After spending about 27 hours in airplanes/airports, my last plane landed in my hometown of Eugene, Oregon in the USA. It was raining, as usual, but didn't feel as cold as I was expecting. I walked out of the terminal to find my mom and dad waiting for me- it was great to get big hugs from the two of them! I was really glad to be home, but at the same time sad that my amazing adventure had come to an end. It was so surreal and strange to be home for the first week or two, but progressively got better as time passed. While the culture shock wasn't huge, it was there. The hardest part of being back to me was seeing the frivolous expenditures and how technology is ever-present in our everyday lives. It was hard to see people spending so much money on things they don't need such as designer clothing, televisions and ipods, after witnessing so many suffering from such abject poverty. Here people are constantly using their electronic devises; perhaps they should get their brains plugged directly into the internet to save some time... hahaha. In Ghana it is considered extremely rude and an insult to use your left hand; it was an adjustment to be able to do this - such a small thing, but it had made such a big impact on me! I can wave to people with my left hand, I can hand people things with my left hand, I can even eat with it if I want to! Yippe hooray!
Even though it's been almost three months since I left Africa I still think about it every single day. Ghana is never far in my mind, and I am constantly being reminded of my time there, by one thing or another. I have finally adjusted to the cold weather and my digestive tract is basically back to normal, which is a real plus!
Before I went to Ghana I was expecting a new culture and maybe even some culture shock, but gosh, it was SO different that I can't even really put it into words. It was hard at times, but all in all it was the best experience of my life, and it gave me a whole new perspective on so many things. What I miss the most about it is the incredibly rich culture, the vibrant colors, ancient traditions, and the amazingly kind people. There are some things I don't miss such as the excessive marriage proposals and extreme heat, but those were just necessary parts of the overall wonderful experience.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Please Help Poor People in Ghana, Donate
The NGO where I interned is in need of donations; especially money and used computers. If you have anything at all that you willing to donate contact me or donate directly at fightaidsghana.org. The monetary donations will be used to help pay the school fees for 10 children. Anything, big or small would be appreciated, even if it is just a couple dollars. Thanks!
Packing List For Future Travelers
Since a couple of my friends want to go to Ghana next year I put this list together, I hope it helps!
Clothing:
~3-4 skirts (knee length or longer)
~2-4 dresses
~15 underwear
~1-4 shorts (not too short)
~6-12 hot weather shirts/tanks
~1-2 long sleeve shirts
~1 pair sweat pants (nice for airplane)
~2-4 shorts for lounging around the house
~1-2 lightweight pj/sweat pants (for when there are lots of bugs)
~2-3 sleeping/lounging shirts
~2-3 pair socks
~bathing suit (modesty isn’t super important in swimming situations compared to daily life, most bathing suits are probably fine)
Note: it is difficult to keep things white in Ghana but it is usually very hot, so it's your decision whether you want to bring white clothing. Keep in mind that you will be washing your clothing by hand. I brought a lot of things that I was okay with leaving there. That was a good choice as a lot of my stuff got worn out, and I had more space in my suitcase to bring souvenirs home. I’m sure that you will find clothing you will want to buy during your trip also.
Shoes:
~2-3 pair quality sandals/flip flops
~1 pair chaco/teva/keen sandals
~1-2 pair dress-up shoes
~1 pair running shoes
Cosmetics:
~all the normal stuff
~1-2 bottles sunscreen + a little one for your purse
~bug stuff: repellent, itch relief cream, mosquito net
~acidophilus/probiotics
~laxatives and anti-diarrhea pills (hopefully you won't need either, but it's definitely better to be safe than sorry!)
~pepto bismol pills or chewable pills (I carried some around with me for unexpected upset stomachs or diarrhea)
~all the tampons you will need + extra (difficult to find in Ghana)
~sleeping pills (great for airplane and adjusting to new environment/time zone)
~malaria medication (I took deoxycycline and hated it. I recommend the one you would take weekly, a couple of my friends had it and the side effects didn't seem as bad.)
~electrical adapters (in Accra you will just need the three prong type like the one in the picture, can be found at travel stores or the internet; before you leave make sure that all your electronics can plug into it)
~electric surge protector (if you bring electronics that will need one, like a hair dryer or something)
~1-2 towels
~1-2 hand towels
~2-3 wash cloths
~water bottle
~boric acid or ant killer to sprinkle around the house?
~pillow (if you have space)
~favorite american foods
~coffee press? (most people just drink instant coffee, which we got very tired of! There is one real coffee shop in the A&C mall which we found to be quite the treat when we wanted a break.)
~school supplies (also good as gifts for poor children, they love pens)
~cards, books, MP3 player, etc.
Note: Don't keep valuables in the outermost pockets of your backpack or in other easy to access places, especially when going through crowed areas such as trotro stations and markets. Theft wasn't a huge problem while I was there but be smart or you could get ripped off.
Most American things can be found at the mall, but they are expensive, so it's best if you just bring everything you will need.
You can buy a cellphone there. I had a Tigo brand phone which did fine. It was relatively cheap to call the US from it, but occasionally out-of-country calls didn't work.
-------------------------------------
I had good luck finding plane cheap plane tickets on kayak.com.
-------------------------------------
Listen to popular Ghanian music at bigxgh.com.
My favorites: Away ~VIP, Angelina ~Praye, Kotosa (sa means dance!) ~Wutah, Swagger ~Ruff N Smooth
-------------------------------------
You can read about other peoples experiences who were in the AHA Accra program in these blogs:Gina's Blog (2010), Bethany's Blog (2009)
-------------------------------------
I found this youtube video of a food market in northern Ghana. It is really great that this guy got it on film because many Ghanians don't like to be photographed or filmed without permission. All the markets I saw in Ghana were very similar to this one.
-------------------------------------
If you have any questions feel free to leave a comment. I will reply as soon as I see it, but I only check about once a month.
Clothing:
~3-4 skirts (knee length or longer)
~2-4 dresses
~15 underwear
~1-4 shorts (not too short)
~6-12 hot weather shirts/tanks
~1-2 long sleeve shirts
~1 pair sweat pants (nice for airplane)
~2-4 shorts for lounging around the house
~1-2 lightweight pj/sweat pants (for when there are lots of bugs)
~2-3 sleeping/lounging shirts
~2-3 pair socks
~bathing suit (modesty isn’t super important in swimming situations compared to daily life, most bathing suits are probably fine)
Note: it is difficult to keep things white in Ghana but it is usually very hot, so it's your decision whether you want to bring white clothing. Keep in mind that you will be washing your clothing by hand. I brought a lot of things that I was okay with leaving there. That was a good choice as a lot of my stuff got worn out, and I had more space in my suitcase to bring souvenirs home. I’m sure that you will find clothing you will want to buy during your trip also.
Shoes:
~2-3 pair quality sandals/flip flops
~1 pair chaco/teva/keen sandals
~1-2 pair dress-up shoes
~1 pair running shoes
Cosmetics:
~all the normal stuff
~1-2 bottles sunscreen + a little one for your purse
~bug stuff: repellent, itch relief cream, mosquito net
~acidophilus/probiotics
~laxatives and anti-diarrhea pills (hopefully you won't need either, but it's definitely better to be safe than sorry!)
~pepto bismol pills or chewable pills (I carried some around with me for unexpected upset stomachs or diarrhea)
~all the tampons you will need + extra (difficult to find in Ghana)
~sleeping pills (great for airplane and adjusting to new environment/time zone)
~malaria medication (I took deoxycycline and hated it. I recommend the one you would take weekly, a couple of my friends had it and the side effects didn't seem as bad.)
~electric surge protector (if you bring electronics that will need one, like a hair dryer or something)
~1-2 towels
~1-2 hand towels
~2-3 wash cloths
~water bottle
~boric acid or ant killer to sprinkle around the house?
~pillow (if you have space)
~favorite american foods
~coffee press? (most people just drink instant coffee, which we got very tired of! There is one real coffee shop in the A&C mall which we found to be quite the treat when we wanted a break.)
~school supplies (also good as gifts for poor children, they love pens)
~cards, books, MP3 player, etc.
Note: Don't keep valuables in the outermost pockets of your backpack or in other easy to access places, especially when going through crowed areas such as trotro stations and markets. Theft wasn't a huge problem while I was there but be smart or you could get ripped off.
Most American things can be found at the mall, but they are expensive, so it's best if you just bring everything you will need.
You can buy a cellphone there. I had a Tigo brand phone which did fine. It was relatively cheap to call the US from it, but occasionally out-of-country calls didn't work.
-------------------------------------
I had good luck finding plane cheap plane tickets on kayak.com.
-------------------------------------
Listen to popular Ghanian music at bigxgh.com.
My favorites: Away ~VIP, Angelina ~Praye, Kotosa (sa means dance!) ~Wutah, Swagger ~Ruff N Smooth
-------------------------------------
You can read about other peoples experiences who were in the AHA Accra program in these blogs:Gina's Blog (2010), Bethany's Blog (2009)
-------------------------------------
I found this youtube video of a food market in northern Ghana. It is really great that this guy got it on film because many Ghanians don't like to be photographed or filmed without permission. All the markets I saw in Ghana were very similar to this one.
-------------------------------------
If you have any questions feel free to leave a comment. I will reply as soon as I see it, but I only check about once a month.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
The Last Few Weeks... and Leaving
I knew my time in Ghana was coming to a close, so I tried to make what was remaining time that I had as full as possible. I had a week of the program remaining, and then a week to do whatever I wanted to do. I spent the first of the two weeks writing my essays for school, saying goodbye to everyone at my internships, and going about my daily routine.
I enjoyed doing the research for my essays, as it really capped off what I learned about this incredibly new place that is so different from anything that I had ever seen. I wrote about the culture, the people, the religion, and my overall experience. Perhaps I will post one or two of my essays in case anyone wants to read them.
Saying goodbye was more sad than I had imagined it would be. Even with people that I only had a couple real conversations with, it was so hard to leave knowing that I probably would never see them again. Basically everyone that I meet while I was in Ghana was incredibly friendly to me, it made me feel as at home as possible as I possibly could, which was truly incredible.
For the last month or so I was tired of having to put up with the new culture, the heat, the marriage proposals, etc. I was ready to leave, ready to be home, but I knew that after I left that I would miss it.
During the last week I went traveling with geens (Gina), mol (Molly), and phil (Emily). Ades (Ada) was off traveling with her new fiance so she couldn't join us. We were debating where to go and had all these ideas in mind, but ended up deciding the morning of depature just where we where going to go. We decided to make our trip small so we went up to the Shia Hills nature reserve and then down to the Keta Lagoon. It was a nice little trip, and like always it was nice to get out of the city.
At Shia Hills we ate really good fufu, hiked through the wilderness, and got to see lots of baboons.
When we were in Keta we spent a lot of time relaxing (traveling in Ghana can be quite exhausting so it's nice to take it easy). My favorite part of our trip was when we got up at 5AM to go for a long walk on the beach and watch the sunrise. It was an increadby beautiful beach with white sand and big waves. We were probably the only white people in the entire town so we were spectacles to the locals, but they did not hassle us at all. During our walk we made friends with school children playing on the beach, and fishermen coming back with their morrnings catch. On our way back one of the fishermen that we meet offered to take us out on his boat, and we accepted. He and his friend paddled us over all the big waves to the calm and beautiful ocean in his heavy old hand carved wooden boat. It was so cool to be out there in the little boat just out for a paddle. After awhile the fishermen decided that it was our turn to paddle so they handed the paddles to us girls and we went at it as hard as we could... which was at about a tenth of the speed they went! Traditional fishermen gotta be in REALLY good shape.
After we returned we got all packed up. Mol left first, so we went with her to the airport and said goodbye. The rest of us spent the next day at a beach a couple hours away that was totally beautiful. Emily and I both flew out that night (Geens left a few days later). William (my friend and internship supervisor) gave us a ride to the airport, our neighbor Stanley that we befriended also came along to say goodbye. I didn't feel sad at all until I was actually in the car, waving goodbye to my neighborhood friends. The people were so friendly and amazing to us and we really developed a sense of community during our four months there, it was really hard to leave it all. It wasn't until I was at the airport giving William and Stanley goodbye hugs that I cried. I wasn't expecting it, but I totally sobbed. I was happy to be going home, but at the same time so sad to be leaving it behind. I walked into the airport and knew that I would have to return again, someday.
I enjoyed doing the research for my essays, as it really capped off what I learned about this incredibly new place that is so different from anything that I had ever seen. I wrote about the culture, the people, the religion, and my overall experience. Perhaps I will post one or two of my essays in case anyone wants to read them.
Saying goodbye was more sad than I had imagined it would be. Even with people that I only had a couple real conversations with, it was so hard to leave knowing that I probably would never see them again. Basically everyone that I meet while I was in Ghana was incredibly friendly to me, it made me feel as at home as possible as I possibly could, which was truly incredible.
For the last month or so I was tired of having to put up with the new culture, the heat, the marriage proposals, etc. I was ready to leave, ready to be home, but I knew that after I left that I would miss it.
During the last week I went traveling with geens (Gina), mol (Molly), and phil (Emily). Ades (Ada) was off traveling with her new fiance so she couldn't join us. We were debating where to go and had all these ideas in mind, but ended up deciding the morning of depature just where we where going to go. We decided to make our trip small so we went up to the Shia Hills nature reserve and then down to the Keta Lagoon. It was a nice little trip, and like always it was nice to get out of the city.
At Shia Hills we ate really good fufu, hiked through the wilderness, and got to see lots of baboons.
When we were in Keta we spent a lot of time relaxing (traveling in Ghana can be quite exhausting so it's nice to take it easy). My favorite part of our trip was when we got up at 5AM to go for a long walk on the beach and watch the sunrise. It was an increadby beautiful beach with white sand and big waves. We were probably the only white people in the entire town so we were spectacles to the locals, but they did not hassle us at all. During our walk we made friends with school children playing on the beach, and fishermen coming back with their morrnings catch. On our way back one of the fishermen that we meet offered to take us out on his boat, and we accepted. He and his friend paddled us over all the big waves to the calm and beautiful ocean in his heavy old hand carved wooden boat. It was so cool to be out there in the little boat just out for a paddle. After awhile the fishermen decided that it was our turn to paddle so they handed the paddles to us girls and we went at it as hard as we could... which was at about a tenth of the speed they went! Traditional fishermen gotta be in REALLY good shape.
After we returned we got all packed up. Mol left first, so we went with her to the airport and said goodbye. The rest of us spent the next day at a beach a couple hours away that was totally beautiful. Emily and I both flew out that night (Geens left a few days later). William (my friend and internship supervisor) gave us a ride to the airport, our neighbor Stanley that we befriended also came along to say goodbye. I didn't feel sad at all until I was actually in the car, waving goodbye to my neighborhood friends. The people were so friendly and amazing to us and we really developed a sense of community during our four months there, it was really hard to leave it all. It wasn't until I was at the airport giving William and Stanley goodbye hugs that I cried. I wasn't expecting it, but I totally sobbed. I was happy to be going home, but at the same time so sad to be leaving it behind. I walked into the airport and knew that I would have to return again, someday.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
The Clinic
At the clinic I am the assistant to one of the nurses. The hospital is very different than the hospitals in the US. Every morning the staff arrives at 7am and the clinic starts at 8. I work in the section of the hospital that deals with babies, new mothers, and pregnant women. This part of the hospital consists of a big main room filled with chairs facing the front of the room. Before anything medical related happens, scripture is read from the bible like it’s a church or something. Not everyone that goes to the hospital is christian, but they tolerate it anyway. After that, one of the nurses gives a lecture on family planning or something of that nature (I can’t understand anything up to this point because it is all in their native dialect, Twi). Then clinic will start. People wait their turn to receive standard injections and then babies will be weighed. Next they will come into a side room where I am. My duties are record keeping and figuring out if there are any problems with the babies or mothers that need further attention. I assigned these tasks before I really knew what was going on or how the system even worked. I have much more responsibility than I would be given in a hospital at home, considering my lack of training. Usually I don’t have many problems performing my duties, but sometimes I have trouble communicating with patients or I am unsure of how to handle a medical problem and all the nurses are too busy to ask, which is frustrating. I have noticed that the hospital lacks sanitation, organization and proper training. The wait times are long and the diagnosis and treatments of patients are often wrong. Unfortunately, I don't see things changing for the better until Ghana becomes more industrialized and the hospital has more resources, both financial and personnel-wise. I do what I can to help out when I am there and I hope that what I learn from my experience there will help advance me towards my goal of perusing a medical profession. All in all, I am happy to be working there and so far I have found it to be a very interesting experience.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Update on My Life in Ghana
I have too much that I'd like to write about for the amount of time I have, but I will try my best.
Time has passed very quickly. My fourth month here has already started. I love Ghana and the experience of being here is wonderful, but the different culture is still tiring and I miss the things from home that I had taken for granted my entire life. It is a little embarrassing to say this, but I miss the US.
There is no way that anyone will ever be able to experience Ghana without being here. I have been trying to explain my experience, but the truth is that I have failed. Everything is different here; there is no way to truly capture it all in words or even in pictures. The differences between here and the states are numerous: the manner in which people greet each other, the food and how it is eaten, the weather, gender roles, sewer systems, laws, politics, the way people drive, the way they talk, their clothing, beliefs, traditions... EVERYTHING.
I am sitting on the couch at the orphanage right now with a one year old boy named Issac sitting next to me. The poor little guy is going to have a rough start in life. His father ran out on him, and his mother is too poor to support him, which is why he is here. He is not adoptable so he will grow up here until he is kicked out at age 13 or 14. Because this is a nice orphanage he should be moderately well educated and healthy by that point, and hopefully he will be able to carve out a decent life for himself.
The glaring poverty here makes me so sad. Compared to other African countries, Ghana is actually pretty well off. There are lots of big houses and wealthy families; but unfortunately a large percent of the population is quite poor. It makes me want to give away everything I can, but I know that even that won't make much difference. It is not just here that the poverty is bad, it is all over Africa and so many other places. I can do everything I can to try to help people here, but would it really even make a difference? I will do what I can to help, but I know it will never be enough.
The main reason that I miss the states is that I just miss blending in. I am tired of being a spectacle and of being hassled because of the color of my skin. I love Ghana and I know that I will miss it when I return home, but right now I miss home. I think that my roommates are feeling the same as I do at this point. Luckily, we only have three weeks left here, which is just enough time to see all the things that I haven't seen yet.
Yesterday I went to Aburi with Molly Ada and Emily. It was refreshing to walk around the gardens and enjoy the different trees and plants from around the world. The weather up there is much cooler than in Accra and I enjoyed feeling a little chill for the first time in over three months. It was great that we could travel just 30 minutes out of the city and feel like we were in the jungle.
Walking through the gardens, we heard some singing and drumming and decided to follow the beat. We had to exit the gardens and then we came to a building where the music was. There were little kids waving at us from a window telling us to come. We were hesitant, but finally went to the entrance. A woman greeted us and welcomed us inside. It was a Sunday afternoon, so they were having church in the small building. I had not been to a Ghanaian church so it was an interesting experience. I am very glad to have seen a piece of Ghanaian culture that is so important and so prevalent in Ghanaian society.
After walking all around the gardens, pangs of hunger overcame us. Ada had already been to Aburi before and told us that we had to have lunch at Peter's Pizza, a small restaurant owned by a Rasta named Peter who used to be a chef on a military ship. He makes the most delicious spring rolls from scratch! Then we indulged in a delicious veggie pizza. After three months of living in Ghana we have had pizza a few times. It has been okay, but this pizza was different. There were so many delicious vegetables and so much melted cheese....this pizza was amazing. I don't know if it's just because I do not have access to very much pizza, but this was the best.
We enjoyed every last bite of our lunch and joked about ordering more. We decided to head home before the sun went down, as it's much more difficult to travel by trotro at night. It didn't take long to catch a ride for all four of us, so we were on our way back to the hustle, bustle and heat of Accra. I think I might have to head back to the peaceful sanctuary of the botanical gardens and the delicious treat of Peter's Pizza before the end of my Ghana journey.
We have all our spare time planned out for the remainder of our time here. Next weekend my friend will be taking me to the small village that he grew up in, which I am very excited about. Then on Sunday we will go to a loud christian gospel church which should be quite the experience, and then we'll head off to experience a soccer game, Ghana-style. The weekend after that, the NGO that I work for which is called FightAIDS Ghana will be having a large event on Saturday for the purpose of securing donations. Sunday I will attend a wedding. That will be the last week of class. After we are done with school we will do some traveling around. We plan on going to Togo, the country east of Ghana, and then taking a boat trip on the Volta River up north towards Tamale. I am super excited for all the things we will be doing!
I hope all is well with you, where ever you might be.
Love,
Lauren
Time has passed very quickly. My fourth month here has already started. I love Ghana and the experience of being here is wonderful, but the different culture is still tiring and I miss the things from home that I had taken for granted my entire life. It is a little embarrassing to say this, but I miss the US.
There is no way that anyone will ever be able to experience Ghana without being here. I have been trying to explain my experience, but the truth is that I have failed. Everything is different here; there is no way to truly capture it all in words or even in pictures. The differences between here and the states are numerous: the manner in which people greet each other, the food and how it is eaten, the weather, gender roles, sewer systems, laws, politics, the way people drive, the way they talk, their clothing, beliefs, traditions... EVERYTHING.
I am sitting on the couch at the orphanage right now with a one year old boy named Issac sitting next to me. The poor little guy is going to have a rough start in life. His father ran out on him, and his mother is too poor to support him, which is why he is here. He is not adoptable so he will grow up here until he is kicked out at age 13 or 14. Because this is a nice orphanage he should be moderately well educated and healthy by that point, and hopefully he will be able to carve out a decent life for himself.
The glaring poverty here makes me so sad. Compared to other African countries, Ghana is actually pretty well off. There are lots of big houses and wealthy families; but unfortunately a large percent of the population is quite poor. It makes me want to give away everything I can, but I know that even that won't make much difference. It is not just here that the poverty is bad, it is all over Africa and so many other places. I can do everything I can to try to help people here, but would it really even make a difference? I will do what I can to help, but I know it will never be enough.
The main reason that I miss the states is that I just miss blending in. I am tired of being a spectacle and of being hassled because of the color of my skin. I love Ghana and I know that I will miss it when I return home, but right now I miss home. I think that my roommates are feeling the same as I do at this point. Luckily, we only have three weeks left here, which is just enough time to see all the things that I haven't seen yet.
Yesterday I went to Aburi with Molly Ada and Emily. It was refreshing to walk around the gardens and enjoy the different trees and plants from around the world. The weather up there is much cooler than in Accra and I enjoyed feeling a little chill for the first time in over three months. It was great that we could travel just 30 minutes out of the city and feel like we were in the jungle.
Walking through the gardens, we heard some singing and drumming and decided to follow the beat. We had to exit the gardens and then we came to a building where the music was. There were little kids waving at us from a window telling us to come. We were hesitant, but finally went to the entrance. A woman greeted us and welcomed us inside. It was a Sunday afternoon, so they were having church in the small building. I had not been to a Ghanaian church so it was an interesting experience. I am very glad to have seen a piece of Ghanaian culture that is so important and so prevalent in Ghanaian society.
After walking all around the gardens, pangs of hunger overcame us. Ada had already been to Aburi before and told us that we had to have lunch at Peter's Pizza, a small restaurant owned by a Rasta named Peter who used to be a chef on a military ship. He makes the most delicious spring rolls from scratch! Then we indulged in a delicious veggie pizza. After three months of living in Ghana we have had pizza a few times. It has been okay, but this pizza was different. There were so many delicious vegetables and so much melted cheese....this pizza was amazing. I don't know if it's just because I do not have access to very much pizza, but this was the best.
We enjoyed every last bite of our lunch and joked about ordering more. We decided to head home before the sun went down, as it's much more difficult to travel by trotro at night. It didn't take long to catch a ride for all four of us, so we were on our way back to the hustle, bustle and heat of Accra. I think I might have to head back to the peaceful sanctuary of the botanical gardens and the delicious treat of Peter's Pizza before the end of my Ghana journey.
We have all our spare time planned out for the remainder of our time here. Next weekend my friend will be taking me to the small village that he grew up in, which I am very excited about. Then on Sunday we will go to a loud christian gospel church which should be quite the experience, and then we'll head off to experience a soccer game, Ghana-style. The weekend after that, the NGO that I work for which is called FightAIDS Ghana will be having a large event on Saturday for the purpose of securing donations. Sunday I will attend a wedding. That will be the last week of class. After we are done with school we will do some traveling around. We plan on going to Togo, the country east of Ghana, and then taking a boat trip on the Volta River up north towards Tamale. I am super excited for all the things we will be doing!
I hope all is well with you, where ever you might be.
Love,
Lauren
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Volta Region
This last weekend our program took the Fab Five (my roommates and myself) on an excursion to the Volta Region. It was a three or four hour comfortable drive east from Accra. I didn’t know what to expect the Volta Region to be like, but I instantly liked what I saw. It has lots of “mountains” (known to Pacific Northwesters as large hills) and is draped in greenery. It was breathtaking! We arrived early in the afternoon in Wli where we hiked down a path to a big waterfall. It was wonderful to hike around in the forest for the first time since I arrived in Africa, I had missed hiking a lot.
The hike was beautiful. Our guide pointed out pineapple, cocoa, and coffee plants to us, none of which look like I had expected them to. There were some shacks with really cool carvings on the way. It was so peaceful walking through the tropical forest, listening to all the exotic birds and insects make their noises. When we arrived at the waterfall it was pouring down the cliff at full force. It was so powerful that we could feel the mist from really far away. I went swimming with Emily and Molly and though we got really close to the waterfall, it was too powerful to go under it. It was lots of fun and a nice get away from city life. 
On our way back to the bus we bought some things from the villagers and observed their pet ostriches which are possibly the strangest looking animals that I have ever come across.
Our next stop was a small village that is home to a monkey sanctuary. A local took us into the forest and called the monkeys. They jumped over to the tree we were standing near and climbed down so that we could feed them bananas. I held out my banana and they ate it right out of my hand! One little monkey jumped onto Gina’s arm to get her banana. As we where standing around listening to our guide, Molly got the pleasure of having the monkey sitting in the tree directly above her start peeing. It was truly hilarious.
As the sun began to set we realized how tired we were, so we made our way back to the hotel. After a long dinner at the hotel we finally went to sleep. It was a really nice hotel and I wish that I could have taken my bed back with me.
On Sunday we relaxed all morning and afternoon at the hotel’s pool, it was wonderful. We then got into the bus and made our way home. It was a great weekend, and I only wish that we could have spent a little more time there.
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