Ghana is unlike any place I've ever known so here's a little observation that might help paint the scene...
I wake up when the scorching sun filters through my open Cape Coast window. Untangling myself from the mosquito net, i wander across the concrete floor to the corridor. outside, my host family are cooking on the stove. we have no kitchen, everything is prepared outside.
after eating some warm sweet bread (with vegemite..) and an egg, I meander through the streets towards the main road. the streets are dirt, lined with open sewers. I'm a little paranoid I'll fall in one day. Mangy dogs, sheep, goats and chickens scatter themselves around the place, picking at the empty water sachets littering the gutters.
Nearly everyone I pass says "hello, how are you?" and their answer is always the same, "I'm fine thank you." Some children yell out, "Obroni" (white person) and I reply, "Hi Bibini" (black person). This response is always met with giggles. It's strange being so obvious.
In the streets, women are carrying babies held precariously in fabric tied to their backs. Their heads are loaded with anything from fresh fish to pots and pans. Men sometimes walk holding hands and I still can't quite get used to public urination.
Taxis line the roads and beep incessantly to inform us that they are empty, or simply to help us get out of their way. Shops look like little shanties and are often named with Christian connotations perhaps to help bring them business. 'Glory of God Hair Salon' and 'Blood of Christ Sewing Centre' are commonplace.
The market is filled with colour and odours. Bananas, plantain, yam, watermelons, pinapple. Bright African fabrics are draped over the stands while beaming saleswomen negociate prices.
Time goes fast here in Ghana but less gets accomplished. It's the African way and so far, I'm loving every minute.
