in case you were wondering...

typical shoutouts with strangers...

ghanaian: hello!
me: hello.
ghanaian: what are you, japan... china?
me: i'm american.
ghanaian: i've never seen such a short american before.
me: i've never seen such an ugly person before.


just kidding, i don't say the last part... i just say uhhh, thanks.

then yesterday i was talking with a teacher...

teacher: so what are you? chinese? japanese?
me: i'm asian-american.
teacher: so can you speak china? or japan?
me: i can speak a little japanese.
teacher: i can speak some too.
me: really... lets hear what you can say.
teacher: chingchongchong.
me: haha... uh, thats not japanese.
teacher: so there is this story that is being passed around... and the way you people get your names is by throwing a dish on the ground and listening to the sound. thats how you get your names.
me: haha, what... ive never heard such a thing.
teacher: yeah, just like how we have our day names and then our surnames... you guys throw things on the floor and listen to the sound to name your baby.
me: haahah. so i think when you have a baby you should throw a milo can on the floor and listen carefully and name the child that.
teacher: noooo... thats your tradition, not ours.

yeaaaa, fulfilling mission number 2 of peace corps... teaching host nationals about the culture of americans. or asian americans... i get yelled at in the streets... ching chong chong! alllll the time... i tried to tell the teacher that saying ching chong chong to us is very offense, like the equivalent to the middle finger... but i'm pretty sure i'll still get ching chong chong.

i'm contemplating asking my counterpart to be relocated. i think i can pretty much handle a lot of things, but my house SUCKS BALLS! i seriously wake up every morning wishing i was not living at my house.

okay, miss you all... counting down the dayyyyyssssss!!!
bacon wrapped hot dogs here i commmeeee!!!
xoxo.

good and the bad. at least no ugly.

So good news, bad news…

Good news: Guess who is officially (I say officially because I’ve been saying this for about three months, but now I have ticket confirmation!) coming home in September for a good 20 days?! Hell to the YEAH!!! (btw, its me that’s coming home in case anyone was confused.) Ahhhh, I’m like so excited… every time I think about how close September is I almost want to poop my pants!  Then every time I start to think about all the amazing food, liquor, and people I will get to see and eat my head starts to feel like its going to explode.

Bad news:  Lola is back.  /:  After a long day of traveling back to Ntonso, I’m walking past my neighbors house and she stops me to say that my cat is at her house.  (I kinda knew that it was there, but hoped that they would just take the cat in as their own as they have like 15 others… guess that didn’t work out so well.)  So now the cat is back, still annoying and loud as when it first left… maybe there is hope for me as a mother after all.  (in the sense that my children will return to me given that someone else doesn’t want them. Joke.)

 Good news: Right now we are in the rainy season.  I love the rain here in Ghana... the air is cool, everyone is in hiding so its quiet and peaceful, I get my water, when we are lucky there is some crazy lightning that strikes down, but mostly because it gives me a reason to heat up water and take a nice hot bath and I don’t go to sleep sweating.  (double score if I don’t sweat while eating)  Nothing usually gets accomplished when it rains (because apparently Ghanaians melt in the rain) but well, somehow its okay.  At least they don’t have depression right?!

Good news:  I can chop lola now!! 

Bad news:  The rain brings mosquitos paaaaa!! (pa=plenty)

Good news:  The girl that come to visit me during her Vision Quest is still in Ghana, and didn’t die (or get the shits) from my cooking or from chopping in town.  Apparently they’ve already had 3 or so people terminate their service and return to America.  (we actually made really gooood stir fry one night, and I’ve been craving it every night since then. And also banana pancakes… soooo YUM!)  

Bad news: my vision quester said I sometimes talked funny to her.  So here, we talk Ghanaian English… and it sounds retarded as hell, and I don’t like talking to Ghanaians in Ghanaian English, but I guess sometimes I can’t help it.  It is even stupider when Americans talk to other Americans in Ghanaian English.  I think I’ve started talking to my gma and gpa in Ghanaian English… but I’m going to justify that by saying the connection is really bad at times and well, they’re a bit hard of hearing.

Good news:  So Peace Corps gives you this amazing book called where there is no doctor, and basically if you feel like something is wrong with you, you look up your symptoms and try to figure out what you have.  I recently determined that I had giardia /: and I cured it, and now I think that I can definitely go back to America and become a doctor. 

Good news: i lied when i said ALL my pictures got delete... just all my cool fun pictures got deleted, booo. ): 

this is elimina castle, one of the slave castles that were built by the portugese. it was first used as a trade settlement but then it got used to traffic slaves.

here is a room that they had to live in before getting sent away. those three small windows were the only source of light they had.

so here is what it looks like with the light turned on... but of course back then, there was no lights.

the door of no return... no explanation need. ):

 Twi word of the day:  ko bra y (go and come)

Adinkra Symbol of the day:

SESA WORUBAN

"I change or transform my life"

symbol of life transformation

This symbol combines two separate adinkra symbols, the "Morning Star" which can mean a new start to the day, placed inside the wheel, representing rotation or independent movement.

 

Shout Out: dustin for helping me, you da best! And to my favorite two people in the world… my mama and dada!!!

my life is a big blurrrr.

So whats happening?

Nothing much to be honest. Somehow, things are happening, I’m going places, doing things, but I lose track of things and events and looking back on yesterday I can’t seem to remember what I’ve done. (and no, its not because I was drunk and in an obliteration of the days past although that would make more sense as to why I can’t remember anything.)

Cape Coast: Took a little vacation to the coast, got to see the slave castles, walk on one of the four canopy walks in the world (totally as scary as it looks), played with some crocks, feds some ostriches, got to swim in a pool, had amazing food and PORK!, and spend quality time with my favorite people. I would love to elaborate more and show you some pictures to go along with it, but some idiot deleted all her pictures trying to make space for more… so if I continue talking about it, I might just get crazy mad at myself and need to drink a beer. Speaking of beer, the visitor centre just got beer at the snack bar! Score!

NTMT: The NTMT has been meeting regularly and getting things done! Its absolutely amazing! I was quite scared when the assemblyman was voted chairman, but so far its working out quite well. He wants to see the project go well, and since he has connections with the district assembly we are working closely with them in hopes of getting some funds to build a demonstration center. Also, the other new members have been coming and contributing greatly to ideas and other things. I’m so happy. We’ve also started talks about doing a Kwabre District football gala. So basically they want to invite the craft towns in Kwabre to put on a gala while doing hiv/aids education and some tourism awareness.

ANYOUNG!!: So I’m not sure if any of you guys are Arrested Development fans, but since coming to Ghana I’ve become quite a fan of shows I’ve never even heard about in America… Arrested Development being one. Every time before when I would hear Arrested Development I would think of the song Mr. Wendall. Do you all remember them? Anyways, cool song, used to remind me of my brother, you know, wendall instead of kendyl?! (Haha, okay whatever, I was young and lamer.) anyways, in Arrested Development there is this Korean kid who only says ANYOUNG!! Haha. So anyways, since I got my uber cool phone number back, I still get all these annoying calls from Ghanaians. Which I have now decided that I’ll say hello at first just to make sure its not someone important that I know and if I don’t know them than after hello its just ANYOUNG! ANYOUNG!! ANYOUNG!!! Until they hang up and decide to never bother me again. Its absolutely great!

Kumasi Zoo: Took my favorite little kids to the Kumasi Zoo, which was totally not worth the 5 cedis I had to pay to get in, but it was still fun. I mean, they didn’t even have any elephants, or giraffes, or zebras! I mean, whats a zoo without those animals?! But there was once chimpanzee that totally made my day. He was absolutely adorable, so much that I decided to name him Pete. I hope to visit him again soon, if I can bypass the guards and sneak in that is.

Lola: So I think I lost my cat. My track records with animals so far hasn’t been good at all. (can you imagine what a great parent I will become?! Ha) But it was a pretty annoying cat, so in a way, I think its better that its lost. I mean, I was planning on chopping it and making cat kebab, so good thing she escaped. (oh yea, did I mention that the kitten pooped in my pot and the people at my house thought it was the funniest thing ever, and then it decided to poop in their pot and the lady thought that 5am was a great time to yell at me to tell me so) I wonder what pet I should get next? A goat? Grasscutter? Duck? Mmm, I wonder how many animals I will go through before my time here in Ghana is up. Maybe I should try growing some plants instead. Although while I was in Japan, I tried that… it died. /:

Okay and that’s that! Oh yea, 70 new peace corps volunteers are coming to Ghana in June. I get to host one at my site for like 5 days… can’t wait to scare the bejeezers out of her. Hehe. (: WELCOME TO GHANA! Haha.

Twi Word of The Day: me ru Efi (I can’t remember)

Adinkra Symbol of the Day:

OSRAM NE NSOROMMA
"The Moon and the Star"
symbol of love, faithfulness, harmony
This symbol reflects the harmony that exists in the bonding between a man and a woman.
Proverb: "Kyekye pe aware." (The North Star has a deep love for marriage. She is always in the sky waiting for the return of the moon, her husband.)

Shoutout: creators of earplugs!!! They are effen amazing. The first night I used them I slept in until 7:30, a Ghana miracle!! The other day I slept in AIR CONDITION, slept in until 10:30… amaaazing!

who reads now days anyways?!

i know nobody really likes reading, although if you were stuck alone without a television and constant internet access you might, but since i know none of you people are dealing with that, here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure. enjoi. (:

crazy girls dancing. i have to upload a video sometime of them singing while making fart sounds with their armpits, its pretty amazing.

so took me and some of my little children to the kumasi zoo, which, they shouldn't even call a zoo because they don't have the main zoo animals that people go to the zoo for! ie. no elephants, no giraffes, no zebras... but plenty monkeys!

the only reason the zoo was worth the 5 cedis. ): this chimp was absolutely amaaaazing. i wanted to feed him bananas but the sign said not to, and i guess since i was with children i should follow the rules.

the long never ending dirt path that we had to walk to get out of the butterfly sanctuary, sadly no cars came by for us to hitch rides with. ):

an awesome tree at the bobiri butterfly sanctuary, where i saw maybe like two butterflies... but did learn a big deal about all the different trees growing and their medicinal purposes. i paid extra attention to what the guide was saying just for you denise! so apparently this tree, you cut off the bark and boil it and drink it to help with stomach problems.

she apparently likes my non-existing kitten as much as i did.

so my place is a mess, but letting in these little critters makes it even worse... but somehow it puts a smile on my face, so i deal.

*like my cool brass giraffe candle stick holders?!

i guess i'm just lazy.

I’m a creature of convenience.  I think somehow being raised in America, I got it ingrained in me to be a creature of convenience.  (We are after all the country of 30 minute meals, microwave dinners, fast food, drive thru starbucks, those machines that clean your floors, etc.) Everything that we ne

ed is usually available and if its not, then it won’t be too far away.  But here, things are quite the opposite… most things are not available, and if it is, its far away.

 

Maybe its not so much as convenience as it is me being lazy.  I am the girl that will call my mom from upstairs to tell her I have something important to say only to tell her that I want the remote controller that’s on the other couch and I’m too lazy to stand up myself to get it.  (this is a joke, I’m sure I probably did something to that sort during my years at home, but that is an over exaggeration.  I’m not that lazy… or spoiled, despite what you may think.)

 

Like if I want to wash my clothes, its not as simple as gathering the dirty clothes and putting it in a washing machine and dryer.  Here if I want to wash my clothes, I have to sit a

nd hand wash every piece of clothing… not to mention how hard it is to hand wash towels… I end up sweaty, wet, and soapy by the end of the two hour session.  So while I realize that laundry in America takes a while too… but you can do things in the mean while when the machine is doing your work.  ie, you can watch television, you can eat your lunch, you can go grocery shopping.  It’s just convenient to throw things in and let it be until it beeps.  I realize for those of you that have to use a laundry mat, its not as simple, but I’m sure its still better than having to hand wash all your clothes. 

 

If I want water to drink, bathe, and cook with, its not as convenient as turning on a facet.  More thought has to be put into what you’ll be doing for the week… I sometimes plan my meals around how much water I have left.  If I use too much water to cook/wash dishes with, I won’t have any water to bathe with.  And I guess for some reason, bathing has more clout than preparing my own meals.  (I think this is the first time that food has come second to something in my life!)  So if I do run ou

t of water, I either need to a.) find a lady or small girl to fetch water for me and pay her. Or b.) fetch water myself (which I had to do the other week… not an easy task and not something I want to do again) or c.) wait for the rain.  Either way, I miss running water.  I’m actually almost out, and scrambling now because my water lady has disappeared and it hasn’t rained hard in days… I avoided this situation by staying at a friends house, but now I need to figure it out before I have to bathe with water sachets. /: 

 

The next thing is something I will appreciate more i

n America, but the convenience of having restrooms almost every where you go!  Every time I leave my house I try to make sure I’ve pissed or pooped because I know that if I leave the house, my only other options are trekking back to the house, using the public restrooms (which aren’t bad, but no toilet paper or doors.), or finding a hidden place and pooping in a plastic bag.  

 

Also, the convenience of having every food almost imaginable at your fingertips, or just a short drive away, or made in 5 minutes, or ready for you when you come home.  I’m actually the luckier bunch of volunteers because I live nearby a huge city and can get most things that I wouldn’t be able to get if I had lived somewhere more remote… but its not like I have a food court of everything I could want; korean, pizza, taco bell, subway, hawaiian, sushi, curry!  So if I want food, I have to walk a while and a journey that should’ve took me at top 15 minutes ends up being a 30 minute journey… stopping to greet strangers that want to talk to the foreign person.  At least in America when you get stopped by people, its usually friends and a pleasant interruption on your quest for food.  I also miss the convenience of having microwave pizza, cup a noodle, microwave bacon… or just having your awesome mom or dad preparing a dinner.

 

But like most things in life, its probably a good thing… it’ll make me less lazy and appreciate all the things that came so easily before.  Plus, you adapt, you live, and you learn… and somehow, as much as I might complain, I love it.   

 

Twi Phrase of the Day: enye easy koraa (its not easy at all)

This is a popular phrase here in Ghana… every time I talk to Ghanaians, they are like, here in Ghana things are not easy atalllll!

I was helping a man with his term paper and he was like “its not easyo!” in response to how long he had to stay up and all the work that hes been putting into getting it done.

 

Adinkra Symbol of the Day:

 

DENKYEM

"crocodile"

symbol of adaptability

The crocodile lives in the water, yet breathes the air, demonstrating an ability to adapt to circumstances.

 

lesson learned and pictures because my mom doesn't like to read.

The other day I realized the importance of greeting in Ghana. So when you first come to Ghana our trainers would emphasize how important it is to greet others (including random strangers), because it is like you are acknowledging their presence. So when I first came, I would do it because… well, I was new and I wanted to make sure that I made friends in my community. But after a while, greeting every person you walk pass got pretty tiresome… so then I would just try to avoid contact or seem like I was in a hurry. (but seriously, who is ever in a hurry in Ghana?! There is no where to hurry to, nothing to hurry for) Even when you do these things, people will stop you and be like, “oh, why won’t you greet me?!” so then you have to back track, and greet them. So for the most part, I just greet everyone while I am walking to stop them from thinking I’m some rude small girl who won’t greet them. Yes, people actually call me small girl here, they’ll be like “small girl, come here.”

So also here, people tend to call out to you, in the streets while you are walking. They’ll either hiss, make a kissing noise, yell obroni, call you sweetie, or whatever else to get your attention. Most times its males, (who probably want to get my attention so they can tell me that they want to marry me… which by the way, if I had a dime for all the times I’ve been asked I would still have more money than if I had bet a million dollars in vegas on hard six and won.) (so its females as well, but they usually aren't as annoying as the males), so I just ignore them like I’m a deaf girl and continue on my journey. Anyways, the point of my story is… as I was walking to my tro tro station a boy called out to me and wanted me to talk to him, I kind of just waved and tried to board my tro. Then his friend grabbed my arm and was like, my friend wants to talk to you, why won’t you greet him. So I gave in, and went over to the boy. I greeted him, exchanged a few words and then went back to board the tro. Then the tro tried to leave the station, but the tro kind of died, so we all needed to get out and board another tro.

***By the way, chaos is how I would explain my tro tro station. If I get there at the wrong time, I wait like what seems like hours in the sun, in a line (which doesn’t even matter because once the car comes people from the back of the line run to the tro and try to get on), and then somehow still have to fight my way onto the tro. Most times, I just try to fight a little and then give up… I’m not nearly as big as those Ghanaians that I’m up against. Then, I continue to wait again, hoping that one will come soon. Sometimes when I’m lucky, there will be a Ghanaian that will help me fight my way on… sometimes I feel bad because they will be small boys waiting in line and don’t have a chance of fighting so end up waiting for the next tro.

So as people are getting off the tro, the ones that are still in line start running to the new tro, while the ones getting off are running as well to get their place in the tro. I was in the back seat of the tro, last person to get out, so I kind of ran a bit, but knew that my efforts were useless and I was going to have to wait again. But thankfully, since I greeted the boy, who turned out to be the driver, his mate saved me the front seat! He was kind of like, see, good thing you greeted me… ha, and lesson learned, greet everyone, including the annoying males.

so here is a picture of how some people get their water... from bore holes. i get my water for a well or from the rain, so i hope it rains hard soon! the man pumping is the assemblyman... i think he really likes pumping because one day we were talking and he was telling me how people don't let him pump water because hes an assemblyman. so even if he tried, they would push him away and pump it for him. they call him honorable. hehe. but hes a hardworking man... very respected, for good reason.

shaaabammmm, shaaabammmm! look at those awesome signs... hard ass work to put them up, but they look so niiiice!

yesss, ntonso is so sophisticated with waste bins!! haha. 

my neighbor's town deals with kente and they just had a visitor centre built, so they had a grand opening celebration.  here is some queen mother lady getting down!

the queen mother of the ashanti region... and her entourage!  i think it must be pretty nice to be held like that.  

check out all that blingggg!!! 

thought this was pretty damn cool... they kids here amaze me with the toys that they come up with... so i don't know if you can tell, but the boy tied a flying bug to his string and was flying it around... it was pretty damn awesome.

here it is up close and personal... pretty awesome huh. yep, kids here are creative with what they got!

***just kidding mom, i know you love to read. (: and those kids aren't really ugly... it was joke, i think they are adorable, especially the small girl!

Twi Word of The Day: kyea me. (greet me)

shoutout: to my awesome brother! not telling which one... oooooh the mystery. ha. so excited... its better than a chanel bag... or a burberry cookie!!  and to my other awesome brother, for just being amazing. (:

everyone loves pictures.

signboard preview... pretty nice huh! i was quite happy with the way it turned out!

some of the deaf kids. lovely crazy bunch.

spots have the best art work on their walls.

here is bobble... actually, i decided to name her lola. shes small, and crazy, and to be honest, i can't believe i still have her... everytime i come home, i'm like... why i do have a cat?! but at least no mouse anymore! like denise said, dogs fo lyph!

here is the amazing easter spread!! check out all that food!! not going to lie, i helped make some of it... haha, actually they only let me chop the onions (oh yea, i got to mash the potatoes, heh, god, i'm awesome ha)... i was dealing with pros, i didn't want to mess up the fabulousity!

some of the ugly kids that i have to live with.