TIA. "This is Africa." I thought it was an acronym made up by Leonardo DiCaprio in the movie Blood Diamond. As it turns out, it's a phrase said commonly by many of the English speakers in Ghana. Though in the movie it is often expressed with an eye-roll or a smirk, I've found myself repeating the phrase frequently since my arrival - more out of amazement, awe, and curiosity.
Despite some flight issues (explained below), our team arrived in Accra, Ghana on Saturday evening. We spent the first night at the University of Ghana, where we shared a section of the dorms with clergymen attending a conference. A strange start. Sunday morning we received cultural training from our hosts/counterparts, and then loaded up the "tro-tros" (Astro-like vans used as a form of public transportation... more on these adventurous vehicles at another time) to head toward our village, Marfokrom, 2 hours northwest of the capital.
Don't bother looking for Marfo on a Google map - it won't be on it (I tried). Its population is half as large as my high school, and a good sprinter could make it down the village's main road - start to finish - in less than a minute. That said, it's a beautiful community where life is very public, the people are very hospitable, and the locals are thrilled to host us to help at the local schools.
I have much, much more to write about. Unfortunately it must end here today, as my time is quickly elapsing at the local internet cafe from which I type this. Probably for the best, though: I need to fetch well water and build a screen door for the women's room by dark (6pm).
Mosquitoes feed at night! TIA.
The school we are working on building (and currently are living in) in the village of Marfokrom. My room is the second door of the back building.
After a 24 hour delay in Lagos, Nigeria, one of the more dangerous African cities, I was thrilled to make it to Ghana.
