Chutes and Ladders

Trying to find your package sent from home in Ghana is like playing a game of chutes and ladders: right when you are two spaces away from the end, so close you can taste the victory, you roll the dice landing you right on top of the slide that takes you all the way to the bottom. That is what I felt like all Monday as I searched around Accra for my missing package that contained none other than a brand new camera. I started off at the Legon Post Office, about one hundred feet away from the dorm. They told me that they do not receive packages so that I must go to the Circle Post Office in Accra. So I hopped on a tro-tro and went into the city. With the help of my Ghanaian navigators (strangers on the streets who are always willing to point a foreigner in the right direction) I found myself in the Circle Post Office. They looked at my information and informed me that my package was at the Accra Post Office’s air section. I once again fight my way into a tro-tro and head into the heart of the city. I was so concentrated on my game of snake, an old-school cell phone game, that I didn’t even look up before my tro-tro slammed into the back of another car. Nobody was hurt but I had to switch tro-tros and continue on my journey. Thankfully, I met a nice girl named Mabel who walked me a half mile to the Accra Post Office through the chaos of the city. The workers at the Post Office point me through a security gate where a bunch of soldiers show me the correct direction to the airstrip. When I reach the office, I am met by a woman who gives me an instant scowl and says “we don’t allow customers back here.” I explain to her my situation and she takes my information and heads back to her boss. They return only to inform me that my package was sent to the Legon post office September 5…two and a half months ago. I stood there with an open mouth and made them swear they were telling me the truth. I wandered the city in search of a tro-tro station and magically found myself at Tema station, my usual home base for tro-tro catching. When I arrived back on campus I instantly headed back to the Legon Post Office. The female worker there informed me that my package had indeed arrived back in September and that they had sent it to the address listed. I continue questioning her until I am sent to the manager’s office. Frustrated and exhausted we have an hour long conversation that takes us nowhere. So basically, my package was at one point merely a five minute walk down the street from where I resided and I was left with no answer of where it could have gone. One of the things that I have realized during my time in Ghana is how much lower the level of customer service is. Whenever a customer is unhappy, Ghanaians tend to deflect attention or simply point the finger another direction. This is not always the case, because I have found that Ghanaians are extremely helpful in different regards. For example, people will stop what they are doing at any moment to help a foreigner when they are lost or offer them food and drink. Today was just one of those frustrating days that makes me appreciate some of the aspects of the U.S.

               

A few days ago, I went on a trip to the Shai Hills, located in the Eastern Region. The steep rocky hills rise up out of the expansive grasslands that stretch as far as the eye can see. When we arrived in Doryuma, we entered a large reserve that heads into the hills. Our bus passed ostriches and antelopes that sprinted through the grass. At one point, we got to hike up some steep rock cliffs to the ancestral caves of the Shai people. It was in these caves that the Shai hid during times of war. At another point, we climbed up a huge rock structure that gave us a 360 degree view of the grasslands surrounding the Shai Hills. It was the most breathtaking view I have discovered since being in Ghana. It was one of those places where the whole world seems quiet you just want to sit down and think about your life. On our way to lunch I was looking out the front of the bus when I spotted an object running in the middle of the road. BABOONS! The baboons were massive and ferocious looking. All I could think was that I was happy to be in the safety of the bus because they don’t look as friendly as the stuffed animal baboons I am used to seeing. After lunch (which took 3 hours to get everyone served) we continued on to a suspension bridge that links the Eastern and Volta Region. Then, we went and saw the Akosombo dam, a source of national pride in Ghana. The creation of this dam resulted in the largest man-made lake in the entire WORLD! Impressive, huh? My day ended with a four hour nap on the way back to campus. I have discovered that I sleep the best on buses. I think I find the bumps that bounce me up and down in my sleep comforting.

Ariel and I decided that we needed a beach day! We took a cab down to Labadi beach where we laid out in the sun for a couple hours, resulting in my most impressive sunburn thus far. We ate our first sandwich in four months sitting on the top floor of a tiki hut with a beautiful view of the ocean. 

         

On the weekend, Ariel and I took a day trip into Accra. We visited The Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum, Independence Square (or the Black Star Square), and Makalah market. The Mausoleum is a park and final resting place of Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first president. Independence Square holds a memorial to three Ghanaians shot by colonial authorities and is the common site for national festivals and parades. Ariel and I had to do some jeans shopping considering she will be travelling in Spain over Christmas break and I will be in Israel- both of us are completely unprepared for the cold weather. The funny part about shopping for pants is that you walk down a busy street and Ghanaians vendors hold arms full of jeans. You select which ones you like and they pull you off on to a side street for you to try them on. The method for trying on pants is wrapping cloth around your waste and then slipping on the pants- there is no such thing as a dressing room. We ended our day with a FanIce- a plastic rectangular wrapper filled with fake ice cream…but it is delicious! It was a really fun day and we got to explore the major sites of the capital city.

                 

I am now getting into finals mode and Ghanaians study like crazy people for their finals. My Ghanaian friend was banging on my door at 6:30AM because she wanted “to make sure I was not sleeping too much because I need to study.” The funny part is, my final was not for another two weeks. The fact that they study so hard makes me feel like I am slacking so I am going to try and live up to their standards…which means I won’t be writing again for awhile. So Happy Holidays, I love and miss you all!