Kumasi

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

I woke up early this morning and went over to the IPO building to use the Internet and print out my assignment before class. Unfortunately, on my way I stopped at the vegi city and it wasn’t opened yet- apparently it doesn’t open until eight- and I did not get to pick out the vegetables I was looking forward to. It was probably better off because it is Ash Wednesday so I am fasting. Also the printer wasn’t working in the office, so I had to leave for class and return afterwards in hopes that it would be back in service. Fortunately, it was up and running when I returned and I got my paper back in time to hand it in promptly. I made my way to by next class, this time successfully buying vegetables, which are beautiful and I can’t wait to eat. During class our professor gave out fan ice, which I believe I have described in the past. Next time I get one I will be sure to take a photo. They are almost like go gurt, but it is ice cream that tastes almost like icing. It is incredible how the men that carry them around in a box on their head keep them cold. They come in vanilla (fan ice), chocolate (fan choco), and strawberry (fan yogo). They are all delicious and it was so sad I had to give mine away because I can’t eat today : (. He also gave us bofrot, which I saved so I can eat them tomorrow as a treat. I have decided to give up bread and groundnut paste, so a donut will be nice in the morning instead of my oatmeal and groundnut paste or bread and jelly.
Class is suppose to end at 1:30 and if I walk as quickly as possible, getting stopped on the way for people to tell me I am walking to fast, I am still ten minutes late to my tutorial. However, this week he let us out after two; therefore, there was no way for me to make it to my class. I missed class, which was disappointing, but I did get all of my laundry done when I got back. Today is salsa day and I missed it for the first time because my laundry took longer than expected, I was hungry from not eating all day, and I just did not feel like dancing. So we went to Alliance Francis instead, it was a really chill sit down and listen to live music night, which I greatly enjoyed. Thankfully we returned before midnight and the water was back on, so I got to shower and migrate to my bed to get some well-earned sleep.

Thursday, March 10, 2010

I woke up at 5:40, got ready for work, walked to the junction, hopped in a shared taxi, went to 37 where I got a trotro to Osu and when I arrived I immediately went to the women who I owed money and once again I couldn’t pay her because she didn’t have change. However, the trip to work was smooth and once again I arrived early, a great start to a great day. I got a good amount done at work although it was sad because the Internet was down and I typically get to post my blog on workdays. I was also exhausted so I asked where I could buy coffee and one of my colleagues said she would take me because she also needed some. We walked up Oxford Street, which is a place to do great shopping. She let me stop and get shampoo, which I had just run out of and vinegar, which I never thought would happen in Ghana it was the happiest moment ever. We finally made our way to a restaurant with coffee; it was over priced as usual. In Ghana coffee is very difficult to find, what they do have is Nesque Café (instant coffee) and it tastes a lot like chalk. Also, it is very expensive, but today I felt as if I needed some. We asked for sugar because to drink it black is almost impossible and she put a large amount in each of our cups. We went to try it and discovered we both needed additional sugar. She came back with more put it in, when we tried it we discovered it was salt. The woman had to make us both new coffees and she couldn’t stop laughing, she couldn’t believe she made that mistake. After all of that neither of us could even finish one cup because it is just so hard on the stomach. Later on we went to grab lunch at a small stand that had delicious wache, gari, and “salad”. I really enjoyed lunch and I had extras to bring home to add to the salad I would eat for dinner.
Back at work I finished up my days tasks and went on my way so I could make it back in time to get ready for dance. On my way out I found a pair of shoes I really liked, so I decided to splurge and purchase them. This seems to be a trend that I must put an end to quickly or I am going to come home with thirty pairs of sandals. However, they are so inexpensive and the money is going to help out individuals who are working to make a living and support their families, so it cannot be viewed as a waste. I then had change to bring to the women who I owed money too. I made my way back to campus and had time to finish my laundry. I had done my clothes the day before, but my fingers hurt and I didn’t have the energy to clean my towels. I was so happy I got them done because we are going to Kumasi this weekend and I always come home with so much to wash adding towels would have been terrible. Then I went to dance and we were informed that our test would be moved to next Tuesday and we would be examined on two dances, not just the first dance like they had originally planned. So I set up an appointment with one of the TAs to go over the dances with me and make sure that I am doing the steps correctly.
After dance we went to Tantra, which was completely empty when we arrived. So we walked over to the Container where the girls got drinks and we met up with some of our other friends. There were so many men around and they kept pulling up chairs to join our table. Some of the girls were getting really frustrated and did not know how to deal with the situation. I had never hung out with them before so I am not sure how they survive in this country with such little patience. The men began to say that Americans are not friendly, but in Ghana it is nice to be nice so we shouldn’t be so rude. I got annoyed because I do not approve of people who are blatantly being rude by ignoring our requests that they leave, to call my entire country rude. We ended up leaving there and returning to the club, which had picked up tremendously. The night turned out successfully and we got home in time to get a couple of hours of sleep.

Friday, March 11, 2011

This morning we left for Kumasi, the bus ride was about five and a half hours, which I slept about five hours and fifteen minutes of and we arrived right in time for lunch. We were served rice balls and goat soup, which were both new items for me and I loved them both. Although I did not eat it with my fingers, it is meant to be eaten like fufu. There were also other types of food, all of which I have had in the past. It was a great meal and from there we headed out to a traditional Asante home where the Queen Mother once resided. We saw adorable turtles there and learned about how this woman single handedly assembled thousands of women to fight against the British. The men were embarrassed so that joined in with the fight. Although the Asante’s were forced under British rule, they hold that they were never defeated. The Asante’s maintain that the sole item that keeps the people united is the Golden Stool that fell from the Heavens. If the Stool was to be captured the village would disintegrate and the people would perish. The British attempted numerous times to capture the Stool with no avail. Therefore, the Asante people although under the rule of the British maintained their identity and after independence they are still the most powerful people in Ghana and their Chief still has incredible power over the people. Before we left the house some of us needed to use the washroom, until we were brought to see what the washroom entailed. It was a small cement wall and when you went on the backside there was a tiny hall in the wall so you could squat, use the bathroom, and it would drip outside the walls onto the other side. I was unable to use it because I was wearing jeans and everyone said it splashed a lot. The bathroom situations remained the same for the rest of our trip in Kumasi.
We then went to Bonwire, a Kente weaving village where real kente is made. I was able to try out weaving and I found some jewelry that I bought. There were about fifteen different stations with individuals that were all thriving for our attention and our money. The men were overwhelming for some of the females, but most people were able to enjoy the experience anyway. We found out that kente is created to honor someone special and that both Bill Clinton and Obama have a design in their honor. When we left the shop there were little children waiting outside to beg us for money and we practically had to run into the bus to get away.
We then continued to Ntonso, Adinkra Cloth Village where we were given the opportunity to stamp the kente with symbolic stamps. I was thrilled for this part of the trip. I bought one that resembles TCNJ’s colors to hang in my apartment next year and on it I stamped peace and unity, one that represents to rams about to clash head on and it means that we should get to a point where we almost knock each other out, but find peace right before that moment so the physical clash never occurs, and all powerful. I also got on that is gold and for my bedroom at home. On that I stamped the Tree of God representing that God is always amongst us, integrity and perseverance, and success. The third piece is a table runner that is beautiful and has many different symbols throughout it. After our pieces dried and we were given a demonstration on how the paint that we used to stamp is made from bark that is soaked, shredded, pounded, and then boiled, we left to go back to the hotel Treasure Land.
We were served dinner, which once again was spectacular and it came with dessert, crêpes with chocolate. After dinner some of us decided we would venture off to a club. Some of the boys that live with us at ISH are from Kumasi and happened to be home for the weekend. So we took a taxi to a local pub and then about seven of us all jumped in one car and traveled to a nightclub. When we arrived we were informed that there was a cover charge, which some of the girls did not want to pay. So we turned around and went back to the hotel. When we arrived back we discovered that the gate was locked and we couldn’t get into the hotel. We banged for a couple of minutes and someone came to let us back in.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

We got up at eight thirty for breakfast, which consisted of coffee, toast, eggs, fruit, and corn flakes. This was the first time I had cereal in Ghana and it was delicious. After breakfast we got back on the bus and headed to the Chiefs Palace. The current chief no longer resides in the palace; he had a new one build and the one we were visiting was turned into a museum. Our tour guide was personable and very informative. We saw wax statues of the chiefs who once lived in the homes and of the Queen Mothers. We learned about the special armor, clothes, pipes used to resolve fights, bags used to carry gold, and other interesting information about the Asante people. After the museum we went to Central Market, one of the largest markets in Ghana. I am so happy with all of my purchases; I spent such a small amount of money and was able to get a variety of items. There were no touristy items, like art, woodcarvings, or things you would buy as souvenirs, but I got practical things that I need for everyday. It was a great experience because of the minimal amounts of harassment, usually at a market people who want the abrunis attention swarm us, but there were so many people that we were the least of the storekeepers concern. It was difficult to find our way around and we only made it to two sections before our two hours were up and we needed to go back. We asked about ten people how to find our bus and people all seemed to send us in contradicting directions. Eventually we found a kind man that walked us for about twenty-five minutes through the market to our destination.
Our group then split in two and those who were interested in going to the stadium to watch the football game went in the small bus and the remaining students went back to the hotel in the larger bus. I went to the stadium, which turned out to not be playing the game. So we went to a Sports Bar and that was empty, so finally we ended up at a small bar with many locals. The wrong team won, but we did end up having a nice time. We almost got food, but when I went to the pork stand I noticed that the piece of pig they were chopping from was right above the tail, which was actually still intact. I ended up getting an orange instead (I am not sure if I have told you, but oranges here are green not orange and they don’t eat them they squeeze the juice of out of them).
After the game we went to dinner at a Chinese Restaurant that was beautiful, but the service was so slow it was after ten by the time we received our meals, checks, and change. There were some complications with the vegetarians and again when the bills came out people were shocked. However, the food was delicious and most people were happy with how everything turned out. After dinner we went back to the hotel and went swimming before we went to bed

Sunday, March 13, 2011

We had a free day this morning, so we woke up for breakfast at eight-thirty and some of us decided to go back to the market. We took a trotro there and stayed for only about an hour before it was time to get back to the hotel for lunch and the bus ride back home. We hit the road by one-thirty, stopped and had to use some interesting bathrooms on the way back, and by seven we were back on campus. I did my laundry from the weekend, practiced the dance we will be tested on next week, worked on my blog, and went off to bed.