Circus Freak

One common theme in all the places I've visited so far is that I feel like an absolute freak. In Ghana, they stare and talk because I'm white. In Egypt, they stare and harass because I'm white and female and wearing Western clothing. On the streets here in India, its pretty much on par with Egypt. I'm getting weary of feeling like a circus freak. Yesterday evening, a tailor came by to measure me for a dress and everyone was laughing at my measurements. It was pretty obvious that's why they were laughing, but I asked my host sister, Pooja, what they were saying and she said "its just funny...your body is very different from ours. Thicker." Ouch. Not exactly something a sensitive Western woman wants to hear about her body. I am also at least 5 inches taller (and often more) than any woman I've met here. It will be nice to get back to San Francisco, where I couldn't be freakish even if I tried. **sigh**

Also, my eyebrows have been butchered by an Indian woman with a piece of thread. Well, not butchered. They're just thinner than I've ever, ever had them before. I feel like my face is naked =S I guess I should just embrace the freakishness...

Child Survival India

Child Survival India is the name of the NGO I'm volunteering with while I'm here. And yes, they abbreviate it as "CSI". No one here has heard of the television show, so I'm the only one who thinks thats funny.

Things are going pretty well. I've been doing research and trying to write a grant proposal for one of their programs promoting legal literacy for women and children in the relocated slum communities outside Delhi. About 8 years ago, in order to accomodate Delhi's urban growth, the government relocated the slum communities within the city proper to "temporary" housing in rural areas outside the city. The housing looks like it was never really finished; there's rebar sticking out everywhere and a lot of places don't have roofs or full walls. The government still plans to move them to "real" housing eventually. Anyway, CSI has a lot of programs in these communities, including the one I'm writing about. But in writing this I'm also having to write/research a lot about the nonprofit as a whole. I spent some time in Narela, one of the communities not too far from where I'm staying. I got to experience the Indian bus system, which is hot, overcrowded and full of shady people! Posted on every other seat was an airbrushed message: "Look under your seat. If there is bomb, sound alarm. Earn reward." EEk! I decided I would try to travel by rickshaw or foot whenever possible. My day in Narela was interesting. I walked around with the coordinator for a while, I sat in one some legal consultations, I met the ob-gyn who volunteers there...but I mostly hung out with the young women. They insisted on doing my makeup and hair (the picture to the left is post-makeover). I definitely felt kind of overwhelmed by all the poking and scrutiny...I felt like I was a toy or something. Actually, they did say they thought my skin looked like a doll. That made me sad, because I think that means all the dolls kids have here are probably white. Anyway, I managed to conceal my irritation and made a lot of friends. Most of the time, though, I'm at the main office on the computer. I think that's okay with me...if I went to Narela every day I think I'd get reeeally overwhelmed, even just by the commute alone. The main office also has a lot of people to interact with, staff and clients, because that's where a full medical clinic and a few other programs are located. I also feel like I'm more useful at this writing project. In the actual community, few people speak English at all, let alone enough to counsel them in it. It seems like non-Hindi-speaking volunteers are really just there to amuse everyone, not to do a lot of actual work. The power cut out today for 5-6 hours, so I didn't get much work done. But I'm going in to the office tomorrow because India has a 6-day workweek!

I posted some more photos. I'm so on top of keeping my Flickr updated these days! Hope you enjoy. Have a great weekend, everyone!

Indian Farm Life

I'm just going to come out and say it: I milked a buffalo yesterday. Yes, a buffalo. And all I could think was "so this is where delicious mozzerella comes from..."

I'm living with a host family on a small farm in a village about 45 minutes away from Delhi. The family is wonderful. Its a large extended family with several generations, and I haven't been able to keep straight how each person is related to the other. There are two small children, one is 6, the other 4 (I think). Indian kids seem really small for their age...the 6 year old is about Ryan or Collin's size! They've warmed up to me and follow me around a lot. We point at different things (a peacock, cow, buffalo, airplane, etc) and they'll say it in Hindi and I'll say it in English and then we try to pronounce it in the other's language and end up giggling a lot. They're adorable. There are 3 teenagers, a girl and two boys. I get along with all of them really well. After work today I'm going into the village with them to look at shops and maybe get my eyebrows threaded. The next generation is a bit older than I am, then the parents, and then their parents. Its a little confusing. Only a handful of them speak any English, but we manage to communicate and I think they like me anyway. I'm trying to learn a little simple Hindi, but of course there's only so much I can learn in 3 weeks!

They are Hindu and vegetarian, and they make amazing food. They were surprised and pleased to hear that I was also a vegetarian. They try to feed me a lot, and laugh at me when I say I can't eat any more. They also had me try a plain, raw green chilli and everyone watched my face to see my reaction. Luckily, I held my own even though it was pretty hot. They told me they belong to the "Jatt" farmer/service worker caste. They said that although they are not rich, they still live well, honestly and simply. I think their house is absolutely beautiful. Its 3 (albeit narrow) stories tall, with lots of open veranda-like spaces. The rooms have lots of windows and ceiling fans. It makes the summer heat bearable. The heat isn't quite as bad here, away from smoggy Delhi.

Also, I'm drinking a LOT of chai (tea). Its the social drink here, so I have it at home, at work...everywhere. Its a good thing I like chai! And I realized that drinking hot tea on a warm summer day isn't as bad as it sounds.

Work is going really well. The organization I'm volunteering with is called Child Survival India. They have a variety of programs including HIV/AIDS prevention and care, general medical care, legal resources, domestic violence/abuse support. They focus on rural slum populations.

Yesterday evening I sat with the whole family on the 3rd floor, most of which is the roof deck (still marble). It looked like a storm was coming. Its not technically the monsoon season yet, but I think it might rain today anyway. It was really exciting. The winds picked up and there was lightning and dramatic clouds. It didn't rain more than a few drops, though. We stayed outside until after 11pm, chatting, watching and waiting for the storm. They think I should come back to visit and stay longer. They said if I can't come back for a year or so, then I can bring a husband with me (ha!).

So, basically, I really like it here. I adore my host family and I enjoy and respect the organization I'm working with very much. I was worried that India would be too overwhelming for me. I think Delhi could drive a person crazy, but out here in the village its lovely.

Birthday & Taj Mahal

Hi everyone! I had a lovely birthday, despite the fact that I missed all of you terribly. I hope everyone in SF is having a fun Pride weekend and being safe!!

6 of us volunteers hired a car for a day trip to Agra to see the Taj Mahal and the Red Fort. Its about a 4 hour drive from Delhi. At one point we had to stop to pay a "road tax" so the driver had to leave us for about 10 minutes. Immediately, a group of obnoxious men descending on our car, tapping on the windows, etc. I do NOT like this aspect of India one bit. One guy even tried to open the drivers side door. I was in the front passenger seat and I gave him a LOOK OF DEATH and shook my head slowly. He tried to pantomime some joke about driving and I continued the evil stare, looking very not-amused, and it worked. They left and didn't come back. I was soooooo pissed off. After that we only got attention from people trying to sell us stuff. One tiny old man came up and sat down with a basket and began playing a shrill, awful flute-like instrument. Lo! and behold, a real snake came out, swaying left and right, towards the sound. I saw a real snake charmer!! I didnt even know those existed!! We also saw lots of monkeys on leashes. Weird. Our driver did come back and we continued our journey. There are so many animals along the side of the road here. There are monkeys, boars, sheep, dogs and, of course, cows. I think the cows here look more statuesque. They seem taller and more angular -- but that might be because they're really thin. They graze on the trash heaps at the side of the road. For being so revered they aren't taken care of very well. For some reason, though, the idea of these cows being sacred makes perfect sense to me. For the record, the other volunteers think I'm crazy -- so this is not the majority opinion. I don't know...cows are cool. And these ones are especially striking-looking.

The Taj Mahal was beautiful and enormous. We went inside, but my favorite moment was afterwards when we sat on the grass in the shade in front of it. There are so many people that it can be very hectic. Also, people want to take pictures of us. I don't mind women and children taking pictures and I'll even pose with them. But the men/boys who ask I say no. From far away they do anyway. Its really uncomfortable, but unfortunately there isn't really anything I can do about it.

The Red Fort was really, really interesting. Its this labryinth of passageways and balconies, and a small marble mosque hidden inside. I could get lost in it. Its huuuge. I don't even think we saw everything, and we wandered for a really long time.

Today we went to see a film. It was fabulous. Lots of dancing and a random Willie Nelson lookalike Pied Piper character, played by a superfamous Bollywood star. I've included a link to the trailer on youtube below, you guys should watch it. Its pretty funny.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRA7dDf20vs

Thanks to everyone for the wonderful birthday emails! I miss everyone a lot. Love you all.

Delhi

Hi everyone! I just uploaded a lot of pictures to my Flickr account. Some have been commented on and rotated, the rest I can't get to today but hopefully soon! I have more photos but have reached my June upload limit! July is just around the corner, though.

I have to get going!! Thanks to everyone for the birthday emails! I'll write again this weekend to let you know how the Taj Mahal birthday-day went. xoxo

India

This morning Dominic and I woke up at an ungodly hour (8:00 am) and went to the airport. I had such a lovely time with him in Dubai! Yesterday we went to the historical district and had an amaaazing middle eastern meal. I'm really happy that he is moving back to San Francisco soon, possibly as early as July!!

The flight went well. The immigration official upon my departure from the UAE left his phone number in my passport. How unprofessional is that?? But pretty funny, nonetheless. I arrived here and realized that its a good 10 degrees Celsius cooler here than in the UAE. I'd been bracing myself for India to be horribly hot, and its definitely warm, but its relatively tolerable!

My birthday is on Saturday and Im going with a group of other volunteers to see the Taj Mahal! I think that sounds like a wonderful birthday plan. And the other volunteers seem really nice, so I dont think I'll be too, too lonely. Of course, I will miss you all terribly anyway.

I couldnt upload my photos in Dubai because the UAE has censored internet and you cant access sites like Flickr! Sorry. I'll get around to it eventually, I'm sure...

Strange, strange UAE

Yesterday evening, Dominic and I were driving down the freeway into the city. There was suddenly a lot of traffic -- which isn't unusual. We could see a car pulled over onto the median on the left ahead...and then Dominic said "Oh...I think someone hit a Pakistani". The manual labor here is mostly performed by men from Pakistan who work for virtually nothing. You see them walking on the side of the freeway in the obscenely hot weather (its way over 100 degrees Fahrenheit with around 70 percent humidity), walking for miles. I haven't seen any pedestrian overpasses on the freeways here, so they jaywalk regularly. People here tend to speed a LOT in their fancy cars, so accidents are fairly common. Dominic says that in traffic accidents (and many other things), fault is generally assigned by nationality/social status. I.e., if a UAE national hit an American, the American would be at fault. At the bottom of the ladder are the Pakistani nationals. So, as we were inching along in traffic, we first saw a hat on the freeway. Then a bag that looked like a to-go container from a restaurant. Then the car, whose roof was dented and windshield smashed. Then the body, with a handful of men standing around, looking irritated. It was awful. They'd covered his body with a blanket, but not his head (???). Dominic said that the worst part is that there will be no repercussions for any of it. It happens frequently, but nothing changes.

Sorry if that was too graphic, but I was really disturbed by it (obviously). Dubai is so odd. I'm glad to be here and see it. I'm still trying to process it, so I'll probably have more to say in the next few days. I can't really decide if I like it here or not. But its interesting, which is definitely enough of a reason to see it. So far, Dubai reminds me quite a bit of Orange County on a grander scale: people showing off obscene wealth, so its luxurious and well, nice, but not necessarily tasteful. And it doesn't seem real, somehow. And I can only imagine, with the insanely rapid growth and lack of smart planning, how many construction defect lawsuits will crop up here in the next few decades!!

Dubai

Hi everyone! I got to Dubai yesterday afternoon and Dominic picked me up. The traffic here is awful, so we didn't even try to head back to where he lives in the University compound. We stopped by a mall -- apparently everyone hangs out at malls here -- and then went out to a restaurant. Dubai is interesting. All the buildings are huge and impressive, but things here seem like they're just for show. For example, the restaurants are beautiful and the presentation is good, but the actual food isn't that great. And everywhere the service industry workers are foreign laborers, often from the Philippines. Apparently, you won't find sommeliers or excellent service anywhere. They are sweet, but its not the excellent service you would expect in a "nice" restaurant.

Hanging out with Dominic is so fun! I've missed him. For those of you who don't know, Dominic is a friend of mine from Berkeley who is living here in Dubai on a Fulbright fellowship. He's researching the UAE court system. He seems to think its not a big deal (charming), but I'm pretty impressed. And we've gotten to gripe a LOT about annoying/horrible things we've experienced recently, particularly the law school admissions process.

We're off to get something to eat! I'll try to post again tomorrow.

Right when I start figuring out my way around...

...its time to leave Egypt. Buuut I'm very excited to go to Dubai and see Dominic!

Today I wandered around Zamalek, which is an area on the island in the middle of the Nile. I went in search of this lead-free kohl eyeliner shop I'd read about in a magazine (silly, I know, but I wanted to see that area of Cairo, anyway). It was nearly impossible to find -- the shop has no sign (of course), but with the help of some super-nice women in a hair salon who knew where it was, I found it. Afterwards, I walked down to L'Aubergine, the only restaurant in Cairo that bills itself as vegetarian. It was excellent, but the waiter kept coming by mid-bite to ask where I was from or some other inane question. I'm not going to miss every waiter leaving their cell phone number on the check. I wish I could wear a paper bag over my entire person when I walk around here. Though that would probably get too hot. But less people would stare at a huge walking paper bag, I'm convinced.

After that I walked around a bit. I stopped by a great bookstore and got a biography of the Prophet Mohammed's life and a small Arabic phrasebook. I went to this trendy little cafe called Cilantro and drank cappuccino and read for a few hours. Then I took the long way home, through quaint little streets with lots of trees and plants, and people's pet cats and dogs running around -- animals look a lot better taken care of here than in Ghana. I get the impression more people have pets. Anyway, I had a really lovely day. And I realized I'm starting to get to know my way around here, at least in the Downtown area.

I leave early tomorrow, so my next post should be from Dubai. I'll write soon!

Ancient versus modern Egypt

Today I went to visit the Pyramids. I saw the 3 in Giza and then the Step Pyramid nearby in Saqqara. I walked around them a lot and went in some museums. They're really....large! It was definitely cool to see them, but the experience was pretty annoying. Its the world's biggest tourist trap. Everyone is aggressively trying to sell you something. People come up and start talking about history and you say you don't want a guide and they claim not to be a guide and then expect money at the end, even if you weren't really listening. I started just saying "NO. GO AWAY." This only worked occasionally. If you don't answer, they follow you around. One particularly annoying guy shoved a stupid stuffed toy camel practically in my face and said "Take for free." Soooo incredibly irritating. Its difficult to enjoy anything in that kind of atmosphere.

I'm really, really sick of people trying to sell me something! I still like Cairo, but I'm looking forward to going to Dubai and seeing a familiar face (Dominic). I also wanted to upload all my pictures, but the computer here is really slow...I think it would take 5 hours. Hopefully I can do that when I get to Dubai! I have some more photos from Ghana and, of course, all the ones from here in Egypt.

Tomorrow is my last day in Cairo and I just plan to hang out around the city. I don't feel like doing any more touristy stuff. Bye, everyone!

Islamic Cairo/Coptic Cairo

Yesterday evening I went out for a bit (its light out until around 8pm) with one of the other hostel guests (another American). The weather in the evening is so nice -- it cools down quite a bit and there's a lovely breeze. We went down to the Nile, which is huge. After eating falafel bought on the street and walking around for a bit, we went to a rooftop cafe. The view probably wasn't guidebook-beautiful but I loved it. You can't see the river but you can see all the surrounding buildings. A lot of the buildings are pretty dilapidated and there's laundry hanging out to dry. I just felt really right in the city...its hard to explain. I like urban settings. The sun went down when we were at the cafe, and the calls to prayer rang out...it was just perfect.

Cairo actually seems pretty safe for a capital city...I feel like I get hassled less here than say, DC or NYC. Maybe even parts of San Francisco. But I definitely feel like when men speak to me, its like they're speaking to a silly little girl. They are nice but not respectful. I don't mean that they're really inappropriate or rude, but that they don't respect that I might also be an intelligent human being with something relevant to say. It was really nice hanging out with Justin (the other American here...he's a Ph.D student at Chapel Hill in NC and is really lovely. And speaks Arabic, which is convenient for me) because he's the only person I've met here that doesn't speak to me like I'm an idiot.

Today I went to the Citadel to see 2 mosques and a Museum. The mosque of Mohammed Ali is very large and Ornate. After removing my shoes and having to put on a very unattractive green robe-thingy, I was able to go inside. I sat down for a while and just soaked it in. Outside there's a great view of Cairo, through the smog, of course. The calls to prayer sounded amazing from up there, you could hear them coming from all parts of the city below and just resonating everywhere. Even in 90 degree weather, I get goosebumps when I hear it. I talked for a few minutes to some Egyptian students, who wanted to ask me about views of Islam in my country and about George W. It was interesting but a pretty typical conversation: no, not everyone thinks that all Muslims are terrorists, and no, I don't like Bush, either...etc. etc.

After that I went to Coptic Cairo and wandered around. I went into the Coptic Museum and into a few churches. In one, I lit candles for friends and family that have passed away...including all grandparents, Uncle Bob, Petra and Kathy Sesok. The museum was interesting. I have to admit that I'm enjoying the Muslim sights here more because its newer to me. I've been in a lot of Christian churches...but I don't think I'd ever been inside a mosque before today.

I had dinner at a pretty nice restaurant (my meal costed about $6 U.S.). I love the food here. The falafel is incredible. I had the Egyptian version of dolma, which are called something completely different. They're a lot smaller and thinner and way more flavorful. There's more grape leaf than filling, and it somehow works. Definitely the best I've ever had. And I ordered mango juice, which was more like mango puree and it was AMAZING. I feel like I could drink it all day. Incredible.

I took a lot of pictures, but I plan to upload everything tomorrow night, I think. Tomorrow I'm off the the Pyramids in Giza, so I know I'll definitely take a ton of pictures. I'm really enjoying Cairo so far. This city is chaotic, but its so vibrant and interesting. I'll have to come back to get the things I'll miss, because there's no way I'll see everything and I honestly don't have the energy to do the Tour Nazi thing for 4 days. I'm actually pretty worn out from Ghana. I'm going to read and go to bed early. I'm getting up early to go to Giza and see some wonders of the ancient world. xoxo

Egypt!!

Hi everyone! I'm here in Cairo. I landed this morning and am absolutely exhausted. I checked in to a hostel across from the Egyptian Museum that was recommended by Lonely Planet and a few other travel companies. Its great, actually. Its not necessarily that nice, but it seems clean enough and everyone is really friendly. It feels safe, which is high on my list, especially here. The guy running the place, Amir, is really helpful. He taught me how to say "No, thanks" in Arabic to deal with hagglers on the street (its "Lla Shukran") He also said that if I take a taxi anywhere, to have him write the destination in Arabic and quote a reasonable price, so the drivers don't misunderstand the location and/or try to rip me off.

I really just wanted to take a nap but instead I showered, changed and headed to the museum. I saw lots of cool Egyptian stuff. I saw a lot of mummies, including Ramses II. Mummies are creepy. I also saw animal mummies, including a huge crocodile, little baboons, dogs, etc. Afterwards I was starving, so I wandered into a restaurant. The food is AWESOME. I had incredible baba ganouj and then this delicious okra baked stew thingy...don't know what it was called exactly but it was really good.

So now I'm back at the hostel. I'm so tired, so I don't think I'll go out again. I don't plan to go out at all after dark, anyway. I bought a book that's supposed to be the quintessential modern Arabic novel, so I'll start on that. So far I really like Egypt...but I think I'll like it a lot more after a good night's sleep. Bye, everyone!!

Goodbye, Ghana! Part II

I wanted to wrap up the last day in Ghana after I last wrote, because it was really sweet. I had the most amazing goodbye! Big Mama and Gloria (her adult daughter, also lives in the house) each got me necklaces as goodbye presents. I got many, many hugs. I totally cried -- knowing me, how could I not? And all the volunteers came outside when we drove away and sang that cheesy nanana heyheyhey goodbye song...it was priceless. Big Mama and Gloria drove me to the airport, which generally isn't supposed to happen, so it was really sweet for them to offer.

I was waiting/reading in the airport and this Egyptian guy in a business suit came and asked if he could sit at my table. His name was Hashim (I think) and he had just come to Accra to sign a transfer agreement for 45 million U.S. dollars that his late father's business had accrued somehow (hopefully not shady). He felt compelled to show me all the paperwork, which was pretty funny. He got a Coke and two glasses for us to share and we chatted. He was a odd guy...he'd hated Accra because he's terrified of mosquitos (er, well, the diseases they carry, to be more specific) and barely left his hotel room. Quite the opposite experience from mine...especially the $45 million part. I got some Egypt recommendations, too, so that was helpful.

When we were waiting at our gate, everyone heard singing and other commotion outside, and went to the window to look. Apparently the plane that just came in from Cairo (also the one we were taking to Cairo) had carried Madam Fathia, the recently deceased wife of Ghana's first president, Kwame Nkrumah. She was Egyptian. Her death was very big news in Ghana while I was there. Anyway, there were a lot of people crowding around the government hearse, singing and praying. It was pretty amazing to see. Someone also said that the current president was down there, too, but I couldn't see.

The flight was fairly empty so I had a whole row to myself! I stretched out on 3 seats and dozed for most of the 6 hour flight. I think those 3 airplane seats were more comfortable than my bed in Ghana!

Goodbye, Ghana!

Tonight I leave Ghana and fly to Egypt. Its definitely a bittersweet feeling. I'm going to miss this country, but I'm very excited to continue the trip.

Last night a huuuuge group went out to a local bar/restaurant to celebrate my last night. There were at least 20-25 people, I think! Big Mama, Gloria, my 3 host sisters, Edem, Kofi and a hoard of volunteers all came. It was so lovely! It was the perfect send-off. This morning I woke up and went to the beach for a few hours, where I ran into Ezekiel, our minister/reggae singer friend from Cape Coast!! That guy is everywhere, its so funny.

Well, I'm off. My next post will be from Egypt!!!

Akua Serwaah's Last Day

As the title suggests, I got the spelling of my name in Ghana completely wrong before. Today someone wrote it for me. So there is the correct version!

Today was my last day of volunteer work at the hospital. We had a little party in the morning and took some pictures. I'm uploading them to my flickr account as we speak, providing that this old computer holds out on me. I'm also uploading some pictures from the past few days. A lot of them were taken by neighborhood kids who loove playing with digital cameras. You'll probably be able to tell which ones were taken by the kids!

Over the past weekend and on Monday, a LOT of new volunteers showed up. We all went somewhere on a tro-tro yesterday, and there were 14 of us. Amazingly, we were able to find a tro-tro with room for all of us. Everyone is very nice. Its been fun to have more people around, although I really enjoyed the house when I was able to hang out with the girls a lot, too. Its nice either way. Since I've been here a couple of weeks, everyone is asking me lots of questions. I feel very knowledgeable, even though I'm really not!

Everyone at work was really sweet today! They usually are, but since its my last day it was even better. I'll definitely miss them. All week my boss, Sister Leticia, has been calling me "Boss Lady" or "Senior Woman" since she told me to train the new volunteers that started. Its pretty cute. All the people I worked with told me to send greetings from Ghana to my family and friends at home. So...hi from Ghana!

Tonight the huge group of volunteers, Tina & Melody (my host-sisters), Edem (language teacher), Kofi (drove us some places) and not sure who else are all going out for a bit to celebrate my last night here. Tomorrow morning I'm going to go to the beach! There's a really nice one nearby. Then tomorrow night I am off to Egypt! I heard the power is supposed to be off tomorrow, so I may not get a chance to write until I'm in Cairo. Love to you all!

Sad Day

Today I counseled a girl around my age and she tested positive for HIV. This isn't the first client I've had here that tested positive, but I think its affecting me more than usual today because I relate to her more, if only because of age and gender. She seemed already to be pretty weak and sick, so it may have progressed to AIDS by now. Its so incredibly sad. I don't really know what else to write about it.

On a brighter note, things at work have been going well. My boss here told me that all her colleagues (like the director, etc.) that I've met have been "very impressed" with me. Unfortunately, I'm thinking that I won't get to do much with the domestic violence project because its still caught up in administrative red tape getting started, and my last day is Friday. Hopefully incoming volunteers can take it up...I'm disappointed that I won't be able to do it, but despite that I'm still pretty satisfied with my volunteering experience here in Ghana.

I feel like I'm writing differently now, and its probably because I have to speak very slowly here and use concise, simple language in order for people to understand my accent. Obviously, I don't know enough Twi to have more than a very, very basic conversation with people. I can talk about how I am, about ducks or cassava, and my name.

Okay, I think that's all I have for today. Hope everyone is well. I'm here in Ghana until Saturday evening when I fly to Egypt. Oh! I forgot to write this: I extended my layover in Cairo since Dominic won't be in Dubai until the 14th. So I have 4 nights in Cairo. I've heard there pyramid things or something, right? Maybe I'll see those. I'm pretty excited! But I will write more before I leave. xoxo

Uploading pictures!

Sorry its taken me so long! I'm just putting them all up on Flickr: the good, the bad and the sweaty. Thaaanks everyone for being patient! I also apologize that they are out of order...I'll work on that next time. xoxoxo

Wli waterfall

On Sunday, Jen and I went to see West Africa's tallest waterfall, called Wli. There's a short hike to get there, but it isn't very steep, so you can actually look around and enjoy the sights instead of being distracted by exhaustion and excessive sweat. There were so many butterflies, all feasting on fallen mangoes. We had to cross the same river 9 times to get up to the falls. It was so lovely. Once we saw the waterfall, we immediately felt more relaxed and happy. Its not as big and/or powerful as, say, Yosemite, but it was very peaceful and soothing. There were thousands of fruit bats nesting (do bats nest? whatever) right next to the water. I really didn't want to leave! But I wanted to get back to Accra before dark, so we reluctantly headed back down. So lovely! And yes, I made it back to Accra before dark.

New project at Accra's Police Hospital

I was finally able to meet with the director today! He's going to have me start a project with some of his staff members to analyze the hospital's current methods of identifying and addressing domestic violence cases. He wants us to provide recommendations and a new model for the hospital to use. I'm really excited! Obviously, this will take longer than the limited amount of time I have left here, but I can at least help get the project started. I'm actually disappointed that I can't stay longer to work on the project.



The director chatted with me for a looong time about Ghanaian politics, etc. He's a really interesting guy. He complained that agencies here don't communicate with each other effectively, or sometimes even at all. Funny, that's my exact complaint with my volunteer program: no one tells me anything until its already happening! But today felt really good because I'm finally forging my own path! =)



After our discussion, I went back to the HIV/AIDS counseling office and was (again) able to counsel a number of clients all by myself (yaay). Its pretty much the perfect day here.



A huge group of new volunteers arrived last night. Some came after I went to sleep, so I haven't even met all of them. I woke up early and did my laundry (with a bucket of water, soap and a clothesline, of course) and headed to work. I'm actually starting to feel pretty comfortable here. I know my way around fairly well. I'm happy to see that I can adjust pretty easily to a place so vastly different than what I'm used to.

Tomorrow I'm supposed to take Tina (my 23-year old host sister) to the internet cafe to show her how to use a computer and open her first email account. And on Friday, I'm supposed to go out with my host sisters and some of the other locals I've befriended here. My host sisters never get any free time, so I'm very excited to hang out with them away from the house.

Lazy day in Hohoe

I'm having what might be my first lazy day of my entire trip, and its so nice! We (Jen and I) wanted to go see the Wli waterfall today, but it started raining this morning and now the roads are too muddy to get through. It rains a lot more in this region of Ghana. We're planning to go to the waterfall early tomorrow morning, though. I would like to see it before I go. Here's a link: http://www.bridgingdevelopment.org/expeditnpages/sites/wli.htm

Right before the rain started, the electricity went off. We stayed in our room until about 1pm (yes, I napped and it was glorious) and then ventured outside. We decided to try a different place to stay for tonight, so we headed over to the 'Taste Lodge'. I was instantly so much happier! The people are much friendlier, there's lots of fun, loud music playing and the room, oh, the room!! We have our own shower, toilet and sink with running water! And an air conditioner and a fan! And a small TV! All for $15 total for the 2 of us. I'm in heaven.

Hohoe is very near the border with Togo, so all the keyboards here are French. I find if I don't look at the keyboard, I'm less confused by it. Walking through town, we can also hear a lot of French on radios, etc. The kids at Jen's orphanage learn Ewe, Twi, English and French. I have a feeling children in school here work a lot harder than in the U.S. They also carry crocodile machetes. Scary.

So our plans for the day include...a lot of nothing. And that sounds just perfect! Hopefully I'll be able to post again tomorrow when I get back to Accra. If the power is off tomorrow, then I'll post on Monday instead. xoxo

Hohoe

Hi everyone! By now, you probably realize that I use this blog not only to write my adventures, but also to check in and let everyone know I'm okay. Sooo...I'm okay! I worked this morning and they actually let me counsel some people by myself! It felt really good. I think I did an okay job, too. Each client was really interesting.

Side note: one of the social workers bought a huge bunch of bananas and had me eat one with roasted peanuts (which they call groundnuts here). Its the Ghanaian version of my beloved peanut butter-banana sandwiches!! This quickly replaced Red Red (plantains and black-eyed peas with some kind of red sauce stuff) as my favorite Ghanaian meal. See, they understand how brilliant the combination of banana and peanut is. Thank you, Ghana.

I didn't get to meet with the hospital director today because Gloria, the director of my placement program, insisted that she go with me in the morning, and then proceeded to take 2 hours to get ready, then run an errand....and made me really late. So I might meet with him on Monday. I am not a big fan of Gloria. I wasn't before, and today cemented that. She lives in my host family's home, too. Everyone else is great, so I guess I'm still lucky.

I left work a little early to get a head start on a 5-hour tro-tro ride up to the Volta region of Ghana to hang out with Jen. I met her at the orphanage she's working at, in a small village called Ve Deme. I met her host family and some of the kids. They're really wonderful! Then we caught another tro-tro (we're pros at this by now, I'm pretty proud) to Hohoe, the district capital. We got a room at the Grand Hotel (which is not that grand, but that's okay) and came here to feed our internet addictions. Tomorrow we're going to see a nearby waterfall that's supposed to be really great (can you tell this was a last-minute trip?) and go from there. I'm already happy because the temperatures up here are cooler than in Accra. Hrm, I guess "Hohoe" isn't the best title for this blog, since I haven't really seen much of it yet. Sorry. Too lazy to change it now.

I hope to write again tomorrow! Jen is just as internet-addicted as I am, so that shouldn't be a problem. Love to you all!