I. Am. Ghanadian.

So yet again, it has been some time since my last post – I must get better at keeping this blog updated!

Since last weekend in Akosombo, much has happened. On Thursday, we went to the Canadian High Commission to celebrate Canada Day in style. We sat by a pool, listened to (somewhat terrible, but comfortingly familiar) Canadian pop music, and ate. Oh, how we ate. First off, there was free popcorn so I was all over that. And then we also ate hotdogs and poutine – yes, you read that right! I was actually able to enjoy Canada’s greatest accomplishment while here in Ghana, and let me tell you it was worth the two cedis. There was also a really delicious cake at the end of the evening which was also free of charge. Only problem with the cake? Instead of saying “Happy Birthday, Canada”, the message on top read “Happy Birthday Sweetheart”. All in all a humorous mistake, and somewhat appropriate as at this point we are feeling rather fond of our homeland!

Enjoying some poutine!

            We spent the whole evening meeting and talking with other interns from Canada who were placed all over Ghana. It was really interesting to hear what other people our age were doing here, and what experiences they were having. I got to have some conversations that I will not get to have when I get back to Canada – I bonded with these Canadians over trotro etiquette, the amazing food here in Ghana, insects/creatures we had encountered, etc. It was fun to talk to other Canadians about cultural differences and good-naturedly complain about the less than ideal experiences we have had; at the same time, we all know how lucky we are to be here and we definitely bonded over that fact as well.

            On Friday, our Cape Coast counter-parts were in Accra again, and so we went to the Paloma to stuff ourselves full of western food and proceeded to spend the next several hours experiencing the nightlife Accra is well known for shall we say! We wandered around Osu, looking for the best places to be and were given great suggestions along the way. We went dancing at a couple of places called Container (literally a container with tables set up outside and a very exciting atmosphere) and Duplex (a nice night-club with outrageous prices but great music). I would say that this was one of the best nights I have spent here in Accra – everyone was so friendly, and willing to teach us dance moves, and we met so many people! A fun way to spend a Friday night (and part of the morning!).

           

After a day of rest and shopping on Saturday, we went to Cape Coast for the first time on Sunday. It is a beautiful area, and very different from Accra. Things generally seem to move at a more relaxed pace than in Accra (mind you, we were there on a Sunday and then a public holiday). We almost felt as if we could (literally) breathe easier, with less traffic and thus less exhaust fumes in the air. Accra is a wonderful and exciting city with a great energy, but it was nice to get away again and head towards the ocean! The other thing that surprised me about Cape Coast (though again, we were there on a long weekend when many were travelling to the area), was the number of obrunis in the town. Almost everywhere you looked, you could see groups of 2, 3, sometimes even 20 obrunis walking around! Very strange when we are used to seeing maybe one per week in Accra. Though, it was nice to once again meet people from other places and compare work placements and experiences!

           












After exploring Cape Coast for a bit, we decided to do a tour of Cape Coast Castle, a tourist must-see. Seeing the castle and physically standing in small, dark rooms where 200 people were stuffed for months, left to rot in their own excrement, was a very powerful and emotional experience; even more so than I expected. We read about the slave trade in school and in the museum I was familiar with the characters and practices of the trade. However, actually standing in a building that was so active in the slave trade and seeing the shackles that people were forced to wear was very haunting. We walked through the Door of No Return (as thousands once did), and you could see nothing but open water which was the burial ground for a staggering number of individuals. We lingered around the castle for some time, thinking and taking pictures, reflecting on the significance of the castle and all it represented to the people of Ghana. It was a difficult, moving, and necessary experience to have.

            After the castle we went back to Oasis Beach Resort (which might as well be called Obruni Beach Resort!) and chatted for an hour before dinner. We feasted on red red (typical for me) and pizza, and then were joined by Amber, who is from Acadia, and some of her friends who were all very nice. We chatted and laughed and danced for a few hours, and then settled into bed to prepare for our next day of adventure – Kakum Canopy Walk!

            We set off early for Kakum in order to get there as close to opening as possible – even so, we were definitely not the first ones there! Kakum National Park, where we did the Canopy Walk, is definitely a tourist hot-spot and there were also many school groups present as well. It was very busy, but very fun! We embarked with a large group led by a fantastic guide, Naomi. Members of our group seemed to find us just as thrilling as the walk to the canopy bridges as our pictures were being snapped with our tour-mates all along the way! The walk up was steep and quick through the forest, and we climbed up I do not know how many wet and muddy stone stairs. We reached the first platform to board the first bridge (of which there are seven). The total distance of the walk is 350m and we were suspended up to 40m above the rainforest – much higher than it sounds! I was the excited kind of nervous at the thought of walking across slippery wooden boards bordered on either side by rope netting, but once I got up there and past the first step, I loved it! I did look down once or twice, only to see nothing but the lush forest beneath (no glimpse of the forest floor whatsoever). I have to say, I felt pretty brave and adventurous, and my only complaint about the walk was that it was too short! Even though we lingered on each platform in between bridges to enjoy the views, we had crossed all the bridges before we knew it. The views from that high up were spectacular, even through the misty fog (which actually added to the effect). And it even started to rain a bit while we were in a rainforest, which seemed appropriate!

            After Kakum, we made our way to the Monkey Forest Reserve, an animal sanctuary only 3km from Kakum that is run by a Dutch couple and has been in operation for 9 years. The couple turned an area entirely made of brush into a haven for sick, injured, and orphaned monkeys, snakes, alligators, turtles, and some species of cat and mammals, many endangered, that I had never seen nor heard of previously. We had found out about this place from the Bradt guide, and the admission was most certainly worth it as it all goes to feeding the animals. The idea of the sanctuary is that those animals which can be rehabilitated and released back into the wild are, and those that were too young when rescued and did not acquire survival skills often become permanent residents of the sanctuary unless they are adopted by others of their species. The woman who owns the sanctuary (who had a Dutch name which I completely forget) was, excuse my language, a total badass. She was older and very tough; but she was also very passionate about the work she was doing. All of the animals had names and were clearly treated very well. She explained to us the difficulty that they had been having trying to fight the environmental changes as the forest swallowed up parts of the sanctuary; it has eaten paint of off walls, and crumbled stairs unless they were made of specific stone. She is constantly trying to update, expand, and improve the facilities so as to better take care of the animals, and this was made clear throughout.

            One of the best parts of this experience was the most unexpected (as everything great has been in Ghana!). We were climbing what seemed like a million stairs, when suddenly we got to the top and looked out to see the most spectacular view of the rainforest. The sanctuary overlooks Kakum National Park, though while you could once see the bridges from the trees, now the forest has taken over and blocked the view. I joked that when we lose sight of things at home, it is because we have built enormous buildings, not because the environment has taken over! Then came the best part: turtles. There was a relatively small enclosure at the top of this hill which housed several land and river turtles. They were maybe 6 inches across and 8 inches long, and they were wonderful. Our guide took two of them out of the enclosure and sat them on the ledge while he explained the qualities of their species. I definitely was not listening to any of this information, as I became fixated on getting to hold one of these turtles, and was going over in my head reasons why I would not be able to (of which I could come up with none). So, when our guide asked if any of us wanted to hold one, I was beside myself. I had always liked turtles, it is true; however, I was unaware of how much until I got the opportunity to hold one. The turtle squirmed a bit as I held her, and I just stared at her as I could not believe my good luck. When I went to pass her onto Jessica, she pinned my finger to her little belly. While this was meant to be an aggressive or defensive move I am sure, I of course took it to mean that she loved me and wanted to come to Canada with me. First order of business after graduation – acquire a turtle to share my life with.

            After the reserve, where we also met the most adorable monkeys ever, we went back to Cape Coast and virtually passed out from exhaustion in Baobab’s restaurant. We had not really eaten breakfast and it had been a hectic few days, so we barely made it through lunch awake! The food was great and we decided being sleepy was a good thing as we had a moderately long tro ride ahead. The ride was great for a while, and then to avoid traffic around Kasoa, our driver decided to take the bumpiest back roads in existence. This would have been funny save for the fact that I had a bit of a dodgy tummy anyway, and so it was more unpleasant than amusing. Regardless, we made it home safe and sound and proceeded to pass out.

Thus ends the saga of a very fun weekend in Accra and Cape Coast! More to come, and I will try to post more frequently so as to avoid these marathon posts. Cheers for now!