alli dressed up as "queen mother" for the ceremony and also a group shot of the American volunteers, villagers of Saviefe, and the actual Queen Mother of the community. She was selected for the position at the age of 14 and is now in her mid-20's about to begin school at the University studying nutritional health.
Wow! So many memories and so little time. We will be setting up a Picasa site soon to share our whole collection of photos. Look out for that update shortly.
Praise the Lord for a smooth overnight flight leaving at 11:00 pm on Thursday, August 5th, a delicious dinner of Jollof rice and Kontomire served by the attendants of our United Airlines plane, and a safe landing earlier than scheduled at 5:35 am on Friday morning!
We are grateful to be near to family and friends once again, although we miss many attributes of Ghanaian life and of course all the wonderful people we met there. We wanted to share a few final events from our last few days in Ghana (and pictures too!). Perhaps some of you have been waiting in suspense for the revelation of those photos promised in the last email - particularly those of Alli with the large rear. Here we go - memories and photographs...
1) Alli had her hair braided on Tuesday morning...no, afternoon... no, BOTH! It took every bit of FIVE hours for Kwoku, an exceptional hairdresser and friend of a clinic volunteer, to finish the doo. Whew! By zooming in on the wedding photo below you can see the final product. She's aiming to keep the braids through orientation week at least. Ah, the tangible memory of Ghana.
2) Monday night of our last week in Ho, We joined the other American volunteers at their house for a feast of Jollof rice, fried chicken, salad, and fresh pineapple. Linda, the clinic volunteer and cook for their group, is a talented chef and lovely lady. While we watched her whip up a huge pot of Jollof, we learned a new Ewe word: Kanzo, which means "the burnt rice at the bottom of the pot"! Who knew? Alli really likes it.
3) Sunday night, we made a fajita meal for Mami Augusta, Daniel, and the girls in the house. We tried to buy cheese and tortillas at the local supermarket, but all the potential spots to find those items (maybe 2 or 3 locations?) were closed on Sunday, so we made do with what we had and what Mami already had at the house - spiced black-eyed peas (like refried beans . . . sort of), onions, peppers, and chicken with Ghanaian spice, rice, fried plantains, chopped tomatoes and onions (like salsa) and gaucamole (made from avocados - which they call pears - we had bought at the market). They complimented the meal and they helped us greatly in preparing it. It was wonderful to sit down like a family to share the meal!
4) Wednesday afternoon, before catching a Tro-Tro (the least expensive form of public transportation), Reverend Bankas held a farewell ceremony for us at Lilimed clinic. We were honored to receive their thanks for the medication donation and time we spent in Ho. The thanks truly goes to them - those who stay and continue doing great work to meet the needs of under-served villagers and city-dwellers.
5) We arrived in Accra at around 8:00 pm. A kind gentleman Jeremy talked to on the way down got off with us at our stop to be sure we met Paul safely. Paul ran across a major road at night to meet us at the Tro-Tro stop (basically an exit ramp or shoulder of the road - it was dark!) Then we ran back with him to take a taxi to his family's place, where we spent our last night in Ghana.
6) Thursday morning, we attended a wedding in Accra. Paul was the best man, the groom a good friend from Sierra Leone and Bible College, the bride a beautiful woman from Benin. As Paul spoke to the guests after the wedding certificate was signed, "Let's clap for this great couple from the United States of Heaven." Hallelujah for cross-cultural marriage!
So...we were first invited to come to the wedding. Then after the ceremony asked to pop the champagne during the reception. It seems most Africans have this way of making you feel at home. We were surprised to be announced as missionaries and American travelers to Ghana during their wedding celebration.
That's all for new experiences. Here's a bit more explanation of the photos included in this email:
* Clearing the brush in front of the termite mound in Hodzove. We joked with the kids afterward and suggested they charge a small token from anyone who stops to view the mountain of mud - a tourist attraction of sorts. Check out the before and after shots.
* Vodafone Cafe photo below kind of captures the air-conditioned amenities of the cafe providing "the fastest Internet connection in Africa" (or so they claim!) It is the spot where all the Yovus converge! in this photo, John Barber (the coordinator for the Massachusetts volunteers,www.ghanaact.org) is the one sitting on the far left front row of computers.
* Included below are the photos of Alli dressed up as "queen mother" for the ceremony and also a group shot of the American volunteers, villagers of Saviefe, and the actual Queen Mother of the community. She was selected for the position at the age of 14 and is now in her mid-20's about to begin school at the University studying nutritional health.
Wow! So many memories and so little time. We will be setting up a Picasa site soon to share our whole collection of photos. Look out for that update shortly.
Anyiboboe children without a school
Second mobile clinic village where many urinate blood (Bilharzia)
Body-moving at church service
Buying Fanyogo (Ghanaian bagged ice cream)
Dressed up as the 2nd queen mother
Paul as best man for friend's wedding
Popping the champagne at the wedding
The termite mound before Paul cleared the brush
The post-clearing termite mound
Vodafone cafe (a taste of home)
Yovus and villages with the actual queen mother of Saviefe
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