A Magic Place I Never Knew

Falling in the ocean at Coconut Grove Hotel thanks to Kaitlyn and Courtney! - Cape Coast, Ghana.

Akwaaba:
(Welcome in Ghanaian Twi)

I am so happy to finally be able to highlight a piece of my journey to everyone. Internet access is Ghana is available many places, but not without a laptop. But even though you have a laptop it does not guarantee you access! It takes about 10 minutes to load a mailbox, and as you can imagine with only 3 laptops from the whole group it has been quite the task to get everyone internet access. The first hotel we stayed at had an internet cafe where you could pay by 30 minutes or an hour for usage. ( About $1.50 American Dollars per minute.) That was amazing! As the group has traveled throughout the country to Kumasi from Accra (the capital)the hotel accommodations and business has been very different. We are now in Kumasi at a hotel named Royal Basin Resort and I have been deemed a temporary office worker to use the front desk computer! haha.
I pleaded the receptionist to allow me access to the internet and she gladly accepted me without question. I thanked her kindly and laughed after telling her that I would greet people as they walked in the door and answer the phone. She said OK! and asked me how much I wanted to be paid monthly.
I answered $100 Ghana cedis a month. She answered with a laugh and said maybe $54. ( $77.20 American dollars)
She and everyone here have been very accommodating and happy to see us visit.
While sitting here the power went out throughout the whole hotel! Apparently it happens almost 5 times a day. They luckily have a handy generator to step in and work for them when there is problems. The receptionist and I sat here for about a minute and laughed among each other in the dark until the generator kicked and we had power. She thought it was crazy! But I was so scared in the pitch dark.
From the beginning of our trip until now, we have visited 4 cities- Accra, Cape Coast, Obuasi, and now Kumasi.
In these cities we have visited two slave castles, a fishing village, a national rainforest park (where we walked across 1,000 feet of rope bridges atop the rainforest), and a gold mine(where we got turned away for the first time in 11 years because the conditions of the mine were too dangerous that day in the eyes of the embassy.)
The embassy looks after everywhere we visit, to make sure we are as safe as possible. That makes me feel very safe and secure. After that incident, I can rest assured that my trip in Ghana will be very safe.
The villages here are stunning.
Scenes of mud huts and wooden huts for miles on sides of the streets are covered with local people selling and distributing everything imaginable. Children young and old run the streets with no fear playing soccer and cards all all sorts of games and all the while, women are feeding, changing and nursing their little ones aside them. The Ghanaian people are so happy and free.
They have traditional and culture that they cherish and adore, and that is their main priority.
One of the most amazing things that I have seen here so far are women and men carrying baskets atop their heads- some I think to myself are physically impossible to balance! The cloth below the baskets balance them and allow things of all shapes and sizes to be carried many distances without trouble, allowing the Ghanaians to use their hands for more important and sacred reasons.
(The receptionist just gave me a lesson with her cloth and a laundry basket on balancing.. she is hilarious. She is 25 and very interested in studying nutrition in the U.S.A. We exchanged emails so that we can keep in touch. She has talked to me all night and amazingly I see her and I as two very similar people in character. Her name is Emily and she is a native Ghanaian who is pationate, positive, and full of life! She has been such a humbling experience. I hope to find her a suitable college to continue her journey through education at home.)
I have learned so many things already.
Patience, respect, appreciation, and diversity are just a few of the lessons that have resulted from our journeys so far.
Also, this experience has greatly opened my mind to the fact that I cannot make a judgment or cast a permanent idea about a subject or place that I have not been a part of or ever visited. Ghana is very different compared to my initial outlook. Modernly advanced things are seen all around! But also- aside them are other observations that are the exact opposite.
Patience is one of the the things we all are learning as a group. African tradition does not worry about time. The fact of life for them is to live and not worry, and that time spent patiently is time spent wisely.
Therefore, at lunch and dinner it has been an average of 2 or even 3 hours to order food, eat, pay, and leave.
It is very humbling, and in the meanwhile I have had many cherished conversations.
As the title of this blog post came from the Disney movie Aladdin- comparable are thoughts about my Ghanaian experience so far. Distant, inspiring, and magical in every way.
We are traveling to the Ashanti Kings palace tomorrow and visiting the cultural center to learn traditional dancing and crafting. I am BEYOND excited. I will be able to experience my passion for dance in a completely new way.I am absolutely overwhelmed with anticipation and excitement!
I am so grateful to be here and I am soaking up every moment to its absolute fullest.
Anxious. Informed. Blessed.
Until Next time,
Life is Love