Days 49-56

After a week back in the swing of classes & a weekend trip to another part of Ghana my homesick stage has worn off again! I had learned it was normal to go through stages where you would get frustrated & miss home but so far the only 2 little downfalls I’ve had here have been quick & painless. In fact, now that I’m so settled here I get a little terrified at times to go back home. It’s a place that is supposed to be so comfortable & familiar but I feel like everything will be so different when I get there. None the less, I will be very excited to see the beautiful faces of all my friends & family back home :)

Monday was a pretty ordinary day. I had class & had some hangout time in the hostel. I had forgotten it was St. Patrick’s Day until my mom texted me to have a happy one. I feel so unfamiliar with all American things. I see on social media that March Madness has begun & honestly I still don’t even know who won the Olympics. When I first decided to go on this trip I almost forgot that life is still happening back at home even though I’m not there. Sometimes it’s weird to let that sink in, not that I would ever think the world was supposed to stop & wait for me, it’s just weird to think about what will have changed that I didn’t keep up on while I am over here. Anyways, a few of us took a trip to a different mall that day that we hadn’t been to yet. It was in the most upscale part of Accra so definitely a little more westernized. It’s always kind of nice to get back to that, even if it’s just for an hour or two.

Tuesday morning I sat through 2 hours of drumming outside in the heat. I swear it gets hotter & hotter here each day. I even sweat walking to class at 6:30 in the morning. They say the rainy season is supposed to pick up within the next month & I’m pretty excited for that! I love rainy days & it will certainly help cool things off here. I spent the afternoon at the orphanage. The kids swim on Tuesdays so took up most of the afternoon. Then I had to run back to campus to make it for my night class. 

 Wednesday morning the kids had chapel at the American International School. It’s great that they get to go & be involved there but I also feel bad for them. All the teachers know every kid there by name & our kids are just the Beacon House kids. This week they had some musical guests come sing & rap some gospel music. All the students were up in the front dancing & having a good time while all of the orphanage kids just sat in the back quietly watching everyone else. We tried to get them to go up & dance, a few did but most weren’t up to it. It made me sad to watch but also motivated me to teach them so that they can reach the level required to start attending a regular school. The performers that were there started with an R&B rendition of the “Jesus loves me, this I know” song. I love R&B so my heart melted a little listening to them sing in the microphone & all the kids singing along in the background. After chapel we went back to the house for school. Today the kids worked on writing a new story & doing some math problems. We all broke for lunch & I ended up at a little outdoor restaurant where I got some tea & finished a book I had been reading. I made it back for campus in time to get to my night class. We were there for about 20 minutes before the power went out & we were set free to return to the hostel. 

Thursday was my early class. I began my walk there not long after 6:30 that morning, sweating head to toe by the time I made to the classroom. Class was set to start at 7:30 but this is Africa, so naturally it started at 8. After class I had a little time to kill back at the hostel so I re-showered & got ready for an afternoon at the orphanage. When I arrived the kids were all napping so I was really glad I brought my iPad that day. While they slept I read another book that my mom had suggested for me that morning. Once they woke up I colored with a few of them in the books my Auntie sent for them. I ended up at the same outdoor restaurant for dinner since it’s close to the orphanage & has some decent food – a place that isn’t all carbs & fried food. I talked to my mom & sister on the phone that night for me, morning for them. Mid conversation my mom says, “Hold on a second, I’m ordering coffee.” This killed me just a little bit. I really miss real coffee. Everything here is Nescafe instant coffee. I am used to it by now, but I still had to live a little bit vicariously through them so when she put Sydney on the phone I had to ask where they were & what they were ordering. It was nice to talk to them on the phone. I haven’t done a great job of keeping in touch with everyone back home. In fact I think that was only my third or fourth time actually talking to my mom on the phone, not just sending quick messages back & fourth. She’s the one I’ve talked with the most as well. I think I start to miss home the more I talk to people from home so I’ve held off on it probably more than I should. I do love getting messages & emails from friends & family back home though! Always makes my day a little brighter.

After we ended our chat on the phone I packed up for my weekend trip & began to watch It’s a Wonderful Life. I’ve never actually seen the movie but have heard it’s a classic & a Christmas movie (my favorite) so I thought it might be time to watch. Unfortunately I only got about 45 minutes into the movie before my internet froze up & the movie wouldn’t load. I’ll have to try again another day or save it for a rainy day back home.

Friday morning we took off for Kumasi at 7 am. It was about 5 hours in the car so traveling took up most of the morning. When we arrived at lunch I got a call from my dad, which was another pleasant surprise. I enjoyed a little chat with him while he drove to work in the snow & I tried not to melt sitting outside of a little restaurant. We started the afternoon by visiting the palace for the Asante people. I could Google a bunch of facts for you about the palace, but honestly I don’t remember that much about it. I know that every chair the ruler ever sat on was brought to the palace & no one else could sit in it again. The “touristy” things aren’t as exciting now that I’ve been here for 2 months, but of course it’s all interesting to see. After that we went the cultural center, a little market outside of Kumasi’s giant open-air market. The big one is actually the biggest market in West Africa. After a little window-shopping there we went to our hotel & had some dinner. We ended the night sitting outside listening to my friend Micah play guitar while we all sang along to the songs we knew.

Saturday morning we got up for some more touring. Nearly everything that is sold in markets in Ghana comes from Kumasi. We got to go to one village & see how they weave all the fabrics & materials. On our way out there we got stuck in the middle of a funeral parade. As I’ve said in earlier posts, the funerals here are a big party. All the little kids would wave & dance for us through the windows & laugh when we danced back. When the adults came through things got a little more interesting. Farther outside of the city there isn’t a lot of diversity so they go a little crazy when the see white people. They were yelling at us through the windows, banging on them with their hands, not in a violent way but I actually felt like the fish that were in a tank at my doctor’s office when I was little. Kids would always do the exact same thing to them & now I understand why there was always a little note asking us not to. It started to feel like we were just a little display for them, which gets uncomfortable but it's manageable. Then we got to go to the village where they stamp different fabrics with cultural symbols. 

The dye comes from tree bark. It is crushed in a bucket with a big wooden rod. After it’s all mushed, they melt it over a fire. After a day or 2 it turns a dark red color, then a brown, & then after about it a week it becomes a solid black. The stamps are carved out of wood & then printed on the fabrics by hand. 

The people here love Obama so there's his face on a lot of things.

The kids living in the village saw I was taking pictures & wanted me to snap a few of them.

 These are the houses that people in the village live in. 

It amazes me how self-sufficient the people are here. Next we went the woodcarving village. There were many beautiful things but I don’t think I’d ever get any of them home in one piece so I just looked around. Afterwards we went back to the cultural center & I bought some beautiful paintings. We were supposed to go to the open-air market next but it was pouring rain so we weren’t able to go. When we arrived back at the hotel we got some pizza from the restaurant & relaxed. Our director who is originally from the states claimed the hotel had the best pizza she’d ever had. I must say it’s not the best I’ve had in my whole life, but definitely takes the prize for Ghana. Following pizza we had an accidental girl’s night in the room I was sharing with my friend Jade. People stopped by for all sorts of random reasons but all ended up staying so we talked & laughed into the night until eventually we all made our way to our beds.

This morning we got up for breakfast & then got ready for a journey back home. Since I tend to wake up so early here I was awake in time to check out some more artwork outside of the hotel. I ended up buying a lot from one guy who signed all his work “BA”- which he claims stands for Best Artist. He made me laugh & I liked his stuff so I picked out quite a few that looked like good gifts for my family members back home. I told my mom she’s have to help my decided which grandparents, aunts, & uncles get which piece. She’s good at decorating & interior design type things so I figure she would know better than I would.

We packed up the bus & headed out for Bosomtwe Lake. We took a boat ride around in the lake, which made me ache for a Montana summer. 

There was a little monkey named Issac on a leash at the lake. He was so cute!

Then we went to a little restaurant for lunch to learn that it hadn’t opened yet. We were the first costumers & it’s all set to open tomorrow. The guy opening it is from Tennessee. He came to Ghana on a study abroad trip in 2006 & moved here for good that same year. It was very cool & we got to test out his delicious food. This was hands down the best food I’ve had since I’ve been in Ghana. We just arrived back from about 6 hours in the bus. I was thinking a lot about how I’ve probably changed quite a bit here but haven’t recognized it yet. Then I was reading my newest novel and stumbled across an Elf reference. I’m sure everyone who knows me is aware that this is my all-time favorite movie, but there was a problem in the text. The author referred to Steve Carrell in an elf costume but the actor is Will Ferrell in the movie. I tried to keep reading on but this bothered me so much I looked up the author online, found her website, & began typing her an email about how she was mistaken in the book. Then I realized how ridiculous this was & never actually sent out the message, but it’s nice to see I have some defining qualities that haven’t changed :)

I wrote all of this last night & then fell asleep waiting for the pictures to upload. But I spoke too soon about the rain because I woke up to the pouring rain this morning! Finally the air has cooled just a little bit.

Hope all is well back home & that spring in Montana starts acting like a real spring soon! Love to you all,

Kasey

Days 44-48

And will  you succeed?

            Yes! You will, indeed!

    (98 and ¾ percent guaranteed.)

        KID, YOU’LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!

Not too much has gone on since my last post, but thought an update was in order. Wednesday morning I took the kids to chapel & then spent the rest of the morning teaching. We are learning some new words & then got to play some math bingo. After my time at the orphanage I went to the post office yet again to pick up another package from my wonderful mother. She sent my some more food & some new clothes! I am very happy about the clothes because I didn’t pack enough to get a good variety here. One suitcase of clothes isn’t much when you’re going somewhere for 5 months. I’m pretty sick of the ones I brought so she definitely made my day with that package. That night I went to one of classes that didn’t actually happen so I took a dinner break until my next one. We arrived at that class to find out it had changed venues so we ran across campus to make it there in time. The class is abnormal psychology. Our professor brings up homosexuality a lot in class and while he may be ok with it, the rest of the class is not. They are actually pretty immature about the matter, laughing & making jokes every time it comes up. It’s really frustrating coming from a place that is getting more accepting of those differences each day. My American friends & I had quite a discussion regaurding the issue after class. It’s a cultural difference for sure, and that is taking some getting used to. The whole culture shock sunk in more than ever this week & it took me a step back I think. I think it’s normal to get homesick & frustrated at times even when you really try not to. I am about seven weeks in now though, so I made it a lot longer than I originally thought I would.

Thursday morning I had class & then wasn’t feeling too good again so spent the afternoon napping & resting.

Friday we went to get our national ID cards. They cost 120 US dollars for a little piece of plastic with your name & picture on it, but I guess that’s just another way for the country to make money. 

A group of us went to the mall after that & saw another movie. We went to the Lego movie & it was way better than I had expected. I didn’t know all those actors were in it so I enjoyed it a lot. That afternoon we watched a rugby game that some of the girls in our hostel were playing in. That is a rough sport  to watch. We’ll see how many more games I make it to. That night my friend Erin & I found a little restaurant that had some really good food! We spent a few hours there because it was so nice & the food was the best I’d had since I left America.

I spent my weekend relaxing. It was the first weekend I have stuck around town for awhile so I soaked it up. I was lazy & tried to get the rest of this sick bug out of me. I did a little grocery shopping & watched a few movies. It was kind of boring actually, but nice at the same time. We have a big trip coming up this weekend & another the weekend after that so I thought I might as well enjoy a break! Another storm is moving in here so I'm in the middle of one of my favorite movies, Sleepless in Seattle, & will probably fall asleep early tonight.

Hope everyone had a good spring break & an easy transition back to reality tomorrow. Love to you all,

Kasey

Days 37-43

 

"You'll get mixed up, of course, as you already know.

             You'll get mixed up with many strange birds as you go.

          So be sure when you step, step with care & great tact

  And remember that Life's a Great Balancing Act.

             Just never forget  to be dexterous & deft.

And never mix up your right foot with your left."

This past week has been both busy & relaxing at the same time. Wednesday was my first day of being sick here, but luckily I didn’t get it too bad, mostly a hoarse cough & a little flu, but much less than I expected to have here. I started out at the orphanage, but didn’t last too long since I wasn’t too hot. I had 2 more packages at the post office so I decided to rally & go pick them up later in the afternoon. This ended up being a 4-hour event, but I got some good treats & some things for the kids from my Grammy Di & my Auntie. That night I just laid in bed & hit the hay early.

Thursday was Independence Day here in Ghana so we had the day off of school. I had planned to go on a 4-day trip to the Volta region, but they cut it down to 2 days at the last minute. I already had all my obligations excused for Thursday & Friday so I got to relax a little bit for possibly the first time since I got here. A few of us went to the “parade” at Black Star Square that morning. I put parade inside parenthesis because it was mostly a bunch of government/military officials standing in the center of the square & a band playing a few songs. But there were a ton of people there despite the rain literally pouring on us. Again Ghanaians are very proud of their culture so the turnout didn’t surprise me. By the end we were soaked head to toe & spent the rest of the day snacking on Girl Scout cookies & watching Friends in the hostel. 

Friday I slept in & read my newest book for a large portion of the day. I don’t have classes that day & had planned to be out of town so I didn’t have too much to do. We went out for some pizza & a movie that night to add a little American entertainment to the day as if the cookies & Friends wasn’t enough the day before. The pizza was of course spicy so I opted for a not so spicy treat instead. We bought tickets to see Robo Cop, walked into the Robo Cop theater, but didn’t get to see Robo Cop. They played a different movie called Winter’s Tale. It was very different & not a great movie but I wasn’t too excited for Robo Cop anyways so I didn’t mind.

Saturday we were supposed to be up & outside for the bus at 6 am sharp to leave on our adventure to the Volta region. I forgot that time doesn’t mean very much here in Ghana as we didn’t leave the parking lot until 7:30. It was about a 5-hour drive to Mount Afadjato, which was our first destination. It is the tallest mountain in West Africa & they decided we should hike it at 12:30 pm, the hottest time of day, without feeding us lunch while most of us didn’t even eat breakfast at 6 am. It took around 2 hours & was just about the hardest hike of my life to say the least. It is 2,904 ft tall and the hike is basically vertical. We had to use our hands & knees to get to the top. A lot of people only went half way since we didn’t do our research thoroughly enough to come prepared. I made it to the top though so I felt pretty accomplished about that. Bruised, scraped, and covered in dirt I made it to the beautiful view. I took a few pictures, but it’s the kind of beauty that a camera can’t capture. The area has several mountains, which was a nice reminder of home to me. I miss the mountains A LOT & I think all my friends here know that by now :) I love them so much that I’ve convinced quite a few people to make Montana their next vacation spot. 

After the hike we went straight to a waterfall, yet again without any lunch. It was quite a walk to get to the waterfalls, but another active journey worth the view at the end. After a few people swam in the water we traveled up another mountain to get to our hotel. We finally got some dinner, a hot shower, & fell asleep. 

This is how pineapples grow.

 This was a giant centipede on the trail. Coiled up it was about 3 inches in diameter.

Bats flew all around the top of the waterfall.

Sunday we woke up for some breakfast around sunrise & noticed a beautiful view outside of our window that we hadn’t seen in the dark the night before. 

After we ate we went to the monkey sanctuary where we got to feed some Mona monkeys. There are about 400 monkeys living in that jungle. There are 4 tribes, each consisting of one male & the rest female & babies. It took awhile to find them & once we did we were getting eaten alive by ants. The bites actually hurt pretty badly so we ran down the trail until the ground wasn’t covered by them anymore. The monkeys followed & we got to feed them bananas. We started out by crouching down close to the ground and reaching out our arms. They peeled the bananas & ate them right out of our hands! After we got comfortable with it we stood up & held out our arms, they jumped right from the trees onto us! It was pretty cool to hold a monkey for a few minutes. 

 After monkeying around for bit we packed up & went back to Accra. We stopped at the Volta Lake to get a look at the freshwater there. It reminded me of times at the lake with family in the summers & how I can’t wait to be back out there this year. We got some lunch afterwards, possibly the best, somewhat American, food I’ve had yet. Unfortunately it’s about 3 or 4 hours from where I live so I won’t be getting it often if ever again. I’m sure it wouldn’t have tasted great when I first arrived 6 weeks ago, but after eating the local food for that long I can’t really tell what is good anymore. We got back around sunset so I just read until I fell asleep.

Yesterday morning I went for my usual jog, got some coffee, & went to class. After class a few of us went to the International Trade Fair in town, which ended up being really cool. There were vendors from several different countries all over the world. I got a couple gifts to bring back home & a dress from India for myself. Since then I’ve had my usual white rice for dinner & wrote this blog to the sound of another intense thunderstorm. I wasn’t able to upload it last night because my internet connection was incredibly slow. The uploading process usually takes a few hours for the pictures. Life doesn’t happen quickly here, but I can’t complain. The slow pace is pretty peaceful.

This morning I had class & then spent the afternoon at the orphanage. They went swimming again today so that's been pretty fun to watch. Little Silas was sick so he cuddled up on my lap & hung out with me until I had to walk the older kids to the pool. He's become one of my favorite little guys. On my way back to campus I had a very interesting cab ride. The driver didn't want to sit through traffic so he drove on the other side of the road honking his horn like crazy. I was terrified the entire time but made it home safe, though if I ever see him again I will not get in his cab. The power went out before I left for the orphanage & was still out when I got back. I went to my night class anyways hoping maybe it would come back on. It didn't. But we held class anyways. We all grabbed our chairs & went outside where it was a little lighter until the sun was all the way down. When I got back to the hostel we had power again so now I can finally post this blog :)

 I sleep under this net each night to save my skin from mosquito bites. It certainly helps, but my skin is pretty covered with them anyways. These bites aren’t like the ones at home either. They are much bigger & actually hurt when you are being bitten. They come to a little yellowish scab in the middle where the insect made it’s bite. That soon turns into blood after scratching them because man, do they itch! Pretty gross really, but just another fact of living here in Africa.

Back to my normal routine in the morning! Hope everyone is having a wonderful spring break, wherever your travels have taken you. Felt a little homesick when I saw all the fun everyone was having, but for some reason if I listed to a few Christmas songs, especially "I'll be home for Christmas," my homesickness lifts pretty easily. Love to you all,

Kasey

Days 32-36

“Oh! The places you’ll go! There is fun to be done!

         There are points to be scored. There are games to be won.

                And magical things you can do with that ball

     Will make you the winning-est winner of all.

Fame! You’ll be famous as famous can be,

               With the whole wide world watching you win on TV.”

“Spring” is here! And while it sounds like everyone at home is doing everything not to freeze, I’m just trying not to melt! The days have been getting hotter & hotter since I showed up here so I am VERY excited for the rainy season to hit.

Friday morning was spent at the orphanage. It was really awesome having all the kids there! We split into 2 groups; I took half & watched a movie on animals building their habits. All the kids were so curious about all these animals they had never seen. They even featured some critters in the Rocky Mountains so I told them that’s where I live :) They constantly asked for help on spelling every word, as they decided to take notes on the video even though it wasn’t a school day. They’re enthusiasm towards school & learning inspires me so much each day. I think they’ve already taught me so much more than I’ll be able to teach them the whole time I’m here.

This adorable little James! He's 4 years old and so much fun!

This is Joshua, Jennifer, & Sandra.

Another volunteer took the other half & worked on some breathing exercises to help the kiddos with their anxiety. A lot of them have it pretty terrible though they have learned to cope it with it very well after their time at the orphanage. They all come from pretty dark places, Heather told me that out of 300 kids that have come through the orphanage there has only been 2 or 3 that weren’t sexually abused. It breaks my heart a little each time I hear these stories but at the same time, it’s pretty amazing to see how far they’ve come & to know that they are all being cared for now. After both groups had watched the video, we got out the parachute & played a few games. 

I stopped at a grocery store on my way home & found some Ben & Jerry’s ice cream! I was so excited about it that I had to make it my lunch.

I arrived to class that afternoon to find that it has been moved to Thursday mornings now. It’s very odd that they can change it whenever they please, but at least I have Friday’s off now!

Saturday I took my trip to Cape Coast. I met Brianne in the pouring rain in the town of Kosoa & then we continued the trip to Cape Coast by tro tro. When we arrived, we walked around looking for food. We found a cute little place that served delicious food! A European woman owned it so I finally had some familiar foods, my first salad in 5 weeks! We took a walk on the beach & spent some time at the University of Cape Coast campus with a few people she has met through volunteering.

Saturday morning we woke up & some food at a little vegetarian place, another great find! I had some pretty tasty breakfast consisting of eggs & pancakes with cinnamon sugar. I almost wish I were in Cape Coast considering how much better the food is! Then we spent a few hours sitting on the beach, talking to all the children as they came by. One little girl was selling waters on her head. She looked like she was about 6 years old; though she told us she was 9. She was all skin & bones so I don’t know how she carried that bowl of waters on her head. We asked them how much it weighed & they told us 45 kilometers…. Since that is a totally inaccurate measurement, I decided to test out the bowl on my head & that thing is heavy! How they walk around with it all day & keep it balanced is a mystery to me. I once saw a man carrying a medium sized fridge on his head. Every thing I ever thought about humans was proven inaccurate at that moment. Then he went up the stairs like that and I was completely mind blown.

I made it safely back to Accra that afternoon & relaxed until I went to bed.

Monday I had class that started 15 minutes late & ended an hour early, but what college student would really complain about that? I went to the mall that afternoon but just to do some grocery shopping. I finally got some pots & pans so I can make some meals myself. When I returned to the hostel, I made some no bake cookies so share with my American friends here. I gave a few to some Ghanaians but they don’t have a sweet tooth like we do!

This morning I slept in, which means about 7:30 for me these days, then made my first breakfast by myself since I’ve been here & had a cup of instant coffee. I spent the afternoon at the orphanage, playing games & helping with homework. On my cab ride back to campus the driver told me to get his number & I can call him whenever I need a ride. I told him only if he gave me a fair price since all the other try to charge me extra since I’m an Obrani. He must have thought that was pretty funny cause he started laughing really hard & then told me it was true.

I went to my night class & the power went out right as the sun set so we sat in the dark listening to lecture for about 45 minutes, which makes it extremely hard to concentrate when you’re used to looking at a power point the whole time. He let us go early since the power wasn’t coming back on. He told us to write a paper answering the question: what is the normal curve? I have a very hard time understand the accents still so I had to ask around. I heard “what is the normal cave?” so I was very confused. Even when I ask the Ghanaian students it still sounds like cave so I have to ask about 10 different words that sounds something close to cave until I get it right.

A girl in our group got braids put in her hair & decided to take them out tonight so we all sat around unbraiding fake hair while the musical people in our group sang “The Lion Sleeps Tonight,” which was a pretty pleasant way to end my day.

I have a lot of made up husbands, boyfriends, & fiancés back at home. The men here are so forward that it’s about the only way to get no across. They ask you to marry them often & some even jump right into calling you their wife. It is very odd. I also have a lot of broken phones & computers because if you make the mistake of giving them your number, you’re phone is blowing up constantly. Its not really creepy, just a little overwhelming when you’re not used to that kind of aggressiveness.

I see these strands everywhere I go. The first time I saw one I thought it was a dead snake. After a few days I realized it was just a piece of rope, but most recently I have discovered that it is neither of these things. It’s hair that fell off of the women’s heads! They all either have braids or wigs for the most part so I guess the braids occasionally just fall out! 

The little guy is Silas & the older one is Sandra. When I first met her a couple weeks ago she could hardly speak English. Now she talks in full sentences & runs around asking everyone how to spell their name & records it on paper!

Jennifer is in the pink, Freda is behind me & Silas is on my lap again.

Another picture with Jennifer & Silas. Jennifer is such a sweetheart. She is always holding my hand & cuddling up to me. Today they didn't want to let me leave even though I had class. It already makes me sad thinking about saying goodbye to these little angels when I head home.

Missing all of you back home! Love to you all,

Kasey

 

Days 28-31

Somehow you’ll escape all that waiting & staying

            You’ll find the bright places where Boom Bands are playing.

    With banner flip-flapping, once more you’ll ride high!

Ready for anything under the sky

                 Ready because you’re that kind of guy!

 

It hasn’t been a terribly exciting week except for the fact that I have officially made it a whole month here! When I first decided to go on this adventure it felt like it would never end & that I was going to be gone for a really long time, but now I wish I could just travel the rest of my life! Not that I don’t miss everyone at home, it’s just that traveling is so exciting. Seeing the way other people life & the cultures that make up this world is so fascinating. Africa is a pretty amazing continent, but I want to explore EVERYWHERE. If only I had the money to do that. Hopefully one day :)

Monday was a fairly relaxed day. I had class & then found out that my first package had finally arrived! I had waited a whole month for that thing so my friend Alex came along with me so that I didn’t have to go to a new part of town by myself. We took a tro tro to the post office & almost a full hour later we were at the post office. Ghanaian time is a funny thing. Usually it means they are late to everything!! But on that particular day, they were closing down early. It was about 3:40 & closing time was 4:00 & they wouldn’t give me my package. I was pretty upset at the time considering how long it took to get here & the hour long commute to pick it up so a few others who were there for the same reason argued them with me for about as long as it would have taken them to get me the package but we still all left empty handed.

It stormed all night long on Monday here & it actually woke me up. I never wake up to anything, so that goes to show how forceful the rain is here. Tuesday morning was very cool due to the storm the night before. I was so thankful for this because Monday was about 105° and I don’t think I will ever get used to that kind of heat. Especially with the humidity! At breakfast I met a local guy named Frank who sat down & ate with me. He was really pushing for me to join the international girls soccer team, but I really can’t imagine playing in this heat or finding the time. But he has asked me about it every time I’ve seen him since then so maybe I’ll have to check out practice one of these days. We had drumming class that morning & then I left for an afternoon at the orphanage. When I got there I helped Maxwell & Daniel with their homework for an hour or so & then we got to take the kids about a mile down the road, kids holding my hands & pulling on me the whole way, to a swimming pool & teach them how to swim! I guess 3 years of lifeguarding finally paid off since I never needed any of my skills at Riverside. Someone donated enough money for us to take 7 of them to the pool that afternoon. Many of them had never learned how to swim before so it was a little terrifying at times but it was a good experience in the end. 

 After swimming I went back to campus for one of my night classes. There were bugs everywhere. Literally everywhere, flying all around in the air & crawling all over the floor. I was squishing them all under my shoes because even though I’ve been here a month, it still grossed me out quite a bit. Then in the middle of lecture I noticed lizards crawling up the wall. I was a little bit distracted to say the least.

Wednesday morning I was at the orphanage again. We walk the kids down to the American International School for chapel on Wednesday mornings & it is so much fun! They all dance & sing & play games. The teachers there have so much energy & all the kids get really into it. One of the teachers was from the UK. I could listen to those accents all day so I decided my next big adventure has to be to London. Another teacher told a story from the gospel books & it was actually one that I had never fully understand myself so I learned a good Jesus lesson that day too!

 When we got back to the orphanage the kids had school. I normally teach the older kids but Silas, the little guy that’s almost 2 years old, wanted to be in the classroom that morning. So the director taught the kids & I played with Silas. We painted, I pushed him on the swing, & helped him out with some more 2-year-old toys. When they broke for lunch I went back to campus to complete the complicated process of registering. After running all around campus I think I figured it out, but I guess I’ll just have to see! Then I had a night class & picked up some “tantalizing” mango bread afterwards. It is mainly a biscuit with some mangoes in it, but it’s not spicy, so it’s not bad! I eat so many mangoes here. They are so good! I miss raspberries & strawberries a lot, but the mangoes will do for a few more months :)

This morning I went to the orphanage & taught the morning class. We went over some spelling words & took a math test of the 4 times tables. The kids have been working on a project where they draw a face & then write a little story describing the person they drew. It’s so fun to teach them. They are so excited & eager to learn. I love it when they call me “Miss Kasey” & ask how to spell things & to read their story just because they are proud of what they have written.  When they finished their stories we got to play bingo since the kids have been doing so well lately. After my work was finished there, I grabbed a cab to the tro tro station & gave the post office another shot. It was quite an experience. They needed my ID photocopied so I had to run over to the internet café to get that done & then I had to open the package in front of them so they could sort through all my things, all I really had in there was some shoes, shampoo, bug spray, sunscreen, contact lenses, & some food but they still have to look at all of it. It’s really odd. Then I have to pay them about 30 cedis to take the package home with me. It’s an odd process, but I finally have my things. I spent the afternoon relaxing after all of that. 

This morning one of my cab drivers had a blonde lock of hair hanging from his rear view. I thought it was definitely one of the oddest things I've ever seen until we were at a stoplight & he reached over & began to curl it. That took the prize.

One thing I have noticed here, with Ghana being a developing country, the currency exchange rate can change drastically overnight. When we arrived it was about 2.4 cedis to $1. At one point I saw that it was worth as little as 5 cedis to $1. This is convenient for me when I go to the ATM, but pretty upsetting for the country, though I guess that’s all part of the process.

Tomorrow the kids don’t have school so I will get to hang out with all of them at the orphanage, which I’m really excited about! Over the weekend I am going back to Cape Coast with my friend Brianne. She is from Bozeman, we grew up dancing together so I’m pretty excited to see a familiar face! Love to you all,

Kasey

Days 23-27

    "You will come to place where the streets are not marked.

Some windows are lighted. But mostly they're darked.

                 A place you could sprain both your elbow & chin!

     Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in?

How much can you lose? How much can you win?"

 

I have successfully survived my first REAL week of school in Ghana! It is much different than school in the states, but not in a bad way. Classes don’t start on time & the professor can decide to change the day & time we meet whenever they’d like to! Kind of crazy, but nothing I can’t live with.

Wednesday we began the day by touring another school that is much farther out of town but I also fell completely in love with it. They have nothing, but the children are so precious. I would love to volunteer there too, but with my school schedule & internship, I don’t think it’s possible. Then we went to an orphanage, but not the one I’m interning at. When we got back to the hostel a few of us went to East Legon, which is one of the “fancier” parts of the city. I was so excited to find a little place called Starbites that serves AMERICAN FOOD!! It was a very good day. I had a real smoothie & a real sandwich. I would go back for every meal, but it was a little pricier than my stipend allows. It was a nice treat though. I had class that night with a few other international students so it was nice to have someone to walk with. It’s a psychology class, abnormal behavior, and it was very different than I imagine it would be in the US. The very first question the professor asked was if people thought that homosexuality was a mental disease. This really took me back. In the US we’re fighting for gay marriages & most of the students here believe that it’s a mental disorder. These kinds of cultural differences really blow me away sometimes. I hope they grow out of this as a country & begin to accept everyone for who they truly are.

Thursday I spent most of my day at the orphanage & it was awesome. My internship is at the Beacon House Orphanage in Accra. When I first arrived everyone was running around frantically filling up every bucket they had full of water because they are going to be out of it for the next 2-3 weeks. Most of the kids go away for school during the day, but others have school at the orphanage. I teach the older group of kids (around age 10) in the mornings. There are 3 of them; Daniel, Maxwell, & Freda. Solo is 17, he is deaf & has selective mutism so he rarely talks. He is in the classroom with us but just sits in the back listening to headphones. The kids are about at a 2^nd grade level, and look more like 6 or 7 years old too due to malnutrition. After class the kids had lunch & then we played all afternoon. We mixed with kids of all ages so I got to play with the babies then!

After my full day with all the children I was exhausted. I went home & took a nap. Then I didn’t do much else for the rest of the day, because I don’t have class Thursdays.

Friday morning I went back to the orphanage. We were learning about friendship in the social studies portion of class. The kids had a book with questions in it that they had to answer about friendship. The first question was “Do you have friends?” Maxwell answered no to this question so we asked him why he said no & he told us because he doesn’t make friends anymore since they all leave him. It was so heartbreaking to hear that little guy say that. It is so hard to wrap my head around the fact that most of these kids will never have a real home or a real family. I look at these beautiful little kids & just can’t imagine how anyone ever gave them up. The worst part is, most kids in Ghana never get adopted. Heather, one of the directors at the orphanage, told me that because of the law policies in Ghana, most of them will stay at the orphanage until the are old enough to be on their own. I hate that so much. That’s why I want to do the legal work for international adoptions one day. It shouldn’t be that hard for these kids to get a family. There are tons of people out there that could give them an amazing home, even if those people don’t live in Ghana. Anyways, we finally convinced Maxwell that he had friends, even though this wasn’t easy. After class we had some free time so I got to play with the little ones again before I had to go back to campus. 

Here's two of the little guys, Prince & Silus. Prince is the taller one & also one of the lucky few that has been adopted! I'll miss his big personality but I'm so happy he'll have a family.

I had class that afternoon & then took a nap to rest up for the night. We went out for dinner & then went to a birthday party for one of the local guys that we know. It was pretty fun, but very different from going out at home. I prefer to stay in here but thought I should go since it was a birthday.

 Erin, Alex, me & Alicia at the birthday party. 

Saturday I slept in & then got some breakfast. I discovered that I like the pancakes at the hostel so I am making some food progress! They aren’t really pancakes, they are more like crepes. They remind me of my sister, except we always put food coloring in ours & these ones are boring colored. I took a tro tro to a market that day & got some gifts to bring back home for friends & family & a dress for myself. That night my friend Erin & I went to another movie & cooled off for a few hours. It was called About Last Night & it was pretty cute! A little on the vulgar side, but it ended well. Shopping & a movie on a Saturday, almost like I’m back at home :)… but they are both still so different.

Today a group of us went to a beautiful beach & spent the day laying in the sun & playing in the water. We attempted to get some food there but they barely had anything that they said was on the menu. That’s another thing here that is taking some getting used to. They don’t have much of what they say is offered. Regardless it was still a good way to relax for about 7 hours & prepare for another week of classes starting tomorrow morning! Love to you all,

Kasey

Days 19-22

It’s my second week of classes, and I have already attended more than I did last week. I suppose that is probably due to the fact that they actually happened this week! I have been here for about three weeks now & finally starting to feel like I am actually living here, not just on a vacation… unless you call another 16 weeks a vacation, but to me I am definitely living here.

Saturday I helped out at our director’s granddaughter’s fifth birthday party. It was so much fun! But definitely much more of a celebration than we have back home. The bus came at noon to go to the party & I wasn’t back at the hostel until 8 that night.

The birthday girl’s name was Myah & she was absolutely precious. I would say I played with babies much more than anything else, and also got some cake & ice cream out of it so it was a pretty good deal for me! We sang her the regular happy birthday song before she blew out her candles but they add on three more verses here. After the regular “Happy Birthday to you” they sing “how old are you now? How old are you now?...” with the same tune & then Myah responded “I’m 5 years old now, I’m 5 years old now…” And then we finished with “May God bless you now, may God bless you now…” I thought it was pretty cute & a great birthday wish as well. 

 "I'm 5 years old now!"

Sunday I wasn’t feeling too great, but the weather wasn’t great either. It poured rain & stormed nearly all day. I spent the day reading several different books & listening to the sermon online from my church at home since I wasn’t feeling well enough to attend church that day. I read parts of two Christian books (Not a Fan & The Resolution for Women) that a couple of friends gave me from home & the first half of a book called The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I also finally got to talk to my dad on the phone & my mom too, though we have talked a few times since I’ve been here :) It was really nice to talk to them. I miss them so much! 

Here is a picture I took of the rain that was inside the hostel, though it really doesn't do the weather here any justice at all.

Monday I was feeling much better and was wide awake by 4 am, so once the sun was up I set out for a run bringing some money with me so I could finish my run at the coffee place on campus & sip it while I walked back to the hostel. I guess I am becoming more & more like my mom everyday. On my run that morning I noticed a car slowing down right next to me & keeping the same pace as me which really creeped me out at first but when I looked over there was an older woman looking out of her window so I took out my headphone as she shouted “Oh, you running! That good fo you! Bye Bye!” I said thanks & laughed a little bit as she drove away.

I attended class later that day (I found the right building this time!) & was actually very fascinated by it. Luckily it was the first time the class met, so I didn’t miss anything last week. It’s a human development course so we started learning about gender roles in society & sexuality, which is very interesting when you’re in a whole different culture. When class ended all of the sudden about 20 Ghanaian girls were asking my name & wanting to be my friend. I even got asked to eat a traditional dish with them for lunch after class next week! So I guess the women aren’t so bad here after all. I couldn’t remember very many of their names, mostly because I can hardly understand anything anyone says to me here but I am starting to catch on to the accents a little more each day. One girl was shouting to all her friends “Come! Meet an obrani everyone, meet an obrani!” So I’m not sure if they actually want to be MY friend, or just friends with any obrani. Either way I was happy to be getting acquainted with some more locals.

I went back to my room where I spent the rest of the afternoon finishing The Fault in Our Stars, only taking a break to go get some fruit at the night market while my roommate napped & entertained herself on her computer. She also made dinner & gave me a plate. It was just some noodles & veggies so I figured I was safe to eat it. It was incredibly spicy, for my taste at least, but since she gave me a plate I toughed it out & ate it all while chugging about 2 whole water bottles to soothe the burning in my mouth.

This morning I woke up bright & early for dance class but unfortunately wasn’t able to take it due to a scheduling mishap, so I’ll have to shoot for another one later in the week or next week. Instead I just got some fruit for breakfast & killed the time before drumming class, which was awesome again. Our instructor danced around in the center while we drummed away & even the lizards came out to listen to the beat! This was definitely something new as most lizards I’d ever really encountered were locked in a glass box in someone’s basement.

After drumming I got even more fruit & rested a little before I braved my way out to my night class. I was starting to feel a little homesick & getting some culture shock, as well as starting to REALLY miss American food. But as I walked across campus into the sunset I was quickly reminded that I’m here in Africa for only four more months out of my entire life. I’m 21 years old & so incredibly blessed to be here & allow this opportunity to shape the person I will become. I have the rest of my life to eat good food & live with the beautiful mountains surrounded by all the familiar things that make it home. And I think that’s what makes this experience so amazing.

 

I got to class & was yet again the only white person. It was a psychology class with about 300 students. The teacher showed up about 20 minutes late & was very quick to ask me in front of everyone where I was from, though I didn’t mind. It was certainly keep my attendance rate for that class in good standing since it would be pretty obvious if I weren’t there. Though I think I would show up to every class anyways because he was an awesome professor. He was funny & engaging & helped two hours pass really quickly. He told me his English wasn’t great so to excuse him for that, definitely another first for me. I also had a few more students ask to be my friend so that was comforting.

I walked home in the dark by myself, but it actually wasn’t so bad. Even though the location is on the complete opposite side of campus, taking at least 30 minutes of walking to get there, there were many other students walking in the same direction so I felt safe.

An older woman named Auntie Louise is always out by our hostel selling some kind of dinner & “tantalizing” baked goods, as she says, though I’m not so sure I’d use that same word to describe them myself. I decided to use the money I could have spent on a cab to buy a muffin from her. It was 3 cedis, but I only had bigger bills so I gave her a 5 & told her to keep the change, which is not a common thing here. It’s actually so uncommon that her face lit up & she told me I was a blessing & to keep on blessing. Little does she know that people like her are way more of a blessing to people like me than I could ever be to them.

I ate part of the banana muffin I bought from her, but they are very dense and almost chewy in texture so I can only eat so much. Unfortunately we weren’t able to make it to the orphanage yesterday so we are headed there in the morning & I will hopefully finally have my schedule somewhat figured out. Love to you all,

Kasey