Sail away with Gilli(g)an.

What?

noreply@blogger.com (One World Ghana Group 2008) — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 20:47:00 +0000

sometimes i steal pictures because im soooooooooooooooooooooooooo incapable. Nat.

You're gonna need shorts

noreply@blogger.com (One World Ghana Group 2008) — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 14:35:00 +0000

I mean like i said, i'm not Ghana but this is Africa. It's Hot.

Ode to this place that I see.

noreply@blogger.com (One World Ghana Group 2008) — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 15:47:00 +0000

It's clear that life is junks on the speed rail. Always in a blur, eyes hurt, panic strikes where is the rain? I know lets make it ourselves. Oh! it's raining all the time.
But why?
Humble, laxed and raining when it feels chocked enough. Righiously so it comes and goes and the brillant is in each day. Just stay, just stay. When it rains the scenes shift and I see mountains fade, for I am so high.

The moon right there beside me.

Trees? ? ?

noreply@blogger.com (One World Ghana Group 2008) — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 15:44:00 +0000

Benieth a mango tree in the green, green shade hiding from the hot, hot sun; I contemplate.
Banana trees are nice fun loving characters, a little silly in thier appearance yet somehow always refreshing to look at. But have you ever met a mango tree? They make good company, not very shy. They like thier presence to be felt but not in a disturbing or over bearing way. Bananas and Mangos make the best of friends don't they?
Both candy sweet when ripe.

The Art of Dangme

noreply@blogger.com (One World Ghana Group 2008) — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 14:42:00 +0000

- Sitting in a class room at Bediku Primary school to learn the local language; Dangme -

Now it's highly recomended that you attempt to learn the local language when traveling, for it seems language barriers can lead to some misunderstandings, let alone lingo and terms used. Such as "I nge kungwo ku agbo hlae." Translation: "I am looking for a big cock."
One may be offended by this openess or refreshed by the bluntness or even perheps start to see a sence of "pride" in this country. For one may assume the other is quite promiscuous of simply craving a rather large fix. Desperately attempting to make yourself useful you point towards a delivery man who seems to be carrying a fairly large package. You feel satisfied as the one looking for the falic fancy starts toward the direction you pointed. Your satisfaction turns to confusion as he walks on past the delivery man to a farm where moments later he returns with a smile on his face and a chicken in his hand.
Now if you'd like to keep your ego in tact you should be aware that "Im coming" or "I will go and come" may not acually mean they will infact be back. It's best you don't stand in the rain till the sun retires awaiting there return. If you don't get the hint the first time this becomes like a really bad drama where the girl can't get a break. If you listen real close you may even hear that terrablely corrny music in the background. Don't take it personally, they just don't like to commit, which is ironic as they ask for your hand in marriage when ever they have the chance. And this DOES mean marriage it is not a misunderstanding through language barrier. A proposal is a serious thing. Don't say yes unless your ready. Mmmk girls?
It's important to note some words mean two completey different things. For instance "A hi" means "thats fine/enough" and can also mean "thats no good". The slight being in the tone. So to avoid any major incodents its sugested you exagerate tone effectivly. If somthing is ok or enough use a booming voice as low as the depths benieth the deepest sea "A HI". When it's not alright screetching is often an effective method. You may start to sound like your a boy going through puberty but it's worth not getting things mixed up to find yourself with a dept to pay and enough food to feed the whole of Ghana or enough hot pepper to burn a hole through your stomach.
"Come carry me." You look over to see a boy who looks terrabley exausted from carrying a bucket of water on his head and now is going back for more. You kindley ablidge to his request, as you have done it a million times in rugby practice and with your sister. But as soon as you walk forth he tries to avoid you, soon going into a trot and then a run as you see him foolishly make himself more tiered and assuming just because your a girl means you don't have the strength. You run after him. Now you are chasing around a little boy who you've never seen in your life. Take a secound... you are a nut case. No matter how tierd the boy, man or woman may look or ambitious you may feel. Don't attempt to carry them upon request. This is creepy.
"Come carry me" is simply a request to help lift the bucket from off their head.
Notes:
.When they call out "Bafoono", they are not calling you a bafoon. Not saying they're not implying it but to keep the peace, it's "Whiteman"
."Come and eat" is a gesture not a command. They secretly probabley really rather you didn't eat their food.
. When someone says "Give me your shirt". It's not expected of you to take off your shirt right then and there. (Although this would be a womans right of passage, so if your entering adult hood, 'you go girl'.) This is simply to say "I like your shirt"
.When they say "Lets chop" don't go grab a knife and wait expectanatly. This is creepy. Chop means eat, if you forget, sit still. Looking oblivious is better then looking threatning.

**You may often feel intarragated as they ask; "Where are you going?", "What are you going to do there?", "What will you buy me?", "What will you eat?", "Where do you come from?". This is not stalking info they simply wish to hear you attempt to speak thier language so they can laugh at your expence. So cheer up and tell them what they want to hear.
"I'm going to the bucket to dance. I'm from the palm tree. I will buy you a big mango tree. A I will eat a fishhead." --> "I yaa goga, I yaa do. I je ta. I he no mo tso mango agbo. I yaa yee lo yi."

And that is the art of Dangme.

Accra

noreply@blogger.com (One World Ghana Group 2008) — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 11:54:00 +0000

Have you ever herd of a train wreck, that wasn't really a train wreck... and everyone is looking upon it judging this train wreck and then you realize...this train wreck is you..but you just happen to be the most efficient train in the entire universe?
Well this is how I imagine Accra must feel.
One big misunderstood brilliant system of life. It's an art really...an organized chaos.
The ghost of past colonialism eerily lurks in buildings, landscape and language. It is the sense of community and hospitality that suppresses its spirit and ability to haunt.
Brother, sister side by side selling, greeting, laughing...living.
The people are beautiful, the food takes time to adjust to, the music is powerful, the hospitality can be too generous. This is a place of contradictions, both past and present, both beautiful and hard to look at, both spicy and sweet, full of joy and sorrow.

*The moon as my witness*

Accra - from the airport to OSU

noreply@blogger.com (One World Ghana Group 2008) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 21:47:00 +0000

A beautiful darkness. One that comforts you in its ability to be solid yet light. Sitting on our packs at the back of a truck..this night air was the perfect blanket for fresh skin and a fresh mind.
Car horns honking unaggressivley yet frequently to speed the flow of traffic. Music blaring out windows. Through the streets men and women gracfully weaved through traffic selling thier goods which rested on thier heads with such eas.
A wonderfully chaotic..harmony.

At the Salvation Army we were blessed with running water, a toilet and matresses. We were once again in a womb.. a shelter.. a crib I suppose..

Accra - Airport.

noreply@blogger.com (One World Ghana Group 2008) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 21:10:00 +0000

Expecting the unexpected I swiftly found myself on paved ground infront of many people getting off the plane. The plane however seemed to have disapeered along with Canada and all the time inbetween. It was as though I had been sleeping for a long long while and suddenly someone had picked me up and placed me right there and that was all there was. All there had ever been. The moon remained of course. I was on a journey, the moon knew this. I was a newborn in a new world, parrallel universe really. The moon understood this too. Yes..beautiful, loyal and understanding , there is was. Warm above me. And there I was...in Ghana. Just standing there in an unpainted sea of uncertainties.
Bringing myself out from the drift in my mind was a mad silence amoung my compainions... Four other new borns straight from the womb to the world. Thier faces frozen... with thought, with fear, with uncertainty. A window to thier solitary minds. I could only imagine mine looked the same.
From the plane, through imagration, past security to our lugage was a slow thick proccess. A proccess that made me uneasy. Like cold air on your skin when coming out of a pool on a slightly too cool day.
Once outside again, I felt comfort in the moonlight bath. The ora was a dark purple; a little hecktic yet solid. Standing infront of us was a crowed of what seemed to be a million people. This is where we met with three beautiful people; Dina, Jackson and Eric. There was a sence of wisdom and protectivness about them as they greeted us with great joy. "You are Welcome,.. Nye hyee"