The North

Two weeks ago we spent in the North – the major reason why I have not posted anything in the past 2 weeks. I’ve been meaning to post since I returned, but internet time has been coopted by reading (for fun and for class), playing a computer game my roommate got me addicted to, going to visit a chief’s house for farmer’s day, going to Makola Market in Accra to buy fabric and going to the Bush Canteen on campus to get clothes custom made :) Yesterday I took a picture that would be my new facebook profile pic if I could ever get a picture loaded – it’s me in a dress I had made here, with my hair braided (I now have brown extensions and I like it! I’ve never been a brunette before!), drinking fresh coconut milk out of a coconut! You can all see this picture once I get back to the States and have an internet connection that can handle loading pictures.

The time in the North was great. We spent a lot of time looking at NGOs and the work they do in Ghana. We visited CRS (Catholic Relief Services), World Vision, and a few locally-run NGOs as well. They are going great work in Ghana! We also toured the wildlife of Ghana. We went up to Paga and saw the sacred crocodiles who never eat people…so we sat on them and took pictures and sacrificed two chickens to them. We also went to Mole National Park where you’re supposed to be able to see elephants, but since it is mating season none of them were around :( We did encounter our share of wildlife in the bugs in our room – I was glad I had a mosquito net! We spent a ton of time in the North in our bus. The North is quite a ways from Accra – we rode 12 hours to get there. It’s not that it’s as far away as Florida is from Chicago, but the roads are not as good. Swerving around potholes and going through police checkpoints is not conducive to the 79 mph I’m used to going on the interstates in the States. The long dirt road to Mole made a few of our group members get carsick. I’m so glad I don’t suffer with that! The best part was pulling over into the bush grasses every time someone needed to pee. It was easier (and cleaner) than most of the urinals (i.e. hole in the wall – literally – is often the bathroom at gas stations and the like) we found otherwise!