Operation Ghana

COUNTRY: Ghana
PROGRAM: UniBreak
PROJECT: Teaching & Health
WRITTEN BY: Eloise Davidson

Maaha everyone!

The plane touched down on Sunday, January 5th. Excited to be able stretch our legs Isobel, Laura and I braced the steamy heat for the first time! Thankfully we all made it through customs and security in one piece to join our two other traveling companions, Alex and Maddy. It was the beginning of our journey to Fel Care hostel.

The ride was such an eye opener to just how different Ghana is. The car was completely quiet as we looked in awe at the way some people live. Men, women and children came up to the car as we were stopped to offer us goods and everywhere vendors filled the dirt streets. After a windy journey through rough backstreets, we finally made it to the hostel and met Tina our “big black mama”.

After we had settled in we had lunch – spaghetti Bolognese and pineapple (YUM!), followed by a few hours rest before dinner. During dinner we met other volunteers and compared stories and discussed our expectations for the trip. After dinner most of us passed out like a log so poor Nicola only got a grumble when she arrived a bit later!

Monday flew by as everyone’s sleeping patterns were still so muddled we were all up and talking by six AM. Bravely we attempted a sponge bath with the bucket in the shower (some more successfully than others) and figured out how to get the toilet to flush! However, we all managed to agree on “if its yellow let it mellow, if it’s a two – flush the loo”. Before we knew it we were having breakfast and being briefed on some do’s and don’ts as well as learning twi (Ghana’s local language)!

We then journeyed to the bank to change our money into cedi. Note for future travellers: bring some US dollars just in case the MasterCard or visa doesn’t work out! When we got home we had lunch, bean curry and rice with fried plantain which is a cross between sweet potato and banana! After lunch we were lucky enough to be involved in an African drumming and dancing workshop. After we had worked up a huge sweat we then went to the beach and went swimming and made several new friends.

As mad Monday came to an end Tourist Tuesday started! Starting at the markets we were able to browse the beautiful selection of clothes, backpacks and hand carved accessories. Some of us were even brave enough to try the local food fufu (eaten with your hands!). From the markets we headed to Independence Square.

Later on Tourist Tuesday we were lucky enough to have a group of traditional drummers and dancers show us their moves. We were even invited to join in and shake our booty underneath the night sky.

Wednesday crept up and before we knew it we were on the road to Swedru. Once we arrived we were able to drive around town and visit the orphanage. So far it’s going to be hard to stay away. Alex and I are staying with our home mother Florence who is a nurse and has an actual shower! Unfortunately that didn’t last long – by the time the morning rolled around we were back to bucket showers!

Alex and I were then able to catch a taxi with our host mother Florence and meet Maddy at the hospital. From there we met the hospital coordinator and were shown around the hospital and all the different wards. From there Alex, Maddy and I made our way to the maternity ward where we were able to observe the midwives and nursing team and their roles during childbirth. Today we witnessed the birth of twins and a baby boy! Definitely an experience we will never forget!

The teaching team, made up of Isobel and Laura, were gobsmacked on their first day at the schools. As there is a festival on in Swedru at the moment there are no classes scheduled and they were able to play with the children ranging from 8-13years old for the day. Nicola shared similar experiences however she only dealt with 20 students ranging from 1-13 years old.

We have decided that our first getaway destination will be Busua Beach!

More to come so stay tuned, for now goodbye.

Yours,
The January Group.