Ama gets homework, mommy gets sick

Last weekend, to my surprise, Ama got her first ever homework assignment. As the teacher handed the letters and numbers that Ama was to color and recite, I suppressed my desire to laugh. Homework? She's 2! I was a bad mom, and we didn't do it. However, we dug it out this week, and she had a blast coloring it.




Unfortunately my cold turned into much more than a cold. On Wednesday night I felt much much worse with aches and fever, and by Thursday I was so useless that I took a taxi to drop Ama at school. The people at the Guesthouse convinced me to see a doctor when I emerged from my room wearing a jacket in 35 degree weather. They were right!

A very nice American man who is staying here sent me with his car and driver
to the clinic nearby, where the nurse interviewed me about my symptoms and then sent me into a tiny lab where I was tested for malaria. The 3 men in a room where only 1 could move comfortably were trying to joke with me but I didn't find them very funny! Personal space doesn't even exist in the lab in Ghana!

After coming out of the lab, the pharmacist yelled for me, and shoved some meds at me, 2 pills and a mystery liquid of milky consistency. When I asked what it was for, she barked "Doctors orders" and demanded I take it right there. I was in no position to argue so I obliged. The fact that I was questioning her seemed offensive. I guess here you just blindly take (and pay for) what they give you!

I was then sent to a room to lay down, where I must have spent 2 hours-I think they forgot about me. When I finally got the energy to get off of the bed and find out what was going on I was on fire, so I asked the nurse to check my temp-it had gone up 3 degrees in 3 hours! Some man in the waiting room who had been staring at me during my time in the waiting room tried to make conversation by saying "you look hot." Yeah, thanks.

I realized that they don't call your name, they just ring a bell and you're supposed to magically know it's your turn, presumably by which chair your in. If you don't immediately jump up and go in the office, even before the other person has come out, someone will bud in front of you. Thanks for letting me know 3 hours later guys...

When I finally saw the doctor I was informed that I did not have malaria but did have an infection, probably from eating questionable food, and should take cipro. After leaving her office, the pharmacist called me over again, and handed me a pile of meds, which I have no clue what most are! I will not be taking most of it, other than the cipro I brought from home. I did however take the cough syrup one night-bright green, made in India. Yum.

Apparently Ghanaians judge the quality of care they receive at the doctor by the amount of drugs they receive, which would explain the vast quantity of medication I was given. People frequently ask "did you get an injection?" if you have visited the clinic. Very interesting...

Luckily Ama was quite good when I picked her up from school after my excursion at the doctors, and I was able to manage. I am now almost back to normal!




On Friday I dragged myself to immigration to renew my visa, which was a long, complicated, and expensive process that resulted in me not having our passports until March 18th! Note to travelers: Get a multiple entry visa and go to Togo and back ever 60 days. Cheaper and less complicated!

After our trip to immigration, Ama played with Kwesi the gardener, who taught her the not so wonderful habit of picking flowers. I was inside trying to not rest and recover, and decided to check on her. I came around the corner and she goes: "Mommy! I have flowers! They're Butiful!" We have created a flower picking monster-I accept no blame!

Saturday saw our regular trip to the pool, but this time we were accompanied by the neighbors, a refreshing change, especially given my lack of energy. Upon our return, Ama played and played with Pearl, one of the cooks, children. This was wonderful since it kept her busy and she had fun. It's interesting how she is starting to play with kids instead of just near them. They passed the ball back and forth, chased the "baby kitty," picked flowers, and briefly played on the not so safe climbing structure (to which I quickly put an end). I could hear squeals of laughter for at least 2 hours. It was great!








This week will consist of school number 2 of the pilot, as well as me catching up on all the work I didn't do last week! We are also going to visit "Grandma" tomorrow, should be fun!

Work Work Work

I am definitely not as good at keeping this up since Mom left, but that's partly because there hasn't been nearly as much excitement lately!

I've been busy getting ready to pilot the changes for the school program, and this week we began. It went reasonably well, and I can tell that we will learn TONS from the pilot, and adjust from there. The biggest challenge has been implementing a practical portion to the program. They do this in Tanzania, and we have adapted it from how they do things there.

Basically we have a pretend road, and children act as cars and/or pedestrians, to simulate the road environment. We are able to show them why certain behaviors are dangerous, and what doing the right thing looks like. It seems to be going well, but as with anything there are some kinks to work out, no biggie. Also notice in the pictures how the group size is way lower, so much calmer!





Other than working, Ama and I have been up to pretty much the same old (sorry, I know, boring!). We went to the pool on Saturday as usual, and Ama had fun trying to consume all the ketchup the Shangri-la had to offer (what is it with kids and ketchup?)We have also been to the hotel down the road a couple times where Ama can have ice cream, and perhaps more importantly I can have a beer! We always have the place to ourselves, so it's pretty great.




Last week we went to Lucy's, or as she calls herself, Grandma's house. Her home was absolutely beautiful. She has her two grandchildren living with her from the US, and the little girl had ton's of fun with Ama. I will be phoning her soon to schedule round 2! It's nice to see a friendly face, outside the environment of service or buying/selling.

On Sunday night I was laying in bed looking at my calendar and thinking "hey, I'm almost half way done, I can do this, no problem!" Just then, out came a cockroach from hiding to squash my confidence, and I will admit there were some tears and some "I want to go homes." I spoke with Jane on skype who attempted to coach me in what to do, but I was too wimpy. I told her I just hoped it would die and leave me alone. Then next morning, to my suprise, there it was dead on the floor by my suitcase! I willed it to death! Pretty amazing, and creepy. I quickly called Adam the security guard, who removed it from my bedroom. There have been no signs of his or her family members, so I think (or hope) we are in the clear. Yuck.

On Monday I was quite tired, and my day involved a lot of waiting and a lot of sitting in traffic inhaling mass amounts of pollution. When I got home I decided I needed an un-Ghana experience, and carted Ama to the Accra Mall. There we enjoyed some very tasty chinese food. There was also a giant play place in the middle of the food court where they charge 3GHC for half hour of play. Ama enjoyed herself thouroughly.

Unfortunately I didn't bring my camera, but we will be back so I will take pictures of this pretty amazing play place. While Ama was having a blast, I started talking with the owner. Turns out she is from Edmonton, and Terwillegar at that! We were basically neighbours growing up, small world! She gave me her number, so I will likely phone her. We will definitely be back.

Good news! Ama has been using the potty at daycare now for 3 days! She's had a couple of accidents each day, but still, progress! Still not much progress at home except on the weekends. Poor thing is so tired after school!

I have a pretty terrible cold, and Ama seems to be getting it, so tomorrow I think we will take a rest day. I'm also thinking that a trip out of Accra is in order in a couple of weeks, if only to save my lungs from the exhaust in the air! I'll keep you posted on when/where we decide to go, but a beach weekend is likely.

Here are a couple pictures I took of very small children walking alone on the road, in an unsafe way.

When in Ghana...

If this blog post ever reaches anyone but myself in my apartment it might just be a miracle. In an effort to “improve” internet service and provide customers with “fast” and “wireless” internet, GILLBT has changed internet providers. Don’t worry everyone, this wonderful service is only an increase from 3 to 5GHC per day. This roughly works out to be 100USD per month in internet charges, if used every day of the month, but not to worry, I’ve been informed that this is “not too expensive.” What? This would be almost ok if the internet actually worked, but since this wonderful change to a “better” service, the internet has not worked. Conveniently, this has also happened on a weekend, which is the time I rely on home internet most to sneak in work, since Ama is with me. While I am a fan of wireless internet, if there isn’t anyone around who has a clue as to what to do when it goes down, it is useless. It seems that whenever there is a power outage, there is an issue with the wireless---major problem since the power goes out almost daily here!

That’s probably enough ranting for now...

Our first week sans Grandma was a success, and although I had my doubts when she left, I think we might just make it the 7 more weeks until Pam arrives. Ama had many fits of “I can’t find my Gampa,” but soon recovered. One thing that I have noticed since Mom left is that there is no longer an excuse when you are “invited.”
Ghana is a VERY religious place, and it is not uncommon for people to be preach over loud speakers in market places, or use religious references in day to day conversations with strangers. It is basically assumed that everyone is a full blown believer, preferably of the Christian faith. People often are confused/concerned when they learn that I have not been to church on a particular Sunday. When Mom was here, I was able to attribute that to travelling or some other reasonable excuse.
In addition to living in the land of open Christianity, I am staying at a missionary guesthouse called GILLBT-Ghana Institute of Linguistics and Bible Translation. No, there is no wine allowed on the premises-quite possibly the only drawback to the place. Although you don’t have to be a missionary to stay here, the place attracts many missionaries, which is not hard since many of the foreigners here are doing some sort of mission work. This includes the very nice Canadian couple across the hall, who have invited me to their church several times. It came to the point where it felt almost rude to decline, since it was obvious to all that I had nothing better to do, so I decided to join them today.

For all those that know me, you are probably saying “Karen went to church?” But when in Ghana...It was actually quite interesting. It was called the Elim International church, and consisted mostly of ex-pats. I can see how this would be a good venue to connect with people that you might have common interests with. It was very young in comparison to any church I’ve been to at home (my church experience is not so exhaustive that this means anything!), and the service was way more up-beat. I believed it was founded by a Japanese man , but I might be wrong on that one. It is a multi-denominational church with lots of singing and dancing. There was a band which Ama was quite interested, and it was an overall un-painful experience.

Man there are a lot of people doing mission work here. Some are totally wacko and clueless, but most seem to be providing pretty good services and seem pretty respectful. I've met some really nice and interesting people.

After church and an afternoon nap, I went outside to observe Peace and Moses (yes those are their actual names) pounding FuFu. I took several pictures (below) and Ama tried some. After the first mouthful she exclaimed “I like it! I want more FuFu!” I’m not sure what happened to my baby, but this little girl is now talking in full sentences.

I should have taken it upon myself to hide once the fufu was prepared, but I was still outside when Moses came down with his steaming hot bowl of soup (I can’t remember the actual name, and can’t look it up because I have no internet access) of ground nut/palm nut soup, complete with a giant ball of fufu at the bottom. It closely resembled the horrifying soup that was we encountered a few weeks ago, and Moses exclaimed “You are invited!” What is one to do? It would be rude not to join.
You are invited meant that we would eat the soup together, with our hands, out of the same bold, off the ground near the gate of the guesthouse. I am glad that I have seen this eaten before, and was aware of the hand-washing procedures. Thankfully, this soup, although not the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted, was much more palatable than my last encounter with soup/fufu. I have decided though that I will never grow to love fufu. It is very dough-like, and sits in your stomach like a log. It is pretty neat to watch it being prepared though, and I can appreciate the hard work that goes into it.






After my gourmet and very romantic Valentines dinner (I had completely forgotten about Valentines day) I decided to take Ama out for ice cream, and me out for a glass of wine. We went to the very fancy Captain Hooks (recommended to anyone who wants to splurge in Accra) and indulged in far too expensive wine and ice cream. We arrived shortly before opening, and the very friendly hostess allowed us to go in early, avoiding the Valentine’s day rush. Ama was a fantastic date, and we enjoyed ourselves very much!

This week we should be visiting Lucy, our new “Grandma.” I was put in touch with this very friendly woman through my professor, who had previously taught Lucy’s daughter Abena. I met Abena in Calgary in November, and she was so nice as to give me her mother’s contact information. “Grandma” came to meet me at the guesthouse, and embraced me in a surprisingly strong hug at least 3 times. She insisted that we visit her at her home, and I am not about to argue! It is amazing to be so wholeheartedly welcomed by a perfect stranger. It makes me think that North Americans have a lot to learn about human relationships, but that’s another story for another day!

I love living in Canada!

I had quite an eventful trip home and am thrilled to be back though I am already missing my little Ama bama ,and Karen of course. I was astounded by the number of checks there were at the Accra airport before I could board – 2 immigration checks, 2 stops before I could check my baggage, forms to fill, and of course the security scans and a frisking – all before a very long wait in a crowded departure lounge. I sat in my seat in the lounge when to my horror, a lady just sat herself between me and the person next to me where there was barely 8 inches of seat. I got up and found a new seat. Then, because there was no PA, there was a lot of confusion about who was to board when. This caused instant crowded line-ups, or more accurately herding as people tried to board.

Once on board, I sat next to two very interesting Dutch ladies who were returning from a trip to Burkina Faso. They told me to be sure and watch the Olympic speed skating for their friend Sven Kramer who is competing for Holland. Imagine my surprise to read about him the next day in the Edmonton Journal. Pat says we will have to find out Sven he is on. (Groan).

Shortly after takeoff the pilot announced we would be stopping in Niger for fuel as there was not enough in Accra. I found myself thinking “Niger, where is that? Do they mean Nigeria?” Niger is about an hour and a half flight time from Accra.

About the same time we arrived in Niger the pilot asked for a Dr. as we had a sick passenger. A man seated not far from me answered the call. Shortly after, there was a call for a glucometer and not long after that an announcement that an ambulance had been called. To our horror, the next announcement was that the passenger had died and arrangements were being made for him. We were a very subdued bunch of passengers after that – everyone felt terrible. After about 2 hours, we were up and on our way to Amsterdam and got in about 8:30 am – a lot of passengers had to be re-routed but thanks to a long lay over I was fine.

I used the time to scout out the airport to see what it could offer Karen and Ama on their return flight and found both a Mommy lounge and a playground plus they have McDonalds which for 4 Euros you can buy a kids meal. Amsterdam was much more sane in terms of security checks – only one point of passport checks and scanning.

Thankfully my flight to Calgary was uneventful and I was delighted to see Pat and Bo at the gate. I was struck by all the order and modern everything. Orderly lineups, courteous drivers, streetlights, clean everything. We went to Susan and John’s where Susan and Marilyn made a wonderful dinner, we watched some Superbowl and enjoyed all the kids.

The kids were delighted with their African gifts. The girls put their dresses on immediately and tried to balance their baskets on their heads.
So while I am thrilled to be home, I am so glad I joined Karen and Ama for a wonderful adventure and that I was able to help them get settled. We had some wonderful experiences and some great times. I look forward to following the rest of their adventure on the blog along with all of you.

Bon Voyage Grandma!

Sadly, Grandma is on her way to the airport. I'm 100% sure that this trip would not have been pleasant or even possible if she had not come, and I would have wanted to go home by now. She made the transition smooth and was a great help, and great company for both Ama and myself.

I really hope Ama adjusts to Grandma's departure well, but I am thinking that the next week or so might be a bit rough. She has pretty much been with her "Gampa" every day since mid November, so this will be a change for her (and me).

Our last week here was pretty busy. I had lots of Amend work to do, and can tell that there will be no shortage of work there for the duration of my stay. It feels nice to have everything planned out and to know what my work will actually look like.

Mom got an outfit made by the lovely seamstress' (pictured below) next to the Amend office. It looks pretty awesome, but I will keep the pictures to myself so that it's a surprise when we come home. I am also going to get at least one outfit made, since they did a fantastic job for really cheap (labor was 20GHC), and fabric is very cheap here too. There is this fantastic fabric store called Woodin, which we have probably spent about 3 hours total in since arriving. Note to shoppers-picking out fabric will not be a quick task!





Kingsley, Muhsin, and Tom from Amend insisted that we be "baptised" into the Amend family by joining them for Talapia(fish) and Banku(odd tasting dough ball made from maize, I think). Mom was a bit worried about the eating with the hands thing, as well as the fact that the fish comes whole with eye balls and guts, but it was really quite tasty. It has a spicy gingery sauce and was served with tomatoes and onions in a very spicy sauce. The Banku was less tasty, perhaps an acquired taste? The afternoon was quite enjoyable-even the 1 hr tro tro ride that I dragged mom on! The only tro tro mishap was that a rather large lady sat on mom, and I had to do everything in my power from laughing hysterically out loud.





We did some last minute shopping which was surprisingly hassle free and enjoyable. There is a great basket shop around the corner where mom when a bit nuts (I will probably do the same, they would be great for my future classroom!)The old lady was a tough bargainer and didn't budge on the price, but the prices were quite fair. We also went to George the driver's friends store and bought some cool souvenirs for the family. There was no pressure and the prices started out at a reasonable level. Weird...




We spent our last day poolside at the Shangri-La, which will likely become our weekend retreat. We enjoyed a nice dinner out, and off went Grandma in the cab to the Airport. Safe flight Mom!

On Holiday Again!

From Lorrie: This is my last weekend here so we decided a beach experience was in order. We got a great recommendation from a German family that we met at the guesthouse so we made reservations and booked our trusty driver George to get us there. In order to have less traffic, we departed at 6:00 AM. Still at that hour the city was bustling. We arrived at the Ko-Sa beach resort, just outside of Elmina at 9:00 and after a quick coffee we were on the beach.

The beach was terrific – there are some big rocks that break the surf which otherwise would be too big for us let alone Ama. In the morning when the tide is out, the water is pretty quiet and she could play till lunch. Our accommodation was a small bungalow with its own bathroom and 2 double beds. Lovely. Just outside our door is a gazebo and a stones throw from the outdoor restaurant. The food was consistently tasty and fresh, and fairly reasonable. The hotel consists of hut style buildings, and offers a range of different accommodation types.









Below are pictures of our room and the restaurant area



After Ama’s nap (we need to get her out of the mid-day sun), we take her back to the beach but by this time the tide is coming in and the waves are big. She loves being held by us as they crash into us and splash. She squeals with delight and can hardly wait for the next big wave. “Watch out! It’s coming!” She has learned to say.

One of the best parts of the holiday was meeting the other guests. We met some volunteers from Holland who were working in Tamale in a hospital there. We also met a UN worker who works in Nepal relocating refugees. She was preparing for her wedding here in Ghana. Our next door neighbours were a German couple – she is a kindergarten teacher in a school held in the forest (outdoors all year long) and he is an undercover policeman.

We were joined one morning by some small African boys who wanted their picture taken and also to play with Ama’s soccer ball. Innocent enough and since they were small we were happy to oblige. However, the soccer ball disappeared and despite a good effort by our hosts to retrieve it, the ball apparently met with a “needle” and deflated. That’s the story anyway. Lesson learned-don’t let the toys go out of sight!

One day while reading outside our room, some 12-14 yr old boys were harvesting coconuts. They scale the 30 to 40 ft trees with no effort and no safety anything and knock the coconuts out of the trees. Later they try to sell them to us at 1GHC a piece, not bad!

We had planned on the canopy walk but the 2 hr drive and questionable safety of the bridge was a big deterrent for grandma so we declined in favour of another beach day. Monday was our departure day and we stopped to see the Cape Coast Castle which was one of the famous spots where slaves were held and then shipped around the world. It is a shocking place – it is estimated that over 2M Africans were rounded up and shipped. Many did not even survive the castle let alone the voyage to whatever country was receiving them. It was a sobering tour.

We are now back in Accra and tomorrow Karen is off to work and I am off to nursery school with Ama. My big job will be to take the laundry down for the staff to wash – I must admit that handing it over to someone and getting it back folded and mostly clean is a pretty good service for less than $5 per week for the 3 of us. Also on tap for this week is some shopping and preparing for my Saturday departure – cannot believe my month is nearly over but of course there is no place like home so I am also looking forward to my return.








The pictures above are of the Cape Coast Castle. The "door of no return" is where the slaves were brought out to the ship. There is now a sign on the other side of the door that says "door of return." This was put on after descendants from the slave trade came back to visit the castle where their ancestors were shipped.

Just outside this door is a bustling area with tons of fishing boats. Very interesting.