The Given Ladies Visit the Volta Region

We woke early Thursday and packed our breakfast in order to be ready to go by 7 am (beat the traffic) but we sat in the parking lot waiting for our driver until past 8. We made our way through Accra and out to the countryside by mid-morning and arrived at our hotel in Ho just in time for lunch. Very pretty drive with lots of hills, vegetation, occasional view of the lakes and lots of villages. We passed through several police check stops where Ghana police checked the car stickers, looked at us and asked where we were headed before waving us on. George says they check a lot close to the borders and we were fairly close to Togo so I guess that`s why. We even got stopped for speeding, and got to witness the lovely police corruption that is ever present here first hand!

We stopped for lunch in our hotel in Ho and then headed to the Kalapka game reserve in search of wild animals. Our armed guard led us through plains and forested areas in search of monkeys. Failing to see any, we hoped we would see some antelope. We did, but not in the wild like we would have thought, but captive back at the compound!The Kalapka reserve was reminiscent of the Golden Monkey trek we did in Rwanda – a lot of effort and no reward. We told ourselves we needed the walk and the scenery was great.
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Saturday was another story. We started with a Kente cloth weaving village called Tafi Abuipe where this kind of weaving was supposedly invented (I heard the same story at the other Kente village I visited last time I was here). This fact is disputed as other regions also claim they started this style of weaving. Nevertheless, we had an excellent tour of the village and the kente weavers. All of the families in the village do the weaving from about age 7 onward. Mostly they weave outside under grass roofed canapés but if the weather is bad, they have two large barns they can use. May of the patterns are unique to the families apparently and while they weave in many colors, they have some traditional combinations as well. Ama was a big crowd pleaser. The kids were fascinated and followed us around. Ama was most interested in the goats and chickens which were everywhere. It was a great opportunity to see a village up close and to see their art in progress.







After the kente weavers, we made our way to a large town called Ho Hoe where we were hoping to gas up and have lunch. No petrol available – yikes. Luckily our trusty driver George found a local petrol seller outside the town who had some and we bought just enough. George said he didn`t want to buy too much as often this no-name variety is dirty and can cause lots of engine problems. Have a look at the pump – you`ll see why he was concerned! After that we decided to watch carefully for any stations who may have petrol available.

We had a very good lunch at a the Taste Lodge in Ho Hoe and then made our way to the Wli Falls. Wli falls are said to be the tallest in West Africa. A guide met us and offered to pack Ama while he led us along the well used path to the falls. We crossed a small river 9 times on our way – about a 45 minute walk. The bridges were in various states of repair – one was just a board but the water was shallow there and not far down should you fall off. We saw villagers doing their laundry and taking it back in big pans on their heads. Makes me very thankful for my machine! The falls were spectacular. There was only one other group there when we were there and we met a few others after. There is a refreshing pool at the bottom which Ama loved. We had a hard time getting her out. On the cliff hundreds of feet up, a colony of fruit bats reside – hundreds of these huge bats which our guide says are a local delicacy. We asked him how you order that so we could be sure we never got it but we cannot pronounce it so we decided we would just be vegetarian or order chicken or beef.





After our trip to the falls, we made our way back to Ho but since it was getting late and we were worried about the petrol situation, our driver decided to go the shortest route. It was also the roughest route. In fact it was so rough we rarely passed another vehicle. We did find another local petrol seller so this time George gambled and filled up. He told them that if the gas was dirty he would return for his money back. Good thing we filled up because we did not see more gas available until our return to the city on Sunday, and it was only available at some stations in Accra. Meanwhile the daylight faded fast and we found ourselves careening down roads with no lights, no lines, nothing to mark the edge of the roads. The roads had pot holes everywhere. This was deepest darkest Africa (To quote Uncle Rod). Even the many villages we went through were mostly dark. We were so happy to reach our comfortable Chances Hotel in Ho. Ama slept through the journey in the dark – I was on full alert!(Dear Pam-let's vow to drive only during the day!!!)


Sunday morning we took Ama to the hotel to swim before we headed back to Accra. She loves the water and is getting pretty brave with those waterwings! We loaded up again after our swim and made our way to Shai Hills Resource Reserve. The big attraction there was baboons which Ama really enjoyed. Then we drove through the reserve in search of wild antelope and maybe some more baboons. We declined the bat caves. Alas, the antelope eluded us so we saw a lot of empty reserve (tall grass and intermittent trees). It was very scenic and sweltering hot. At our final police check stop, the policeman was a bit disappointed our French was so terrible because he wanted to practice his. How very un-Canadian of us! We got back to our oasis in Accra early afternoon and enjoyed a shower and lunch out. Felt good to be home.

Ama becomes a Twinkle Tot

Unfortunately the Nanny did not work out. There is too big of a cultural gap, and our expectations were too different. This is not to say that a wonderful and competent nanny cannot be found in Ghana, but time is ticking, so the nursery school it is!

We made the decision last night to send her to "Twinkle Tots International Preschool," just a short walk from our apartment. One of the highlights on our walk is the many goats and chickens that Ama must "find." Very fun.




Although this is unfortunate for my bank account, I think it is going to be the best for Ama. The daycare (or international preschool as they call it) is absolutely wonderful. As mentioned earlier, it is well outfitted with all sorts of toys, an outdoor (fenced in) courtyard with playground, giant sandbox and toy cars. The outside also has a canopy covering most parts to protect Ama's Obruni skin! The ladies are all lovely, and there are a whole bunch of them (5 kids to 1 adult).

Although Ama cried a bit today, when we arrived she was happily drawing with her caregivers, and it was clear that she had instructed them to "draw fishies." Those darn ladies outdid my artistic ability...










We dropped Ama off this morning, and the next step was to get the money from the bank to pay them. Simple task right? WRONG!!!

We went to the nearest Barclay's bank branch, where they told us to go to Osu cause they couldn't help us there. Mildly annoying, but doable. We get to Osu, and they tell us go to high street. What? 3 Banks? Ok...

Once at high street, we give the man behind the glass our passport and bank card. He replies "No madame, we only accept Visa or Mastercar." Ok...here you go. He then instructs us to wait, and puts my passport at the bottom of a pile of passports. And we wait, and wait, and wait...

Meanwhile, a man is becoming increasingly upset for who knows why, and begins to yell. This escalates and goes on for quite some time. The man leaves, but then drives it right up to the bank doors. At one point I was sure he was going to attempt to drive the car through the bank doors, but he didn't (thankfully). He seemed to be upset because the bank lady had his passport, I can totally understand where he was comming from!

I am not sure why this man was permitted to cause such a scene for so long, especially since there were at least 4 security guards in the building, who seemed to be doing little to calm him down or remove him. In the end the man left, and we got our money, after about an hour and a half.

How long does it take a person to drop their kid off at daycare and get the money to pay for it in Accra you ask? 4 hours. Yep, 4 hours.

Anyway, it was all worth it and I think Ama is going to love her new, temporary school!

Later this evening I went to a patio bar in the area to do a bit of work, since I clearly got nothing done today. As I was finishing up I met an Engineer from Halifax and his co-worker, a Ghanaian-Canadian man from Calgary. When I asked the Calgary man if he knew of a place to get a cheap car rental (self drive) he informed me he would find me a car and I would just pay fuel. What? A little while later another man joined, and when I asked if he also worked with the other two men, they replied "no, he is the Chief of Defense for Ghana." Wow. Random. Needless to say I was caught up a bit longer than expected (you don't get up and go as soon as you meet the chief of defense for a country) and poor mom was probably worried. After looking up this man's picture on google, I'm pretty sure they weren't lying to me! Who knows if I will get a free car to drive around? Haha, I doubt it...

Tro-Tro expert to be!

Above are some pictures of Ama from when we visited the school. The man holding her is Kingsley, who delivers the Amend program to the schools.

This weekend we found a little piece of heaven called the Shangri-La Hotel pool. After calling around to the various hotels that let non-guests use thier pools for a price, we became increasingly frustrated by the high prices we were being quoted. We called the Shangri-La and were pleasantly surprised to hear that they only charge 8 cedis, compared to 15 at most of the other hotels.

Although the grounds weren't as spectacular of those at Labadi Beach Hotel, the atmosphere was much less snobby and way more inviting. They had a very small Ama-sized kiddie pool, separate from the main pool which was perfect for her. We were able to actually RELAX, and we even regretted not bringing our books (we had assumed that we would both be chasing Ama the whole time!)

Ama made friends with some nice Ghanaian kids, and Mom and I relaxed. We fed the 3 of us, had 2 large beers and paid the entrance fee for less than we paid to just access the previous pool. Shangri-la, I will be coming back!








I started to actually work this week, although yesterday was filled with a lot of waiting, but that is fairly normal here. I visited a school today and plan to implement a survey for teachers and get into the program a bit more. University work is also getting done, and I am actually ahead for once in my life!

We met Afia, the nanny, yesterday, and today is her first actual day. Hopefully it is going well. She and Ama are with Mom today and tomorrow. Afia has a baby girl also named Ama (big surprise) who is just a bit younger than Ama and very cute. It will be nice for Ama to have another child around, assuming she is going to work out.

In the past couple of days I have began to learn how to take Tro-tro's, which is a somewhat confusing experience. Yesterday my trip from the Amend office was fairly straight forward, however my experience to get to "Pig Farm" School today was not. Can you imagine a school name like that?
I thought that I could take a Tro-tro from where I was to Circle-the major transport hub, but it turned out I had to go to "37", another Tro-tro station. Once I got there, I had to walk some way to find the Tro-tro to Circle, yet they were all passing by full, so I took up the offer from a taxi driver to go with him.

Once I got to "Circle" I was completely confused. I was supposed to meet my colleague Tom there, but it is a giant and sort of arbitrary place. Tro tros are everywhere, not in a defined station like "37" or "Tema" station. After walking through a sea of very annoying men yelling "Obruni come here" I found one nice fellow who directed me in the direction of the Pig Farm Tro-tro.
I was also able to find Tom, and we went on our way.

An excessively nice man on this Tro-tro insisted on paying for both of our fares, and then walked us the whole way to Pig Farm school. He then invited us to his cultural dance practice on Friday. I have noticed that many people will go out of their way to get you to your destination, perhaps since it's very obvious I have no clue where I'm going (ever).

I also took the Tro-tro back from there and to Osu, where I am currently enjoying AC, wine, and wireless internet at Frankies. The key to life is balance, right?

Mom will probably add more later, and I will also put some pics up soon. Bye for now!

from Lorrie:
Monday was a pretty good day for Ama and I as we met a nice German family here and their small boys joined Ama in her new wading pool - 4 ft diameter. It afforded them a couple of hours of afternoon enjoyment plus they joined us on the deck for shaded toy time. Later Karen and I were enjoying cold water on the deck and re-hashing our day when we noticed a horrible smell coming from a truck labeled "cleansing service". We weren't sure if they were picking up garbage or flushing open gutters. It turned out to be the former.

We decided to go out for supper and as we walked two blocks to the restaurant, the smell was everywhere. Luckily once we got to our destination, it was gone. The restaurant located in the Mahogany Lodge was really good and we shared an American style chicken dish and some Chinese noodles. Wonderful service, excellent food and reasonable - well,by North American standards. We'll be back. Oh, the weather is the same every day here - 35 and humid. I might be getting to like it!! I am still white as a ghost though.

Fufu anyone?

From Lorrie:

Yesterday Karen had the day off (life here is slow) so our big adventure of the day was twofold – check out a nearby nursery school and go the really big mall.

The nursery school (Twinkle Tots International School) was delightful. Ama was keen to run in and start immediately. It was well outfitted with toys, sand, climbing things and had well equipped classrooms which were air conditioned no less. They welcomed us on a tour and then Ama played with the outdoor toys while Karen checked the cost. The cost was pretty steep – a $700 joining fee was the big deterrent as well as the fact that the hours were pretty rigid. With the traffic here that could be a problem. The traffic is insane – there are different rules here than we are used to and the horn is an integral part of driving, Back to the school – Karen will keep this as a back up plan in case the nanny her colleague Kingsley has lined up is unsuitable. But best case scenario is that the nanny will care for Ama here at the guesthouse while Karen works.

Part two was a trip to the Accra mall. It could be in any city really – pretty upscale and was anchored by a Walmart like store on one end and the grocery/general goods Shoprite on the other. It boasted a good food court and several movie theatres. It's quite the contrast to most of Accra, and it feels a bit weird to be inside. We bought new pillows, a wading pool for Ama and a few other small things. New pillows that only I will sweat on – luxury. The ones provided - cases are clean, just don’t look inside!

On our return trip the cab driver thought it was important that we see where our embassy was so we did a drive by (it is quite close to here) and it looks basic, sits on large grounds, flag flown proudly. The US emabassy is also close – looks like a big jail – max security and formidable facade. Cannot take pictures of embassies – I didn’t know that.

Today Ama and I were invited on a school presentation for Amend. Ama was swarmed by the kids who all wanted to touch her – wonder if perhaps they want to see if her white skin feels the same. I was shocked to see the teachers teach with a cane in hand and use it to wack those who misbehave. There is a lot of clapping in a particular pattern. The kids were pretty interested but the class was huge – I am guessing 200 kids squashed into that room – 6-12 yrs approx. They do split off by grade for most of their classes as far as I can tell. The school was in disrepair, no glass in the windows, dirt playground, no play equipment and the desks looked like those from early 1900s. Nevertheless the kids seemed keen and welcomed a diversion from their regular class work.



After school we took a cab to a vegetarian restaurant near the guesthouse and had quite the lunch. A plate of rice with veggies – delicious. A bowl of palm soup (I think) with foo foo. It stunk and was the vilest tasting substance I have ever had in my mouth. We laughed and laughed and vowed never to eat foo foo again. (Although we are pretty sure it was the actual soup part that was so gross)






The afternoon brought Karen’s colleagues Jeffrey and Tom for a meeting to discuss the project and Karen’s role and we spent a very pleasant time on the deck with them. Now they are at a soccer game – Ghana vs Ivory Coast (at a local bar; not live ) Apparently they are big rivals so I am sure it is wild.

From Karen:

Ghana definitely lost the soccer game, and it rained to much to go to the original "local" destination, but it was still fun!

We went to the Makola Market, which is a huge and crowded outdoor market that sells everything under the sun. We put Ama in the backpack and once again were grateful to have it! We were quite the spectacle though, and most people laughed and laughed as we walked by. Many people were eager to talk to Ama and touch her, and she did remarkably well with all the attention. If someone went to touch her hand and she didn’t want them to, she just smacked them-good job Ama!

I found the priced at the market to be very reasonable, and I don’t think anyone even tried to overcharge us. People did however try to make us buy way more than we could possibly need, or additional items that we did not want!

Besides the crowds there was nothing totally offensive at the market, except for the guy that tried to sell me a dead rat like animal hanging by a string. No thanks my friend...

It’s seems to be difficult to take pictures in the market, so we couldn’t capture the true insanity of it, but we did manage to get a few.

First School Visit

My first school visit was VERY interesting. The school was actually called "Pig Farm" and I have pictures to prove it! The school grounds left much to be desired, as you can see in the pictures, yet the kids were nice and seemed glad to have us there.

Although I didn't expect that an African school was going to be the same as Canadian schools (I've seen many before), this trip was still very eye opening to how lucky we really are. We have schoolyards free of giant wholes in the ground and burning piles of garbage, among other things. It's SO different (unless you visit one of the many very nice international schools around!)

The presentation was very good and the kids were quite well behaved. Kingsley the presenter is very animated and the kids like him a lot. Even in a tough crowd he was able to get them laughing and participating.

Many of the children were staring at the 5 Obruni's (white people) for most of the presentation, which was slightly awkward. It got more awkward towards the end of the presentation when the speaker suggested that they should feel special in the presence of 5 Obruni visitors. I'm not sure that this is at all true! We are no more special than them, their parents or their teachers, especially since all we did was observe.

We got a picture with the Audi that was driven all the way from France (crazy, I know!). It was pretty funny trying to get them positioned and I was a bit worried that a fight might break out between all the kids fighting for the front!

This is going to be very interesting work. I go to another school on Friday, and then meet with both director and Africa director to hash out the details of the project.

Hope everyone is enjoying getting back to school, work or whatever!