Sunday, June 21, 2009 - Ghana Adventure Day 16
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed December 30)
This morning, Lydia went swimming, but Akos wouldn't - her poor head was hurting too much. She refused to go to the market with us, too - just wanted to play on my iPhone. But, we were going, so she didn't have a choice in the matter. The market was a crazy place. The vendors were so pushy, but one in the back, a friend of Uncle P's, was nice. He stood back and let us browse in peace, and answered price questions when asked. We bought nearly everything on our list from him, as thanks for giving us the time and space to make our own decisions. His prices were very fair, as well. He was grateful and gave me a lovely black and white necklace as a thank-you gift.
During the market adventure, I learned that an elephant with its trunk pointed upward represents good luck. We found out that the meaning of a popular Adinkra symbol (which is on a batik stamper I bought, as well as on bracelets for the girls) means "except God." We found some kente bookmarks, a talking drum, a mancala game, a "good luck" elephant for Don, and some traditional jewelry and dresses for each of the three girls.
After that, we went to the much more modern Koala Market for some snacks for the room. I hoped to buy some paper and crayons or a board game for the girls, but was astounded to see that a 64-box of Crayola crayons is about $35, and board games are about $80-100!
Showing posts with label Akos. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Akos. Show all posts
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Beds and braids
Saturday, June 20, 2009 - Ghana Adventure Day 15
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed December 30)
This morning, our main priority was a visit to Auntie E's house - Auntie E is the very sweet foster mother who had taken care of Akos. Sadly, the recent rainstorm that was going on during our drive to Cape Coast resulted in such flooding in her area that her home was filled with sewage-filled floodwater. The mattress, which was on the floor, was soaked and unusable. So, we went in search of a bedframe and mattress for her. ( I had also brought a mosquito net I had purchased before the trip.) As with most things here, the beds are bought along the roadside. With Uncle P's help, as always, we found a foam mattress at a roadside stand that was just right. Right nearby was a furniture shop. The talented craftsman who makes the furniture was very nice, and was hard at work polishing his latest piece. His work is just beautiful - astounding what he can do without benefit of any power tools at all! His workshop was a dingy place, and I had a hard time imagining how he creates such quality furniture in a place like this. Such hard work, and he asks very little for it. Solid wood full-size headboard, footboard, frame sides, and support slats for 95 cedis - that's less than $70! Not a fair price for him at all, I thought, so we added some extra.
Lydia fell in love with an emaciated kitten at the mattress stand, but Akos didn't want much to do with it. Lydia wished we could bring it home with us or at least to the hotel, but we had to accept that we couldn't help it. Obviously, it wouldn't pass customs, and as much as we adore animals, in a place like this where the people don't have enough to eat, trying to feed a pet would be a true hardship. Uncle P asssured Lydia that someone must be helping the kitten at least a little, or he wouldn't be hanging around there, and that the best for him was to leave him there.
Our visit with Auntie E went well. She was moved to tears by the new bed, mattress and netting. We helped get everything set up for her, and felt so thankful that we had been able to help her in this way. We visited with the other foster children in her care - two of whom are Constance and Jonathan, whose adoptive mom we'll meet Sunday. We took photos for the Padillas, for which they were very grateful. I think they are adopting a couple of wonderful children! There is one little boy at Auntie P's who is convinced that Uncle P is going to be his daddy - he sobs whenever Uncle P has to leave - just heartbreaking. None of the kids wanted to see him go - they love him, and he clearly loves them, too.
After we returned to the hotel, it was time for Akos to get her new braids. The price was unimaginably low - it took 6 hours, with very tiny braids, and we were only charged 11 cedis! It looks very nice, but Akos was uncomfortable during the braiding session. She was quiet and hardly said a word, but crying later because the braids hurt so much. I had no idea it was a painful thing at all - I felt so bad for her. We gave her some ibuprofen, which helped a little, but the salon staff had told us that it would be much better in a few days.
By the time the braiding was over, we were all far too exhausted for dinner, and just went straight to bed. Whew - what a long day!
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed December 30)
This morning, our main priority was a visit to Auntie E's house - Auntie E is the very sweet foster mother who had taken care of Akos. Sadly, the recent rainstorm that was going on during our drive to Cape Coast resulted in such flooding in her area that her home was filled with sewage-filled floodwater. The mattress, which was on the floor, was soaked and unusable. So, we went in search of a bedframe and mattress for her. ( I had also brought a mosquito net I had purchased before the trip.) As with most things here, the beds are bought along the roadside. With Uncle P's help, as always, we found a foam mattress at a roadside stand that was just right. Right nearby was a furniture shop. The talented craftsman who makes the furniture was very nice, and was hard at work polishing his latest piece. His work is just beautiful - astounding what he can do without benefit of any power tools at all! His workshop was a dingy place, and I had a hard time imagining how he creates such quality furniture in a place like this. Such hard work, and he asks very little for it. Solid wood full-size headboard, footboard, frame sides, and support slats for 95 cedis - that's less than $70! Not a fair price for him at all, I thought, so we added some extra.
Lydia fell in love with an emaciated kitten at the mattress stand, but Akos didn't want much to do with it. Lydia wished we could bring it home with us or at least to the hotel, but we had to accept that we couldn't help it. Obviously, it wouldn't pass customs, and as much as we adore animals, in a place like this where the people don't have enough to eat, trying to feed a pet would be a true hardship. Uncle P asssured Lydia that someone must be helping the kitten at least a little, or he wouldn't be hanging around there, and that the best for him was to leave him there.
Our visit with Auntie E went well. She was moved to tears by the new bed, mattress and netting. We helped get everything set up for her, and felt so thankful that we had been able to help her in this way. We visited with the other foster children in her care - two of whom are Constance and Jonathan, whose adoptive mom we'll meet Sunday. We took photos for the Padillas, for which they were very grateful. I think they are adopting a couple of wonderful children! There is one little boy at Auntie P's who is convinced that Uncle P is going to be his daddy - he sobs whenever Uncle P has to leave - just heartbreaking. None of the kids wanted to see him go - they love him, and he clearly loves them, too.
After we returned to the hotel, it was time for Akos to get her new braids. The price was unimaginably low - it took 6 hours, with very tiny braids, and we were only charged 11 cedis! It looks very nice, but Akos was uncomfortable during the braiding session. She was quiet and hardly said a word, but crying later because the braids hurt so much. I had no idea it was a painful thing at all - I felt so bad for her. We gave her some ibuprofen, which helped a little, but the salon staff had told us that it would be much better in a few days.
By the time the braiding was over, we were all far too exhausted for dinner, and just went straight to bed. Whew - what a long day!
Friday, June 19, 2009
Visit to Korle-Bu Hospital
Friday, June 19, 2009 - Ghana Adventure Day 14
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed December 30)
This morning, we had our trip to Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. I was so happy to finally meet Eunice! (Dr. Eunice Adei, a senior resident who has been working with me on what supplies are needed.) She is very pretty, with lots of thin, tiny braids. Akos liked her hair, and wants her braids just the same way. Dr. Adei and all the staff were SO grateful for everything we brought. They took photos, and so did we. We went through all the supplies, then she took us on a tour of the Children’s Block. It is a dismal place, but they are certainly doing all they can. Very few of the rooms have air conditioning. The beds are old, with peeling paint on the metal, and rust. There are stains all over the walls, ceilings, and of course, the floors. We saw a girl probably about 4 years old with a soft tissue tumor pushing her cheek out so far, the tumor was almost as large as her head. The hallways were crowded with moms feeding their babies, since there was no room by the babies’ beds. The nurses wear very crisp, brightly white, old-fashioned uniforms. The head nurse of each unit is the matron. Eunice introduced me to the matron of each unit as we went by. She showed me the rigged-up blindfolds to protect eyes from bili-lights (we brought some eye covers designed for that purpose). She showed me a baby getting oxygen through a feeding tube because they had no nasal cannulas (we brought nasal cannulas), and a baby probably less than 1 ½ pounds-2 pounds with a regular newborn diaper that practically swallowed him up (we brought Wee Pee diapers from Children’s Medical Ventures, designed for micro-preemies). The outpatient area consisted of a large crowd of people and a couple of desks (small), each with two doctors trying to examine their patients in the chairs. Paperwork covered the desks completely. The emergency room is SOO small and dingy – very little ventilation, and very hot. They will sometimes have 30-40 patients in that room, no bigger than 8x12. The most memorable was the NICU – all the preemies! Most were in incubators, but they had a special KMC (Kangaroo Mother Care) unit, in which the moms are to keep the baby wrapped on their chests, skin-to-skin. We got to take some photos of a little girl, certainly less than 2 pounds. The mom even held her out and gave her to Lydia to hold! Wow! We then went next door to another KMC room, where mother with teeny tiny twin boys was getting them re-wrapped onto her chest. The mother in the next bed (so close, you could barely walk between them) watched with a very neutral expression. She had a little baby girl on the bed. The nurse said, “This one had twin girls, but one passed, so she is left with one.” She said it in a voice that didn’t sound solemn or sad – actually almost cheerful…very unsettling. But, I guess that is so common here that it’s not a big deal. At home, such a mom would be in a private room and would have a rose or other symbol on her door to let everyone know to be extra gentle and respectful with her.
After the hospital trip, we went to get Akos’ visa pictures and to pick up her medical report. We also got some more cedis for me. The exchange is 1.4 cedis for a dollar – but if you pay in dollars, they give you the same change as if it were a 1:1 exchange. So, if you spend dollars, you will spend LOTS more for the same product. Finally, the big wild-goose chase – my Canon camera (the nice one) is out of batteries, and I can’t get my battery charger to work! How horrible to think of not being able to get decent pictures the whole rest of the trip – the back-up camera, the little purple Polaroid, takes terrible pictures - almost always out of focus. So, Uncle P took us all over, mainly in the Osu area, to look for a battery charger, and we had no luck with it at all. Great news, though – I got back to the room and found an e-mail from Rebekah Padilla, saying she is coming to Ghana on Sunday! She’s adopting Constance and Jonathan, who are staying as the same foster home where Akos stayed. Rebekah was happy to bring me a charger, so I found a photo shop near her home in Torrance, CA, paid over the phone, and Rebekah picked it up later in the day! Yay! She is going to be staying at our hotel, so I’m sure we’ll have lots of fun together.
I had lobster with garlic butter sauce tonight – even cheaper than prawns! Only 18 cedis, which is $12.85. Yummy!!! The girls both had chicken and rice – SO good – they ate really well. We had ice cream, too, which was surprisingly expensive (we didn't think to check the price until afterward) – 6 cedis just for plain ice cream. Strange!
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed December 30)
This morning, we had our trip to Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. I was so happy to finally meet Eunice! (Dr. Eunice Adei, a senior resident who has been working with me on what supplies are needed.) She is very pretty, with lots of thin, tiny braids. Akos liked her hair, and wants her braids just the same way. Dr. Adei and all the staff were SO grateful for everything we brought. They took photos, and so did we. We went through all the supplies, then she took us on a tour of the Children’s Block. It is a dismal place, but they are certainly doing all they can. Very few of the rooms have air conditioning. The beds are old, with peeling paint on the metal, and rust. There are stains all over the walls, ceilings, and of course, the floors. We saw a girl probably about 4 years old with a soft tissue tumor pushing her cheek out so far, the tumor was almost as large as her head. The hallways were crowded with moms feeding their babies, since there was no room by the babies’ beds. The nurses wear very crisp, brightly white, old-fashioned uniforms. The head nurse of each unit is the matron. Eunice introduced me to the matron of each unit as we went by. She showed me the rigged-up blindfolds to protect eyes from bili-lights (we brought some eye covers designed for that purpose). She showed me a baby getting oxygen through a feeding tube because they had no nasal cannulas (we brought nasal cannulas), and a baby probably less than 1 ½ pounds-2 pounds with a regular newborn diaper that practically swallowed him up (we brought Wee Pee diapers from Children’s Medical Ventures, designed for micro-preemies). The outpatient area consisted of a large crowd of people and a couple of desks (small), each with two doctors trying to examine their patients in the chairs. Paperwork covered the desks completely. The emergency room is SOO small and dingy – very little ventilation, and very hot. They will sometimes have 30-40 patients in that room, no bigger than 8x12. The most memorable was the NICU – all the preemies! Most were in incubators, but they had a special KMC (Kangaroo Mother Care) unit, in which the moms are to keep the baby wrapped on their chests, skin-to-skin. We got to take some photos of a little girl, certainly less than 2 pounds. The mom even held her out and gave her to Lydia to hold! Wow! We then went next door to another KMC room, where mother with teeny tiny twin boys was getting them re-wrapped onto her chest. The mother in the next bed (so close, you could barely walk between them) watched with a very neutral expression. She had a little baby girl on the bed. The nurse said, “This one had twin girls, but one passed, so she is left with one.” She said it in a voice that didn’t sound solemn or sad – actually almost cheerful…very unsettling. But, I guess that is so common here that it’s not a big deal. At home, such a mom would be in a private room and would have a rose or other symbol on her door to let everyone know to be extra gentle and respectful with her.
After the hospital trip, we went to get Akos’ visa pictures and to pick up her medical report. We also got some more cedis for me. The exchange is 1.4 cedis for a dollar – but if you pay in dollars, they give you the same change as if it were a 1:1 exchange. So, if you spend dollars, you will spend LOTS more for the same product. Finally, the big wild-goose chase – my Canon camera (the nice one) is out of batteries, and I can’t get my battery charger to work! How horrible to think of not being able to get decent pictures the whole rest of the trip – the back-up camera, the little purple Polaroid, takes terrible pictures - almost always out of focus. So, Uncle P took us all over, mainly in the Osu area, to look for a battery charger, and we had no luck with it at all. Great news, though – I got back to the room and found an e-mail from Rebekah Padilla, saying she is coming to Ghana on Sunday! She’s adopting Constance and Jonathan, who are staying as the same foster home where Akos stayed. Rebekah was happy to bring me a charger, so I found a photo shop near her home in Torrance, CA, paid over the phone, and Rebekah picked it up later in the day! Yay! She is going to be staying at our hotel, so I’m sure we’ll have lots of fun together.
I had lobster with garlic butter sauce tonight – even cheaper than prawns! Only 18 cedis, which is $12.85. Yummy!!! The girls both had chicken and rice – SO good – they ate really well. We had ice cream, too, which was surprisingly expensive (we didn't think to check the price until afterward) – 6 cedis just for plain ice cream. Strange!
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Mystery in the bathroom
Thursday, June 18 - Ghana Adventure Day 13
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed December 30)
Uncle P came this morning to take us to Accra. We had a long breakfast with him, then hit the road. It looked much nicer this time, without the heavy rain. It was a very pretty day. We arrived at our hotel, the Regency, around 2 pm. Oh, my gosh – it’s so much nicer than Crystal Rose! It is a lovely set of brick buildings, with 2 HUGE courtyards – one just plants and patio/courtyard area, one with the beautiful, sparkling pool. It has a restaurant AND a separate bar and grill, a salon, and a beautiful reception desk area. Everyone is so attentive – feels as attentive and more friendly than a Hilton, etc. The staff rushes to open doors for us, and brought us glasses of fresh juice as we checked in. Wow! We’re in Room 1 – the kids like that – I think it’s kind of neat, too! We have a big picture window that looks out right into the beautiful courtyard. Our room has a huge bathroom, with a large storage chest, a shower with bathtub, attractive tile walls, and a fixture we weren’t sure what the heck it was – a urinal or a bidet, or what? Turns out it’s a bidet. Never seen one of those before – the girls and I watched videos online of how to use one. Funny! And just how did we watch those videos, you ask? Woo-hoo!!! We have fast, consistent, strong-signal internet right in our room!!! I’m am unbelievably excited about it! It’s the first time in Ghana that I can do my online things without dragging the kids somewhere to sit with me.
We went down to the restaurant and had a nice dinner. Akos had fried rice and chicken – the first thing she’d eaten all day. A couple of hours earlier, she started compaining that she was hungry, but of course she was – she had refused to eat at breakfast! I told her all the snacks we had in the room, and she refused all of them. So I told her that she wasn’t really hungry – if she was, she would eat. So, she waited until dinner. She initially refused anything but plain rice, but the waitress talked her into some chicken. It was GREAT chicken – I actually may order some next time. I had grilled prawns in garlic butter (which also had some other spicy stuff in it) – YUM! They had a nice white wine, which I hadn’t had since being here – the hotel in Elmina had wine that was not too good at all. This one was smooth and pleasant. Lydia had an egg and cheese sandwich – they use hard-boiled, sliced eggs here instead of the “pancake eggs” they had in Elmina. We did have to move tables when the waitress brought over a bowl of peanuts – we quickly had her take it away, but the other tables near us had them, too.
At dinner, there was one song playing over and over the entire time. Thankfully, it was a really fun song. It got Lydia in a dancing mood – she started dancing in a really fun and funny way. Akos was just cracking up and grinning from ear to ear (for the first time today), and she finally started dancing, too! They had a great, silly time, and so did I. The silliness continued into the night – well past bedtime. Oh, well. We watched an old video of Lydia as a toddler, and her 4th birthday party. After that, Akos kept saying to Lydia, “Lydia, how old are you?” No matter what Lydia answered, Akos laughed and said, “No! You are four!” It was funny at first, but Lydia got tired of it after a while. I thought it was great that Akos was speaking in an audible voice, and that she was feeling carefree enough to crack jokes! Probably our best night yet…
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed December 30)
Uncle P came this morning to take us to Accra. We had a long breakfast with him, then hit the road. It looked much nicer this time, without the heavy rain. It was a very pretty day. We arrived at our hotel, the Regency, around 2 pm. Oh, my gosh – it’s so much nicer than Crystal Rose! It is a lovely set of brick buildings, with 2 HUGE courtyards – one just plants and patio/courtyard area, one with the beautiful, sparkling pool. It has a restaurant AND a separate bar and grill, a salon, and a beautiful reception desk area. Everyone is so attentive – feels as attentive and more friendly than a Hilton, etc. The staff rushes to open doors for us, and brought us glasses of fresh juice as we checked in. Wow! We’re in Room 1 – the kids like that – I think it’s kind of neat, too! We have a big picture window that looks out right into the beautiful courtyard. Our room has a huge bathroom, with a large storage chest, a shower with bathtub, attractive tile walls, and a fixture we weren’t sure what the heck it was – a urinal or a bidet, or what? Turns out it’s a bidet. Never seen one of those before – the girls and I watched videos online of how to use one. Funny! And just how did we watch those videos, you ask? Woo-hoo!!! We have fast, consistent, strong-signal internet right in our room!!! I’m am unbelievably excited about it! It’s the first time in Ghana that I can do my online things without dragging the kids somewhere to sit with me.
We went down to the restaurant and had a nice dinner. Akos had fried rice and chicken – the first thing she’d eaten all day. A couple of hours earlier, she started compaining that she was hungry, but of course she was – she had refused to eat at breakfast! I told her all the snacks we had in the room, and she refused all of them. So I told her that she wasn’t really hungry – if she was, she would eat. So, she waited until dinner. She initially refused anything but plain rice, but the waitress talked her into some chicken. It was GREAT chicken – I actually may order some next time. I had grilled prawns in garlic butter (which also had some other spicy stuff in it) – YUM! They had a nice white wine, which I hadn’t had since being here – the hotel in Elmina had wine that was not too good at all. This one was smooth and pleasant. Lydia had an egg and cheese sandwich – they use hard-boiled, sliced eggs here instead of the “pancake eggs” they had in Elmina. We did have to move tables when the waitress brought over a bowl of peanuts – we quickly had her take it away, but the other tables near us had them, too.
At dinner, there was one song playing over and over the entire time. Thankfully, it was a really fun song. It got Lydia in a dancing mood – she started dancing in a really fun and funny way. Akos was just cracking up and grinning from ear to ear (for the first time today), and she finally started dancing, too! They had a great, silly time, and so did I. The silliness continued into the night – well past bedtime. Oh, well. We watched an old video of Lydia as a toddler, and her 4th birthday party. After that, Akos kept saying to Lydia, “Lydia, how old are you?” No matter what Lydia answered, Akos laughed and said, “No! You are four!” It was funny at first, but Lydia got tired of it after a while. I thought it was great that Akos was speaking in an audible voice, and that she was feeling carefree enough to crack jokes! Probably our best night yet…
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Queen Mother and Brain Teaser
Tuesday, June 16 - Ghana Adventure Day 11
We slept until about 9:00 today – we are always so tuckered out here. We went to breakfast, and were disappointed that there were no croissants, none of the yummy little cocoa-filled croissants (a FAVORITE), and God forbid…no Milo! Milo is a popular hot drink – like hot chocolate, but with some malt in it. Yummy! I like to put a bit of Milo powder in my coffee. (Which by the way, is inevitably single-serving instant Nescafé.) Milo is the highlight of the girls’ breakfast. Akos feels the need to put sugar cubes in it, too. Oh well, we’ll cut down on sugar back home. AT the end of breakfast, though, our lovely omelet chef brought out a can of Milo! Hooray!!!
I went to the office with the girls, where they happily watched movies on their respective electronic devices. Akos LOVES to watch AFV’s Animal Extravaganza – over, and over, and over, and over… I finally started catching up on my blog. I did at least a month’s worth of posts this morning (had typed the text beforehand in Word, and selected and compressed the photos, which made it much easier.)
After that, Lydia was ready to go to the pool, but Akos refused to go. By 2 pm, I finally drew the line and said we needed to give Lydia a chance to do what she wants to do also. She threw a tantrum then refused to speak the rest of the afternoon. Fortunately for Lydia, Jaida came by the pool. She is such a darling little firecracker! She is staying with her Nana (grandmother) for a whole year in Kumasi! (She is from Atlanta.) Nana asked me a favor – asked if I would watch Jaida in the pool so she could play with Lydia. Nana has 23 sorority women here on a service project to build a well and bring books and other supplies to schoolchildren. She is very stressed with managing all that and trying to entertain
Jaida, too. We were MORE than happy to oblige. The two girls frolicked in the pool until after 5:00. Nana came and talked with us for a while – she is from Chattanooga – and has been back and forth to Ghana for decades (one of children was born here.) She returned for good a year ago. I asked her if her ancestry was Ghanaian – she answered, “Well, that’s a long story, but here, I’m a queen mother. I have 2000 people to look after. That’s what I do now.” Holy Cow! I’m dying to know how a woman from Chattanooga becomes a queen mother of Kumasi! I got my picture taken with her, and we had a group photo, too. She would like to keep in contact with us, and wants to see how Akos is doing as she adjusts to American life. She kindly offered to help us in any way – for ourselves, Akos’ birth family, or anything, saying, “I can go anywhere in this country.” What a wonderful, warm woman. And she called me “my sister.” I was quite honored, to say the least! Can’t wait to hear her stories – I’m sure she has plenty!
After the pool, we went back to the room to change for dinner. Once we got to the room, Akos warmed up to us again, played a little with Lydia, dressed in a lovely lilac-colored dress, and was happy to go to dinner. She had rice and sausage (hot dogs) and ate both of the “sausages” with no prodding! Yay! She ate some of the rice, but the serving was huge, so I can’t blame her – I could never have finished all that, either. Lydia had egg and cheese sandwiches – two of them to a serving, and ate every bite. I had Brain Teaser, which is Fanti Kenkey (sort of firm doughy stuff, said to be sweet, but it tasted tart to me – almost citrusy), with grilled snapper with Ghanaian salsa and pepper sauce. I again asked for NO head on the fish. It was really yummy! The kenkey wasn’t my thing, but I ate about half of it anyway. The salsa was spicy but good. I tried a taste of the pepper sauce (which I had requested mild) – it tasted good – kind of sweet and mild, like Gourmet Café’s salsa fresca back home. That lasted about 12 seconds…then the fiery spices hit me full on! OMG – I had to down some water quick, and took some of Lydia’s French fries to try to ease the burn as well. Holy Cow – that was hot, hot, hot! After the girls ate so well, I decided to treat them to dessert - ice cream and "pancakes" (crêpes) - Yum!
Went to check my e-mail at the conference center – slightly closer than the main office. The girls were tired – Lydia was about to go to sleep on the floor. So, we came home around 9 pm, and are ready for sleep.
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed July 19)
We slept until about 9:00 today – we are always so tuckered out here. We went to breakfast, and were disappointed that there were no croissants, none of the yummy little cocoa-filled croissants (a FAVORITE), and God forbid…no Milo! Milo is a popular hot drink – like hot chocolate, but with some malt in it. Yummy! I like to put a bit of Milo powder in my coffee. (Which by the way, is inevitably single-serving instant Nescafé.) Milo is the highlight of the girls’ breakfast. Akos feels the need to put sugar cubes in it, too. Oh well, we’ll cut down on sugar back home. AT the end of breakfast, though, our lovely omelet chef brought out a can of Milo! Hooray!!!
I went to the office with the girls, where they happily watched movies on their respective electronic devices. Akos LOVES to watch AFV’s Animal Extravaganza – over, and over, and over, and over… I finally started catching up on my blog. I did at least a month’s worth of posts this morning (had typed the text beforehand in Word, and selected and compressed the photos, which made it much easier.)
After that, Lydia was ready to go to the pool, but Akos refused to go. By 2 pm, I finally drew the line and said we needed to give Lydia a chance to do what she wants to do also. She threw a tantrum then refused to speak the rest of the afternoon. Fortunately for Lydia, Jaida came by the pool. She is such a darling little firecracker! She is staying with her Nana (grandmother) for a whole year in Kumasi! (She is from Atlanta.) Nana asked me a favor – asked if I would watch Jaida in the pool so she could play with Lydia. Nana has 23 sorority women here on a service project to build a well and bring books and other supplies to schoolchildren. She is very stressed with managing all that and trying to entertain
Jaida, too. We were MORE than happy to oblige. The two girls frolicked in the pool until after 5:00. Nana came and talked with us for a while – she is from Chattanooga – and has been back and forth to Ghana for decades (one of children was born here.) She returned for good a year ago. I asked her if her ancestry was Ghanaian – she answered, “Well, that’s a long story, but here, I’m a queen mother. I have 2000 people to look after. That’s what I do now.” Holy Cow! I’m dying to know how a woman from Chattanooga becomes a queen mother of Kumasi! I got my picture taken with her, and we had a group photo, too. She would like to keep in contact with us, and wants to see how Akos is doing as she adjusts to American life. She kindly offered to help us in any way – for ourselves, Akos’ birth family, or anything, saying, “I can go anywhere in this country.” What a wonderful, warm woman. And she called me “my sister.” I was quite honored, to say the least! Can’t wait to hear her stories – I’m sure she has plenty!After the pool, we went back to the room to change for dinner. Once we got to the room, Akos warmed up to us again, played a little with Lydia, dressed in a lovely lilac-colored dress, and was happy to go to dinner. She had rice and sausage (hot dogs) and ate both of the “sausages” with no prodding! Yay! She ate some of the rice, but the serving was huge, so I can’t blame her – I could never have finished all that, either. Lydia had egg and cheese sandwiches – two of them to a serving, and ate every bite. I had Brain Teaser, which is Fanti Kenkey (sort of firm doughy stuff, said to be sweet, but it tasted tart to me – almost citrusy), with grilled snapper with Ghanaian salsa and pepper sauce. I again asked for NO head on the fish. It was really yummy! The kenkey wasn’t my thing, but I ate about half of it anyway. The salsa was spicy but good. I tried a taste of the pepper sauce (which I had requested mild) – it tasted good – kind of sweet and mild, like Gourmet Café’s salsa fresca back home. That lasted about 12 seconds…then the fiery spices hit me full on! OMG – I had to down some water quick, and took some of Lydia’s French fries to try to ease the burn as well. Holy Cow – that was hot, hot, hot! After the girls ate so well, I decided to treat them to dessert - ice cream and "pancakes" (crêpes) - Yum!
Went to check my e-mail at the conference center – slightly closer than the main office. The girls were tired – Lydia was about to go to sleep on the floor. So, we came home around 9 pm, and are ready for sleep.
Goodnight!
Jeanie
Monday, June 15, 2009
Chicken poop and a preteen patriot
Monday, June 15 - Ghana Adventure Day 10
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed July 19)
We had a nice breakfast today, then went to the main office to buy some internet minutes. Enyonam had mentioned organizing something for Lydia’s birthday, and Patience must be in on it, because she made it a point to check with me as to which day the birthday was…I wonder what they are up to? There is actually some signal in the office, so I spent quite a while working on an e-mail to almost everyone on my contact list to update them on our adventure so far. No time to post pictures, though, since there was only so much time in the office the girls could tolerate.
I reluctantly agreed to go out in the heat of the day, since nobody got sunburned yesterday. We even dared to head out around noon, and stayed out until after 4:00. We started at the pool, and though Akos didn’t want to get in at first, she eventually went over and took her shorts off, got her floatie vest on, and joined me on the steps of the pool. Soon, she was in the pool with me. After a while, we went to the beach again, looking for more crabs, then they played on the swingset. I got some good cross-stitching time in. Then, back to the pool, and surprise! Akos got into the water with Lydia, without me!!! The two of them looked so sweet together, and they had lots of fun throwing and chasing Lydia’s new diving balls.
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed July 19)
We had a nice breakfast today, then went to the main office to buy some internet minutes. Enyonam had mentioned organizing something for Lydia’s birthday, and Patience must be in on it, because she made it a point to check with me as to which day the birthday was…I wonder what they are up to? There is actually some signal in the office, so I spent quite a while working on an e-mail to almost everyone on my contact list to update them on our adventure so far. No time to post pictures, though, since there was only so much time in the office the girls could tolerate.I reluctantly agreed to go out in the heat of the day, since nobody got sunburned yesterday. We even dared to head out around noon, and stayed out until after 4:00. We started at the pool, and though Akos didn’t want to get in at first, she eventually went over and took her shorts off, got her floatie vest on, and joined me on the steps of the pool. Soon, she was in the pool with me. After a while, we went to the beach again, looking for more crabs, then they played on the swingset. I got some good cross-stitching time in. Then, back to the pool, and surprise! Akos got into the water with Lydia, without me!!! The two of them looked so sweet together, and they had lots of fun throwing and chasing Lydia’s new diving balls.
The girls wanted to eat in the room, so we had freeze-dried Jamaican chicken and rice. Fairly good. Then, Akos did Lydia’s hair in about 6 or 7 little ponytails – she was quite proud of herself! Uncle P tells us that the hairstyle's name, when translated from Twi to English, means "chicken poop." Lovely. LOL
After that, we went out for dessert – we met a little 8-year-old African-American social butterfly named Jaida. She came right up to us, smiled, and said proudly and clearly, “Hi! I’m Jaida. I’m from the United States of AMERICA!” She just cracked me up. Immediately, she poked her nose into what I was was doing on the computer and was dictating what I should tell Don on Skype! LOL I kept trying to get internet signal – we are supposedly at a good spot for internet when we’re at the restaurant – but no luck. After many tries, and many different tables and huts, one of the managers offered for me to come to his office after dessert and use the internet there. His office was downright chilly – I loved it! We finally got a great signal, such that we were able to Skype with Daddy! So, Akos got so see Don in motion – not just a photo – for the first time. They both enjoyed it, as did Lydia and I. Don brought Kente to the computer to say hi. Apparently, he is still enjoying torturing the other cats. Naughty Kente! ☺
Well, that’s all for now – goodnight!
Jeanie
After that, we went out for dessert – we met a little 8-year-old African-American social butterfly named Jaida. She came right up to us, smiled, and said proudly and clearly, “Hi! I’m Jaida. I’m from the United States of AMERICA!” She just cracked me up. Immediately, she poked her nose into what I was was doing on the computer and was dictating what I should tell Don on Skype! LOL I kept trying to get internet signal – we are supposedly at a good spot for internet when we’re at the restaurant – but no luck. After many tries, and many different tables and huts, one of the managers offered for me to come to his office after dessert and use the internet there. His office was downright chilly – I loved it! We finally got a great signal, such that we were able to Skype with Daddy! So, Akos got so see Don in motion – not just a photo – for the first time. They both enjoyed it, as did Lydia and I. Don brought Kente to the computer to say hi. Apparently, he is still enjoying torturing the other cats. Naughty Kente! ☺
Well, that’s all for now – goodnight!
Jeanie
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Dirty laundry and crabs
Sunday, June 14 - Ghana Adventure Day 9
I was so exhausted after yesterday! (Plus I stayed up until about 2 am cross-stitching…) The girls did a great job playing quietly. I spent a while teaching them to cross-stitch. Akos enjoys it, but doesn’t quite have the hang of it yet. I'm not sure how to explain the concept of “diagonal” to her.
Next, we sorted out our dirty laundry. Some I am going to splurge on and have the hotel take care of. Mainly, I did that with the things that would take a long time to dry. The rest I washed in the sink – I used shampoo instead of my laundry soap sheets this time – it worked much better. We have a large shower, so we threw the soapy clothes in the shower, the girls stripped down and rinsed the clothes for me, then took a shower. I have clothes strung all over the place in here!
Akos didn’t want to go to the pool or do anything this afternoon. I held her for a while, but she wouldn’t tell me what was wrong or what she wanted. She wore a swimsuit, but wouldn’t get in. She just watched a video on my iPhone. Then I asked if she wanted to go to the beach and catch crabs. She nodded. So, off we went, and from then on, everything was great. We caught a couple of little crabs, and the girls would scream whenever the crabs moved. It was so funny.
Later, we went back to the pool, and the girls were the only ones there. Akos was throwing diving balls into the pool for Lydia, then I noticed she had gotten in, down to the second step. Now, she says she will swim tomorrow with her vest and with me. ☺
Interestingly, when we were at the beach, Akos said you never go to the beach on Tuesdays. A cultural thing, I’m sure – I asked if the waves were too rough on Tuesdays, and she nodded.
We had dinner as usual – I had red-red again – yummy! Lydia and Akos both tried the fried plantains – Akos liked them, and Lydia loved them! We had a big problem, though – Akos seems to only want to eat rice, no meat or other protein. She asked for chicken instead of sausage (hot dog) tonight, then wouldn’t even try one bite. I told her that she needed to eat some of her chicken, and she shook her head vigorously. I got firmer with her, and eventually separated out just about a tablespoon worth of chicken and said that she could eat more rice after she ate just that little bit. We had some emotional struggling that was way out of proportion, but I finally helped her calm down, and we had a good night. She's just had so much change to deal with all of a sudden - I have to expect some ups and downs, and hope that the downs will become easier and less frequent in time.
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post, completed on July 19)
I was so exhausted after yesterday! (Plus I stayed up until about 2 am cross-stitching…) The girls did a great job playing quietly. I spent a while teaching them to cross-stitch. Akos enjoys it, but doesn’t quite have the hang of it yet. I'm not sure how to explain the concept of “diagonal” to her.
Next, we sorted out our dirty laundry. Some I am going to splurge on and have the hotel take care of. Mainly, I did that with the things that would take a long time to dry. The rest I washed in the sink – I used shampoo instead of my laundry soap sheets this time – it worked much better. We have a large shower, so we threw the soapy clothes in the shower, the girls stripped down and rinsed the clothes for me, then took a shower. I have clothes strung all over the place in here!
Akos didn’t want to go to the pool or do anything this afternoon. I held her for a while, but she wouldn’t tell me what was wrong or what she wanted. She wore a swimsuit, but wouldn’t get in. She just watched a video on my iPhone. Then I asked if she wanted to go to the beach and catch crabs. She nodded. So, off we went, and from then on, everything was great. We caught a couple of little crabs, and the girls would scream whenever the crabs moved. It was so funny.
Later, we went back to the pool, and the girls were the only ones there. Akos was throwing diving balls into the pool for Lydia, then I noticed she had gotten in, down to the second step. Now, she says she will swim tomorrow with her vest and with me. ☺
Interestingly, when we were at the beach, Akos said you never go to the beach on Tuesdays. A cultural thing, I’m sure – I asked if the waves were too rough on Tuesdays, and she nodded.
We had dinner as usual – I had red-red again – yummy! Lydia and Akos both tried the fried plantains – Akos liked them, and Lydia loved them! We had a big problem, though – Akos seems to only want to eat rice, no meat or other protein. She asked for chicken instead of sausage (hot dog) tonight, then wouldn’t even try one bite. I told her that she needed to eat some of her chicken, and she shook her head vigorously. I got firmer with her, and eventually separated out just about a tablespoon worth of chicken and said that she could eat more rice after she ate just that little bit. We had some emotional struggling that was way out of proportion, but I finally helped her calm down, and we had a good night. She's just had so much change to deal with all of a sudden - I have to expect some ups and downs, and hope that the downs will become easier and less frequent in time.
Till tomorrow...
Jeanie
Saturday, June 13, 2009
High above the rainforest then low into horrible dungeons
Saturday, June 13 - Ghana Adventure Day 8
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post, completed July 19)
This morning, we enjoyed breakfast with Uncle P – it was a buffet, and turns out it was included with the hotel room. Yum! They didn’t have any local foods on it, though.
Next, we left for Kakum National Park. It started raining as we were driving. We passed numerous people, mostly women, walking along the roads with huge (up to about 4 feet diameter) aluminum platters piled high with fruit or other goods. Some were even carrying loads of wood, or huge (50-lb or so) sacks of food. We passed SO many God-named shops, again.
We arrived at Kakum while it was raining heavily. We browsed in the gift shop, where they had interesting African instruments and bracelets, and also some of the tote bags I had read about, made from trash! They take labels from discarded juice or water packets, and sew them together into bags. A neat idea, as it cleans up the area, gives Ghanaians some pay (to pick up the labels), and makes a great conversation piece for visitors. When the rain let up, we headed onto the trail following the tour guide. We weren’t following her for long, as I had to stop to rest at every set of benches along the way. The hike was on rock-covered steps mostly – sort of like cobblestones, but protruding and very irregular. Tough to walk on! And the steps were exhausting. I think Uncle P said we had to climb 300 feet or so. He thinks the Canopy Walkway is about 40 meters high at the highest point. Wow! We finally reached the Canopy Walkway entrance. It was amazing just to look at – narrow wooden planks (no more than a foot wide) supported by some metal rods, and rope walls along the way. It bounced and shook with every step. There were 7 walkways total, the 3rd being the longest. One of the walkways was attached to a mahogany tree – Uncle P showed me the powdery red beneath the bark. He says they will use that to strengthen the blood – apparently has a lot of folic acid in it. Wow, he is a fountain of amazing information! It started raining heavily again while we were up there. So, we were in the rain, in the rain forest. Very appropo. We didn’t see many animals – just a hard-working colony of black ants forming a high-speed two-lane highway, as well as a couple of large centipedes (or millipedes – I’m not sure.) When we finished the walkway, the hike back down was much easier. On the way down, we met some other obrunis who offered us a piece of their fresh cocoa pod. You take a seed covered in white slimy stuff, suck the white stuff off, and spit out the seed. It tasted nothing like chocolate – actually very yummy and fruity – much like strawberries or something! To make the cocoa as we know it, the seeds have to dry and be pounded into powder. Very interesting – I’d love to see the process. We took a picture of the girl’s cocoa pod (and she took one of my girls holding it), then bought our own cocoa pod. We also bought a bottle of fresh honey, “straight from the bush,” as our coordinator said. They were also selling palm wine. I figured I’d better try it – the first sip tasted pretty good, but each sip afterward tasted nastier, so I only had a few sips before I decided to give up and throw it out next chance I got. (Later, after more sightseeing, when the palm wine had been sitting in the hot car, the smell was a horrible, nauseating stench!) Oh well, I had to try. I had read about it, and it’s often called “libations” and used in religious ceremonies.
As we drove back toward Elmina, we passed a trader holding up the coveted grasscutter. It was huge – much larger than I thought. Probably two feet long! Uncle P has talked about grasscutter, and how delicious it is – so prized, it is often for the chiefs. He gets a dreamy look in his eye when talking about them. (Of course, he also talks about how delicious roasted maggots from palm trees are…ewwww!) Anyway, seeing his mouth water over it as we passed, I decided to buy him a grasscutter as a gift. We didn’t buy that one, but he said we’ll pass some on our way back to Accra next week. He was so happy and excited about it! So, I get a picture to remember, and he gets a lovely dinner – I guess the equivalent of filet mignon(?). They are about 20 cedis apiece – not bad, actually, for so much meat. Well worth the price to me to see him so happy. He’s an amazing, and extremely nice man. We feel so safe with him looking after us.
Next stop was Elmina castle. Probably the most powerfully moving historical site I have ever been to, and could ever imagine. You can still smell the stench of human waste in the dungeon rooms that held hundreds of slaves packed in so tightly they couldn’t move to get to the “toilet” containers. Everyone on the tour was holding their noses. Our guide also put us in the actual cells the slaves were held in when they tried to escape, and shut the door on us. Those few moments gave us time to think and experience – and imagine the horror. The slaves who tried to escape were put into that cell (with a skull and crossbones over the door) until they were dead. The female slaves were sometimes called upon to be raped by the governor in his bedroom upstairs. They would put several in the central area he would look down and pick one, then she would clean up at the cistern (having had no washing since arrival), and be taken up the stairs to the governor’s bedroom to be raped. If she resisted, she would be chained with both feet to cannonballs in the central area, in the hot sun, with no food and water. At the top of the castle were two cells that were for “special guests” – a king of Ghana was held in one for four years before being shipped elsewhere, and another held the queen mother of Kumasi, who when all the men had left, fought the British by herself. She was imprisoned for it, and Uncle P says that for this, she has become an icon to women. I don’t think one can leave Elmina Castle (St. George’s Castle) unchanged. I felt the need to hold hands with my girls and pray, so we did. After the tour, we visited the castle bookshop – I found several African children’s books, a Ghanaian cookbook (Yay!), a small Ewe handbook, and more. They also had a craft shop, where I bought a pair of elephant bookends.
Finally out of cedis and hungry, we headed back to the hotel. I was absolutely drenched with sweat! Oh well, I’m getting used to it. We found that our dear housekeeper, Aba, had again adorned our beds with beautiful, fresh flowers! We’re being treated like royalty! I was exhausted, so I had to lie down until dinner. The girls played quietly. We had dinner under one of the huts nearest to the beach. There was a fairly strong wind, and huge waves. So beautiful! I had Gari Foto – cassava grains fried in tomato sauce (spicy!), served with black-eyes peas. The cassava grains were kind of the consistency of cornmeal – dry! But, when eaten with some beans, actually pretty good. I’m sure looking forward to having red-red again, though. I had flambed pineapple for dessert. While we waited for the food, the girls played in the sand, built a sand-nest, and ran around laughing. I just love it! People were smiling at them.
The girls are now playing with Kosi’s doll that I made for her. She has been showing us the proper method of baby-backing. She is an adorable little mommy! She put the baby on Lydia’s back, too – and now Lydia is giving Kosi a piggy-back ride.
I talked with Akos a bit today about hair in the US – and that a lot of girls have long hair. I made sure to tell her that she is beautiful just the way she is, with her hair short or long, brown, black, or purple, etc. I asked whether she wanted her hair to stay short like it is – she said no. I asked her if she wanted to try braids – she grinned and nodded. So, Uncle P says we can have her hair checked in Accra to see if her hair is long enough to attach braids to. His wife has braids – he says it is much more economical.
While we were at dinner, Akos grabbed my phone and said,” Give my Daddy’s number.” She misses Daddy, she says. She is very eager to talk to Elena, too. I called Lya today – turns out it’s her birthday! She got to say hi to Kosi, too.
Oh, almost forgot another interesting thing – as we arrived back at the hotel, Uncle P discussed his schedule – he’s leaving tomorrow am, and will pick us up on Thursday. The reason he needs to leave tomorrow is that one of his friends is “knocking” tomorrow morning. That is a tradition in which the man brings a bottle of schnapps to the girl’s home, tells the parents he has seen a beautiful girl in their house and that he would like to marry her. They give him a list of things to do and buy for the wedding. If they accept the bottle, they will not drink it, but will save it. If he misbehaves before the wedding, they will send it back to him. I remember reading about this before – I couldn't catch everything Uncle P was saying, and will have to read more about it. I love these traditions! ☺
I can’t wait to come back here, and to bring Don. He actually surprised me and said he wants to go – strange, since he didn’t want to go on this trip…but I guess when it’s more for learning than for the technical processes of adoption, etc., it’s more appealing. He is interested in photography opportunities, as am I. I really want to capture some of the essence of the people here – the way they can be so friendly, and happy, when they have so little and struggle so much. The way they work so hard, carrying heavy loads on their heads in the hot sun, with a baby on the back through it all. I want to take photos of the things that are strange to us, like all the god-type shop names, etc. I also want to capture the looks in the eyes of the children – especially the poor in the slums and villages. I also want to come back with things for the hospitals and orphanages, as well as try to get AZT for Adam’s orphanage in the Volta region.
Speaking of Volta region reminded me – some of what Uncle P has done is to guide people who are trying to trace their family histories – he talked about one man who had undergone DNA testing and found that he was descended from people of the Volta region. He said that he took the man to Volta region, and when he saw that everyone looked like him, he just cried.
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post, completed July 19)
This morning, we enjoyed breakfast with Uncle P – it was a buffet, and turns out it was included with the hotel room. Yum! They didn’t have any local foods on it, though.
Next, we left for Kakum National Park. It started raining as we were driving. We passed numerous people, mostly women, walking along the roads with huge (up to about 4 feet diameter) aluminum platters piled high with fruit or other goods. Some were even carrying loads of wood, or huge (50-lb or so) sacks of food. We passed SO many God-named shops, again.
We arrived at Kakum while it was raining heavily. We browsed in the gift shop, where they had interesting African instruments and bracelets, and also some of the tote bags I had read about, made from trash! They take labels from discarded juice or water packets, and sew them together into bags. A neat idea, as it cleans up the area, gives Ghanaians some pay (to pick up the labels), and makes a great conversation piece for visitors. When the rain let up, we headed onto the trail following the tour guide. We weren’t following her for long, as I had to stop to rest at every set of benches along the way. The hike was on rock-covered steps mostly – sort of like cobblestones, but protruding and very irregular. Tough to walk on! And the steps were exhausting. I think Uncle P said we had to climb 300 feet or so. He thinks the Canopy Walkway is about 40 meters high at the highest point. Wow! We finally reached the Canopy Walkway entrance. It was amazing just to look at – narrow wooden planks (no more than a foot wide) supported by some metal rods, and rope walls along the way. It bounced and shook with every step. There were 7 walkways total, the 3rd being the longest. One of the walkways was attached to a mahogany tree – Uncle P showed me the powdery red beneath the bark. He says they will use that to strengthen the blood – apparently has a lot of folic acid in it. Wow, he is a fountain of amazing information! It started raining heavily again while we were up there. So, we were in the rain, in the rain forest. Very appropo. We didn’t see many animals – just a hard-working colony of black ants forming a high-speed two-lane highway, as well as a couple of large centipedes (or millipedes – I’m not sure.) When we finished the walkway, the hike back down was much easier. On the way down, we met some other obrunis who offered us a piece of their fresh cocoa pod. You take a seed covered in white slimy stuff, suck the white stuff off, and spit out the seed. It tasted nothing like chocolate – actually very yummy and fruity – much like strawberries or something! To make the cocoa as we know it, the seeds have to dry and be pounded into powder. Very interesting – I’d love to see the process. We took a picture of the girl’s cocoa pod (and she took one of my girls holding it), then bought our own cocoa pod. We also bought a bottle of fresh honey, “straight from the bush,” as our coordinator said. They were also selling palm wine. I figured I’d better try it – the first sip tasted pretty good, but each sip afterward tasted nastier, so I only had a few sips before I decided to give up and throw it out next chance I got. (Later, after more sightseeing, when the palm wine had been sitting in the hot car, the smell was a horrible, nauseating stench!) Oh well, I had to try. I had read about it, and it’s often called “libations” and used in religious ceremonies.
As we drove back toward Elmina, we passed a trader holding up the coveted grasscutter. It was huge – much larger than I thought. Probably two feet long! Uncle P has talked about grasscutter, and how delicious it is – so prized, it is often for the chiefs. He gets a dreamy look in his eye when talking about them. (Of course, he also talks about how delicious roasted maggots from palm trees are…ewwww!) Anyway, seeing his mouth water over it as we passed, I decided to buy him a grasscutter as a gift. We didn’t buy that one, but he said we’ll pass some on our way back to Accra next week. He was so happy and excited about it! So, I get a picture to remember, and he gets a lovely dinner – I guess the equivalent of filet mignon(?). They are about 20 cedis apiece – not bad, actually, for so much meat. Well worth the price to me to see him so happy. He’s an amazing, and extremely nice man. We feel so safe with him looking after us.
Next stop was Elmina castle. Probably the most powerfully moving historical site I have ever been to, and could ever imagine. You can still smell the stench of human waste in the dungeon rooms that held hundreds of slaves packed in so tightly they couldn’t move to get to the “toilet” containers. Everyone on the tour was holding their noses. Our guide also put us in the actual cells the slaves were held in when they tried to escape, and shut the door on us. Those few moments gave us time to think and experience – and imagine the horror. The slaves who tried to escape were put into that cell (with a skull and crossbones over the door) until they were dead. The female slaves were sometimes called upon to be raped by the governor in his bedroom upstairs. They would put several in the central area he would look down and pick one, then she would clean up at the cistern (having had no washing since arrival), and be taken up the stairs to the governor’s bedroom to be raped. If she resisted, she would be chained with both feet to cannonballs in the central area, in the hot sun, with no food and water. At the top of the castle were two cells that were for “special guests” – a king of Ghana was held in one for four years before being shipped elsewhere, and another held the queen mother of Kumasi, who when all the men had left, fought the British by herself. She was imprisoned for it, and Uncle P says that for this, she has become an icon to women. I don’t think one can leave Elmina Castle (St. George’s Castle) unchanged. I felt the need to hold hands with my girls and pray, so we did. After the tour, we visited the castle bookshop – I found several African children’s books, a Ghanaian cookbook (Yay!), a small Ewe handbook, and more. They also had a craft shop, where I bought a pair of elephant bookends.
Finally out of cedis and hungry, we headed back to the hotel. I was absolutely drenched with sweat! Oh well, I’m getting used to it. We found that our dear housekeeper, Aba, had again adorned our beds with beautiful, fresh flowers! We’re being treated like royalty! I was exhausted, so I had to lie down until dinner. The girls played quietly. We had dinner under one of the huts nearest to the beach. There was a fairly strong wind, and huge waves. So beautiful! I had Gari Foto – cassava grains fried in tomato sauce (spicy!), served with black-eyes peas. The cassava grains were kind of the consistency of cornmeal – dry! But, when eaten with some beans, actually pretty good. I’m sure looking forward to having red-red again, though. I had flambed pineapple for dessert. While we waited for the food, the girls played in the sand, built a sand-nest, and ran around laughing. I just love it! People were smiling at them.
The girls are now playing with Kosi’s doll that I made for her. She has been showing us the proper method of baby-backing. She is an adorable little mommy! She put the baby on Lydia’s back, too – and now Lydia is giving Kosi a piggy-back ride.
I talked with Akos a bit today about hair in the US – and that a lot of girls have long hair. I made sure to tell her that she is beautiful just the way she is, with her hair short or long, brown, black, or purple, etc. I asked whether she wanted her hair to stay short like it is – she said no. I asked her if she wanted to try braids – she grinned and nodded. So, Uncle P says we can have her hair checked in Accra to see if her hair is long enough to attach braids to. His wife has braids – he says it is much more economical.
While we were at dinner, Akos grabbed my phone and said,” Give my Daddy’s number.” She misses Daddy, she says. She is very eager to talk to Elena, too. I called Lya today – turns out it’s her birthday! She got to say hi to Kosi, too.
Oh, almost forgot another interesting thing – as we arrived back at the hotel, Uncle P discussed his schedule – he’s leaving tomorrow am, and will pick us up on Thursday. The reason he needs to leave tomorrow is that one of his friends is “knocking” tomorrow morning. That is a tradition in which the man brings a bottle of schnapps to the girl’s home, tells the parents he has seen a beautiful girl in their house and that he would like to marry her. They give him a list of things to do and buy for the wedding. If they accept the bottle, they will not drink it, but will save it. If he misbehaves before the wedding, they will send it back to him. I remember reading about this before – I couldn't catch everything Uncle P was saying, and will have to read more about it. I love these traditions! ☺
I can’t wait to come back here, and to bring Don. He actually surprised me and said he wants to go – strange, since he didn’t want to go on this trip…but I guess when it’s more for learning than for the technical processes of adoption, etc., it’s more appealing. He is interested in photography opportunities, as am I. I really want to capture some of the essence of the people here – the way they can be so friendly, and happy, when they have so little and struggle so much. The way they work so hard, carrying heavy loads on their heads in the hot sun, with a baby on the back through it all. I want to take photos of the things that are strange to us, like all the god-type shop names, etc. I also want to capture the looks in the eyes of the children – especially the poor in the slums and villages. I also want to come back with things for the hospitals and orphanages, as well as try to get AZT for Adam’s orphanage in the Volta region.
Speaking of Volta region reminded me – some of what Uncle P has done is to guide people who are trying to trace their family histories – he talked about one man who had undergone DNA testing and found that he was descended from people of the Volta region. He said that he took the man to Volta region, and when he saw that everyone looked like him, he just cried.
He also talked of a woman who was cursed by someone in a village for shoplifting something – the man didn’t want money, he wanted justice. Uncle P had tried to pay him for the item, which the woman denied taking. But instead of taking it, he cursed her – he said she would poo-poo all over herself in a public place. Sure enough, she did, on that very trip. It was a quiet ride home in the bus! Uncle P said that a couple of years later, she came back, alone. She told him that she had a problem with stealing (kleptomania, I presume), and had lost her husband and all her friends because of it. But, after the village man cursed her in that way, she never did it again. She came back to thank him for saving her life, and brought him $200 as a thank-you gift. Amazing!
A long post for a long day...
Jeanie
Friday, June 12, 2009
First aid, first thing in the morning
Friday, June 12 - Ghana Adventure Day 7
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed July 19)
More of today's photos in slideshow section 2 - click HERE to view.
(back-dated post completed July 19)
Akos woke up back to her usual self . What a relief. I did make sure to tell her many times last night, that it’s OK if she needs to cry, OK if she misses her birth family, OK to feel unsure about her new life with us, and that we would not be angry with her, but always love her. I think that helped. I wonder if the attention we gave to the baby last night made Akos feel insecure about our love for her?
We planned to go to Kakum National Park this morning. We were in a rush, so decided to make oatmeal in the room for breakfast. While I made the oatmeal, the girls played outside. Then, Lydia rushed in to tell me a man was bleeding out there. I went out to check – it was one of the hotel employees – the plumber. He had tried to remove a toilet, which cracked and sliced both his middle fingers nearly to the bone. On the right side, he cut a vessel, so had a lot of bleeding from that one. The staff were pretty frantic, trying to wash it and put old rags on it. I told them I was a doctor and asked if they needed help. They certainly did, and they were VERY grateful. The man’s name was Eric. HE was in SO much pain. I had to remove some pieces of ceramic form his wound, wash both with our sterile water and some antiseptic, and bandage them with pressure dressings. All of this while he tried not to pass out from the pain. He needed stitches, so I went with them to the clinic (Ghana Health Clinic in Elmina) to make sure they had sterile supplies to use, and would give him a tetanus shot and antibiotic. They were worried he might be dizzy from losing a lot of blood, but Enyonam, the very nice lady who came with us, said she saw it, and it was only about half a pint. He was afraid of the needle when they came with his shot, so I think he was more faint from pain and the sight of blood than anything. It took about 4 hours of waiting before he was done. They gave him IV fluids, gave the tetanus shot, and prescribed antibiotics. I sat with him the whole time. He thanked me many times, and said “God bless you more and more and more and more and more…” The hotel staff was so appreciative, too. I didn’t really feel I had done all that much, but I’m glad it meant so much to them. The front office manager even called personally to talk to me and thank me, and the housekeeper made our rooms all beautiful with fresh flowers arranged all over the bed –looked kind of romantic – just beautiful. And yes, Uncle P got flowers, too – very “manly” pink and purple flowers, and I did not hesitate to give him trouble about it!
The clinic was so crowded – the nurse said they had about 250 patients to see. There was old equipment, probably 50 years old or more, dirty supplies, mold and mildew everywhere, torn-up flooring, dirt, no lights (not even in the room they used for suturing), and dingy curtains covering the doorways. Just dismal. But, the doctor, though hurried, was very professional and did his job well. People in the US complain so much about our health care – well, they should see what it could be like – they should see it here. We were lucky – they had almost run out of local anesthetic for Eric, but found some.
After the clinic run, the girls and I went to the pool. Akos has never been swimming before. She clung to me for dear life, but eventually put her feet on the bottom (of the kiddie pool). She didn’t want to hold Lydia’s hand, just mine. We had a flotation vest on her, but she didn’t understand what it was. Then the weirdness started – several men wanted their pictures taken with me – I guess just the novelty of an old obruni in the pool? But then, one named Johnny, said he wanted to sing with me, then came over into the kiddie pool with us and started flirting with me!!! He even asked for my phone number! Even telling him I was married and showing my ring didn’t ward him off. He kept following us around, but was nice about it, not threatening in any way. I still didn’t like it, but I didn’t feel unsafe. He befriended Lydia quickly, and started having races across the pool with her. We went to the beach and saw some huge crabs scurrying on the rocks. Very cool! Then, some guys were playing “football” (soccer) and one of them came and spoke with me, then asked for my number, too! Unbelievable. Than, the last was another young man who swooshed over to me, said he had been admiring me from afar, and that he wanted to marry me! Jeez – are they not blind?? I think I might have lost some weight here, but not that much!
Finally, we found some peace and quiet at the western end of the beach, with a single lounge chair and a playset. Akos had also never been to the beach, nor had she been on a swing. She wouldn’t scoot her hiny back far enough and slipped forward off the swing several times (into soft sand, though, so she was fine). Lydia and Akos had an absolutely wonderful time together today.
After that, we came to the room and found the beautiful flower decorations. Some of the fresh flowers were even placed in rolls of toilet paper as if they were vases. Sounds strange, but it was elegant and beautiful! Also, we found that the room was amost frigid. Yay! They got the air conditioner fixed for me!
Around 6:30, we went to dinner. Akos had Jollof rice, Lydia had chicken and French fries, and I had Banku with Okro Stew. Banku is a pasty substance made of corn, I think. The stew had okra, and a LOT of peppery spice. It also had three kinds of meat in it – crab, beef (if it really was beef…) and (watay?), which is the hairy hump from the back of a cow’s neck (the cows have sort of camel-type humps here, but near the neck). I actually tried everything, ate almost all the crab, and quite a bit of the veggie parts of the stew and the banku. I don’t think the “crab” was actually crab, though, because I can’t explain the bones in it. (Aren't crabs invertebrates???) I’m not sure I want to know what it really was, but it did taste good. We treated ourselves to chocolate and vanilla gateau for dessert. I left a nice tip for the waiter, and he didn’t understand it was for him. He actually came all the way to our room to bring me my change!
Uncle P got home after we got back from dinner. Lydia asked sternly, “Where have you been???” We talked for a while, and the girls played with him. Lydia is playing “football” now, and was practicing hitting the ball to him with her head! We took some video of it, and also took some video of Akos so she could watch herself on the screen (which she thoroughly enjoyed). Now, as I type this, the girls are having issues over who sleeps where – Akos wants to sleep with me, I want the girls to sleep together (so I can get some rest tonight), and Lydia is feeling it’s unfair she can’t be by me. Oh well, they’re sisters through and through.
We planned to go to Kakum National Park this morning. We were in a rush, so decided to make oatmeal in the room for breakfast. While I made the oatmeal, the girls played outside. Then, Lydia rushed in to tell me a man was bleeding out there. I went out to check – it was one of the hotel employees – the plumber. He had tried to remove a toilet, which cracked and sliced both his middle fingers nearly to the bone. On the right side, he cut a vessel, so had a lot of bleeding from that one. The staff were pretty frantic, trying to wash it and put old rags on it. I told them I was a doctor and asked if they needed help. They certainly did, and they were VERY grateful. The man’s name was Eric. HE was in SO much pain. I had to remove some pieces of ceramic form his wound, wash both with our sterile water and some antiseptic, and bandage them with pressure dressings. All of this while he tried not to pass out from the pain. He needed stitches, so I went with them to the clinic (Ghana Health Clinic in Elmina) to make sure they had sterile supplies to use, and would give him a tetanus shot and antibiotic. They were worried he might be dizzy from losing a lot of blood, but Enyonam, the very nice lady who came with us, said she saw it, and it was only about half a pint. He was afraid of the needle when they came with his shot, so I think he was more faint from pain and the sight of blood than anything. It took about 4 hours of waiting before he was done. They gave him IV fluids, gave the tetanus shot, and prescribed antibiotics. I sat with him the whole time. He thanked me many times, and said “God bless you more and more and more and more and more…” The hotel staff was so appreciative, too. I didn’t really feel I had done all that much, but I’m glad it meant so much to them. The front office manager even called personally to talk to me and thank me, and the housekeeper made our rooms all beautiful with fresh flowers arranged all over the bed –looked kind of romantic – just beautiful. And yes, Uncle P got flowers, too – very “manly” pink and purple flowers, and I did not hesitate to give him trouble about it!
The clinic was so crowded – the nurse said they had about 250 patients to see. There was old equipment, probably 50 years old or more, dirty supplies, mold and mildew everywhere, torn-up flooring, dirt, no lights (not even in the room they used for suturing), and dingy curtains covering the doorways. Just dismal. But, the doctor, though hurried, was very professional and did his job well. People in the US complain so much about our health care – well, they should see what it could be like – they should see it here. We were lucky – they had almost run out of local anesthetic for Eric, but found some.
After the clinic run, the girls and I went to the pool. Akos has never been swimming before. She clung to me for dear life, but eventually put her feet on the bottom (of the kiddie pool). She didn’t want to hold Lydia’s hand, just mine. We had a flotation vest on her, but she didn’t understand what it was. Then the weirdness started – several men wanted their pictures taken with me – I guess just the novelty of an old obruni in the pool? But then, one named Johnny, said he wanted to sing with me, then came over into the kiddie pool with us and started flirting with me!!! He even asked for my phone number! Even telling him I was married and showing my ring didn’t ward him off. He kept following us around, but was nice about it, not threatening in any way. I still didn’t like it, but I didn’t feel unsafe. He befriended Lydia quickly, and started having races across the pool with her. We went to the beach and saw some huge crabs scurrying on the rocks. Very cool! Then, some guys were playing “football” (soccer) and one of them came and spoke with me, then asked for my number, too! Unbelievable. Than, the last was another young man who swooshed over to me, said he had been admiring me from afar, and that he wanted to marry me! Jeez – are they not blind?? I think I might have lost some weight here, but not that much!
Finally, we found some peace and quiet at the western end of the beach, with a single lounge chair and a playset. Akos had also never been to the beach, nor had she been on a swing. She wouldn’t scoot her hiny back far enough and slipped forward off the swing several times (into soft sand, though, so she was fine). Lydia and Akos had an absolutely wonderful time together today.
After that, we came to the room and found the beautiful flower decorations. Some of the fresh flowers were even placed in rolls of toilet paper as if they were vases. Sounds strange, but it was elegant and beautiful! Also, we found that the room was amost frigid. Yay! They got the air conditioner fixed for me!
Around 6:30, we went to dinner. Akos had Jollof rice, Lydia had chicken and French fries, and I had Banku with Okro Stew. Banku is a pasty substance made of corn, I think. The stew had okra, and a LOT of peppery spice. It also had three kinds of meat in it – crab, beef (if it really was beef…) and (watay?), which is the hairy hump from the back of a cow’s neck (the cows have sort of camel-type humps here, but near the neck). I actually tried everything, ate almost all the crab, and quite a bit of the veggie parts of the stew and the banku. I don’t think the “crab” was actually crab, though, because I can’t explain the bones in it. (Aren't crabs invertebrates???) I’m not sure I want to know what it really was, but it did taste good. We treated ourselves to chocolate and vanilla gateau for dessert. I left a nice tip for the waiter, and he didn’t understand it was for him. He actually came all the way to our room to bring me my change!
Uncle P got home after we got back from dinner. Lydia asked sternly, “Where have you been???” We talked for a while, and the girls played with him. Lydia is playing “football” now, and was practicing hitting the ball to him with her head! We took some video of it, and also took some video of Akos so she could watch herself on the screen (which she thoroughly enjoyed). Now, as I type this, the girls are having issues over who sleeps where – Akos wants to sleep with me, I want the girls to sleep together (so I can get some rest tonight), and Lydia is feeling it’s unfair she can’t be by me. Oh well, they’re sisters through and through.
Till next time...
Jeanie
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