Volta Region

We left on a Friday evening to go from Cape Coast to Hohoe (Ho-Ho-Ay) in the Volta Region- designated by the white and black Volta rivers and Lake Volta, man-made to power a hydroelectric dam.  It turns out it is pretty easy to get there. You go from Tantri station in Cape to Keneshi station in Accra and then tro/walk to Tudu station in Accra and take a direct tro to Hohoe. Our issue was getting from Keneshi to Tudu but a really nice guy took us there. He put us on a tro then walked us 4 blocks and we got on another tro and then walked another 3 blocks to get to the station. He then just smiled, wished us a good trip and left. People are incredibly kind here!

We were in Hohoe at 11pm after sitting in traffic for 2 hours to go 30km- really bad idea to travel out of the capital on a Friday night. We also had to go through 2 legitimate tolls and 8 police checkpoints which is stupid. It explains why the fare was 10 cedi for the same distance as Cape to Accra which is 5 cedi: all the cops wanted there take...

The guesthouse was not very nice since the guy made a big deal out of 3 people sharing a double room and then refused to give us breakfast (included in the room) because he was kind enough to let us all stay. So we checked out early and this is my bad review. Do NOT use the Galaxy Lodge. 

One of the best surprises of the trip was Saturday morning. We were walking to the main tro station when we saw a bunch of brightly colored string sticking out of a building. We decided to investigate (which one should always do since it always turns out well). When we walked over we found that it was a Kente Weaving Station! 

Kente is the traditional fabric of Ghana. It takes a day to make 2 lengths which is ~4 inch x 6 foot. Only men are able to weave Kente (its a traditional stigma). 

We watched for a while and took lots of photos, after asking each of the guys for their permission. They had fabric that they literally threw at us to look at which was awesome, and we each bought a piece directly from the creators!

After walking around Hohoe we caught a tro to Wli (pronounced Vlee, the German way since we are practically in Togo which originally belonged to Germany although everyone now speaks French) Our first excursion then was all of Saturday afternoon. We went hiking and spelunking in Likpe Todome, which was awesome.

It was 2 towns over from where we were staying. So we got a car to the first town, but had to walk to the second, which was incredibly long and hot. Our fault since it was 2 big uphill slopes and was at noon... But we were told by the old men sitting under the tree it was a small-small walk. They kinda lied...

Once we made it to the town we stopped for a bit and ate some oranges and groundnuts and bought some water. We then went hiking. The hiking part sucked at times since we were climbing a mountain and dying from the heat and the exertion. However, at the top we could see both Ghana and Togo and met some Togolese girls who spoke french with us. (good thing i went backpacking in France huh?)

Then we climbed into 3 different caves. One was at ground level and was a nice place to sit.
  

The second cave required us to climb up a ladder onto a rock face which we then shimmied across, while it was wet and our hand holds were not wonderful. Once we made it into the cave we then had to climb up a 45 degree angle to reach the top where we could crouch and sit. The getting back out was worse since gravity is with you on the way down and pushing you along. However, the three of us managed without too many slips... And it was a beautiful cave and a very neat place since the tribal elders used to use to cave in the past.

The third cave was subterranean. You wiggle through a little hole onto a 12 rung ladder into the ground. It is pitch black in there until your eyes adjust to the small proportion of light coming in through the only hole that we came in through. The coolest bit was that it is a bats nest. There were thousands of the little guys in there. If we used the red light on our cameras we could see them without causing them to fly off, but every time we flashed or used the torch they flew away into the recesses of the cave. It was so neat!!!

We then hiked out of the cave and back down the mountainside to a beautiful waterfall. We were muddy and hot and therefore jumped in. We stood underneath the falls and it was a fabulous muscle massage for our backs! By the time we were done playing our guides were laughing at us, and the hike back into town was short and happy.

We had oranges when we got back and they were the best thing i have ever eaten! (Simply because we were so in need of sugar and water!)

That night we slept in a tent with 2 other Americans (Alaska and Illinois) because they had no place to stay! We had gone to the one guesthouse and we then guided by one of the staff to another since the place was booked because of a funeral. The next place was full too, but they  had tents to rent! They even provided mattresses and sheets, so it was less camping then normal... :)
                                         

The following morning we were stiff and sore and walked to the lower Wli falls. We were told it was a 45 minuted hike and were dreading it, but the ground was level the whole way and we made it in 30 minutes... 

The place was gorgeous! It is the tallest waterfall in Ghana and well worth the trip. We loved it. Even the walk through the forest was awesome. We walked along the river with a bunch of butterflies! So neat!

Our trip back was smooth and fast, which we were happy about. We saw lake Volta and crossed the Volta river and saw all the eastern mountains. We talked our way out of a security checkpoint, since none of us carry our passports, but the being as nice as possible seems to work everywhere for 3 innocent girls.... :)

We made it home by 8pm which was earlier then we expected!

I did have to apply some anti-itch cream since i have 24 new bug bites and am now sincerely worried about malaria... :( But I am sure I will be fine... :)

Lake Bosumtwi

Our latest weekend adventure was actually a relaxing one. Mckell and I decided to go to Lake Bosumtwi (or Bosomtwe not sure which spelling is correct). It is 40 minutes east of Kumasi and therefore is not to hard to get to.

Danielle was in Accra making sure her dad got back on an airplane, which is why she did not come. Her dad was a great guy though! He had to adapt to Ghana in a week, which presents a challenge in itself but he managed to not get sunstroke, malaria, or typhoid which is probably what you want. He brought me all of my hosts gifts and medical supplies from the USA so thank you!!!

Our trip to Kumasi was nice since we took a Ford van, which is a tro that sits 3 people to a seat instead of 4 and has intermittent AC. It was exciting! It rained a good deal on our way, but thankfully let up by the time we reached Kumasi. The guy sitting with us was a pastor and gave us handouts (this happens all the time...) but was really nice and helped us out once we got off the tro to get to the proper station. (Its asafo station if you ever need to get there...) We found Issac, the Kumasi taxi driver from Cape Coast, and he dropped us for a cedi, which is what it should be. The first guy wanted 4, No Way!

At the station we quickly found where the tro to Kanatese would be, but it was on its way coming. (I have not yet explained this phrase... It means that the person or car will arrive anytime between 15 minutes and 2 hours. Typically it is more toward the 2 hour mark) So we figured we had time to get snacks! :) We headed off to do so, and ran into 2 obrunis. They were Michael and Chris from Canada. They are on a grand tour from Morocco to Ghana to Egypt to Jordan to Israel. (I so want to join them!!!!!!) They were also planning on spending the weekend at the lake and wanted to know if we would like to split a taxi cost. We went for it, since this would take 10 minutes (not 2 hours) and be cheaper with 4 people. We ran over to a taxi and he of course gave us the obruni price of 30 cedis. We laughed told him it was an obruni price and he agreed and told us he would go for 25. We laughed again and told him 15. He said no one would take us for that and we walked away. We went out to the main road and met Daniel, one of those people who help and then ask for money, and he flagged us a taxi, which we can already do. So we ignored him and negotiated from 35 to 17 and got in. The boys were impressed, and we laughed since we have been doing this for 2.5 months. :)

The toll to get into the lake is 2 cedi which is stupid, but we paid. The lake itself is beautiful! It was created by a meteorite impact and the whole lake is in the crater. There are walls on all sides. Once we were in we walked out our guesthouse and checked into the bunk room (8 cedi! about 5USD, where could you ever stay for that?!) It was nice and the restaurant was pretty. They also provide a private beach on the lake with paddle boats and hammocks. It was fabulous.

Sand Castle!

Traditional Boats used on the lake because it is sacred and therefore a motor cannot be used

We got to know the boys better. They are communications majors (already graduated) that have been working in NY, NY. Mike in art and Chris in music. Chris's girlfriend works at Bethesda and does stem cell research which is awesome!! Mike also made a fishing rod...

Dinner was tasty. I had Jamaican chicken with noodles, a rarity in Africa. Mckell had ice cream and pancakes for dessert, which made her quite happy!

In the morning we left early to walk the 2.5km back to town and get a car. We found one, negotiated to 15 cedi and then waited for him to finish assembling the engine, and got in. The car stalled and turned off multiple times, but eventually we got moving. Our diver was trying to make up for time we did not know we lost and flew around corners and down hills. He got to Kumasi faster than i ever imagined, even with construction detours... I did match the taxi though, which was awesome.

We got a tro/bus back to Cape and the boys went to find the 9am STC to Accra (we doubted it) the boys came back within a half hour and jumped on the tro to Accra. We said goodbye but will defiantly try to find them again!!!

We returned home by 2pm and had a rather nice ride. No issues, good relaxing weekend!

Teaching and Playing

This last week was spent in the Abum school. They are actually a series of schools and we taught at Zion for the week. It was an impressive group of kids that are clearly learning a different curriculum from the other schools we have taught in. These students were able to define germs and the JHS level could tell us what carbohydrates are and what protein is needed for. It was a much smoother teaching experience as well since they understood our English and there was no need to translate into Fante.

We finished teaching on Thursday since we each (Danielle, Mckell, and I) took one JHS level and taught, allowing us to finish quickly. This worked out since Mckell and I were planning to join Neboy for a youth program in Frami on Friday. We caught a tro out since the village is in the direction of the middle of nowhere but it is on the main road which is nice and makes transport easier!

The youth program was a lot of fun and since a picture tells a thousand words here are some instead of me ranting...

Village in the Jungle

My latest adventure has not been an excursion to the other side of the country but is my newest teaching location. I have joined Mckell in teaching in Antwikwaa (pronounced in-ch-kwa). It is a remote village that is quite the trip to get their.

You first catch a tro to Prosso and ride to Gyonkabo which is about 40 minutes. You then alight and go over to the truck stop where you climb into the back of an old pickup truck and once you have 10 people in the back you drive into the jungle for about 30 minutes alighting at a random dirt road. From there you walk 20 minutes through the jungle and end up at our village. In the literal middle of nowhere. There current problem is that the ever elusive forest elephants are eating their crops... :)

We go in about once a week (since it is a trek) to do a health talk on whatever they want. Our first was very standard and we covered the normal issues like hand washing and nutrition. We originally assumed we were patronizing everyone by covering the topics we teach in the primary schools, but instead the village was completely absorbed in what we were saying. We made it a point that children (and adults) need variety in their diets and that constant starch foods are not helping them grow. Since all anyone ever eats is fufu, kenkey, banku, and rice with some sort of stew. We tried to stress the importance of vegetables and fruits and they got the point.

We also talked about the fact that they need to drink enough water. They drink from a stream near the village and we of course told them to boil it!!!! We also told them they need the equivalent of 6-8 water sachets (500mL each) to be hydrated in the heat. This shocked them and they certainly are not drinking that much. We mentioned that when you are dehydrated you body will let you know by staying hot even in the shade and giving you a headache. With that said everyone broke into chatter. People have been feeling this way but not knowing why and were shocked at the simple answer.

After teaching one of the village youth climbed a tree and threw down some coconuts for us to eat. They were very tasty and fun to eat. The flesh is soft and creamy unlike the typical coconut you think of. The villagers also gave us a ton of bananas, which we then had to haul out of the jungle, but were greatly appreciated.

Our next lesson was on pregnancy, breastfeeding, and childhood disease/vaccination. Everyone is very removed in the middle of nowhere and it is hard to get the children vaccinated, however we tried to impress upon them the importance of the vaccines to prevent the diseases like polio, yellow fever, typhoid, hep B, and tetanus. We also stressed diet again for the pregnant mother and the child. vitamin C and calcium are some of the deficiencies that need to be corrected although it is hard to get any dairy product out in the village.

The pregnancy discussion was amusing because we told the women they need to eat well, sleep more, do less taxing work, and go see a doctor to check on the pregnancy. The women were glad to hear this but the husbands seemed disgruntled. One of the men then asked about an old village tradition. Apparently it is believed that the more sex you have during the pregnancy the stronger the child. FALSE. We looked at each other, laughed, shook our heads no and then went to explain, but the no already had people talking. Sammie manged to translate that once you can see that the women is showing, the sex should stop, since it creates pressure on the womb and baby and can cause tearing or damage to the vagina and cervix. This seemed to be upsetting to the men, but the women laughed and clapped, which seems amusing.

We are currently putting together a first aid kit for the village (an extensive one) since it can take between 2-4 hours to reach a hospital. There was a little boy bitten by a green headed snake and to get him help was challenging. Cars don't frequent the village, so one had to found, then in Gyonkabo, they could not treat him and he needed to be taken to cape. It was quite the journey for him and we still do not know if he is okay. So we plan on finding anti-venom, splints and wraps, band-aids (they call them plasters here), antiseptic, antibiotics, and all sorts of diagnostic materials. We will then teach the village of what everything is and what it is used for. But we will also train 3 women as specialists for all of the items, so that they can use them and help people correctly. We will also impose a small fee on the use of the items so that they can be replenished, and then it is seen as more useful. For example Ghana has tried free vaccination campaigns and no one showed up, thinking it could not be any good if they were handing out medicine for free. After imposing a small fee vaccination campaigns are now much more successful...

It is a beautiful village and even though we speak no Twi and they speak no English it is still wonderful to be there and communication can still happen with hand gestures, touches and smiles. It is a very relaxing place and the fact that they appreciate our efforts just to come see them is touching in itself. To think that we are helping educate and change the health of an entire village is mind boggling. The repercussions down the road are very positive and the fact that everyone wants to learn makes it wonderful!

Drying Cocoa Beans

Palm Oil production