Lizzy's Adventures

During the first week that I was here in Ghana I got to go on a mini-tour of the Ghana futbol stadium. Ever since then I've been wanting to attend a futbol match. Whenever a Ghanaian asked what I wanted to do while I was here that was near the top of my list.
Last week my friend Richard (aka Grandpa Asante from the post of the primary activity) took me to the local recreation center to watch the Ghana vs. England futbol match. We went to this place called the Social Aviation Center which is essentially a community recreation center near the airport. We walked into a room of about 50 Ghanaian men. They were definitely shocked to see this tall, American girl standing in the back of the room. We got there a little late so we arrived just as England scored a goal near the end of the first half. The crowd was distraught. The second half was exciting with some close shots for Ghana. During stoppage time they finally put it in the net and the men in that room went CRAZY. I wish I would have had my camera out to record them going from dead silent to running around screaming like little girls at a sleepover. I am glad that Richard took me to have this truly Ghanaian experience.

I have less than two weeks left here in Ghana and I am not ready to go home. I'm going to miss my friends here way too much. They are so good to me and I feel like they bring out the best parts of me. I am excited to see my family and friends and enjoy the conveniences of the United States but there is so much uncertainty at home. I am graduating from college but what am I going to do with my life now? I've always known that getting education is important. At first I didn't really want it but now I do and I am so grateful for all I have learned. I am also grateful for all of the opportunities and adventures that attending college has had to offer me. That being said, I've never really wanted a career. My whole life I've simply wanted to be the world's most amazing mom. I know that all of the experiences I've had, especially this one in Ghana, will help me on this quest. Unfortunately there are no prospects for meeting this goal at the present time. And now I am left to decide what my next adventure will be. Making this decision is one of the hardest things I have ever done. I don't even know where to start. I am filled with hope for the future but I have no idea where it will lead me. Any ideas or suggestions are encouraged.

They really are. It is inspiring to watch them serve diligently in their various assignments of service in building the kingdom of God. When we arrived in Ghana the man who let us into our apartment informed us that there were three other apartments in the complex that have church members in them. That evening we went upstairs and knocked on the door of Elder and Sister Maughan. They were VERY surprised to see us because they had not heard anything about our arrival. Since we were both wearing BYU t-shirts they welcomed us right in! They even offered to give us a ride to church the next morning. Since then they have become some of our best friends here in Ghana. They are the Area Medical Advisors so they have kept us well informed and disease free. They have also taken us to the market, the Ghana MTC, and several different fabric stores in the area.

The senior missionaries around here treat us like we are their children. They are so good to make sure that we are happy and have our needs taken care of. They also enjoying sharing their experiences with us. It's been so fun getting to know all of the couples here. I am going to miss them dearly.

What is that large piece of protein in our soup?? Yes, my friends, it is a fishtail!

Charles, our wonderful host.

After eating we went to Charles's apartment. He wanted to show us all of the "luxuries" that he enjoys. He rents a room that I would guess is about 10x10ft. His clothes hang from a wire that runs along one wall. He has a TV and DVD player. He has a mattress that is up on a small wooden frame. His window has a screen. He has a ceiling fan. There is no running water in his room but there is a communal washroom on the end of the building. Every morning he lays a clean sheet out on the floor so that he can iron his clothes. I wish that I would have taken a picture for you to see but I didn't know if that would be rude. It was truly humbling to see how he takes great pride in things that I would probably whine and complain about.

We hung out in his room listening to music for a while and then we walked down to the beach. It was fun to just hang out and enjoy a nice ocean breeze on a VERY warm day. It was about 95F plus humidity. I think my favorite part about the beach in Ghana is that unless you are in the water you are hanging out in the shade. In America everyone likes to soak up some sun but that is not really necessary for them.

Cape Coast is a coastal town about three hours west of Accra.  Ever since we got here Kirsten and I have been wanting to visit there. Cape Coast is best known for three things: (1) Cape Coast and El Mina slave castles, (2) Kakum National Park, and (3) being the site of President Obama's first visit to Africa. This third one they are especially proud of.        Our friend Raymond attended senior high in Cape Coast so he offered to escort is on our journey. It was so wonderful to have him along. I don't think we would have even made it onto the correct bus to Cape Coast if he hadn't been with us. He is also super funny. His birthday was two days after our journey so we were able to celebrate with him.        We started off around 5:15am to meet up with Raymond and catch a trotro. Using public transport in Ghana involves lots of waiting. I know it takes more time anywhere but here you have no idea how much time it will take because you just wait until the bus is full and then you depart. We arrived in Ghana around 9:00am. When we arrived we arranged for a taxi driver for the day.        First we headed off to Kakum National Park. Kakum features a rope bridge built in the tree tops of a rainforest. Sounds cool, eh? It is cool but also a little nerve wracking. Imagine a 1,000 foot long hammock with planks of wood installed in the bottom for you to have something to walk on. About every 100 feet there is a platform built around the top of a tree. Now imagine that the hammock is 120 feet above the rainforest floor. I never felt unsafe but I was extremely focused on making it from one platform to the next. It was a great experience but it was also nice to be back on solid ground.      Next we went to El Mina Castle. Well... I can now say that I have experienced some serious white guilt. Our tour guide did a wonderful job at telling us the straight facts. He didn't sugar coat it and it wasn't biased either. It was just sad to hear about how people were taken from their villages and then treated horribly once they arrived at the castle to wait for a ship. I've heard all of these things before but it became so much more real when I was standing in the cell where the women were held. If I were a crier I would have been balling my eyes out. The experience brought many thoughts to my mind about all that I have been blessed with. This has been a constant part of my thoughts while I've been here in Ghana but this experience made it especially poignant.        Our final stop was the Cape Coast Castle. The tour guide at this castle was much more blatant about pouring on the white guilt and I did not like it at all. I will feel guilty on my own thank you very much. Seeing the castle was still interesting and sad all at the same time. I cannot even begin to imagine what the slaves went through. It's been interesting to be here and see that the African people know what happened but many of them don't hang on to it. They seek to make tomorrow a better day by working hard today. Here are many pictures that I took on our adventure. Enjoy!

Ghana is OBSESSED with President Obama. This is the sign you see as you drive in to Cape Coast.

As a recreation management student I was very impressed with the experience that their welcome center provided to visitors. Best I've seen so far in Africa!

This is just what I want to eat when I have a stomach ache.

Elephant Skull

Stairs that go up to tree hut where you enter the canopy walk.

view from underneath the tree hut

Looks stable and not scary, right? LIES!

The view was incredible

Me 40 meters from the ground on a small platform on a tall tree. We couldn't even see the ground because the rainforest is so dense.

Kirsten, me, and Raymond (friend and tour guide)

Back on solid ground

Just taking a little rest

After Kakum we headed off to El Mina Castle. I took this while we were on the open road.

We came around a bend and saw this beautiful view. I want to go out with one of these fisherman SO bad.

Entrance with a working drawbridge

Inner courtyard of El Mina Castle

Inside the tunnel on the path to the boat

The door of no return. I was a bit annoyed that this Brazilian man who was on the tour with us was in my picture but I think it actually turned out pretty cool.

El Mina fishing village

Good doctrine. Bad application.

female slave quarters

On the road to Cape Coast Castle. Can you say paradise?

They are so proud of this. Ghana was the first country in Africa that they visited and we hear about it all of the time.

The door of no return.

I just discovered that I've been washing my clothes in fabric softener, rather than detergent, for the past 8 weeks. I could tell there was something a bit funny but I just chalked it up to the fact that I'm in Africa. I bet I smell funny but amazingly I have still made friends. Maybe they smell funny too.

Howel and Emmanuel chilling on the lounge chairs.

Charles and Me. I have never looked so white.

Alex arriving. Same big smile that he always has on his face!

Alex Ansong and Francis

Adeola

Charles, Me, and Francis

Koby

Kirsten

Dansoa

Charles

Francis is always telling me that he is really good at braiding so I decided to let him try it out.

Not bad for working with nasty, tangly post-swimming hair.