Ok, first I have to start by saying how unbelievably ecstatic I am about the turn out of the election! I could not be more happy...and my faith in the American voter has been restored...so thank God for that one!
Now that I got that off my chest...I have a crazy amount of things to talk about, so ....big breath....
The weather: The hamatan is really getting under way here now and the place is beginning to dry up. It hasnt rained at my house since my last blog, if you can believe that. Winds from the sahara have started blowing this I really actually like, but in not too long that wind is going to be picking up all the dust with it.
I've been reading a lot as usual and have a book that is the most fun book to read in the WORLD. Its funny, you can tell which books I've already read and which I havent by looking inside for splatters of bug blood. But anyways, it's called The Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall. I'm not going to talk a whole lot about it, just that you HAVE to read it and that you could probably just go to B & N for a couple hours cause you won't be able to put it down anyways. Oh, and if you do....let me know what you think about the ending.
The hair: Yes, it did hurt for like 3 days after getting it done. But it was so completely worth it. I love not having to wash it all the time and it's so easy to manage into styles. But it has introduced something new to my bathing. I never thought before about washing behind my ears and neck because my hair always took care of that for me. But now I have to conscientious all the time about it.
So, I was having an ethical dilemma about whether or not to give money to beggers in my market town. All the other volunteers say not to because it's just going to encourage them asking white people more often, but I countinued to do it anyways. And I would get that guy that when I gave him coins he would ask for paper money, or that woman who begged everyone and didn't acknowledge if anyone gives to her and will ask you literally 5 seconds later if she has run into you again. So I started to wonder...maybe I should think about saying no. And then there was the little boy. He was so cute, and so obviously hungry. He asked for some money to buy some food, so I took him to a stand and got him a full meal (for only 20 cents!!) and he kept saying "Bareka, bareka" ("Thank you, thank you") and told me to lean down. Then he started whispering in my ear this long dialogue of prayer and blessing. And my heart just broke...right there in the parking lot. And I realized that one boy just made up my mind. Just like that. It is completely worthy to give, end of story.
On that same "makes your heart warm" stories: complete strangers here instantly become your best friends through sharing. It is taboo to eat ANYTHING here without saying "you're invited" to your neighbors (this means the people sitting next to you on the bus, or near you on a bench, etc.). And when I eat a meal with people from my town we all eat out of one big bowl. While it sounds less that completely sanitary, there's something about it. Some bonding goes on there.
Thanksgiving I fasted in protest of not having all the yummy foods from home.
I have tons more to say, but I'm down in the south (it rained yesterday here and we FREAKED out :) because Ghana is having their presidential election on the 7th and they want us here to "keep us safe" in case anything, God forbid, should happen. I mean, come on, this is Ghana...the most peaceful place I've ever been...but at any rate, all the other volunteers are here so the line to use the computer is growing by the minute. I'll catch you all the way up at an internet cafe soon. Ps. I'm very happy. I love you all and hope your holidays are ones to remember. Love, Di
Friday, December 5, 2008
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This is me at the Amsterdam airport after far too many hours without sleep! I didn't realize quite how scary I look in the picture until I posted it...but I think it's funny.
This was one of the first meals I ate with my homestay family. I soon figured out that it was not customary for Ghanaians to eat together like this (they were just doing it as a sort of introduction to the family) and I ended up eating most of the meals over the next 10 weeks alone, which I was totally ok with. It also is not customary to talk while eating in Ghana (due to the abundant amount of spices used in the food, they are afraid they will choke if they try and talk while eating) so eating alone is virtually the same experience anyways.
Here is a pic of me and the girls at a spot. Check out the gigantic beers they serve here (for only 1 Ghana Cedi too!).
I took this picture while riding in a car on the way to Bote Waterfalls. At first I was like "shoot I think I accidently got those people that we were passing in the photo", but once I saw it I thought it was a really cool pic.
This is Kukurantumi, the town where I had training. It is right before the daily rain...
A kiss for you!