Because raw vegetables have more vitamins...scattered thoughts from day 1
The sound of my mom's voice over a crystal-clear cellphone connection almost made me cry. On one level, there's just nothing like a call from home to simultaneously infuse energy and draw out tears from unknown places. On another level, the little orange plastic sim card I bought for peanuts has already made this a very different experience from the last time I spent significant time in a developing country...it's a tiny piece of rock-hard evidence that technology can make a difference and that alternative models of development are possible.
The itch has been building over the past six years (nothing like grad school to make one feel bound and tied) so it's nice to finally be outside of the walls and to feel the unique grit of travel. I arrived in Ghana safely and despite my immediate pulmonary reaction to this region's particular grit--the Harmattan winds, a lovely weather pattern by which some not-insignificant portion of the Sahara's dust is sucked into the air and sent southwest to hover and settle on Ghana/Togo/Benin/Nigeria--I am happy, healthy, and excited to contribute to the blog. I promise to be more polished in future postings.
To give a bit of a physical sense of our daily life...our apartment is in East Legon, between Accra and Legon, home of the University of Ghana. I spent the first day getting to know the area and fighting jetlag. We hit up the tiny French bakery down the street (anyone want to hazard a guess as to the main reason behind the apartment choice?), walked up to the university, then went into Accra to visit the immigration office (the man at the airport only gave me 30 days on my stamp, and I will probably not leave for Niger and Benin for project work until late February), and enjoyed dinner outside.
Not surprisingly, sidewalks are makeshift or nonexistent and street vendors abound--near our apartment, one can buy pleather recliners, exercise bikes, wheelchairs, mangos, rice, whole wheat bread ("and so much more" according to the ad on the side of the bread truck), phone cards, sponges, skirts and shirts. Here, the cabs and tro-tros (think 20-person Japanese Vanagons) hail you, the pharmacies have names that would never get past marketing (like "Pills and Tabs"), and it's just as fascinating to be an obruni as it is to be a gringa...only, as a bonus, it's not quite as evil.
Beyond the expected developing-developed world differences, two wonderful Ghanaian gems stood out to me on day one. First, the confident and firm "that's RIGHT I'm a female physicist" handshake got me a few winces. Here, it's relaxed and lingering with a little mutual snap at the end. Amazing--an entire nation of surfer bros. I like it. Second, the sign above the student hall at the university reads: "Taco Bell: Where Nice People Meet." Man, that was NOT the case in New Mexico.
It's great to be here.
The itch has been building over the past six years (nothing like grad school to make one feel bound and tied) so it's nice to finally be outside of the walls and to feel the unique grit of travel. I arrived in Ghana safely and despite my immediate pulmonary reaction to this region's particular grit--the Harmattan winds, a lovely weather pattern by which some not-insignificant portion of the Sahara's dust is sucked into the air and sent southwest to hover and settle on Ghana/Togo/Benin/Nigeria--I am happy, healthy, and excited to contribute to the blog. I promise to be more polished in future postings.
To give a bit of a physical sense of our daily life...our apartment is in East Legon, between Accra and Legon, home of the University of Ghana. I spent the first day getting to know the area and fighting jetlag. We hit up the tiny French bakery down the street (anyone want to hazard a guess as to the main reason behind the apartment choice?), walked up to the university, then went into Accra to visit the immigration office (the man at the airport only gave me 30 days on my stamp, and I will probably not leave for Niger and Benin for project work until late February), and enjoyed dinner outside.
Not surprisingly, sidewalks are makeshift or nonexistent and street vendors abound--near our apartment, one can buy pleather recliners, exercise bikes, wheelchairs, mangos, rice, whole wheat bread ("and so much more" according to the ad on the side of the bread truck), phone cards, sponges, skirts and shirts. Here, the cabs and tro-tros (think 20-person Japanese Vanagons) hail you, the pharmacies have names that would never get past marketing (like "Pills and Tabs"), and it's just as fascinating to be an obruni as it is to be a gringa...only, as a bonus, it's not quite as evil.
Beyond the expected developing-developed world differences, two wonderful Ghanaian gems stood out to me on day one. First, the confident and firm "that's RIGHT I'm a female physicist" handshake got me a few winces. Here, it's relaxed and lingering with a little mutual snap at the end. Amazing--an entire nation of surfer bros. I like it. Second, the sign above the student hall at the university reads: "Taco Bell: Where Nice People Meet." Man, that was NOT the case in New Mexico.
It's great to be here.
posted by Unknown at 9:08 AM
2 Comments:
Good to know that you have arrived, are well, and happy to be there. I'll think of you in the french bakery next time I have a latte. Keep up the posts!
-amy
Yes! The handshake. I know it well. Was once asked if I was an athlete.
Anyway glad to hear that things are going well so far. Looking forward to future posts!
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